Honey plant bush scanword 5 letters. Honey heathers: planting and care
Greetings, my dear readers. That's how it turns out: the cold is coming at us at full speed, and we have a whim, abruptly than pregnant women. Then give us conifers, but now I wanted honey plants. Looking at my indefatigable girlfriend, who, it seems to me, does nothing more than her greenbacks, I involuntarily recall the good old joke: “Monsieur knows a lot about perversions!” Is it possible to replace “Monsieur” with “Madame” - and yet Yes.
Let's turn to the origins of the plant. The first mention of it is found in ancient legends. According to legend, Plants were invited to settle on the slopes of the barren hills, which for some reason had not yet been decorated with any vegetation. The plants answered the Creator with a decisive refusal, and only heather dutifully agreed. And as a reward for humility, he was generously awarded by God, having received a honey fragrance, indescribable beauty and unpretentiousness as a gift. Heather honey is considered to be especially valuable, which, according to the assurances of old-timers, prolongs beauty and youth. I can’t pretend to say how true this is, but the fact that it is heather honey in all its properties far surpasses all other types and varieties of honey has been scientifically proven. In fairness, I note that to his taste, unfortunately, he is much more modest than other types of honey.
Heather belongs to creeping perennial shrubs. Belongs to the heather family and is the only representative of the species. It counts at least twenty decorative varieties. Designed for garden cultivation. Refers to healing honey plants. A related plant can be considered Erica, which also belongs to the heather family, being, nevertheless, a representative of another species. By the way, Erica is often mistaken for heather, which is not entirely correct.
The height of the heather is relatively small and is only thirty to seventy centimeters. But the decorativeness of this plant simply can not be compared with anything. Heather blooms in small and very fragrant small flowers. Something very similar to bells collected from inflorescences. The stems are very bushy, as if drowning in a silk veil of delicate flowers. And even the leaves of this wonderful plant do not take decorative. They are as if rolled up into small tubes. By the way, it is thanks to this small feature of heather that it is often confused with juniper until flowering begins. And it begins towards the end of summer. The heather is especially beautiful after the onset of the first frost - it is at these moments that the heather foliage acquires yellowish-crimson hues.
And the inflorescences, even being slightly frostbitten, firmly hold on to the branches, as if not wanting to leave their native places - how beautiful and moving it is, my friends! The decorativeness of heather is truly difficult to overestimate. Well, a very exquisite plant. Landscape designers prefer to combine heather plantations with dwarf conifers, decorating them with garden paths, borders and alpine slides.
Interesting fact: Heather has adapted for so long to survive on the most seemingly infertile soils and places that it has achieved symbiosis with the simplest fungal microorganisms. It is from them that he receives help in obtaining nutrients from depleted soil. In fact, if you look closely at the root system, you will see that it is simply located in the networks of mushroom threads. Fungi, in turn, are literally nourished by the vital forces of the plant, so there is practically no need for heather fertilizer. Exactly so, thanks to the care of Mother Nature, heather survives without any problems in the most meager conditions.
Now let's go over the soil features brieflywhich are preferred for the fastest and most effective heather growth. Heather grows well in the climatic conditions of the middle zone of our great and powerful country. And if the soil on your site is also acidic, slightly fertilized and loose, consider that ideal conditions for growth for heather are created. He loves to be in open sunny places, although he can tolerate a slight shade. But heather is unlikely to endure alkaline or calcareous soil. If you plant heather in flowerpots or garden containers, mix three parts of peat, part sand, part coniferous soil and part sawdust and mix well. Are you an idealist? We agreed, then go straight to the forest and dig it at a depth of at least five to six centimeters. If by some miracle you already have a little horse peat, you can do without sand at all. Each cubic meter of land can be additionally enriched with 70-80 grams of sulfur.
So, consider planting heather on the site
To get started, arm yourself with a shovel and remove the top soil layer with one bayonet, after which it must be replaced with prepared soil mix. After that, the soil is slightly crushed - you can even just walk on it in small steps, the effect will be achieved. Further, the soil needs acidification - water it. For watering, you can use a solution of ten liters of water and one hundred grams of apple six percent vinegar.
And do not think that heather can be planted only in the spring. We bought it now for good reason, because landing under the winter is also quite acceptable. Of course, when planting in spring, heather will be much easier to take root, so that it will be much easier to survive the winter. You can plant it in almost any way, except for the seed. If you want to get by with a little blood, don’t take the seeds. After all, there are seedlings, layering, bushings, apical cuttings, in the end.
