Panicle hydrangea "vims red" was bred relatively recently. Despite this, gardeners around the world have appreciated the magnificent decorative qualities of this plant.
Hydrangea paniculata Wim's Red looks interesting in both group and single landing. A beautiful and elegant shrub is used to decorate lawns, gardens, front gardens, as well as to create original compositions in combination with other plants.
Description and characteristics of hydrangea "vims red"
Of the large family of panicled hydrangeas, wims red is one of the smallest. In height, it does not exceed one and a half meters. The branches of the bush are scattered to the sides quite widely, which always looks very impressive. A feature of this variety are huge inflorescences (up to 40 cm in length). They have a narrow pyramidal shape.
Fertile and sterile flowers in a ratio of 50:50. Sterile flowers, as a rule, are four-lobed, with a diameter of five to seven centimeters. The diameter of the flowers is one-dimensional along the length of the brush, this circumstance gives the delicacy to the inflorescence. At the beginning of flowering, the bush is covered with snow-white flowers, then they turn pink, and in the fall they turn wine-red. But the most remarkable thing about them is their unusual aroma. When the wims red hydrangea blooms, the air fills with the smell of honey. But this is far from all its advantages.
Hydrangea Wims Red, a description of which periodically prints all publications on gardening and floriculture, has large dark green leaves with a reddish tint. But they are especially good in the fall, when a metallic shine appears on the leaves, which gradually turns into shades of purple, bronze, cherry, yellow and orange. The shoots have a rich dark red hue. Panicle hydrangea blooms “vims red” every year on last year's shoots.
Frost resistance
Winter hardiness of the plant is quite high - it withstands frost of 30 ° C. Meanwhile, young shoots need to be sheltered and mulched for the winter. Only after two years, hydrangea can be considered an adult plant, which in the middle zone and southern regions perfectly survives the winter even without shelter.
When to plant hydrangea?
First of all, it is necessary to determine the time of planting a bush. This can be done both in early spring and autumn. However, experts believe that hydrangea planted in the fall is much more active. Planting and care practically do not differ depending on the season. Just over the summer, the seedling will get stronger, it will have more chances to survive in any climatic conditions.
Hydrangea: planting and care in the open ground
For this type of hydrangea, the composition of the soil in which it develops is important. Neutral or acidic soils are preferred. The soil should be fertile, with sufficient moisture and well-drained. It should be noted that in acidic soil the color of inflorescences is always brighter.
Before planting, a pit should be prepared with a depth of at least 40 cm and 50x50 cm in length and width. Landing takes two days. On the first day, you need to dig a hole in which to fill three buckets of water. In this state, she is left until morning. For the further development of the plant, it is important that the soil is well saturated with moisture.
On the second day, you need to do fertilizer for the seedling. As a rule, the soil mixture consists of equal parts of fertile soil, peat. Separately, humus and sand are mixed. Then the compositions are mixed in a ratio of 2: 1. Now superphosphate, potassium sulfate and urea should be added to the mixture. These organic fertilizers are very important for this variety.
The pit is filled almost completely to the top with the resulting soil mixture, leaving about 10-15 cm. The time has come to plant a seedling, the roots of which need to be straightened and dug up with the soil remaining after creating the pit. Hydrangea planted in autumn will require a little more effort. Planting and care in the open ground will be supplemented by sheltering a seedling for the winter. This must be done without fail, despite the fact that the plant is frost-resistant.
Seat selection
Hydrangea "vims red" prefers partial shade. But sometimes such a landing is fraught with a loss of brightness of inflorescences. As a rule, this is due to insufficiently prepared soil. Many flower growers believe that this variety develops well in a sunny area, but provided that the bush is protected from the wind.
Plant care
No matter how unpretentious the plant may be, without the active participation of the gardener, it will not give all the beauty that is planted by breeders in a particular variety. Hydrangea wims red will require the gardener to fulfill three conditions for growth and development:
- This exquisite beauty does not like to be in direct sunlight.
- Propagation of the shrub is done either by layering, or by cuttings.
- It is necessary to use growth stimulants.
