Growing Petunias in Bangalore (Part I)

Here is the first experience about growing potted Petunias in Bangalore.

I first tried getting seeds and doing it the hard way - but I chose the path to getting wilted little plants. This was a long time ago.

Once we moved in to our renovated flat, the little balcony simply demanded to be brightened up by flowers. And what better than colourful, vibrant petunias. Now that I quickly wanted a colourful balcony (which is connected to N's playroom), I chose the easy way out - I bought them.

Ambara beside the Ulsoor lake in Bangalore hosts an Indo-American nursery with a wide variety of green and flowering plants. Most are very affordable. Last winter when I bought the petunias they varied between Rs. 25/- to Rs. 35/- a pot.

Petunias need loads of direct sunlight ( about 4-6 hours per day) and regular watering - but don't overdo the watering bit. The soil in the pot was a mixture of compost, and gravelly sand (a fair amount). The plants lasted me a good 4-6 months. Here are some instructions on caring for them:

1. Place them in an area which receives direct sunlight for about 4-6 hours a day
2. Water regularly - daily or twice a day, depending on the weather, or they will just shrivel up and die ( and I mean the whole plant :-()
3. It may be painful to do this, but you need to dehead them (nip away the dead flowers, and some of the stalk, to prevent it from growing long and gangly. Else you will not have a well rounded plant. You can wait till you see some of the plant beginning to grow "tall" - this indicates that its time for a pruning.
4. Once the plant is pretty mature, watch out for the tiny black seeds which will be left behind, once the flowers have started to fall out. Collect the dry seeds: - you can put them in empty pots. This time, I could grow the seeds and get good, strong plants (that will be the next post a while later, once I figure out the right way to do it). This was primarily because I had the right soil mixture from the nursery.


If you have the space, opt for large, round or flat containers and transplant the young petunias to these. They look awesome and add a significant amount of colour to your garden!