The second instalment of the Root Awakening column for month of July 09 provided answers to three gardening questions. The first question was about the growing of petunias. Petunias are herbaceous members of the Solanaceae family. They are usually treated as annuals where they are usually discarded after flowering because plants tend to become straggly and lose their vigour after some time. They are direct sun-lovers and need to be watered and fertilised regularly during the active growing and flowering period.
The question enquired on the successful growing of bougainvilleas. These woody shrubs are very popular flowering plants for a long time. Plants can be grown inside large containers of soil indefinitely as long as they are well-fertilised and the gardener has to ensure that the soil is well aerated after some time as soil tends to compact over time. Compacted soil devoids the plant of root growth space and air, and makes penetration of water difficult. Bougainvilleas are also sun-lovers and need to be grown under direct sunshine.
The last question asked how one can grow his/her own hydroculture plant. There are ready kits that can be bought from the local nursery. The most famous is perhaps the Luwasa hydroculture system. To grow plants using this system, it is best to start new plants from cuttings in hydroculture or buy plants already established and adapted to the hydroculture growing environment. Transplanting a soil-grown plant and washing its roots can be a traumatic experience for some plants and not all will take such an operation well.
