It's finally here! We have all waited too long for a Calibrachoa we could start from seed, instead of paying those high prices for plants (and being dependent on whatever colors and varieties happened to be available)! Now there is Kabloom?, the first-ever series that grows from seed. And HOW it grows -- you'll see the first blooms about 4 months after sowing the seeds, and the plants are super-healthy, vigorous, and flower-filled.
Kabloom? (love the name) is a trailing variety with absolutely nonstop flowers all summer long -- and even earlier in warm areas, of course. The flowers self-clean, which we really appreciate, and the center of the plant remains fresh and full even in August, after several months of constant flowering.
Just made for containers of all kinds (but especially those that allow room for the flowering stems to cascade over the sides attractively, tossing up blooms as they please), Kabloom? reaches about 8 to 12 inches high and 10 to 14 inches wide. It seems much longer than it really is, and the height of the plant gives it a nice fullness that many prostrate or spreading varieties lack, especially toward summer's end when they are about "flowered out."
These beautiful cherry blooms are an unusual and very pleasing color in the garden. They won't fade in the summer sun, and butterflies and bees will visit them frequently! Use them with blue, purple, and white flowers in the summer garden and on the patio. So pretty, and such a hard shade to find!
Like all Million Bells, Kabloom? does best in moist, well-drained soil or name-brand potting mix. Although it is very tolerant of heat, humidity, and drought, keep it well watered and fed, especially during the spring growing season. It likes a high-iron fertilizer, but does just fine with any good all-purpose feed. This plant can and will tolerate a lot of adversity, outlasting even Petunias, Geraniums, and other hot-summer-weather standouts. So treat it well as it grows in order to send it into the stressful summer months with a great start!
Here's how to sow the seeds: they will germinate either with or without light, so begin them indoors in late winter, setting a single seed on top of the bio sponge in your Bio Dome or on top of the grow mix in your seed flats. Keep the temperature between 72 and 75 degrees F, and make sure the bio sponge or grow mix is slightly moist. Germination takes about a week.
Once the seeds have sprouted, add light and keep the temperature above 70 for the first few weeks. They are ready to transplant when they have several sets of true leaves. That's all there is to it!
Add unforgettable color to your hanging baskets, window boxes, and planters of all kinds with Kabloom?! It's so nice to have a reliable, inexpensive way to grow this hot-summer annual delight! Packet is 10 seeds.
