Ageratum is a bright representative of the Astrov family. If you look for it in the wild, you will have to call in North or South America. You can also find this plant in East India. If you translate the name of the flower from Latin, you get "ageless". And this is true, since the cut plant can be stored for a rather long time. In Europe, this flower came only in the nineteenth century. In the article we will consider the cultivation of ageratum from seeds, when to plant a plant, what are the most acceptable conditions for its growth, as well as how to properly care for it.
Description
Ageratum flowers are small bushes on which bright green leaves are located. They can be in the form of a rhombus, triangle or oval. The maximum height of the straight stem is 60 centimeters. This is not very much, especially the smallest species sometimes do not reach ten centimeters. The flowers are quite small, have a pleasant aroma, bisexual. Flowers are collected in inflorescences, which in diameter can be from one to one and a half centimeters. They form other, larger corymbose inflorescences. The most common is the blue ageratum, but you can also find white, purple and even pink varieties. Ageratum has a fruit in which seeds are stored.
Interestingly, one gram of seeds is about seven thousand small seeds. They can be stored for no more than four years. After this time, germination is lost.
In general, the flower belongs to perennials, but the conditions for the cultivation of ageratum suggest the presence of warm air. Therefore, in our flower beds, it can grow only one season. Marigolds, snapdragons and calendula are considered ideal neighbors.
Sowing seeds
We figured out the appearance of the plant, now it’s worth turning to the question of when to plant an ageratum. Growing from seeds has its own characteristics. This is the most successful way of plant propagation. For seedlings, seed planting begins only in the second half of March. To do this, you will need pre-prepared drawers with earth. The soil should include equal parts of humus, peat and sand. Seeds are evenly distributed over the surface of the soil and sprinkled with a small amount of the same soil. After planting, the boxes are covered with a thick film or glass to create a greenhouse effect.
Greenhouses must be opened for ventilation, and this should be done daily. Containers are stored in a room where the air temperature should not fall below fifteen degrees of heat. When growing seedlings of ageratum, the soil should not be allowed to dry out. That is why it must be periodically moistened with a spray gun. The first seedlings can be seen two weeks after sowing. As soon as the first seedlings appear, the film or glass can be safely removed. There is no more need to create a greenhouse.
Seedlings
As soon as two or three true leaves appear on the seedlings, the time to dive the ageratum comes. Seedlings need room for development. The first pick is carried out in different pots, but several plants need to be planted. But for the second time, each bush will need a separate pot. It is better to use peat containers, so that later it would be more convenient to transfer the agratum for growing in open ground. During a dive, the air in the room must be dry, and the soil in which the plants are placed moist.
Watering seedlings is possible only in the morning. It is recommended two weeks before the intended landing in open ground to take out pots with an ageratum in the air. However, small frosts are still possible during this period, so you need to prepare for the fact that, perhaps, the plants will need shelter.
Landing
Seedlings can be planted in open ground only if you are sure that there are no night frosts. Consider in advance where to plant seedlings. This should be a site where drafts do not appear under any conditions and where the sun's rays will always fall. If you plant a plant in the shade, then its shoots will stretch strongly upwards, and there will be no compact small bushes in your area. Instead, in the flowerbed, you will get disheveled bushes, almost completely devoid of flowers.
In general, ageratum is not too picky about the composition of the soil, but try to make it not too acidic. The soil should be nutritious with good drainage. Prepare the pits in advance. It is recommended to place them at a distance of fifteen centimeters from each other. As for the depth, it should fully correspond to the one on which the seedlings grew in the container. Two months after planting the agratum, it will be possible to admire its flowering.
Ageratum: planting and care
Features of caring for this plant suggest a set of standard measures: watering, loosening, weeding and top dressing. Planting an ageratum and caring for it are not particularly difficult. Water the plant should be plentiful, but also do not need to fill. It is necessary to carry out the procedure if this is really necessary. After each irrigation or rain, weeds should be removed and the soil loosened so that oxygen enters the roots.
