Owners of suburban areas very often grow garden barberries. This plant is a wonderful decoration, and also has an unusual appearance. However, not everyone knows how to care for him. Especially you need to consider how to properly plant this unusual bush, at what time it is best to implement. Let's consider a question in more detail.
Description of Barberry
This plant belongs to the Berberidaceae family. Barberry has amazing healing properties. In folk medicine, its fruits, foliage and even bark are used. The birthplace of the tree is Africa. Later, culture appeared in Europe, and from there it migrated to Russia.
Externally, the plant is a shrub whose height reaches 4 meters. Foliage in the form of bundles of thorns. The inflorescences of the culture are yellow, resembling tassels. After fertilization, they are transformed into red fruits. The foliage of the plant is often affected by "rust." This ailment is very difficult to fight. The reason for the appearance of such an unpleasant defect is the barberry aphid, which was named because of its reddish hue. It affects the lower parts of the foliage. If you do not get rid of parasites in a timely manner, then the insects will begin to multiply rapidly, which will bring great harm to the plant, it will suffer greatly. It can even reach the complete subsidence of foliage and the curvature of the shoots. Therefore, every spring you need to carefully examine the thorny bushes.
When to plant?
It is customary to plant barberry seedlings in a suburban area in the spring, immediately after the ground completely thaws. However, during this period of time, it is quite difficult to make the correct planting, since it must be performed before the buds of the plant open. That is why many people prefer to plant barberries in the fall, during this period there is no need to worry about strict time limits. As a rule, landing falls on massive leaf fall, so it is very difficult to miss the right time.
It is worth considering that the garden barberry is distinguished by its undemanding care, it feels good in dark places, in open areas and windward areas. This plant can not be hidden from drafts.
There are several types of barberry culture. Most often, gardeners prefer the red barberry, which is famous for its purple color. Such plants look very impressive, look great on illuminated areas of the garden.
As a rule, this plant feels much better in neutral soil. If the soil has a pH level of less than 7, then barberry will also grow well. If a very acidic soil prevails in the suburban area, then a little lime should be added to it to normalize the balance of substances.
The soil
During the planting of barberry in the fall, despite the fact that the plant is unpretentious to the ground, it is worth preparing the soil for young seedlings. In this case, the hydrogen index, as already mentioned, should be about 6-7 pH.
As a soil mixture, you can use sand, garden soil and humus. They should be mixed in equal proportions. In order to reduce the acidity of the soil, sprinkle it with wood ash in a volume of 200 grams per bush. You can also use slaked lime. In this case, 300-400 grams is enough.
Autumn transplant
In this case, it is worth clarifying that no matter what time of year the work is done (in spring or autumn), you need to pay attention to the roots of adult plants that are over 4 years old. They withstand this procedure much worse. To alleviate the condition of the barberry tree, it is best to transplant with an earthen lump. Nevertheless, even thanks to these measures, the plant will coexist in a new place for a very long time. The restoration of barberry requires up to 3 years.
Features autumn pruning barberry
As a rule, this procedure is performed in spring and autumn. It is necessary in order to select thin, dry or damaged branches. In winter, it is better not to leave underdeveloped branches. The fact is that they will take away excess energy from the plant at a time when it will need additional energy.
It is recommended to prune barberries with tight gloves, as the bush is very prickly. Also in the fall and spring, it is possible to produce formation in order to give the plant the necessary shape.
Sanitary pruning
This procedure is advised to be performed regularly. It is necessary for the plant to get rid of dry, sick and thinned twigs. Thanks to the sanitization, the crown of the plant can be thinned out if it is too thickened. This helps the new sprouts to gain strength and properly form buds, which, in turn, also affects the power of flowering and fruiting.
Sanitary pruning is necessarily carried out if the plant becomes ill. After the procedure, you need to burn all the deleted items. Otherwise, the disease can not only hit the bush repeatedly, but also spread to other inhabitants of the suburban area.
Features of shelter for the winter
After planting barberry succeeded, you need to take care of the plant before the onset of frost. This is especially necessary to do in the first 1-2 years after planting a thorny bush.
It is worth considering the climatic conditions of a particular region in which barberry will grow. It is also necessary to pay attention to the characteristics of the variety, as some of them are characterized by low resistance to frost. If the plant is grown in harsh climates, it is best to plant it in a calm place.
