Small periwinkle is a perennial plant with very delicate and beautiful flowers, which is often used to create decorative compositions on the site. Gardeners often combine it with various shrubs and other flowers. To date, about two dozen species of vinca are known, each of which has its own distinctive features, but at the same time, all require the same approach to growing.
In this article, we will tell you about the care and planting of periwinkle in the open ground, give a description of this plant and advice on its use for medicinal purposes. So, now about everything in order.
Description
Small periwinkle is an evergreen plant, which is a perennial and blooming carpet, which is often used to cover flower beds and rabatok. The flower was also loved by experienced landscape designers and novice gardeners, not only for their attractive appearance, but also for their unpretentiousness in care. The succulent green leaves of the plant have a dense structure and a shiny waxy coating on the surface.
The five-petalled inflorescence is most often a pale purple or bluish hue. The small periwinkle plant has a significant advantage over other flowers - due to the high growth rate and rooting of shoots, it quickly covers the ground, which does not allow weeds to develop. Its creeping stems can reach meter length. In the following sections, we will introduce you in detail to the processes of leaving and planting vinca in open ground, which, incidentally, is also frost-resistant, which is important in the climate of our country.
Choosing a place and soil
Not for nothing, the small periwinkle is considered one of the most unpretentious garden plants - it does not make high demands on the planting site. Both well-lit and shaded areas are suitable. The optimal place would be partial shade under the crown of a tree. The only thing worth paying attention to is the presence of a small hill in the place reserved for its cultivation. In the lowlands, excess moisture can accumulate, which leads to decay of the plant.
In order to achieve a more magnificent and plentiful flowering, it is worth giving preference to fertile and loose soils, with good drainage and neutral acidity. But in general, a small periwinkle takes root on almost any land.
Sowing Features
It is permissible to plant a small periwinkle both in early spring and in late autumn. One of the important conditions for sowing (both in autumn and spring) is the introduction of a small amount of compost into the depleted soil during digging. And for better development of the root system, immediately before planting, apply phosphate fertilizers to the soil. If your site has heavy soils with a high clay content, it is best to dilute it with peat, compost or well-rotted manure. These additives will act as drainage, which will significantly improve the penetration of water to the roots of the plant.
To sow a small periwinkle, grooves of small depth are prepared. Sowing seeds is carried out to a depth of about a centimeter, after which they are sprinkled with earth and spilled well with water. If you are going to grow plants to improve the quality of the soil (keeping erosion on the slope), then sow in a checkerboard pattern. In other cases, the distance between landings should be at least 35 centimeters.
Care
As such, constant care of the plant is completely unnecessary. Cultivating a small periwinkle just will not cause you much trouble, because it does not even need to be watered - natural precipitation is quite enough. The only time to monitor soil moisture is the stage of development of the sprouts. If the summer turned out to be very hot and arid, you can water the periwinkle every 1.5-2 weeks.
Removing weeds, as mentioned above, this plant is not required at all. However, if you wish, you can loosen the soil to provide the roots with oxygen, moisture and nutrients. This is especially true for the soil into which peat was introduced. And to enhance the growth and development of lateral shoots, just pinch the young stems.
Feeding is preferably carried out during the formation of buds and flowering, when the plant becomes weaker. Organic fertilizers are used as fertilizers. At the end of flowering, trim the bushes to give them a more neat appearance and prevent excessive consumption of nutrients before the winter season.
Harvesting and propagation
Small periwinkle is mainly propagated by collecting, preparing and sowing seeds. Seed collection is carried out only after the final ripening of the fruit box, and for each variety it has its own form and ripening time. For example, in a small periwinkle, these are two curved leaflets resembling the shape of a sickle, which inside contain brown seeds.
On average, fruit boxes are picked in September before the rainy season. Seeds are sorted, dried and sent for storage in woven bags to a dark place. Immediately before sowing, the seeds are disinfected by treating them with a potassium permanganate solution.
Propagation by cuttings and division of the bush
In addition to growing from seeds, small periwinkle is also propagated by vegetative methods: cuttings and division.
Harvesting cuttings produced at the very end of summer or early September. Just at this time, the plant is pruned and prepared for winter - the trimmed shoots are quite suitable for subsequent planting. For this, the strongest and most healthy cuttings are selected, without traces of damage. Landing is carried out in a pre-prepared hole with fertile soil fertilized with peat. The stalk is deepened so that several leaves remain above the soil surface, and the sprout itself is in an upright position. The distance between the seedlings should be at least 30 centimeters. Landings are watered, and closer to the onset of winter they take refuge to protect themselves from hard frosts.
The division of the bush must be done in early spring, until the active development of young shoots has begun. Dig a healthy and magnificent bush, with a shovel or a sharp knife, separate the side part so that part of the root system is present on it. Then this part is planted in the prepared hole, gently straightening the roots and sprinkling them with fertile soil, then watered. The distance between the seedlings is maintained as in other methods of reproduction.
Diseases and Pests
The main problems that you may encounter when growing a small periwinkle are aphids, powdery mildew, and rust.
Since aphids are omnivorous and almost omnipresent, carefully check not only the periwinkle, but also the plants closest to it for its appearance. In order to get rid and prevent infection, treat the plants with a soapy solution.
But from mildew and rust, a soap solution is unlikely to help. In case of damage to these diseases, use fungicides. These are drugs such as "Topaz", "Ambulance" or Bordeaux fluid. It is also worth remembering that the cause of the appearance of these diseases can be increased soil moisture.
Combination with other plants
Periwinkle small is a very friendly plant that coexists wonderfully with almost any other flowers and shrubs. One of the best combinations are compositions with primrose and medunica, as well as forget-me-nots and bitterness. If you grow on a lily plot, then periwinkle can be used as their frame.
To emphasize the effectiveness and beauty of the periwinkle will help the fern substrate. A rather pleasant combination is obtained when planting this flower together with low coniferous shrubs. Also, a small periwinkle can be used as a lush border along paths or on flower beds with delicate flowers of pastel shades.
Healing properties
Active use of small periwinkle in medicine. For example, for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases, such as arrhythmia, arterial hypertension, etc. In folk medicine, periwinkle is a wonderful way to cleanse the blood. Tinctures and decoctions of this plant are used for rheumatism, diarrhea, fever and toothache. In addition, the periwinkle perfectly relieves various kinds of spasms, which makes it possible to use it with a strong cough or in the treatment of neuritis.
For harvesting, this plant is collected no later than July. Stems need to be cut at a height of about 3-5 centimeters above the soil. The collected material is cleaned of debris, sorted and sent for drying. It is best to dry the periwinkle under natural conditions and at high air temperatures.
In the case of traditional medicine, periwinkle is the basis of many vincamine preparations. Vincamine, contained in this plant in large quantities, stimulates the metabolic processes in the brain and improves blood circulation. Such drugs are used for migraines, with a decrease in concentration and memory impairment, for example, in old age. But vincamine is contraindicated in pregnancy and lactation.
However, it should be noted that self-medication is sometimes quite dangerous, even if you are completely confident in the benefits of a particular plant. Be sure to consult your doctor, who will make the final decision on the use of periwinkle.
Interesting Facts
Many peoples considered the periwinkle small to be practically a mythical plant, which could provide them with protection from evil spirits and adverse weather conditions. The plant was planted near the house, and in the dried form was used as a body amulet.
But the French and the Celts did perform magical rites with the so-called witching violet to determine the guilt of a woman in witchcraft. A piece of periwinkle was thrown into a frying pan with boiling oil while pronouncing the name of the suspected woman. Guilty was considered proven if the leaf flew to the side.