Gloxinia: New growth
By Greenthumb
- 1 Feb, 2010
- 9 likes
I really don't know what to do with this. These tall shoots are growing p and out, it hasn't died back. Should I give it a bigger pot and let it go, remove the shoot. I really am at a loss.
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Looks like it is GIlli. That must be why it didn't look exactly like other gloxinia I was finding. I let it rest with low water though not in a cooler spot after it flowered and it did nothing. Then this shoot started growing and I increased the water. WIth it actively growing, would it respond well to pushing it into dormancy. Will it die back entirely?
1 Feb, 2010
Hmmmm....You've got me there GT. I don't think it would die completely. I still think that if you can rest the tuber you'll have a larger plant and more flowers next time around. I believe they flower for 6 to 8 weeks at a time and then should go dormant.
I found this on a forum for Gesneriads......
"I find Sinningias to be very different from AV's in that they definitely want to dry out between waterings, and like a lot more sun than Saintpaulias. That's because they have a tuber for water storage, whereas the violets have no such adaptation to cycles of drought. I grow my best Gloxinias in almost full sun outside during the summer, storing the dormant tubers nearly dry in the unheated garage over the winter. I'd let this plant gradually dry out and exhume the tuber once dormancy occurs. If the tuber is firm, I'd repot it in a barely moist, freely draining mix (potting soil with additional perlite would work), leave the top of the tuber uncovered, and put it on a shelf in a cool, dry, shady place. When you see small, fuzzy leaves beginning to form again (timing of this can be unpredictable), top up the pot with mix and begin to water more, always allowing the mix to dry between waterings. Put the pot in full sun, or at least bright light, and it should produce a good show next time. Don't worry if the leaves wilt a bit during the heat of the day, and don't use this as an indication of when to water; it's best to see how the plant looks first thing in the AM, then water accordingly. It's even better to gage watering on the weight of the pot or by sticking a finger down into the soil."
4 Feb, 2010
I guess the question now is taking the new growth as cuttings and trying to put the rest to sleep, or grow on this spell and go dormant after the next flowering, hoping the tuber hasn't been used up. I've seen that with begonia. Thank you so much for all this info Gilli. :-)
5 Feb, 2010
Rooting the cuttings should be fairly easy....They are treated the same as AV's.....Good luck with it GT....let me know how things go.
5 Feb, 2010
An interesting discussion has been going on at one of the Yahoo groups I belong to. The group is Gesneriphiles and the discussion has been about how some Sinningias will form blind tubers from leaf cuttings and these tubers will never sprout.
Tip cuttings weren't mentioned, just leaf cuttings. I think the Sinningias which do this most frequently are the species hybrids rather than the florist gloxinias.
But if you find that your cutting forms a tuber and it doesn't sprout then this may be why.
8 Feb, 2010
Interesting. :-) Thank you.
9 Feb, 2010
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Is it a florist gloxinia (Sinningia speciosa hybrid)?
I would move it to a cooler spot and start holding back the water a bit and see if that nudges it into dormancy.
I wouldn't repot it as that may cause it to grow more.
1 Feb, 2010