I DO NOT know whether the first slipper-type gloxinia I acquired in 1941 is one of the original species, Sinningia speciosa, or one of the early hybrids from which the present-day gloxinias were developed.
But I do know that it is still a lovely plant, producing blossoms in great abundance, often from 50 to 100 at a time.
When it finishes blooming sometime in spring, I cut off all its leaves, except two, close to the stump. Within a few days, the plant sprouts and, by fall, is blossoming again!
The first time I pollinated it with some of my large-flowered hybrids, the resulting seedlings were so unimpressive I stopped working with them and devoted all my time and space to the large-flowered shorts.
But visitors calling at my greenhouse showed such keen interest in what they called the “new” gloxinia (not realizing it was nearer the original type than the popular ones) that my enthusiasm for it revived.
Remarkable Hybrids
I started hybridizing it again, and nature favored me, for during the last six years, I have had gratifying results.
First of all, the resulting plants have been nearly three times as large as the original blue slipper gloxinia, and the colors of the hybrids are outstanding.
One is a rose-red color. Another, named Smiling Queen, is pink with a white throat. I consider it one of my best and am increasing it from cuttings.
A purple slipper proved very popular until last year when a new, intense purple came along to eclipse it.
The newer one, called Midnight Queen, is the darkest gloxinia I have. There are also:
- Snow Queen, a pure white
- Blushing Queen, pink-tinted
- Queen Bee with bright pink cheeks on both sides of its throat,
- Several are speckled with purples and pinks
The Red Empress
The best I’ve saved for the last. One day, among a batch of mixed seedlings, I noticed a bright red one with heavily ruffled petals slightly lighter in color at the top.
Delighted, I picked it out of the crowded bench and gave it more favorable conditions for a second blossoming the next season.
It is my choicest gloxinia. Not one of the seedlings that have blossomed since it made its appearance three years ago even begins to rate with it! Its name? Red Empress.
These jewels are no harder to grow than the large-flowered imported sorts. Like them, they need enough light to keep from growing spindly and well-drained soil, rich in organic matter.
Growing Gloxinias
November is an ideal time to start gloxinias. During the growing period, they need a sunny window.
Later, particularly as the summer sun intensifies, they should be moved back a little. Large specimen plants should have at least 5-inch pots.
Tubers more than 2” inches across should be planted in even larger pots. I have several that occupy 8-inch pots!
Feeding with a liquid fertilizer at monthly intervals during the growing season is good, but over-feeding should be avoided.
As for water, the best method for an amateur to follow is to water the plants thoroughly from the top until the water runs out of the bottom of the pot.
Do not water the plant again until the surface of the soil is noticeably dry. This method should eliminate over-watering, which is often fatal.
44659 by Albert H. And Trudy E. Buell