Chinese magnolia vine is a perennial climbing vine of the magnolia family. The plant reaches a height of 10-15 meters and has a thick branching stem covered with a smooth reddish-brown peel. The leaves of the plant are dense, leathery and have an ovoid shape. But the real decoration of lemongrass is its flowers, fragrant white-pink color, collected in small inflorescences. The plant looks no less beautiful with already ripened berries hanging in small red clusters.
The countries of East Asia gave us a lot of amazing exotic plants, such as: Meyer lemon or aquarium schisandra, but Chinese schisandra became the most popular for growing in our country.
Chinese Schisandra - growing and care
Schizandra multiplies in several ways: by dividing the bush, root processes, cuttings and seeds.
Chinese Schisandra Seed Growing
Seeds for subsequent planting are harvested from well-ripened lemongrass berries. The collected fruits are squeezed, after which they are thoroughly washed with water, separating the seeds from the peel and pulp, and then dried thoroughly.
Seeds can be germinated in two ways.
The first method, when sowing is carried out in the fall. In this case, the sprouts appear in late April, early May and germinate within 85%.
The second method requires great efforts of the gardener. If you want to sow seeds in the spring, you must first prepare them. For this purpose, the grains must be stratified for 30 days by exposure to wet sand at a temperature of 18-20 degrees, and then the temperature threshold is reduced to 0-5 degrees heat and the seeds are kept for another month. After that, they become completely ready for landing in the open ground.
Chinese Schisandra growing by layering
This method is no less good than plant propagation by seeds. In early spring, when the buds have not yet blossomed, young shoots of lemongrass are pressed to the soil, fixed with stakes and well sprinkled with earth. During the summer, the underground part of the shoots acquires its own root system, which is fully formed by autumn. Branches can be detached from the mother plant without damage to their health and transplanted to a new place.
Chinese Schisandra, growing by dividing the bush and root shoots
This method is the simplest and least traumatic for an adult plant. A heavily overgrown bush is divided into several smaller ones, trying not to damage the roots, and planted. The division of the root processes that form on the adult magnolia vine looks almost the same. The shoot with the root is dug up and transplanted to a previously prepared place.
Care
The initial task of any gardener who planted lemongrass is to get the maximum possible stem growth. To do this, a special support is fixed near the seedling - a trellis, along which he can curl. The most active phase of lemongrass growth occurs in the first 3 years of its life. As they grow, lemongrass shoots are neatly tied to the trellis. The earth around the plant should be as loose as possible in order to provide the vines with good oxygen supply. When loosening, do not forget that the roots of the plant are located close to the surface of the earth, and they can be easily damaged.
Chinese Schisandra begins to bloom no earlier than 5-6 years after planting. However, this plant has one unique feature. Depending on the growing conditions on the vine, for example, only male or female flowers can be formed, or, under acceptable conditions of detention, both species at the same time. This factor may depend on humidity and air temperature, fertilizer parameters and weather conditions. Therefore, if you want to harvest lemongrass every year, you must have several plants at once.