Portulaca care in pots

 

Portulaca also known as moss rose plant is another easy to grow succulent you can easily plant in containers and sometimes watch the foliage disappear.

The plant flower in a wide range of colors and it also comes in white and warm colors. The plant flower colors are pink, yellow, fuchsia, peach, orange, magenta, red, lavender and purple. The portulaca standard plant blooms open in full sunlight and also close at night on clouded days. There are some new cultivars that have blooms that will open slightly during cloudy conditions. Portulaca plant also takes full sun and hot summer temperatures while continuing to bloom and reseed.

How to Plant Portulaca in Containers

Portulaca is a summer annual plant that can reach about six inches in height when the branches begin to spread from the center and trail over the sides. Make sure you choose a white container or porous terra cotta pot so as not to detract from the beauty of the blooms. You can start your containers from seed for the best color selection. You can mix the tiny seeds with coarse sand to make them easier to spread. Make sure you cover lightly with less than half an inch of the sand or don’t cover at all if birds cannot get to the seeds. The Portulaca seeds actually need light to germinate. Make sure you keep them moist until they sprout in 1 to 4 weeks. This plant in containers is easily started from cuttings too. Make sure you choose from newer varieties with larger blooms. Some of the newer varieties are double flowering. You can select from the ‘Calpyso Mix’, ‘Mojave’ series, or the ‘Happy Hour’ series, which has the earliest bloom.

How to care for Potted Portulaca

Portulaca is drought resistant, so you don’t actually have to worry about missing watering. On like any other containerized plants, Portulaca needs more water in a pot than those planted in the ground. Actually regular water helps to provide more abundant blooms, although regular watering for this plant may be just every other week or even less. The succulent foliage really stores water well and it has a small root zone. Make sure you plant in well-draining soil and allow it to dry out before watering again. Apart from the occasional need for water, this plant care is minimal. Pruning and deadheading are not required for this plant in the pot.  Pruning the seedpods helps keep the Portulaca plant from dropping seed, if the Portulaca plant is outgrowing companion plants in the pot. You can fertilize the plant lightly if flowering appears slow. A good trim of the plant towards the end of summer will really reward you with a new flush of flowers.