Gentle phloxes are in demand among gardeners. And this is not surprising, because few flowers compare in beauty and aroma with these attractive plants. In addition, the unpretentious nature and ease of cultivation is a quality for which phlox is valued for many years. Planting and care, photos - this and much more you will find in our material.
Botanical Description
Perennial phloxes are prominent representatives of the family Sinyukhovy. These grassy brightly flowering plants came to us from North America and quickly won the love of Russian gardeners. And all because of the unpretentious nature and frost resistance.
But the main advantage of phloxes is their beauty, due to which flowers are used to decorate flower beds. In addition, they are perfectly adjacent to other cultures. Therefore, they are planted to create floral arrangements.
Bright, fragrant buds collected in panicle inflorescences give particular value to phloxes. Typically, the petals are painted in blue, purple, blue, red and pink tones. But there are varieties with snow-white and even multi-colored buds.
Tubular-funnel-shaped peduncles of phloxes consist of 5 petals and reach a diameter of up to 8 cm. Each panicle has up to 100 buds. Inflorescences with a diameter of 10-15 cm are located on erect or creeping stems. Their height ranges from 10 cm to one and a half meters.
In nature, there are 40 varieties of phloxes, and the exact number of varieties cannot be calculated. In addition, breeders annually introduce new varieties of culture. Further you will learn about some of them.
Ground cover varieties of perennial phlox: names with photos
Such species are also called creeping or low-cover. The main feature of such varieties is a small growth of shrubs. After all, the height of crops reaches from 5 to 40 cm. Such soil cover varieties are popular with gardeners:
- Candy Strips This awl-shaped variety tolerates frosts well. The plant grows rapidly and in 2-3 years creates a dense flowery carpet. The petals are painted white, but there are two longitudinal lilac stripes on them, and a purple star in the center.
- Mayhem. Awl-shaped variety up to 10 cm high. Snow-white inflorescences densely covering the shrub reach a diameter of 1.5 cm.
- Phlox Douglas. The plant reaches 10 cm in height. It has dense, dense stems, creating a voluminous ball. Petals are painted in burgundy and purple tones, but snow-white varieties are also found.
- Phlox is bifurcated. The variety has an original petal shape resembling oblong hearts. The buds are medium sized, painted in white or blue.
Ground cover perennial phloxes (photo below) will become an adornment of an alpine hill or a rabatka. If you need to plant flowers in the background, then pay attention to high varieties.
Tall flowers
Plants are unpretentious and grow even in the shade. In addition, such varieties are frost-resistant. And suitable for growing in the northern regions. The following varieties are in demand among flower growers:
- Windsor. Flower shoots reach 90-120 cm in length. Star-shaped buds with a diameter of up to 4 cm are collected in large panicle inflorescences, reaching 10–40 cm in girth. Petals are painted in rich red-orange tones.
- Natasha Panicled variety, reaching 1.5 in height. Large buds with a diameter of 2.5-4 cm are collected in panicles of various shapes and sizes. Petals emit a strong aroma, painted in white, carmine, pink, blue and lilac tones. The plant tolerates frosts and prefers shade.
- Nicky. The height of the culture is 1.2 meters. The first buds appear already in late spring, and the last disappear in September. Inflorescences are painted in saturated violet and lilac shades.
- Magic Blue. A distinctive feature of the variety is the color change of the petals. Initially, they are painted in raspberry-purple tones with a white eye in the center. Subsequently, the buds acquire a light pink hue. And the center becomes bright crimson. The diameter of the flower is 3.5 cm. The shrub reaches 65–70 cm in height.
- Tenor. The height of the shrub reaches 100 cm. The size of the flower is 8 cm. The petals are painted in rich bright red tones. The variety is resistant to disease and frost. Calmly takes root in the shade.
Each of these varieties will be an adornment of the flower grower's collection. But in order to achieve long-term flowering from phloxes, it will be necessary to create comfortable conditions for plants.
Choosing a place and preparing for landing
For the flower garden, choose lighted areas that are protected from wind and drafts. But it is desirable that in the afternoon, a shadow from tall trees or buildings fall on the flowerbed. An ideal place would be the south, east or west side of the house.
Do not plant phlox near large trees, especially fir or pine trees. Such "neighbors" will draw nutrients from the soil, and the flowers will wither.
Perennial phloxes do not impose soil requirements. But it is recommended to plant flowers in a light, loose, fertile soil with neutral or slightly acid reactions.
If you plan to grow crops in loam, then first add sand, peat and manure to the soil. Be sure to add compost and turf to the sandy soil.
Be sure to check the quality of the seedling before planting. Perennial phlox, the photo of which is indicated above, purchase in special stores or nurseries. Note that on a strong plant there should be 2-3 shoots with buds. The recommended root length is 15 cm.
Phlox perennial: planting and care
It is better to plant flowers in the fall, in late September - early October. Then the plants will get stronger before the onset of frost and will tolerate winter well. And already next year you will be pleased with an attractive view.
Phlox is recommended to be planted in rows. Keep a distance of 35–40 cm between low-growing varieties of perennial phlox (photos are given in the article). For varieties of medium height, increase the distance to 50 cm. The distance between bushes of tall plants should reach 60–70 cm.
How to plant flowers:
- Dig a depth of the area into the bayonet of the shovel, remove the weeds and add for each square meter a bucket of compost and 200 g of charcoal. It is advisable to add more mineral fertilizers.
- Dig holes for the plant with a diameter greater than the root system of the culture by 5 cm.
- Pour water into the recess.
- Spread the roots of the seedling, treat them with “Root”.
- Dig the plant into the ground. Make sure the growth bud is 4–5 cm below ground level.
- Fill the voids with soil and lightly tamp it.
- Before the cold weather comes, do not forget to cut off the ground part of the bush, leaving a stump of 5 cm high.
