Fan flower (Scaevola aemula) is an excellent warmth local weather plant that is sometimes grown as a summer season annual. It is useful to develop in window bins, hanging baskets, containers, or as a border plant.
Even in case you’re a seasoned gardener, you may not of heard of scaevola. It is a relative new-comer to the yard scene.
Scaevola cultivars are well-liked inside the US because of their drought and heat tolerance and pest resistance.
In case you reside in a space with warmth summers, and are in quest of a plant to enliven the outdoor areas of your property, scaevola is an efficient different.
Protect learning to learn to develop this eye-catching magnificence that has the flexibleness to bloom inside the canine days of summer season.
Data about scaevola
Scaevola – (pronunciation see·VO·luh) is a sort of flowering plant with fan-shaped leaves that has a trailing habits correctly suited to hanging baskets.
Brush up in your information of scaevola with these gratifying particulars:
- botanical establish – Scaevola Aemula
- family – Goodeniaceae
- variety – evergreen tender perennial, sometimes grown as a trailing annual
- native to – Australia and Polynesia
- widespread names – fan flower, fairy fan flower, scaevola, half-flower, and naupaka (the plant’s Hawaiian establish)
- attracts – butterflies, bees, and completely different pollinating bugs.
One Hawaiian legend says {{that a}} girl tears the flowers of the fan flower plant in half after a lovers quarrel. The gods who grew to develop into angered turned all scaevola flowers into half flowers and made the individual search in ineffective for yet one more complete flower.
Fan flower moreover does correctly in coastal gardens because of they aren’t bothered by salty sea air.
For those who’re in quest of a flowering plant that may add a pop of coloration all summer season prolonged, scaevola is an efficient different.
Scaevola plant care
Fan flower is low-maintenance and easy to take care of. Observe these plant care concepts for best outcomes.
Temperature and daylight desires for fan flower
Scaevola likes at least 6-8 hours of photo voltaic a day. Some help from scorching afternoon photo voltaic is appreciated. Phrase that crops grown in shade will not flower as profusely.
Since these crops are native to Australia, they will develop correctly in warmth and scorching local weather. If the temperatures fall beneath 60° F, they will decelerate and even stop flowering.
Fan flower likes day time temperatures between 70° F and 85° F best, and temperatures of about 68° to 70° ranges F at night time time. Extreme humidity is helpful.
The thick stems assure drought tolerance in full photo voltaic locations, even in triple digit temperatures.
Plant scaevola inside the spring when the hazard of ultimate frost has handed and soil temperatures attain 65 ºF. Home them 12-18 inches apart to offer the plant room to unfold.
Watering requirements for scaevola plant
Scaevola is every heat and drought-tolerant which accounts for its enchantment to gardeners.
Don’t over-water fan flower. Water after which wait until the ground of the soil is dry sooner than watering as soon as extra.
Vegetation left to sit in moist soil can attraction to fungus gnats and is also susceptible to root rot.
In case you uncover that your fan flowers are wilting, merely give them a drink. It can quickly revive them.
A layer of mulch will help the soil retain moisture and in the reduction of the chances of weed progress.
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Fertilizing and soil desires for fan flower
Scaevola is not particular in regards to the sort of soil that it is grown in, as long as it has good drainage. A mix of normal potting soil with added sand is good for container crops.
In case your soil is very heavy or clay-like, compost or completely different pure matter might be added to make it drain larger.
The very best soil pH for scaevola is acidic. (5.5-6.0)
Scaevola crops require solely light feeding with a correctly balanced fertilizer as quickly as a month all through the rising season. Do not use fertilizers which have too extreme a phosphorous diploma. (the middle number of the trio of nutritional vitamins.)
Iron sulfate deepens the flower coloration when used as a fertilizer.
Scaevola flowers and foliage
The flowers of a scaevola plant look as if they have been decrease in half. The generic nickname “half-flower” means left handed in Latin. If scaevola is grown in a scorching and humid native climate, it produces a present of pretty fan-shaped flowers consistently from early summer season until the frost hits.
Fan flower is a sprawling plant with lanced-shaped or oval light inexperienced leaves with barely toothed margins on trailing stems.
The bloom time for fan flower is late spring by fall.
The dainty fan-shaped flowers of scaevola have 5 petals. They’re principally blue nonetheless will even be purple, pink and white. Luckily for a lot of who don’t choose to deadhead, fan flower is self-cleaning.
