Flowers allow you to decorate any backyard or summer cottage. Today, owners of private houses grow a variety of decorative species. One of the favorite flowers of summer residents and gardeners is alpine aster. The features of breeding this beautiful plant will be discussed further.
General information
Alpine aster (photo below) is a representative of a very large family of asters. This plant has long and firmly enjoyed the love and popularity of flower growers in many countries. It is also called perennial or false.
This flower belongs to Compositae and has about 600 species. Due to its unpretentiousness and visual appeal, it is widely used in landscape design. Its breeding is especially popular for decorating alpine slides, borders, mixborders and flower beds. With the help of this plant, gardeners and summer residents successfully mask the not-too-beautiful corners of their plots.
Alpine aster is widespread in Europe, including Russia, as well as in North America. Perfectlyfeels himself in the mountains - in the Caucasus, Altai, in the Sayans and in the Alps. It endures long winters, so it is cultivated even in the northern regions of our country.
Description of the plant
Planting and care require special attention. Alpine aster (photo can be viewed below) does not cause any particular difficulties. Even a novice gardener will cope with this task. It should be noted that this is a perennial herbaceous plant with a thickened rhizome, from which standing straight and well-branched stems grow. Their height reaches 9-36 cm, depending on the species. The basal leaves are shaped like an inverted egg. They are small. The leaves that are located on the stems are lanceolate. They are sinewy, sometimes lowered to the ground, decreasing in size towards the tip.
Inflorescences - single apical baskets with a diameter of about 4-5 cm. Tubular flowers form the middle. They are colored yellow. Reed flowers (petals) have a wide variety of colors. It can be from delicate whitish, blue, pink to reddish, purple and dark ultramarine. A rich palette of shades gives the plant a special decorative effect. Flowering continues for a month. Moreover, different types delight gardeners with their buds at different times. They bloom from May to August. The attractiveness of these flowers persists until the snow. This fact opens up the widest possibilities when using a plant in the design of a backyard or summer cottage.
The seeds have an oval shape that resembles an inverted egg. They aredistinguished by the presence of white four-row tufts. The seeds are slightly flattened.
Popular varieties
Alpine perennial aster is distinguished by a variety of varieties. Summer residents, gardeners, as well as landscape designers most often choose the following types to create the decor of the site:
- "Albus" - has short stems about 17 cm high, densely covered with leaves. The flowers are white. They appear during June-July.
- "Gloria" - small flowers, no more than 3.5 cm in diameter, painted in blue tones.
- "Goliath" - different large light purple flowers about 7 cm in diameter. Blooms in June. This process continues for about a month.
- "Rosea" - has flowers up to 4.5 cm in diameter, painted in pink tones.
- "Dunkle Shene" - has small flowers of dark purple color about 4 cm in diameter. It looks very impressive due to the large number of flowers on the bush.
- "Ruber" - also has a spectacular appearance due to the abundance of small (up to 3.5 cm) flowers of a red-pink hue.
The choice depends on the taste preferences of the owners of the site. If you take into account the flowering calendar of a particular type of flower, you can ensure a constantly blooming garden.
Planting a plant
To plant an alpine aster, you need to carefully choose a suitable place. This plant loves well-lit sunny areas and well-drained, neutral fertile soils. If the soil on the site is depleted, fertilizer should be applied to it. About 3 kg of compost or humus, 17 g each, are applied per square meterammonium sulphate and potassium s alt. You can also add about 25 g of superphosphate. Before digging the soil, it is also desirable to add lime to it (about 180-210 g).
Before planting, the site is dug up, leveled and loosened. Weed roots are removed from the ground. Shallow grooves are made in the soil and seedlings are planted in them. They should be at a distance of 18-22 cm from each other. Seedlings are sprinkled with earth and watered. After that, they do not need to be irrigated for 2 days. Two weeks later, nitrogen fertilizers are applied to the soil.
The plant does not require much effort and special care. The main thing is in no case to plant flowers on damp, excessively moistened, as well as shaded areas.
Features of care
The plant is very unpretentious, so even a novice gardener will be able to properly plant and care. Alpine aster will not take much time and effort. This guarantees excellent results. Care includes timely watering, infrequent, but plentiful. It is also required to loosen the soil and remove weeds. Insufficient watering leads to the drying of flower baskets, and, consequently, to the loss of decorativeness of the whole plant.