Top dressing
Planting an ageratum and caring for a plant require fertilizer. It is recommended to use mineral or humic substances. They are not brought in too often - only once every two or three weeks. Ageratum feels good after fertilizing with a mullein solution. Some gardeners use fresh manure, but this cannot be done, since the ageratum does not tolerate such fertilizers. If the flower is overfed, then it will not bloom, and all efforts will be directed to building green mass.
Pruning
Although ageratum are small bushes, they still need pruning. It is necessary to remove wilted flowers, then new ones will form in their place. If this is not done, then flowering will be sparse. You also need to trim most of the internodes. Such pruning contributes to the fact that the bush becomes more magnificent, and the number of flowers increases dramatically.
After flowering
When the first frosts begin to approach, you need to take care of the most beautiful bushes. They are transplanted into pots and transferred to the house. Such bushes will now adorn the home until the very end of autumn. Some specimens at home continue to bloom even in winter. Sometimes gardeners propagate an ageratum with cuttings. Do it in the spring. Cuttings are cut from the remaining bushes, rooted and planted in open ground according to the same technology that is used when planting seedlings from seeds. It is important to observe the timing of sowing the ageratum, then there will be no problems with its cultivation.
A flower cannot survive even in those areas of the country where winter is always warm. During this period, even the best shelter will not help the ageratum. Therefore, after flowering is finished, it is better to simply clear the area of all the remains of shrubs and prepare for the next planting in the spring.
Cuttings
Knowing the rules for planting an agratum and caring for it, one can propagate a plant not only from seedlings. As already mentioned, this can be done by cuttings. Branches for propagation are cut from those bushes that are transplanted into pots with the onset of cold weather. This is done no earlier than a month and a half before the alleged planting of seedlings in open ground. The stalk should have a length of approximately fifteen centimeters. Its lower cut must be treated with a special solution, which contributes to the early formation of roots. After treatment, the cuttings are immediately placed in previously prepared fertile soil.
A container with sprigs for planting must be covered with glass, as with seed propagation. The temperature in the room where the seedlings will take root should not exceed twenty-two degrees of heat. After a few weeks, roots will appear on the cuttings, and after the first month it will be possible to observe the formation of young shoots.
Diseases and Pests
In addition to the love of heat, ageratum has another weakness - disease. Most often, these flowers are affected by root rot, and the worst thing is that it is impossible to save the plant from this disease. But you can take all the necessary preventive measures to avoid the appearance of such a problem. The tasks of the gardener:
- Choose a light soil for planting seedlings.
- To control the soil moisture (water abundantly, but do not fill so that the water does not stagnate in the root system).
- Constantly loosen the soil (after artificial irrigation and after rain). This is necessary in order to ensure normal evaporation of moisture.
In addition, improper care leads to the fact that ageratum affects cucumber mosaic and bacterial wilting. But these diseases can still be fought. But the ageratum with root rot will simply have to be removed from the garden.
During the period when the ageratum is in the room, one cannot allow a spider mite or whitefly to live on it. If you notice the presence of these insects, all damaged leaves must be removed. Insecticides are used to control pests. Treatments do not stop until the insects completely leave the plants.
When the ageratum is transplanted into a flower bed, new enemies appear here: nematodes and scoops. But getting rid of them is not so easy, and you will have to make a lot of effort for this. However, insects can be avoided. All that is required is proper care. This flower is not picky, and it does not need anything special. It is enough to properly water and loosen the soil. Many other plants require a lot more attention.
Landscape design
From ageratum you can create borders. For this, low-growing varieties that usually grow on floors are suitable. With the help of these fluffy flowers, you can divide your flower beds into color zones, a palette of shades of ageratum allows this. Among these flowers, there are also high varieties, of which experienced gardeners make hedges. This is possible due to the fact that the flowers are able to intertwine with each other.
There are varieties that are middle in their height. They are best planted in pots and other containers to place on porches, balconies, lobbies and other places.