Cultivation difficulty level: S-class! They won’t sprout, they won’t grow… Once you overcome such difficulties, the beauty of the single flower you see is exceptional!
Misha: This time we’ll try growing eustoma.
Hachibee: Eustoma! It’s a flower that even professional growers say is difficult to grow, right!?
Misha: That’s right, it’s true. Lisianthus is difficult to grow, but that’s why I think the joy when you succeed is all the more intense. I also think it’s a journey to explore the depths of nature.
Hachibee: I see, so this “I tried growing it” has finally become a philosophical discussion. It feels like an endless thorny path, but let’s give it a try!
Eustoma “Almost weekly” cultivation report
10/22 Planting
Misha: Eustoma seeds are as delicate as grains of sand, so we often make them into pellets so they are easier to sow like this.
Hachibee: Just from the seeds you can tell how difficult it will be.
10/29 Not yet sprouted
Hachibee: Hmm.
11/5 No germination
Hachibee: Hmmmmm!
Misha: This is the first challenge in growing Eustoma. You have to endure the anxiety of it not sprouting. In fact, there are many cases where the new shoots never appear, so this is the most difficult part. Keep the temperature warm and wait patiently.
11/12 Buds appear
Hachibee: There it is!
Misha: It took half a month to finally grow. It was a moment of relief from the worry that the tiny seeds had already dissolved in the soil.
11/19 The buds do not grow
Hachibee: Oh? The seeds have sprouted, but they aren’t growing at all.
11/26 Buds, unchanged
Hachibee: The buds have opened up and are starting to spread!
Misha: This is the second challenge in growing lisianthus. Will the new shoots take root? Let’s keep watching them patiently so they don’t run out of steam.
12/3 New leaves start to appear
Hachibee: The leaves are finally starting to grow! It’s been almost a month since they sprouted and they still haven’t grown anything.
12/10 Growth stops again
Hachibee: The new leaves aren’t getting any bigger…or rather, they’re getting smaller?
Misha: The key to growing lisianthus is being able to keep up with its slow growth speed. In a way, it’s a perfect example of the slow life.
12/24 Leaves grow a little
Hachibee: The new leaves have finally started to grow. But overall they’re still tiny, less than half the size of a grain of rice.
12/31 Growth stops
Hachibee: Oh my gosh.
1/7 Growth has stopped
Hachibee: I bet he didn’t even hear “Happy New Year”? Maybe he’s hibernating?
1/14 Dormant
Hachibee: Hmmmmm.
1/21 Unchanged
Hachibee: Is it hibernating? When I look at Eustoma, I feel like I lose all sense of time.
Misha: It really is a time-traveling flower.
1/28 Unchanged
Hachibee: Hmmmmmmm!
2/4 On hiatus
Hachibee: It’s like time has stopped.
Misha: It’s the coldest time of the year right now, but it’s pretty hard for it to survive the winter with just these four small leaves. If there’s frost, it’s dead. You have to keep the temperature in check indoors.
2/11 The leaves grow longer
Hachibee: Hmm, spring is just around the corner.
2/18 The leaves start to plump up a little.
Hachibee: Oh! Has it finally woken up from hibernation?
Misha: You sensed that the sun was starting to get a little warmer during the day.
2/25 The leaves begin to grow
Hachibee: The leaves are starting to turn up!
3/3 Leaves growing
Hachibee: Wow, the leaves are growing! I’m so glad it’s still alive!
Misha: It’s been about three months since the growth stopped in December of last year. The lisianthus leaves and those who looked after them have been very patient. This is the third hurdle in growing lisianthus: overwintering. It’s important to continue to control the temperature and provide moisture.
3/10 The leaves grow little by little
Hachibee: Well, even so, they’re growing very slowly.
3/17 The tips of the leaves are sharp
Hachibee: Eustoma’s personality is starting to come out a lot.
3/24 The leaves start to grow
Hachibee: Wow! Leaves are starting to grow!
Misha: It’ll finally be April next week. Eustoma is also feeling the full force of spring.
4/7 The leaves start to grow
Hachibee: The color of the leaves has become deeper.
4/14 Leaves growing
Hachibee: The leaves are starting to grow.
Misha: The whole plant has become much firmer and more stable.
4/21 Increased growth rate
Hachibee: It looks like it’s grown into a fine seedling.
Misha: Let’s replant it in a bigger planter around here.
4/28 Stems begin to emerge
Hachibee: This is an amazing change!
Misha: It’s finally starting to grow upwards.
5/5 The stem grows
Hachibee: The leaves are rising higher and higher! Wow, how exciting!
5/12 A little assist
Hachibee: I gave the stem a little assist.
Misha: But I was relieved to see that the stems were surprisingly sturdy.
5/19 The stem grows further
Hachibee: Good, good!
5/26 Leaves grow at regular intervals
Hachibee: As the stems grow, the leaves are becoming neatly aligned.
Misha: It feels like the basic form of Eustoma has been mastered.
6/2 The stems grow and more leaves appear
Hachibee: Before you know it, it’s become a tower!
Misha: It’s like the stagnation of the winter was a lie, the growth is incredible.
6/9 The grass height is uniform.
Hachibee: Even the plants that were growing slowly are starting to grow.
Misha: The grass height seems to be uniform at about 40 to 50 cm.
6/16 The stems are thick and uniform in height
Hachibee: That’s a unique geometric shape, Eustoma.
Misha: It feels a bit strange. It’s like looking at an abstract painting.
6/23 Buds appear
Hachibee: There it is!!
Misha: It’s just peeking out from the top of the stem.
6/30 More buds appear
Hachibee: The flower stalk has grown a lot.
7/7 Flowers begin to bloom
Hachibee: The flowers are starting to bloom! I’m so excited.
Misha: It’s been nine months since we planted the seeds… It’s been a long, long journey, but the excitement I feel makes up for all the hard work.
7/14 Bloom
Hachibee: The flowers have bloomed! What beautiful flowers.
Misha: This lisianthus has a single flower with pink and purple edges, making it a simple type, but it has an elegant and pretty appearance.
7/21 Full bloom
Hachibee: They’ve all bloomed at once! It’s so gorgeous!
Misha: They’re so gorgeous, just like lisianthus. As the flowers ripen, the petals start to develop pleats, making them even more gorgeous.
7/28 End of flower
Hachibee: The flowers wither away in the blink of an eye… flowers have a short life.
Misha: After a long, long period of hard work, they bloom beautifully for just a moment and then die. Lisianthus is like a star on the silver screen.
8/4 The leaves are white and losing color
Hachibee: Ah, it’s like Eustoma’s soul is leaving his body.
8/11 Fruit begins to grow where the flowers left
Hachibee: Only the fruit part is still green.
Misha: It really feels like a place that connects life. It feels mysterious.
8/18 The End
Hachibee: Eustoma’s life ended in the middle of a hot, hot summer.
Misha: From the winter when it only had four leaves a few millimeters long, to the spring when it showed vigorous growth, and then those gorgeous early summer flowers. It felt like I was enjoying a magnificent story, like a symphony. In the end, all that’s left is this seed, like a grain of sand. Let’s enjoy it again next year.
~ Tips on growing Eustoma ~
Difficulty of cultivation：★★★★★
It has a low germination rate and is a difficult flower that takes months to grow from its cotyledons.
It is difficult to control the temperature and humidity, but once you get the hang of giving it the right environment, the joy of making it bloom is even greater.
It will reward you with elegant and pretty flowers.