Before flowering, it is recommended to hill the bushes to a height of about 5 cm to strengthen and improve the growth of the root system. It is also required to remove wilted and dried inflorescences in a timely manner.
For abundant beautiful flowering, the plant must be fed three times per season. The first time - after 14-15days after landing. At this time, potassium sulfate, superphosphate and ammonium nitrate are added. The second time - when the buds appear and the third - at the very beginning of flowering. During this period, only superphosphate and potassium sulfate are added.
The plant is resistant to frost, but some species need to be covered for the winter. Dried stems are cut off, and dry leaves and peat are used for shelter. During particularly cold winters, it is recommended to mulch the plants with soil or sand to protect their buds from frost.
Reproduction by dividing the bush
Planting a perennial alpine aster can be done in many ways. One of them is the division of the bush. This is the most common method among gardeners. This operation can be carried out from May to September. For transplantation, the most he althy parts of the rhizome with large shoots are chosen. Weak stems are removed. Delenki are planted at a distance of 18 cm from each other. This operation is recommended to be carried out every three years for renewal and more lush flowering of the bush.
Seed propagation
Alpine perennial aster can also be propagated by seeds. This method is more labor intensive. This is due to the low germination of seeds. In addition, plants grown in this way will bloom only in the second year. Nevertheless, this technique is used by flower growers quite often.
Alpine aster seeds are harvested in late autumn. You can bring them into the ground either before winter, or from April to July. Seeds planted in fertilized soil since autumn are covered with a film to obtain a greenhouseeffect. In March-April, after the first leaves appear, the seedlings dive and transplant to a permanent place.
If the seeds are planted in the ground in April, the bed is also covered with foil. After a month, the seedlings can be transplanted to a permanent place.
Seeds can also be grown at home. They can be sown from the end of February to the end of April in containers filled with a light substrate. The seeds are buried in it by 1, 2-1, 3 cm. The seeds are planted either in pairs in separate cups, or in a large container in rows at a distance of about 6-7 cm. There must be drainage in the container. Watering the seeds should be moderate, avoiding an excess of moisture and hardening of the soil. It is better to put containers on the southern windows with enough light.
Seedlings grown at home are transferred to open ground in summer or early autumn. Such plants will bloom only after three years. It should be remembered that during seed propagation, varietal characteristics of a plant are not always preserved, in contrast to propagation by cuttings.
Cutting
This type of reproduction completely duplicates the characteristics of the parent instance. For cuttings, the tops of he althy shoots about 5-7 cm long are selected. The lower internodes are cleaned of leaves, treated with a root formation stimulator. You can use succinic acid for these purposes, lightly sprinkling slices with it. The tops of the cuttings are pinched.
They are planted in specially prepared beds with soil consisting of two parts of sod land, one part of peat and one part of sand. The beds should be in partial shade. cuttingscover with agrofibre, film or glass, airing daily, lifting the shelter for 7-12 minutes. This is a simple rule that requires proper care. Alpine aster, which is bred in this way, requires periodic watering as the soil dries. It must not be allowed to become waterlogged.
The rooting time of cuttings is from 15 to 30 days. In early autumn, they can be transplanted to a permanent place at a distance of 18 cm from each other.
Diseases and pests
Alpine aster is resistant to many diseases. But in a damp summer, as well as with improper watering or when planting in waterlogged soil, the risk of infection of the plant with powdery mildew increases. To prevent the disease, plantings should be treated with Topaz twice before flowering. In addition to this drug, you can use "Gamair" and other similar formulations. Spraying with an ash solution or a solution of laundry soap and copper sulfate is also welcome.
Infected plant stems should be burned as the disease-causing fungus survives the winter well, but in spring it can release new spores and infect nearby flowers.
Excess moisture can cause black mold to appear on the roots. To prevent rotting of rhizomes, special protective equipment should be used.
Of the insects, aphids and snails are the most dangerous for the alpine aster. The latter can be disposed of with the help of ash. From otherspests - using tar water and a solution of laundry soap. You can avoid damage to plants by pests by placing bushes in open, well-lit and ventilated areas.
Having considered the features of growing and caring for the alpine aster, you can decorate your site with these wonderful flowers.
