Gesneriaceae

The Gesneriaceae family. The Gesneriaceae family in indoor cultivation is mostly represented by profusely flowering plants. An advantage of this family is their great diversity (for example, dozens of varieties of Saintpaulias and gloxinias have been bred and continue to appear); many of them are compact in size, which allows keeping a whole collection at home, and they are also fairly easy to propagate.

An important advantage is that gesneriads easily overwinter under indoor conditions.
Gesneriads are divided into two groups - tuberous and non-tuberous (with rhizomes). For gesneriads that have a resting period in winter, tubers are stored in dry sand in a warm place. Rhizomes are also stored in a warm place, but the sand is sometimes moistened.



Warm conditions and a winter minimum of 17-18°C are suitable for most of them, but there are plants among them for which flowering requires a winter reduction of temperature to 12-13°C (for example, Streptocarpus).

They require shading from hot summer sun; the light should be bright and diffused. In winter, natural lighting may be insufficient if the plant stands, for example, on an east- or north-facing window; in this case leaf rosettes become loose, shoots elongate, leaves sit on excessively long stalks, and new leaves are small.

Gesneriads like humid air, but water on the leaves is undesirable. It is better to place pots with plants on trays with wet pebbles. You can mist, for example, on very hot summer days, but only if the plant is in the shade, and using a very fine sprayer humidify the air around the plants rather than spraying the leaves themselves.

Water plants with warm or room-temperature water, avoiding overwatering or drying out the root ball.

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