Take at least layering, for example. By layering, so that you understand, heather is able to reproduce without your intervention. Old heather trunks, including twigs, begin to lie down and root themselves - this is how a new large shoot appears. So in case you are planning to take a specific area in the flower garden or heather for heather, for your convenience it should be fenced with an artificial fence or built some kind of fence. If, on the contrary, you also decided to help a little to this wonderful plant, sprinkle littering shoots of peat with at least a two-centimeter layer. If you carefully fix the resulting embankment, a year later you will already have ready-made strong seedlings that simply separate from the mother plant and are planted in separate holes.
Now for planting heather seedlings
The distance between the landing holes should be at least half a meter from each other. The landing fossa itself must be at least twice as large as the root volume. Before you plant heather, you should find out one more important detail: Their root system grows horizontally, but when you buy a finished container seedling, the roots look crowded to the center. So: they need to be straightened out! The seedling is dug up only to the level of the root neck. At the end of planting, the soil is slightly compacted - this can be done even with your hands. Seedlings need abundant watering and subsequent mulching with peat. Peat may well be replaced by sawdust or slivers of bark of conifers. It is conifers that accumulate mycorrhiza in the bark, which heather is needed as air. If on your site clay soil, be sure to take care of drainage. You can line the bottom of the landing fossa with pebbles, rubble, broken brick. The main thing is that the layer is not thinner than two or three centimeters.
Well, if you still do not have enough extreme in life, go for the seeds. I warn you right away - this venture is not for the faint of heart. You will kill a lot of forces and time! Prepare the cups into which seeds are poured with a two-centimeter layer, after which they need to be moistened and the cups covered with a glass lid. Seed germination begins only in the third week. That's when it’s time for them to “move” into wooden boxes. We have already managed to discuss the soil composition with you, as far as I remember.
You will receive full seedlings in about a month. In order for it to develop in full force, it is necessary to maintain the temperature at a level of no more than 18-20 degrees. Also, the soil should be constantly slightly moistened. If seedlings are expelled during the summer, take the boxes out at least occasionally to fresh air. And this is not the end. So that you understand the full extent of the tragedy, planting heather in the open ground earlier than two years later is still impossible. In general - do you need it?
We’ll stop on this issue so that you have the opportunity to carefully consider it from all sides. Goodbye my good ones.
PS: it is easiest to propagate heather by dividing the rhizome. By the end of summer, you just need to dig out a heather bush and cut its root system into pieces, but we do not shake the ground! Each dividend should have young shoots. We get rid of the old stems - everything is ready, you can plant.
Heathers, the landing and care of which many are interested in, are legendary plants. They grow in many European countries and are associated with several myths. By nature, this plant is hardy, unpretentious, and is also one of the best honey plants. Those who are fanatical about the landscape design of their site are simply obliged to pay attention to heathers. Planting and caring for them are simple, the appearance is very effective. And the flowering time is long. In addition, even after flowering, the heather bush remains very decorative. Because after drying, his brushes do not lose their bright shade and shape.
Heathers. Planting and flower care
This plant is not very tall - it never exceeds a meter. Heather foliage can be of various shades: in addition to green, it can be bronze, yellowish and even red. The flowers are small, goblet. They are collected in medium-sized inflorescences resembling a brush. In nature, they most often have a lilac soft hue.
Decorative heathers (planting and caring for them are simple) can bloom with white, raspberry, cyclamine flowers. The first half of the year - until about August - plants decorate the garden mainly with foliage. But after blooming and until late autumn, they delight with a palette of bright brushes. The gardener must take care of a number of conditions that will allow him to grow bright and lush heather in his area. Moderate sun or slight partial shade, acidic soil reaction, high humidity - some of them. But heather does not need to be fed. For the winter it would be nice to warm it with mulch from sawdust, humus, needles or chopped bark. In addition to shelter, it also acidifies the soil a little, and also retains moisture in it. Heather propagates by air layering in spring before pruning. The branch is bent to the ground, fixed and covered with earth. Layers will quickly develop the root system. It is only necessary to carefully monitor the level of moisture. Heather is a plant that is very resistant to almost all pests except phytophthora. Formative is carried out once a year, after flowering. This stimulates the formation of more magnificent brushes for the next year. At the same time, it is necessary to avoid giving the bush unnecessarily His charm in a peculiar "shaggy".
Heather in the culture and life of different countries
The wastelands overgrown with this plant cover a significant part of Europe. It is also in Siberia, in the northern part of Africa, in North America (it was brought there by immigrants from the UK). In Scotland heather was widely used for the production of mattresses, brooms. And the dye that is extracted from this plant was used to decorate national clothes. Heather - honey plant. It is often planted near apiaries. Heather ale is a traditional drink made in Scotland since the second century AD. Dabecia and andromeda are two more plants from the heather family that are similar to each other. They are more winter-hardy. By the way, heather is used in homeopathy - it has the property of lowering blood pressure and has a slight diuretic effect.
