First of all, I would like to note that castor bean plant is a unique plant, since it is the only representative of the genus Kleschevina from the family Euphorbiaceae. This is a medicinal perennial, which is now quite often found in gardens. Ethiopia is considered its homeland, however, this plant can be found in almost all the tropics and subtropics of the globe. In Egypt, it was distributed even before our era. In Russia, castor oil is better known as a paradise tree.
Description
In our gardens, castor oil is grown as an annual plant due to climatic conditions. These are fairly tall plants that can reach ten meters. Large green leaves, consisting of five or seven lobes, are alternately located on an erect, branched stem, which often has a brown hue, but can also be red or bluish-green. Gardeners choose castor oil plant for growing from seeds precisely because of its beautiful leaves. You can see flowers on this plant, but they have no decorative value. By autumn, fruits appear on castor oil, which are enclosed in spherical spherical boxes. They appear after flowering and are located between the upper leaves. They also add a special appeal to the plant.
Castor oil contains a toxic substance. Low-growing varieties are grown in the culture, which will be described later.
Species and varieties
It has already been said that castor bean is unique in its kind, however, breeders have done the necessary work and now gardeners can choose a variety according to their preferences.
- Zanzibar castor oil plant is an annual of medium height (only two meters). Its stem is strewn with beautiful and large red-purple leaves. The cultivation of Zanzibar castor beans from seeds is popular because of its beautiful inflorescences, which is rare for this plant.
- Cambodian is perhaps the smallest variety, since the highest plant has reached only one meter twenty centimeters. She has a rather original black barrel. The flowerbed looks beautiful, where Cambodian castor oil grows along with other varieties.
- Gibson castor oil when grown from seeds reaches a height of one and a half meters. It differs from other varieties in that its leaves have a metallic luster.
- Bourbon. A common view in our latitudes. It features a high red trunk, large green and shiny leaves.
More recently, breeders have bred another variety - Cossack. Despite the fact that it has just appeared on the market, this castor oil plant has already managed to gain popularity. This is not a troublesome process - growing from the seeds of castor oil plant Cossack. When to plant seeds in open ground or seedlings? The dates for all varieties are approximately the same: beginning of April and mid-May, respectively. The variety has beautiful leaves that are located on a two-meter red-brown stem. Blood red flowers stand out especially. Seed boxes also have a bright red hue.
Planting seeds
So, we figured out the plant varieties, now we should learn about the peculiarities of growing castor beans from seeds: when to plant on seedlings and how. Remember that it propagates only by seeds and in no other way. Before planting, planting material must be scarified.
Castor oil has one problem - poor germination (60-70%). But you can help the seeds a little to increase their germination. To do this, they are lightly rubbed with sandpaper, and then left overnight in a solution of any growth stimulant. Experienced gardeners prefer not to waste time on growing impala bronze from castor seeds from bronze at home and immediately sow them in open ground. Such a landing is carried out not earlier than in mid-April, but better - in early May. However, if you are a beginner gardener and still do not know the features of planting, it is better to grow seedlings, and then just plant it in the ground. For this purpose, planting material is sown in containers in the second half of March or early April.
For planting, you will need transparent plastic buckets that are 1/2 full of garden soil. In each bucket you can place only one seed and deepen it by no more than three centimeters. If your seeds are scarified, the seedlings will appear very quickly: after about three or four days. There is a sticky peel on the seeds, which should be removed, since its presence in the soil can cause the seeds to simply begin to rot. This is the technology of growing castor seeds from seed castor oil to obtain seedlings. As you can see, there is nothing complicated about this. The process goes quite quickly, especially if the gardener will adhere to all the recommendations of specialists.
Seedlings
Some varieties are recommended to grow through seedlings by the producers themselves, such as castor bean Island red. Growing seedlings from seeds is an important step. The stronger the seedlings will be, the better they acclimatize after planting in open ground. As soon as the seed sprouts, the stem begins to grow actively upwards and after a few days the first real leaflet already appears on it. When this happens, the plant should be placed in a lighter but cooler room. The ideal temperature is fifteen degrees. When the seedlings begin to gain height, it is necessary to gradually fill the pot with soil until it is full. If your seedlings grow too rapidly, then it will have to be transplanted into larger containers. Quite often, by the time of planting in open ground, seedlings already reach a height of one meter.
Time for landing
The time for sowing seeds for seedlings or immediately in the soil depends on climatic conditions and the selected variety. So, at home, the cultivation of castor seeds Hot heart and Red Island should begin in March, seeds are sown in open ground in late April - mid-May. The earth should warm up to +12 ° C. Seeding depth - 2-6 cm.
Cultivation of castor bean Impala bronze from seeds without seedlings is possible, but irrelevant for the northern latitudes. The variety is quite moody. To germinate, seeds require heat and moisture, the first sprouts appear after 10-20 days.
In general, castor oil is not included in the list of whimsical garden plants and will develop normally anywhere. However, if you want the plant to develop quickly and delight you with the beauty of its leaves, it is better to plant seedlings in a sunny area, where there will be loose and fertile soil. The best option is chernozem.
