Florist's cineraria is a flowering plant of the daisy family, a hybrid of two Canary Island species, grown for its bright daisy-like blooms in pots. It needs cool, bright conditions and consistent moisture, and is usually treated as a short-lived pot plant.
Family
Asteraceae (Daisy family)
Light
Part shade, Bright indirect
Water
Keep the soil evenly moist and never let it dry out; water from below or at the soil level.
Soil
Well-drained loam-based mix with leaf mould and some sand.
Temperature
10–18 °C is ideal; protect from frost and cold draughts, and avoid prolonged heat.
How easy
Moderate
About
Pericallis × hybrida, known as cineraria, florist's cineraria or common ragwort is a flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. It originated as a hybrid between Pericallis cruenta and P. lanata, both natives of the Canary Islands. The hybrid was first developed in the British royal gardens in 1777. It was originally known as Cineraria × hybrida, but the genus Cineraria is now restricted to a group of South African species, with the Canary Island species being transferred to the genus Pericallis; some botanists also treat it in a broad view of the large and widespread genus Senecio. Some varieties are sold under the trade name Senetti.
How to grow it
Florist's cinerarias can be raised freely from seeds. For spring flowering the seeds are sown in mid spring in well-drained pots or pans, in soil of three parts loam to two parts leaf mould, with one-sixth sand; cover the seed thinly with fine soil, and press the surface firm.
When the seedlings are large enough to handle, prick them out in pans or pots of similar soil, and when more advanced pot them singly in 10 cm pots, using soil a trifle less sandy. They should be grown in shallow frames facing the north. If so situated that the sun shines upon the plants in the middle of the day, they must be slightly shaded; give plenty of air, and never allow them to get dry. When well established with roots, shift them into 15 cm pots, which should be liberally supplied with manure water as they get filled with roots.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Pericallis × hybrida by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.