About Peltiphyllum thyroid, or Darmer, in our country they learned relatively recently. The overseas plant was immediately appreciated by landscape designers, since the thyroid darmer is unpretentious, tolerates winter frosts well. In addition, peltiphyllum is not only a flowering, but also an ornamental leafy plant. What is a thyroid darmer (photos of leaves and flowers are presented below in the article)? How to grow this unusual plant on your site?
Description
Peltiphyllum is unusual in that during spring and summer its appearance changes noticeably. The flower appears first: the thyroid darmer blooms quite early, around the end of April or the beginning of May. On high peduncles of a red-brown hue, lush spherical inflorescences bloom, consisting of small pinkish flowers. Plants during this period reach a height of 50 cm to a meter. At the same time, the leaves are practically invisible - they grow alreadyafter Darmer thyroid begins to fade.
The leaves of the plant are rounded, with large finger-shaped veins, under favorable conditions grow into a tall lush shrub. In this case, the diameter of each leaf can reach from 50 to 90 cm. The exception is the miniature variety Nanum, whose leaves do not grow more than 45 cm.
The color of the "summer" peltiphyllum is saturated green in shady areas or pale green if the darmer grows in the open sun. In autumn, the leaves of the shrub change color, acquiring a red-crimson hue interspersed with yellow or orange. In this form, the thyroid darmer decorates the garden plot until the first frost.
How to choose the right place in the garden?
Choose a site where the thyroid darmer will feel as comfortable as possible should be based on the natural habitat of the shrub. This delicate flower is native to the west coast of the United States, namely from the highlands of California and Oregon. Most often, peltiphyllum is found on the shores of clean reservoirs, rivers and lakes. For this reason, it is considered an ideal plant for decorating a pond in a garden plot.
If there is no open source of water on the site, the peltiphyllum will need regular abundant watering. It is important at the same time that water stagnation does not occur, otherwise the root of the plant will quickly rot. Therefore, the place where peltiphyllum will be planted should be well ventilated and provide sufficient drainage of irrigation water.
Besides the bigthe amount of moisture, the successful growth of the shrub depends on sunlight. Darmera thyroid can grow in shade and direct sunlight, but in the latter case, strong lighting causes the leaves and flowers to grow smaller.
Peltifillum needs a lot of sunlight only in spring, when inflorescences are formed, so the proximity of broad-leaved shrubs or trees, whose leaves will cover from the sun only in summer, will be a good neighborhood for darmers. In addition to shrubs and trees, peltiphyllum feels good in tandem with shade-loving perennials such as hosta, rogersia, anemone and others.
Soil preparation
What other conditions should be created in order for the thyroid darmer to take root on the garden plot? Planting and caring for this plant begins with soil preparation and fertilization. Under natural conditions, the plant grows luxuriantly on slightly acidic, loose soil. You can create a similar environment using a substrate with a PH level of 5 to 7. The plant will also take root well in a mixture of garden soil with soil from the forest. Organic fertilizers are applied to the soil before planting.
Darmer Landing
Darmer can be propagated by two simple methods: by dividing the rhizome or by seeds. Before planting seed material in the ground, it will be necessary to carry out preliminary stratification, that is, to withstand in a humid environment at a fairly cool temperature of +4 … +6 oСwithin three or four weeks.
Vegetative (root) propagation is much easier. Peltiphyllum has a core rhizome, which grows in a few years and begins to give additional viable roots. To propagate the darmer shrub, the plant should be dug up, the rhizome divided and kept in a solution of a fungicide preparation for two hours. Next, the plant is planted in prepared fertilized soil. The advantage of this method is that a plant planted in autumn will fully bloom next spring.
Water, top dressing
Frequent and regular watering is an important condition for the normal growth of moisture-loving darmers. When watering, as already mentioned, it is important to prevent stagnant water in order to avoid rot or mold.
Top dressing with organic and mineral fertilizers is required for peltiphyllum regularly, from early spring to autumn. It is enough to water the plant with liquid mineral fertilizer at least once a month. If necessary, liquid organic matter can be applied more often - once every two weeks. During active development and growth, from the day of germination to the beginning of flowering, Darmer needs to be fed with dry organic fertilizers. For these purposes, both purchased mixtures and natural fertilizers are suitable: dry chicken manure, leafy humus, dried manure.
Wintering plants, extra care
Darmera is able to overwinter well in the ground, if it is protected from frost in a timely manner. To do this, cut off the aerial part, mulch the rootpart with a layer of compost and carefully cover the plant with dry sawdust, straw or a layer of fallen leaves. At low temperatures, it is recommended to additionally cover the darmer with a layer of snow.
In the spring, after removing the covering layer, the peltiphyllum should be watered with any fungicide preparation. It is not required to additionally process the darmer from pests or diseases of the flora.
