What shrub blooms twice a year? Experienced growers know the answer to this question: this is Weigel Middendorff! A plant of incredible beauty, belonging to the family of honeysuckle, allows you to make bright notes in the garden, to diversify it. That is why the bush is called the pearl of the beginning and mid-summer. Planting and caring for the Weigela Middendorff will not cause problems even for a novice gardener, and our useful tips will certainly help to grow a charming shrub!
Description
Charming creamy, juicy yellow, captivating copper - this is how the inflorescences of this unusual shrub look. An interesting fact is that the flowers gradually acquire color: over time, almost white petals acquire a saturated color. The shape of the flowers is also unusual - they are bell-shaped and tubular. It is impossible not to say that Middendorff is the most persistent representative of all kind! And the height of the Weigela Middendorff reaches 1.5 meters!
Flowering weigels
Weigel's most wonderful advantage is that it blooms twice a summer. The first flowering occurs in mid-May. Of course, the plant does not look very magnificent. But the second flowering, on the shoots of this year, is simply charming! From August, the Weigel decorates the garden until the very end of September!
When to plant a Weigela
The shrub planted in the spring perfectly takes root. The optimal gap is between the beginning of soil warming and the swelling of the first kidneys. But the autumn landing can lead to the fact that the Weigel Middendorff will die in the first winter. So if you purchased a plant in the fall, tilt it in an inclined position until spring. In this case, try to cover the earth with almost all of its crown.
Weigela soil
If you decide to plant this plant in your garden, carefully approach the choice of soil for it. The earth should not be dense and overdried, but Middendorff simply does not tolerate overmoistening. The soil needs to be loosened periodically, and it is best to do this immediately after watering. If it is not possible to carry out such work, it is worth covering the ground with sawdust.
Seat selection
Choosing a place for Middendorf's Weigela, you need to know - she prefers sunny areas or openwork shade. The bush needs protection from drafts - even a not very strong wind can damage the leaves of the plant and its flowers. In this case, the place should be on a small elevation, and artificial is suitable. In which part of the garden to plant a shrub? It all depends on the region: after all, planting the Weigela Middendorff and leaving in the Moscow Region differs from the conditions of the maintenance of the bush in Krasnodar. The best option is to land on the south side of the house.
Landing rules
To plant weigels, you need to prepare a pit 40 cm deep. However, if the soil on the site is poor, you should dig a bigger hole: 15 cm of drainage will need to be laid on its bottom (broken bricks, sand or gravel will do), then add fertile soil consisting of sheet land (2 parts), sand (2 parts) and turf land (1 part).
So that the planting material is likely to take root, you can treat its roots with a root stimulant. After this, the roots need to be carefully spread and planted in the ground. So that the plants do not interfere with each other, they need to be planted at a distance of 150 cm from each other. Do not deepen the root neck of the Middendorff weigela too much - 1-2 cm is enough. Immediately after planting, seedlings must be abundantly watered.
Care
In order for the plant to please the eye, it must be looked after. The earth near the plant should always be loose. It is important to fertilize the weigel - in early spring, you need to make mineral fertilizers. Potassium salt, urea are suitable. The second time the bush needs to be fed with potassium sulfate and superphosphate. Please note - after applying fertilizer, the weigel needs a lot of water!
By the way, if the winter was frosty and not snowy, and the shoots were frozen, the amount of water needed to be increased to 8-10 liters per bush. The same amount of water will be required in hot weather.
If possible, wipe the leaves of the Weigela with a damp cloth or spray them. It is important to ensure that water does not get into the flowers.
By the way, fertilizing the plant with phosphorus fertilizers will not hurt. This will give the foliage a rich green color.
Weigel Middendorff: trim description
Like any other shrub, this one also needs regular pruning. For young plants, normal sanitary pruning is needed - in spring, damaged, frozen shoots must be removed. Trimming on too thick branches will not be superfluous.
On adult bushes, it is necessary to conduct anti-aging pruning every two to three years, removing old stems. The ideal time for this procedure is immediately after flowering.
In order for the plant to be thick and lush, it is necessary to cut young shoots. True, this needs to be done in a special way - you need to trim half of their length.
