This is a finely speckled hybrid that looks as though a mist 
All photos are of the author’s plants. 
of paint touched it. 
five inches across. 
For real houseplant beauty .. . 
Grow Gloxinias! 
By ALBERT H. BUELL, (Conn.) 
Paul F. Frese photos 
LOXINIAS, to my mind, are the 
most strikingly attractive and most 
nearly perfect of all houseplants. 
In fact, by comparison with them, many 
popular houseplants seem hardly worth 
growing at all! For color, size and num- 
ber of their flowers, they have few if 
any rivals, and for overall appearance of 
the plant they stand second to none. 
They are easily grown by any houseplant 
enthusiast, and yet growing them well 
requires sufficient skill to take them out 
of the sansevieria class and also affords 
the gratification of accomplishment. 
Gloxinias may be grown from young 
potted plants, from mature tubers, or 
from seed. Stocks may also be propa- 
gated by leaf cuttings. Large tubers 
planted in November will produce speci- 
men flowering plants the following 
spring. I have had as many as 74 flowers 
open at the same time on one of my 
slipper type varieties. I also had one 
outstanding plant that was continuously 
in flower for 14 weeks. For four weeks 
there were over eight blooms on it, and 
at the peak period there were 18 blooms 
open at the same time. This plant had 
flowers measuring from 4 to 5 inches in 
diameter. 
The soil in which gloxinias are planted 
should be coarse, fibrous: and rich in 
organic matter, that is, manure, leaf- 
mold or compost. I have done consider- 
able experimenting with soil mixtures 
and believe I have developed a mixture 
that is almost perfectly suited to gloxinia 
culture. However. it would be difficult 
for most people to duplicate this mix- 
ture, unless they have access to a farm. 
I make a compost pile of cornstocks, 
leaves, bull manure, and sod. I cannot 
say what the proportions are, as no two 
piles are exactly the same. The essential 
thing, though, is that the mixture be 
rich and fibrous. 
About an inch of charcoal in the bot- 
tom of the pots makes ideal drainage 
material. For tubers under 11% inches in 
diameter, 5-inch pots are the right size. 
Larger tubers, however, need larger 
pots. Gloxinias do not like the tempera- 
The seedling hybrid, above, is a ruffled red with blooms about 
The same type is also found in purple. 
Gloxinia leaves are rooted in damp sand 
with two inches of stem below surface. 
Strings across bench support the leaves. 
e@ e e 
ture to drop below -60° at night, and a 
62° night temperature seems to. suit 
them perfectly. Contrary to the advice 
of some gloxinia authorities, I always 
water my plants at the surface of the 
soil. I apply water until it runs out the 
bottom of the pot and do not water 
again until the soil at the surface begins 
to show signs of dryness. In this way, 
the soil never becomes waterlogged, a 
ccndition which is often the cause of 
bud-blasting. 
During the winter, gloxinias require 
just about all the light that can be given 
them. This is especially true of some 
varieties that have a tendency to grow 
leggy. During the summer they require 
some shade, especially if grown in a 
greenhouse. I try to hit the “happy 
medium’—enough: light so that the 
