Vinca Growing Information
Growing Information:
A Native to India, Vinca is extremely heat and drought tolerant.
Sow to Transplant : 25-30 days
First Flowers : 335-40 days after transplant.
Types of Vinca :
1. Hanging – Trailing Type
Mediterranean Series
A very popular series of trailing Vinca. The lush, free-flowering plants bloom early with an extensive color range. Outstanding tin sunny, hot and dry conditions. “Mediterranean” vigorous basal branching and blooms with overlapping petals.
2. Pot – Upright Type
F1 MEGA BLOOM Series
MEGA BLOOM was bred by “AMERISEED” and has enormous flowers of up to 8 cms. in diameter. MEGA BLOOM has fast and high germination and has the best heat and disease tolerance of all Vinca varieties.
TROPIC Series
With its wide range of colors and a compact bushy habit, “Tropic” has been the choice Open Pollinated (OP) variety for most growers in Asia. “TROPIC” is suitable for regions with warm climates for both lowland and highland areas. “Tropic” is early flowering with medium sized flowers and is suitable for bedding and landscapes.
KING KONG Series
A good Hybrid Vinca, “King Kong” has reasonable heat, cold and disease tolerance. Plants are compact and uniform. Early to flower with good seed quality and germination.
Sowing Technique
Vinca seeds are black. Mix seed with white baby/ talcum powder so you can see the seeds sown on dark media.
Sow using a 200 or 288 hole plug tray. Use peat moss sowing media.
Media
Sowing Media
Tray 200 - 288
Plug Fertilizer
Why use a plug tray?
Plug trays help produce a vigorous seedling with a good root ball allowing easy transplanting.
How to sow
1. Mixed seeds with white baby powder/ talcum
2. Add water to media, wet, but not saturated (Level 4)
3. Spread media over the tray but do not compress into the holes
4. Make a 0.5 cm. impression in the media in each hole.
5. Place one seed in the center of each depression
6. Lightly cover seeds with fine media
7. Spray a fungicide to prevent damping off cause by Pythium
STAGE 1 (3-4 DAYS)
STAGE 2 (4-7 DAYS)
STAGE 3 (7-12 DAYS)
STAGE 4 (12-30 DAYS)
Transplanting stage
Pots – 3-4 weeks after sowing when there is a good root ball holding the media together.
Media Preparation
Media pH 7.0 and free of weed seeds, soil borne disease and insect contamination.
Media
| Cocopeat | 180 Liter |
| Sand | 60 Liter |
| Dolomite | 500 grams |
| Slow- release fertilizer (SRF) | 250 grams |
| Ferrous Sulphate | 500 grams |
** Soak Cocopeat in water for 1 night to reduce the EC / salt content **
Transplanting Information Irrigate
irrigate once a day in early morning irrigation. Allow media surface to dry slightly to improve rooting. When flowers appear do not allow irrigation water to contact petals.
Liquid Fertilizer after Transplanting :
Optimal N-P-K ratio 2:1:3
Do not use Ammonium based Nitrogen fertilizers, as this type of Nitrogen allows the plant to strech and become too “LUSH”.Use Nitrate based Nitrogen Fertilizers.
Fertilizer Method
1. Liquid Fertilizer
| Liquid Fertilizer | Liquid Fertilizer
(rate per 100 liter of water) |
|
| N : P: K | Quantity | Timing |
| 15-0-0 (Calcium Nitrate) | 70 Grams | Once a day for 6 days. |
| 0-52-34 (Mono Potassium Phosphate) | 33 Grams | days 7 only use water … |
| 13-0-46 (Potassium Nitrate) | 35 Grams | to flush out accumulated salts |
| Ferrous Sulphate | 10 Grams | |
| Micronutrient | As per label instruction |
2. Granular Fertilizer
Apply 1 – 2 times per week around the outer adge of the pot. do not allow granules touch the plant.
Tips: Apply fertilizer 1 week after transplant and cover with media to prevent volatilization
Granular Fertilizer
| N : P : K | Quantity | Timing |
| 15-15-15 | 2.5 grams/pot | Apply twice a week
from first week after transplant to flower bud formation |
| 13-13-21 (High Potassium) | 5 grams/pot | Apply 1-2 times a week
from flower bud formation |
Pinching Tips
Pinching helps produce bushier plants with more flowers. Pinch one for upright types. Pinch twice for Trailing types.
First pinching : (Pot & Trailing) 15 days after transplant at 2-3 true leaf stage.
Second pinching : (Trailing) 30 days after 1st pinch.
Before First pinching
After first pinching
Plant form for second pinching
Yellow Leaves
Yellow Leaves :
Iron deficiency is a common cause of yellow leaves (interveinal chlorosis). Apply ferrous sulphate 2.5 gram mixed with 1 liter of water. Apply 100- 150 cc. to the media around the plant avoiding direct contact with leaves.
Pest and Disease
Disease : Phytophthora Stem Blight + Root Rot
Pythium Root Rot
Leaf spot diseases
Rhizoetonia Stem + Root Rot
Gray mould (Botrytis Blight)
Black Root Rot
Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus (TSWV)
See : https://hgic.clemson.edu/factsheet/vinca-diseases/
Pest : Thrips, Red Spider Mite
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