Busy Lizzie

Busy Lizzie is not hardy and is killed by the first frost outdoors. Either treat it as an annual and raise new plants in spring, or bring pots and boxes indoors as early as September, as soon as it stays below 10 °C. In winter quarters, set it up bright and cool and keep the soil only moderately moist; alternatively, you overwinter rooted cuttings, which saves space.

Sowing (main method for varieties grown from seed): Sow from late January to early February in moist seed compost. Press the seeds down only lightly. They are light germinators and must not be covered with soil. Keep the soil evenly moist and provide a germination temperature of 20 to 25 °C, e.g. on a windowsill or under a clear propagator lid. Germination takes 10 to 14 days. After germination you can lower the temperature to 18 °C; after about 3 weeks you prick out the young plants into individual pots. From mid-May, when frosts are no longer a risk, they go outdoors.

Cuttings (keeping a variety true, also for overwintering): Cut healthy shoot tips 5 to 10 cm long; there should be at least one leaf node. Remove the lowest pair of leaves and all flower buds, so that the energy goes into root formation. Cuttings root either in a glass of clear water (2 to 3 weeks, change the water weekly) or directly in moist seed compost at 18 to 22 °C and high humidity under a clear propagator lid. The best time for autumn cuttings is August/September: the young plants overwinter indoors, bright and frost-free, and are ready to flower in spring.

Important for cuttings and overwintering: Take cuttings only from healthy mother plants. Busy Lizzie is highly susceptible to downy mildew (yellow, curling leaves, white coating on the underside of the leaves). The pathogen persists in the soil and on plant debris and spreads via diseased cuttings and overwintered plants. Do not plant in places where affected busy Lizzies stood the previous year, and dispose of diseased plants completely.