The flowers are about 2-inch in dimension. If the plant turns into leggy, pinch once more the stems to maintain up a compact progress habits.
Progress habits and mature dimension of fan flower plant
Scaevola is fast-growing plant and may attain a dimension of 9–18 in. tall, and 1–2 ft. huge.
The plant has a sprawling habits which makes it unfold merely and likewise makes it a wide selection for ground covers, rock gardens or hanging baskets.
Fan flower can get spindly as a result of the summer season progresses. Strain it to develop further thickly by pinching once more the stems. It may need exhausting pruning by mid summer season to stay bushy.
Use the pruned stem cuttings to propagate scaevola.
Points, illnesses and bugs that impact scaevola
Scaevola crops are sometimes problem-free they usually do not normally endure from pests and illnesses. In case your plant fails, it is likely because of over watering or poor soil drainage.
Mealybugs can usually be seen on scaevola, and too scorching temperatures may attraction to thrips.
Be careful of spraying fan flowers with pesticides for bugs. Scaevola is an efficient provide of nectar for butterflies.
These rising concepts for scaevola current that half a flower is more healthy than no flower the least bit! Throughout the case of fan flower, it is merely as nature supposed!
Is scaevola a perennial?
Scaevola crops grown in USDA chilly hardiness zones 9 to 11 are thought-about tender perennial. In colder zones, fan flower is grown as an annual.
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Scaevola propagation
Scaevola is usually purchased as a seedling inside the spring as quickly because the soil temperatures have completely warmed up. You can also develop scaevola from seeds started indoors in very early spring.
When sowing seeds indoors, guarantee that to maintain up a temperature between 70° to 75° ranges Fahrenheit until they take root. This can be anyplace from 30-60 days.
In case you’re planting scaevola seeds exterior, be certain that the soil has warmed sufficiently and there is no hazard of frost.
Once you’ve planted the seeds, cowl them with sandy loam.
Get new crops completely free by propagating scaevola from half ripe stem cuttings in late summer season. Let the cuttings dry out for a few days sooner than planting them.
Kinds of fan flower
Although a relative new-comer to gardens inside the US, scaevola is turning into more and more sought-after. Some well-liked scaevola varieties are:
- Scaevola ‘Blue Shock’ – Blue flowers, 6-8 inches tall.
- Scaevola ‘Bombay White’ – White flowers, 8- 12 inches tall.
- Scaevola ‘Fairy Pink’ – Pink flowers 6-10 inches tall.
- Scaevola ‘New Shock’ – Blue purple flowers, 8-14 inches tall.
- Scaevola ‘Pink Attract’ – Pink flowers, 4 inches tall and 5 inches huge.
- Scaevola ‘Whirlwind Blue’ – Blue flowers 8 – 14 inches tall.
- Scaevola ‘Scalora Pearl’ – White flowers 8 – 14 inches tall.
- Scaevola ‘Scampi Pink’ – Pink flowers 6-10 inches tall.
The place to buy scaevola
Check out your native Huge Discipline retailers and Walmart, early inside the spring to see within the occasion that they stock it. I’ve seen it on the Lowe’s site nonetheless not for on-line buying, so it might be obtainable of their retailers.
One different place to confirm is your native Farmer’s Market or small native nurseries to see in the event that they’ve scaevola seedlings.
In case you possibly can’t uncover one regionally, there are a few areas on-line to go looking out scaevola available on the market.
Would you desire a reminder of this submit for the best way take care of scaevola? Merely pin this image to at least one amongst your Pinterest gardening boards in an effort to easily uncover it later.
Admin observe: this submit for scaevola first appeared on the weblog in August of 2013. I’ve updated the submit in order so as to add new photos, a printable rising concepts card, and a video so to take pleasure in.
Energetic Time
half-hour
Complete Time
half-hour
Challenge
easy
Provides
- Scaevola seedlings
- Compost or pure matter
- Balanced fertilizer
Instructions
- Choose a spot that can get 6- 8 hours of daylight and somewhat little bit of afternoon shade.
- In case your soil is heavy clay, add compost or completely different pure matter.
- Home your crops 12-18 inches apart to offer them room to unfold.
- Water correctly until established. Then they’re drought-tolerant.
- Be careful to not overwater.
- Prune if the plant will get spindly. Laborious prune in late summer season to keep up a bushy plant.
- Propagate from half ripe stem cuttings.
- Bloom time is late spring by fall.
Useful Merchandise
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