The vanilla flower is a little plant miracle, because it not only decorates the garden and balcony with its beautiful flower umbels, but also spreads an extremely pleasant scent. When planted professionally, the beauty also known as heliotrope or solstice is quite easy to care for.
How to plant a vanilla flower correctly?
To properly plant the vanilla flower (heliotrope), choose a warm, bright location and well-drained substrate. Plant in spring when temperatures are above 5 degrees at night. Please ensure a planting distance of at least 20 cm.
Planting time
The vanilla flower is planted in spring. It is important that temperatures no longer fall below five degrees at night, as the plant is very sensitive to frost. This is also the right time if you want a potted solstice to decorate the balcony during the summer.
The Location
Heliotrope prefers a warm, sunny to partially shaded place. If there is a lack of light, the flower, which aligns its leaves and flowers according to the path of the sun, shows unsightly gail growth. The location should also be protected from rain and wind.
The substrate
The substrate should not be too nutrient-rich. Well-drained garden soil to which you add some sand is ideal. Commercially available potting soil (€10.00 on Amazon) is suitable for planting in balcony boxes. Be sure to ensure good drainage by filling a thin layer of expanded clay into the planter.
The planting distance
Heliotrope can reach a height of up to eighty centimeters in the garden. The planting distance should therefore not be less than twenty centimeters. Give the plants support as the stems easily bend under the weight of the heavy flower umbels.
The heyday
The solstice blooms persistently from May to October. If you break out dead flowers regularly, the vanilla flower will continually produce new buds.
The Multiplication
In gardening stores you can get high-quality seeds that germinate reliably. Cultivation should begin in January so that the small plants can be moved into the garden in the same year. Heliotrope is a light germinator, the germination time is about two weeks.
Transplanting in autumn
Since the solstice is very sensitive to frost, it is usually cultivated as an annual in our latitudes. However, it is possible to overwinter heliotrope indoors. It is important that you dig up the plants in good time, as temperatures below five degrees are difficult to tolerate.
Tip
If you want to propagate a vanilla flower that has been overwintered, you can do this very well with cuttings cut in spring. When placed in a suitable substrate, they grow roots quite quickly and develop into magnificent plants over the course of the summer.
