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Florists especially appreciate the unpretentious perennials, which year after year decorate the site with bright quivering inflorescences. Such cultures include astilba, planting and care in the open field for which no beginner will make it harder.
It is only once to see the openwork foliage and lush inflorescences like airy foam above it, forgetting the appearance of a perennial ornamental plant is no longer possible! Even outside the flowering season, astilbe is graceful and attractive. It is not surprising that the plant is becoming increasingly popular among gardeners from various regions of the country. There are flower enthusiasts, for example, in Siberia, where it would seem that one can only dream of planting and caring for astilba.
In order for the beauties who appeared on the site to feel comfortable, grow and bloom for the joy of the owners, you need to know something about the culture itself and the conditions acceptable to it.
Garden beauty astilbe
Astilbe is a grassy ornamental perennial, various species of which came from Asia and North America. Depending on the cultivated variety, plant height can vary from 20 cm to 2 meters, the shades of tiny flowers collected in paniculate inflorescences are incredibly diverse. Successfully selected plants will cover the garden with a cloud of milestone shades of white, pink, red, purple and lilac. Leaves, like inflorescences decorative. Not only do they have a refined falsely dissected shape, the color of the leaf plates varies from the usual green to burgundy or purple-blue.
If you put a little effort in the cultivation and care, astilba, as in the photo, from June to August will surprise with a friendly and long flowering.
Astilba in the open field - a very grateful plant, perfectly responding to attention, proper selection of the site for planting and fatigued care. This is one of the few cultures that not only tolerate, but also prefer penumbra. Astilba has very few enemies in the garden, and the flower is rarely affected by diseases.
When planting astilba in open ground: in spring or autumn
After hibernation, the plant wakes up somewhat later than the rest of perennials. In order for astilba to start a stable growing season, the average daily air temperature should not fall below +10 ° C.In warm areas, the young leaves of astilbe appear in late April or early May during planting and care in the open field.
In the north, where the spring is delayed, the development of the plant is delayed until the end of May or the beginning of June.
If the florist wants to replenish his collection of luxurious plants, it is important not to hurry, so that the flower culture does not freeze after transplanting, and not to delay. Otherwise, in hot weather, astilbe will be more difficult to acclimatize.
The beginning of the growing season is the time when it is better to plant astilba in the spring in the open ground.
Some gardeners practice autumn planting of a flower, but in this case the plant needs time to be rooted and adapted to a new place.
A place to plant astilbe in open ground
When choosing a place for astilbe, you must remember that the plant:
- prefers diffused light;
- can grow and bloom in the shade of trees and buildings;
- is not necessary when choosing a soil that must hold moisture well and not be excessively heavy;
- , however, does not tolerate stagnant moisture, which threatens to rot the roots, and in springtime increases the risk of prelime.
In order for the flowering perennial to not suffer from too dry air, in order to plant astilba in open ground and facilitate care, it is useful to choose areas near water bodies where the humidity is somewhat higher.
Peculiarities of planting an astilba flower into the ground in spring
The bed for astilbe is calculated in such a way that between bushes there is about 30–40 cm. Add 30 grams of complex fertilizers for ornamental crops to pre-prepared planting pits;
Planting is carried out in a moist soil at a depth of about 20 cm, while the soil layer should not exceed 3–5 cm above the points of future growth.
during the vegetative reproduction of astilbe, the top is thickly mulched so that the soil retains moisture better and the plants are protected from the germination of weeds.
A variety of materials can be used as mulch, which include:
- chopped straw;
- large chips or pieces of bark;
- pebbles or expanded clay;
- lowland peat.
As needed, the layer of mulch is renewed in the summer, and when planting astilba in the open ground in the fall, it helps the perennial crop to winter easily.
When is planting astilba in the open ground useful in the fall?
The feature of astilbe is the upper growth of the root system, which in a few years leads to the appearance of a dense island under the bush that rises above the general level of the soil. Without a regular transplant, once every 4–5 years:
- astilbe roots weaken;
- decreases the number of annually generated kidney renewals;
- flowering of such a plant is shorter and poorer, the leaves are smaller.
After flowering of adult astilbe, it is useful to undertake its autumn transplant, combining the procedure with dividing the bush into several young ones.
If you are planting and caring for astilba in the Urals, in Siberia, the Non-Black Earth region, you need to calculate the transplant time so that the plant has time to acclimatize. Autumn mulch, which partially replaces or enhances the effect of flower cover for the winter, will be a good help.
Vegetative reproduction and planting of astilbe with
seeds Under conditions of an amateur garden or a summer cottage, astilbe are propagated vegetatively, that is, by dividing an adult shrub or by using individual renewal buds. Planting astilby seeds - a rarity used to produce new varieties or hybrids, as well as in the presence of varietal seed.
The easiest way to divide an adult bush. This is done in spring or autumn so that on each part there are several promising growth points and enough roots for food.
Cut-off areas on the root system should be treated with crushed charcoal. Planting in open ground and care for astilba in this case have no special features, except that young specimens are watered every day. If you don’t be late with a transplant, in the second half of the summer astilba will please you with the first colors.
The department of promising buds, which will become independent sprouts next year, will also help you to get a young astilba. And here it is worthwhile to take care that the kidney of renewal has a healthy root.
The future bush is planted on a separate seed bed in a loose moisture-absorbing substrate. Often use film covers. They will help maintain a comfortable temperature, high humidity and help the plant to take root faster. In the fall or the next vein, these seedlings are ready for planting on a permanent place.
Care of astilba after planting in open ground
Care of excellent astilba will not make it difficult for the busiest summer resident. If the site for planting is chosen correctly, during the spring, summer and autumn, while vegetation is in progress, the flower is needed:
- watering, providing the plant with its favorite water;
- top dressing with a predominance of potassium and phosphorus;
- measures to maintain cleanliness and soil looseness, for example, maintaining a layer of mulch.
We can not allow the ground under astilboy covered with a dry crust. The plant immediately reacts to this with listlessness of leaves, shedding of flowers and “tears” in lush inflorescences.
Astilba is not afraid of the cold, so in most regions it is not specifically covered, but it is worth checking the layer of mulch in the fall. When spring comes, mulching is done again. It will save the shoots from frost and simplify the care of astilba after planting a flower in the ground.
Experienced growers who have long grown a crop, recommend removing fading buds along with flower stalks. This measure will preserve astilbe strength and improve the appearance of the entire flowerbed. Before the onset of cold weather, the above-ground part of the plants is carefully cut off, leaving petioles 5–10 cm above the ground level.
