Streptocarpus Ladyslippers®

Streptocarpus Cultural Worksheet

Streptocarpus ‘Ladyslippers™’ – Vegetative Liners from Tissue Culture

Production Seasons:
Rooted Liners Only
Can be grown in 6” to 12” pots for weekly sales or for spring production, combination baskets or patio containers.

New colors include Pink Halo, Pinot and Scarlet

These selections have larger flower count per plant plus an improved plant form with more leaves per plant and smaller leaf size.

Crop planning from cell packs:
Pot size: Plants per pot (pp) Crop Time (weeks)
4” (10 cm) 1 pp 7 to 9
6” (15 cm) 1 or 2 pp 12 to 14

Light Level: 1,000 to 1,500 foot-candle and slightly lower during summer conditions.
Key is to keep leaf temperatures at minimum to prevent scalding or damage due to high leaf temperatures. Also, keep leaf temperature and irrigation water temperature differences at a minimum so not to damage leaf cells. Treat Streptocarpus like African Violets in management of light and temperatures. Sub irrigation is best for watering during the winter months in order to keep cold water from leaves and yellowing from cold temperature on warm leaves.

Temperature:
Night temperatures 65° to 68°F (18°-20°C)
Day temperatures at 65° to 80°F (18°-27°C)
Warm day temperatures above 95°F will cause yellowing of foliage color and reduce flower size and longevity. Cooler temperatures will create much longer growing period and other plant physiological troubles of roots and/or leaves.

Media & pH: Allow soil to dry to ‘damp’ condition between irrigation. Sub-irrigation is the best form of irrigation to keep water off leaves and flowers. In the afternoon, vent to help keep humidity levels low going into the evenings to control disease.

Fertilizer Requirements: 100 to 125 PPM N using a balanced feed to maintain color of foliage. No Ammonium feeds (Ca and K Nitrate based feeds are best) help eliminate stretch and poor growth under lower light conditions. Include Micro element source as part of fertilizer solution. Limiting the amount of feed applied will eliminate salt build-up and possible damage to roots. Maintain EC at approximately 0.8 to 1.0mmhos. 6.0 is a proper pH for Streptocarpus.

Pinching Requirement: These varieties will flower early – the varieties will be smaller in size when they start to flower so remove flowers for 3 to 4 weeks to keep plants clean and help promote growth of plants.

Transplanting: When transplanting, the top of the liner should not be buried below new soil level. If crown of plant is buried, plant growth will be slowed, delayed or crown will rot. If the top of the liner is planted too high, finished plant may become floppy.

Growth Regulators: Spray applications of Sumagic or B-9 are effective without concern of stunted growth. Use at label rates.

Pests/Disease: Aphids, Thrips, Whitefly and Mealy bugs.
Botrytis and Crown Rot are the most prevalent problems.
Preventative drenches / sprays of broad spectrum fungicides are recommended to high quality crops.