It often happens that you need to cut off all the shoots. Of course, novice gardeners are afraid that after this the plant will not recover. This is not true! Reviews about the Weigel Middendorff say - the bush quickly "comes to its senses", even if you cut it to the root!
Pests and diseases
Among the most common pests that encroach on the beauty and health of weigels, caterpillars and aphids. In the heat, spider mites and thrips attack the bush - they all harm the foliage. Often, gardeners are advised to use nitrafen, horn and celtan to protect plants. But these pesticides cause significant damage to the environment. You can get rid of pests and not harm nature with the help of insecticidal plant infusions. Wormwood, garlic, shag and hot peppers are suitable.
Immediately after planting in the ground, Wigel Middendorff began to wither and turn yellow? Most likely, the root system is affected by the larvae of the bear or chafer. They could get into the landing pit with compost or humus. You can also get rid of these pests - spill the ground under a bush with a solution of actara or karbofos.
In terms of disease, spotting, rust and gray rot are dangerous for weigels. To combat fungus and bacteria, it is recommended to treat the plant with the so-called Bordeaux liquid - a mixture of copper sulfate and milk of lime.
Spherical growths formed on the roots and root neck? The point is an incurable bacterial infection. Unfortunately, you will have to get rid of such a plant, otherwise other green "inhabitants" of the garden may become infected.
Avoidance of diseases will help prevention! As soon as leaves appear on the plant, it must be treated with fungicides, for example, "Topsin".
Middendorff in winter
What can be said about the winter hardiness of the Middendorff Weigela? This shrub can easily tolerate frosts up to -29 degrees! True, the plant needs to be prepared for the cold.
At the end of November - the beginning of December, when all the leaves from the weigela fall off, you need to sprinkle a near-trunk circle with earth, forming a low hill - 15-20 cm. The branches of the plant must be carefully bent and pressed to the soil, covered with roofing material overhead. It is important to fix the coating - so that it is not torn off by the wind. Another option is to simply tighten the branches with rope or twine, and fence the bush with a metal frame. Inside this building, you need to pour dry foliage - it will retain heat. Top gardeners recommend wrapping the structure with a dense covering material.
Middendorf breeding
Propagate the Weigel Middendorf on the site in two ways - seeds and cuttings . The seeds of this shrub are able to maintain good germination for one year. You can sow them without prior preparation. The best option is to sow in pots that are covered with film or glass. Usually seedlings weigels are very friendly. When the second pair of leaflets appears on the weigel, you need to dive shoots. Too thick crops need to be thinned out.
A year later, the Weigel Middendorff is a seven-centimeter stalk with three to four pairs of leaves and buds. The diameter of the annual plant is 5 cm. The plant, which is two years old, already reaches 50 cm in height. Its root system grows significantly. Weigel blooms at 4 years old.
It is much easier to grow weigel from the cuttings. Such plants begin to bloom in the second year. You need to choose the cuttings carefully - you need young shoots that are just starting to woody! The slice is made with a clean sharp knife.
On separated cuttings, experienced gardeners recommend removing all leaves. For a couple of hours, the shoots need to be placed in water, and then treated with any growth stimulant. It is best to plant cuttings in the ground in the second half of June: the shoot is immersed in a prepared hole to a depth of about 1 cm, and it is covered with a film on top. Water the plant twice a day.
In order for the crown of the future shrub to be magnificent, all the first buds must be cut off!
Weigela Middendorff: photo and combination in garden compositions
This shrub looks very aesthetically pleasing both in a small area and in a large garden. Weigel can be used in design in a variety of ways. For example, curtains (so called a group of free-standing shrubs) placed on lawns look great. Attractive and solitary plants at the edge. No less good are the wigels in the hedge.
If you have about a dozen weigels at your disposal, you can place them in bright groups right on the lawn. If the soil on the site is loose, between perennials it is worth planting perennials such as fern, astilbe, hosta - these plants will decorate the garden all summer. If you like mixed planting, try combining weigel with other shrubs. Its combination with barberries, Japanese quince, viburnum, spirea, cotoneaster looks charming. Perfect for group compositions of cypress and juniper.
If there are few plants, you can plant them singly - at the gate or at the front door of the house.