The pride of the gardener is a beautifully flowering bush from the honeysuckle breed. In our climate, it is very difficult to cultivate this plant, and even more difficult to make it bloom.
The owner should have a lot of secrets for caring for such a sissy as a weigela. Reproduction is one of them. It is important not only the choice of planting location, variety and soil. Here you need, of course, an extensive knowledge of the subject, but above all, intuition and the ability to wait.
Types of Weigels
Depending on the variety, the height of the bush varies from half a meter to two. Although in the climate of central Russia above one and a half meters, it does not grow. The flowers are exceptionally beautiful, tubular, there are single or umbrella inflorescences. In our country, hybrid weigela is most often grown, the reproduction of which is more often successful. Middendorf weigel, garden, early and Korean weigels are also found. Weigela Middendorff was brought from the Far East; it is a fairly large, beautiful shrub with large creamy, orange-speckled flowers.
It blooms for two to three weeks in early summer and sometimes a second time in the fall. This is the most winter-hardy variety, but it also requires increased attention of the gardener. Hybrid Weigela is created from numerous garden forms obtained by crossing different species. It is so diverse and so beautiful that it is difficult to resist buying, especially for those who do not represent all the difficulties in caring and growing.
Weigela: reproduction, planting and care
The landing site should be protected from the wind, but be sunny enough. Single plantings most often freeze, so the best place is under the crowns of trees, in openwork shade. This way the snow lags better and wind protection is provided.
Soils are suitable humus, loose, can be peat bogs. Watering should always be moderate, the bush does not tolerate waterlogging. Loosen after watering. He readily responds to top dressing: in early spring, right in the snow - mineral fertilizers, in the first half of summer - again, when flowers are formed. In the second half of the summer, feeding is no longer necessary. In September, you can make
phosphorus-potassium fertilizers, so the plant wins better. Pruning is carried out immediately, as soon as the bush fades, the faded branches are necessarily shortened. In the spring, dry and frozen are cut. In winter, you need to shelter before frost: surround the bush with high pegs, fill all the voids with leaves or spruce branches, wrap it with a dense film. Especially carefully weigel needs to be covered in snowy winters. Landing should be only in early spring - in March or April. If seedlings are bought in the fall, it is better to simply tuck them in before spring.
Weigela - propagation by cuttings
This is the most common way. Woody cuttings are a long way, flowers will have to wait five or six years. And weigela, the reproduction of which, in general, is not so simple, grows most well from green cuttings.
It is necessary to carry out cuttings before the onset of kidney activity, in April-May. A direct cut is made, cutting off 10 centimeters of the stem, which is then treated with a growth stimulator, such as heteroauxin, the shoots are kept in a dark and warm room for 12 hours, then they are planted to a depth of half a centimeter to root sand and peat in a mixture, sprinkled with sand and covered with a film. Cuttings will get to a permanent place only after a year and a half. In the third year, if everything else is normal, a new bush will bloom. That's the hassle of breeding an exotic plant like Weigela. Reproduction is a very lengthy process. But how good she is after all efforts, how decorative in the landscape design of the garden! The dense crown will give amazing flowers to the gardener, with the help of whom the weigel has overcome reproduction by cuttings. The photo clearly demonstrates its exceptional decorativeness.