Before the onset of frost, it is recommended to mulch parabolic circles. This will help insulate the root system. As a consumable, you can use spruce branches, hay and much more.
How to plant barberry in the autumn?
As a rule, a prickly bush can be planted both as a single plant and by forming a dense hedge from it. In the latter case, it will be necessary to spend a lot of effort and care in order to create such an unusual living fence.
After a place has been selected, it is necessary to dig out the corresponding hole, to produce fertilizer. If we talk about the most favorable time, it is recommended to plant barberries in autumn before mid-October. However, everything again depends on the climatic features of a particular region. If the landing is done in the spring, then, as a rule, work must be done before mid-April.
If we talk about the procedure for planting and transplanting young seedlings, then it is carried out simply, regardless of whether it occurs in autumn or spring. First of all, it is necessary to prepare an appropriate seat. Its size should be approximately 40 x 40 cm. 10 kg of humus or compost should be poured into the pit.
If the soil is too oxidized, then it is also recommended to add 500 grams of lime to the pit. At the next stage, the seedling of a young plant is placed in a planting pit and sprinkled with soil. After that, it must be carefully poured with water and mulched with peat or compost. At the final stage, it is necessary to cut off the top of the plant, leave from three to five developed branches.
When is barberry usually harvested?
The fruits of the plant are appreciated for their healing properties. If we talk about when to collect barberry, it is worth noting that healthy berries ripen by the end of summer. Usually the collection is made at this time or in early September. Juice is made from barberry fruits and can be dried.
Speaking about when to collect barberry, it is also worth noting that leaves are often removed from the bushes. Usually this procedure is carried out in mid-June. Immediately after this, experienced gardeners dry the collected foliage in the fresh air and then put it away for storage.
The plant bark also has beneficial properties. It is usually harvested before the onset of cold weather. To get the bark, it is best to dig out the roots and remove it from them. After that, the extracted pieces are stringed and dried in the fresh air.
Further care of young seedlings
Despite the fact that barberries are not very capricious, do not require a special relationship, you still need to carry out periodic work to refine them. As a rule, in order for the plant to feel good, it is enough to loosen after planting barberry in the fall.
Experts recommend at least once a season to remove all weeds and weed the bush. Remember that barberry is very fond of pruning. If you remove all unnecessary, weak, diseased and dried branches, then next year the barberry will bloom even more. Periodically, it can be fed with fertilizers.
Breeding
In this case, you can act in several ways. If barberry is propagated by seeds, it is necessary to pay attention to the fact that they are very hard, therefore it is difficult to seed material.
Sowing seeds is necessary immediately after they are extracted from the berries. This procedure is carried out in mid-October. At the same time, the seed material should not be deeply buried. It is enough to lay the seeds to a depth of 3 cm.
After planting, it is enough to mulch the soil with sawdust and cover it with spruce branches. The last procedure is necessary to protect the seeds from rodents. When spring comes, all barricades are removed, and the bed is covered with a film and left until the seeds begin to grow fully. In the subsequent period, it is necessary to carefully monitor the sprouts, weed them and water them. After that, you can transplant young barberries to a new place. However, this can be done no earlier than in 2 years.
Some advise to produce propagation by cuttings. To do this, you need to choose them correctly. It is best to pick cuttings around mid-June. Moreover, it is recommended to do this in the early morning.
The selected branches must be lowered for several hours into the prepared heteroauxin solution. After the finished material must be thoroughly washed with clean cool water and planted in a moist substrate.
It is also necessary to mix humus, sand and fertile soil in equal proportions. Then, using arcs, build a small structure that will resemble an improvised greenhouse covered with a film. In this state, you need to leave the planted branches for about two weeks. After that, the film is gradually removed. It is possible to transfer such cuttings to a new place only after two years. The barberry tree is amazing. It decorates a summer cottage, so many gardeners tend to plant it in their yard. Beautiful red berries in combination with green foliage, which changes color before the onset of cold weather, look noble.
Finally
If the plant care is correct, it is easy to create the most unusual compositions on a suburban area. No wonder barberries are so loved by landscape designers. Having created such a lively fence in the garden, you can not worry about caring for it. Barberry does not require the use of caustic and dangerous fertilizers. The shrub grows fine without them. It is enough to periodically inspect the plant, weed and loosen the soil.