You can plant flowers in the spring. The main thing is to hold this event in mid-April. Then the cultures will take root and give buds this year. But keep in mind that with spring planting, perennial phloxes need daily watering for the first two weeks. In the future, provide them with normal care.
Top dressing
In order for perennial phloxes, the photo of which is presented in the article, to bloom amicably and continuously, apply fertilizers. And feed crops 4-5 times per season:
- In the spring, during the period of active growth, flowers need nitrogen preparations. They will help the flowers build up a "green mass".
- When laying buds and direct flowering, feed crops with potassium-phosphorus compounds.
- In the fall, apply phosphoric preparations. Then the cultures will calmly survive the cold season.
In addition, it is recommended to fertilize flowers 2-3 times a season with universal preparations, for example, Citovit or Uniflor Micro.
Watering
Phlox is a moisture-loving plant. And for a beautiful and long flowering, they need regular and plentiful watering. It is important to moisten the soil during hot and dry weather, because the beauty of the culture will suffer from a lack of moisture.
It is advisable to water the flowers in the evening, then the moisture will not evaporate in a short time. At the same time, use only warm water for humidification, the minimum consumption is a bucket per 1 sq. M. m
After 20-30 minutes after watering, be sure to loosen the soil. But do not “dig” too deep, because this will damage the roots of the flowers. If the soil sagged strongly after loosening, then sprinkle a flower bed with a 3-4 cm layer of peat.
Pruning
Cut early flowering varieties of perennial phloxes at the end of summer. For later varieties, transfer this procedure to the end of September. But you need to complete the pruning before the onset of frost.
During the procedure, remove the entire terrestrial part of the culture. But at the same time leave stumps 5 cm long. Note that on each shoot 3 growth buds should remain. After all, new shoots will appear from them in the spring.
Winter preparations
In the southern regions, where the temperature does not fall below -15 ° C, perennial phloxes calmly tolerate the cold season without shelter.
In the middle lane, without preparation, the plants are unlikely to survive the winter. To protect the flowers from frost, cut off the surface of the crops. After that, mulch the soil and cover the flower bed with spruce branches, straw or covering material, such as lutrasil.
In the northern regions, you can’t leave plants in the open ground for the winter, because no shelter will protect them from severe frosts. Therefore, in the autumn, dig your favorite bushes of perennial phloxes, transplant into pots or containers and send to the basement. In the spring, plant the crops in the flowerbed.
Transfer
These flowers need a periodic transplant. Indeed, over time, the soil of the flower garden is depleted. And from a lack of nutrients, the buds become small. In addition, the duration of flowering is reduced.
In addition, pathogens accumulate in the soil. Therefore, every 5-6 years, it is recommended to transplant flowers to a new place. Spend this event in the fall, when the growth of culture ends.
Reproduction of phlox seeds
A perennial gardener can also grow perennial phlox from seeds, because such a method of reproduction is simple. You do not have to bother with a greenhouse, seedlings and other "charms" of floriculture, since phlox seeds are sown immediately in open ground.
You can plant plants from November to January. At the same time, do not be afraid of snow, because thanks to it the seeds will undergo a natural stratification, which will ensure high germination and earlier flowering.
Keep in mind that seed is rapidly losing viability. Therefore, sow flowers in the year of seed collection. Before freezing, be sure to prepare a flowerbed, because if frost “grabs” the soil, then it will be difficult for you to work with it. To do this, dig beds, remove weeds and fertilize.
When planting, spread the seeds 5 cm apart. Sprinkle planting on top with garden soil with a layer of 1 cm. If there is snow, then cover them with a flower garden. In the spring, after emergence, thin out the rows.
Propagation by green cuttings
Proceed with a similar procedure when the shoots reach 15 cm in height. First prepare the soil for planting. To do this, mix in equal proportions:
In a selected illuminated area, sprinkle a 10-centimeter layer of soil mix. Sprinkle it with 2-3 cm of river sand.
For cuttings, choose strong lateral branches on which there are 2 internodes. Do the first cut immediately under one of them. And the second at a height of 5-7 cm from the next internode. How to plant cuttings:
- Remove the bottom pair of leaves.
- To stimulate the growth and viability of cuttings, do not forget to process the slices with “Kornevin.”
- Insert the shoots in the sand, while making sure that the bottom cut does not fall into the soil.
- Between the cuttings, keep a distance of 5-6 cm, the distance between the rows is 12 cm.
- Sprinkle the soil with spray water and cover the landing with glass or polyethylene.
In the future, do not forget to regularly moisten the soil in the greenhouse with warm water from the spray gun. After three weeks, be sure to feed the cuttings with potassium solution. To do this, dilute 10-15 grams of ammonium nitrate and potassium sulfide in 10 liters of water. When the cuttings give the first leaves, remove the film.
Bush division
This method of reproduction of perennial phlox is suitable for adult plants that have reached 3 years of age. The event can be held in spring, summer and autumn. How to propagate flowers:
- Carefully dig up the bush, taking care not to damage the roots. Please note that they grow to a depth of 15–20 cm.
- With a sharp knife, divide the shrub into several parts. Each of them should have 5 kidneys of renewal. Try not to brush off the roots of the earthen lump. So the plants quickly take root in a new place.
- Cut the upper shoots to a height of 10–25 cm and plant seedlings of perennial phlox in pre-prepared pits.
Plant care consists of abundant and regular watering, weeding and top dressing. This method allows you to save all the features of the variety of flowers, in addition, due to the division of the bush, old plants are rejuvenated. And after such a procedure, they begin to bloom with a vengeance.
Attractive phloxes will decorate the infield. In addition, a novice gardener can grow these noble flowers. After all, it is enough to provide crops with minimal care, and they will certainly thank with long flowering.