How can i grow my busy lizzie to look haelthy and bushy?

Question:

Answers:
I'm not sure whether your busy Lizzie is a houseplant, or grown for summer garden colour. Either way, I do really well with mine when they are very well watered, and fed once a week or so with a good general fertilizer - it's your choice which brand etc, and I've used a range and got comparable good results from all of them, including miracle grow.

Watch out for aphids - greenfly etc, and spray at first sighting with diluted washing up liquid etc. which kills those it touches: it doesn't kill any eggs that have already been laid though, so repeat sprayings are required. You can also import some lady bugs onto the plant - just don't spray these, as they will die too!

When I plant into my summer beds, I always incorporate some well rotted manure and/or compost first, as this helps the plant remain in a water retaining soil.

They won't take any freezing weather, but can be lifted for the winter, as a house, conservatory plant etc. Otherwise, they readily root in some water, if you take cuttings that are 3 inches long or so. Then you'll have a lovely family of them. They will grow in good bright semi-shaded positions, though avoiding too much direct sun, when indoors, can be really helpful for them. Too little sun and blooming reduces, though one of the best flowering bedding plants for shady areas too.

Take away any dead flowers, and leaves - removing spent flowers helps them put more energy into new flower growth, not into seed production.

Good luck! Rob