Watering
The planted shrub should be watered abundantly so that the root system more easily adapts to a new area. In extreme heat, watering is carried out at the rate of 30 liters of water per 1 m² of soil. Such abundant watering should be done once every seven days. In rainy times, volume and frequency are reduced.
Gardeners need to remember that the soil under the ornamental shrub should always be moist. To achieve this, you can resort to mulching with sawdust soil around the plant. It is recommended that a little manganese be added to the standing water intended for irrigation so that it turns light pink.
Top dressing
If you want your vims red hydrangea to bloom actively and abundantly, you need to feed the bush. The first dressing should be carried out in the spring, during the formation of inflorescences. At this time, organic fertilizers, slurry, for example, are most suitable.
A second top dressing is necessary during the ripening of the buds. In this case, various means are suitable, which include superphosphates, potassium and urea.
The third feeding is carried out with a mineral complex of fertilizers. Its time largely depends on the degree of flowering of the plant. Please note that if the buds have fully blossomed, then the time has come for a third top dressing. This procedure will significantly increase the flowering period of hydrangea.
The fourth top dressing is carried out during the preparation of the plant for wintering. During this period, it is necessary to use special chemical compositions for hydrangeas, which today can be purchased without problems in specialized stores.
Beginning gardeners need to remember that hydrangea wims red needs to be fed. Only with the use of organic and mineral fertilizers can you achieve active growth and timely abundant and prolonged flowering of the bush, which will delight you with huge fragrant inflorescences all summer.
Pruning
Shrub pruning is also required during preparation for winter. In this case, the gardener has the goal of rejuvenating the shrub, so old, damaged shoots are removed. Cut them so that there are stumps 5-6 cm long.
In order for the flowering of your hydrangea to be brighter, in the spring, before the start of the growing season, you need to conduct competent pruning. In addition, this procedure will give the plant a neat regular shape during flowering and growth. In the spring, select five to ten strong and healthy shoots on each bush. Reduce their length so that no more than five kidneys remain.
Breeding
Hydrangea can be propagated in three ways:
- by seeds;
- layering;
- cuttings.
We won’t even consider the first method: the seeds of the plant are very small, they do not germinate too well, and you can get a fully-blooming bush no earlier than four years later.
Wims red hydrangea propagated by cuttings develops much more efficiently. Set the remaining branches after the autumn pruning in the water for three days. After that, cuttings must be cut from them so that each of them has at least three internodes. Treat the bottom cut of the cuttings with a growth stimulator and plant in the room in ordinary pots by 2/3.
As a rule, seedlings are kept in room conditions until spring. After the air temperature in the street becomes stably positive, the plant can be planted in open ground in a permanent place.
Propagation by layering
Bend one of the branches of the bush to the ground and tack it. You may need to fix it so that it does not straighten with a small stone. Use a small support on which it will be possible to fix a crown of a branch in vertical position.
This method of propagation is advisable to use in spring or late summer. Next year the shoot will take root. After that, it can be separated from the main plant.
Hydrangea in winter
Many gardeners believe that vims red hydrangea is very beautiful in winter, when large, not cut in the fall inflorescences cover hats of fluffy snow. However, professional flower growers do not agree with this opinion. They believe that all inflorescences should be removed in late autumn. The fact is that gusts of winter wind, icy rain can break the thin branches of the plant, especially if the remaining inflorescences are covered with snow.
Despite the ability of this variety to tolerate moderate winters, it is better to cover the shrub. For an adult plant, it is not necessary to use covering material. It is necessary only for a young seedling. Adult shrubs do not need it. Only the root system needs to be covered.
You can use the following methods:
- Around the shrub, you can spread out a small layer of rotted manure.
- Suitable for shelter peat or fallen foliage. In this case, the covering layer should be at least 20 cm.
In the northern regions, if you fear for young branches, build a frame around hydrangea and cover it with a dense plastic wrap. He will delay the snow and create a certain greenhouse for the plant.
Gardeners reviews
Most flower lovers from different regions of our country believe that the best variety of the existing ones is wims red hydrangea. Reviews about this plant are enthusiastic: bright magnificent flowering, divine aroma, simple care - all this makes it extremely popular in our country. The disadvantages of flower growers in the northern regions include only the need for winter shelter.