How to plant
If the time has already come to plant the seedlings in the open ground, then you should moisten it well in pots, and then, together with an earthen lump that remains on the roots, transplanted into previously prepared holes. Top seedlings sprinkled with garden soil and compacted well. After planting, all plants must be watered.
If you still decide to grow castor oil plant in a seedlingless way, then the best time for sowing, as mentioned above, comes when the soil warms up to +12 ° C. Make shallow holes, place from two to three seeds in them, since the germination of seeds is not one hundred percent. During sowing, be sure to protect your hands; always wear rubber gloves. This is necessary in order to avoid poisoning by castor seeds, which contain a rather dangerous substance. The lethal dose for a child is six seeds, so you need to store such seeds away from small children.
Garden growing conditions
Paradise tree is developing very quickly and does not require any special care. The only important point is watering. It must be done once every five days. At least ten liters of water are poured under each bush. After watering around young plants, it is advisable to remove all available weeds, but older specimens do not react to such a neighborhood in any way and practically do not need weeding.
To create all the conditions for the normal growth of castor oil, you can add nitrogen fertilizers to the soil before flowering. At this, all the activities to care for the paradise tree end. As you can see, growing such a plant will delight you not only with the beauty of the flowerbed, but also with the ease of care.
Pests
Insects rarely bother with a paradise tree, but this happens. So, you can meet the following pests on castor oil:
- Wireworm.
- False stranger.
- Caterpillars of different species.
All of them are dangerous for seedlings in case of sowing seeds directly into the open ground. This is another powerful argument in favor of growing castor beans from seeds at home. Meadow bugs are dangerous for inflorescences, but they attack extremely rarely.
If caterpillars have appeared, then you must fight them, because they can completely destroy your paradise trees. If there are not many, then simply collect the insects by hand and destroy them. However, if there are already too many caterpillars, then a special infusion for spraying should be prepared. To prepare it, you need to pick up a third of a bucket of crushed bitter wormwood and pour water to the brim. The grass is infused for three days. After this, the infusion needs to be filtered, and it will be ready in order to process castor oil.
There are ways to prevent the emergence of caterpillars. To this end, beds of parsley, onions, garlic, coriander and dill are planted between paradise trees. The smell of these plants will probably scare away unexpected guests.
With wireworm and false wireworm it is much easier to fight even before they appear on the beds. Therefore, before transplanting seedlings, it is advisable to water the wells with a not too strong solution of potassium permanganate.
Diseases
Castor oil is susceptible to diseases of a fungal nature: powdery mildew, late blight, pink and gray rot, and others. But there is one way to combat any of these diseases - treating plants with a Bordeaux mixture. In its absence, you can use another drug with a similar composition, which can be purchased in a special store.
Seed collection
If you want to collect your own seeds, and not buy them every season, then in advance, even during the flowering period, select the most beautiful specimens of castor oil plants for yourself and mark so that you do not lose sight of them later. Seed boxes can be cut with the advent of September. Seeds need to be dried. To do this, they are laid out in a room with good ventilation. In this position, the seed boxes remain for a long time. Seeds can be extracted from them no earlier than the end of November or December.
If the box is dry, then it will open quite easily from a simple pressure. One box usually contains 2-3 large seeds. They slightly resemble beans in appearance. During the collection of seeds, as well as during planting, gloves must be worn so that your hands are protected from poisonous thorns. Seeds can be stored for four years. For storage, choose a place where they can not get small children and animals.
Castor oil properties
Although castor oil is a poisonous plant, it can bring great benefits to humans. All thanks to the essential oils that it contains. It was for their sake that the paradise tree began to be grown on an industrial scale. Who would have thought, but it is on the basis of the oil that is contained in the castor oil plant that castor is now being made. It is used exclusively for diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, it is very effective for constipation and colitis, and external use is also allowed. Oil can lubricate various wounds, burns, warts, ulcers that appear on the surface of the skin. It is possible to cure castor oil from castor oil hemorrhoids, varicose veins, some gynecological diseases, as well as various eye inflammations. Such a medicine can be purchased at any pharmacy in capsules or glass containers. It can be stored in the refrigerator for several years, the only condition is dark dishes and a tight-fitting lid.
You can rub warm castor a little in the chest with diseases such as bronchitis and colds. And it is also widely used in cosmetology, and in its various fields: they treat the scalp and hair diseases, and are used in the fight against wrinkles and age spots on the face.
But castor oil has contraindications. It is strictly forbidden to use any means with the addition of castor oil during pregnancy and lactation, as well as if any chronic disease has worsened. Consult a physician regarding the individual intolerance of this component. It is not recommended to give drugs based on castor oil or a pure product for children who have not yet reached the age of twelve years.
Conclusion
We completely examined all the features of growing castor oil plant from seeds, when to plant and how to plant this plant. Even a novice gardener will be able to cope with the features of caring for a paradise tree. However, when working with the seeds of this plant, one must not forget about caution in connection with its toxicity.