Flowers allow you to decorate any homestead 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 the cultivation of this beautiful plant will be discussed later.
General information
Alpine astra (photo below) is a representative of a very large family of asters. This plant has long and firmly enjoyed love and popularity among flower growers in many countries. It is also called perennial or false.
This flower belongs to the Asteraceae and has about 600 species. Due to its unpretentiousness and external attractiveness, it is widely used in landscape design. Its breeding is especially popular for the design of alpine hills, borders, mixborders and flower beds. With the help of this plant, gardeners and summer residents successfully mask not too beautiful corners of their plots.
Alpine astra is widespread in Europe, including Russia, as well as in North America. Feels great in the mountains - in the Caucasus, Altai, in the Sayan Mountains and in the Alps. It tolerates long winters, so it is cultivated even in the northern regions of our country.
Plant description
Landing and grooming require special attention. Alpine astra (photo can be considered further) does not cause special difficulties. Even a novice gardener will cope with this task. It should be noted that this is a perennial herb with a thickened rhizome, from which stand straight and well-branched stems grow. Their height reaches 9-36 cm, depending on the species. The basal leaves have a shape that resembles an inverted egg. They are small. The leaves that are located on the stems are lanceolate. They are sinewy, sometimes lowered to the ground, reduced in size towards the apex.
Inflorescences are single apical baskets with a diameter of about 4-5 cm. Tubular flowers form the middle. They are painted yellow. Reed flowers (petals) have the most diverse color. 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 species delight their buds with gardeners at different times. They bloom from May to August. The attractiveness of these colors remains until the snow. This fact opens up the widest possibilities when using a plant in the design of a personal garden or summer cottage.
The seeds are oval in shape, which resembles an inverted egg. They are distinguished by the presence of white four-rowed crests. Seeds are slightly flattened.
Popular varieties
Perennial astra alpine 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" - flowers are small, not more than 3.5 cm in diameter, painted in blue tones.
- "Goliath" - is distinguished by large light purple flowers about 7 cm in diameter. Blooms in June. This process lasts about a month.
- "Rosea" - has flowers up to 4.5 cm in diameter, painted in pink.
- "Dunkle Chenet" - 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 provide a constantly flowering garden.
Planting a plant
To plant an alpine aster, you need to carefully choose the right place. This plant loves well-lit sunny areas and drained, neutral fertile soils. If the soil on the site is depleted, fertilizers should be applied to it. About 3 kg of compost or humus, 17 g of ammonium sulfate and potassium salt are added per square meter. About 25 g of superphosphate can also be added. Before digging the soil, it is also desirable to add lime (about 180-210 g) to it.
Before landing, 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 installed in them. They should be at a distance of 18-22 cm from each other. Saplings sprinkled with earth and watered. After that, they do not need to be irrigated for 2 days. Two weeks later, nitrogen fertilizers are added 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 moist, as well as shaded areas.
Care Features
The plant is very unpretentious, so even a novice gardener can properly perform planting and care. Alpine aster will not take much time and effort. An excellent result is guaranteed. Leaving includes timely watering, infrequent, but plentiful. It also requires loosening the soil and removing weeds. Inadequate watering leads to the drying out of flower baskets, and, consequently, to the loss of decorativeness of the whole plant.
Before flowering, it is recommended to hush bushes to a height of about 5 cm to strengthen and improve the growth of the root system. It is also required to timely remove wilted and dried inflorescences.
For plentiful beautiful flowering, the plant must be fed three times per season. The first time is 14-15 days after planting. At this time, potassium sulfate, superphosphate and ammonium nitrate are added. The second time - when 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 for the winter need to be covered. Dried stems are cut, and for shelter using dry leaves, peat. In especially cold winters, it is recommended to mulch the plants with soil or sand to shelter their buds from frost.
Reproduction by dividing the bush
Landing perennial alpine asters can be done in many ways. One of them is the division of the bush. This is the most common method among gardeners. Such an operation can be carried out from May to September. For transplantation, the most healthy parts of the rhizome with large shoots are selected. Weak stems are removed. Delenki 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 magnificent flowering of the bush.
Seed propagation
Perennial astra alpine can also propagate by seed. This method is more time consuming. 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 gardeners quite often.
Alpine aster seeds are harvested in late autumn. You can make them in the ground either in the winter, or from April to July. Planted in fertilized soil in the fall, seeds are covered with a film to produce a greenhouse effect. In March-April, after the appearance of the first leaves, the seedlings dive and transplant to a permanent place.
If the seeds are planted in April, the bed is also covered with a film. After a month, seedlings can be transplanted to a permanent place.
Seeds can also be grown at home. You can sow them from late February to late 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 a pair of pieces 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. You need to water the seeds sparingly, avoiding an excess of moisture and hardening of the soil. Capacities are best placed on southern windows with enough light.
Saplings grown at home are transferred to the open ground in summer or early fall. Such plants will bloom only after three years. It should be remembered that during seed propagation the varietal characteristics of the plant are not always preserved, in contrast to propagation by cuttings.
Cuttings
This type of reproduction completely duplicates the characteristics of the parent instance. For cuttings, the tops of healthy shoots are selected with a length of about 5-7 cm. The lower internodes are cleaned of leaves, treated with a stimulator of root formation. You can use succinic acid for these purposes, slightly sprinkling slices with it. The tops of the cuttings pinch.
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. Cuttings are covered with agrofibre, film or glass, aired daily, raising shelter for 7-12 minutes. This is a simple rule that requires proper care. Alpine astra, which is bred in this way, requires periodic watering as the soil dries. Its overmoistening must not be allowed.
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 wet summers, as well as with improper watering or when planting in waterlogged soil, the risk of infection of plants by powdery mildew increases. For disease prevention, planting with Topaz should be treated twice before flowering. In addition to this drug, you can use Gamair and other similar compounds. Spraying with an ash solution or a solution of laundry soap and copper sulphate is also welcome.
Infected plant stems should be burned, because the fungus that causes the disease can easily tolerate winter, and in spring it can throw out new spores and infect the flowers growing nearby.
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 pose the greatest danger to alpine asters. The latter can be disposed of with ash. From other pests - using tar water and a solution of laundry soap. Damage to plants by insect pests can be avoided by placing bushes in open, well-lit and blown areas.
Having considered the features of growing and caring for Alpine aster, you can decorate your site with these wonderful flowers.