Along with chrysanthemums, asters are one of the most popular autumn colors. They decorate our flower beds, when the heat-loving plants have already faded. But not everyone knows that asters are both early and summer! And let's paint our garden with bright colors with such a variety of asters!
Asters - species and varieties
To begin with, among the asters distinguish between annuals and perennials.
Annual varieties of asters are divided into three classes. Depending on the shape of the petals, they can be tubular, reed, and transitional. At the same time, in each of the classes described above, there are cut species that have lush flowers and long stalks, casing - the most long-flowering, and universal. The most common varieties of annual asters are Sonnenschein, Margarita, Edelweiss, Apollo, Waldersee, Rosett, Madeleine, Fantasia, Aurora and many others.
As for perennials, among them there are asters: shrubs, alpine , American, Italian and virgin.
Asters - care and cultivation
Planting asters is possible in two ways: seedless and seedling. In the first case, you will admire the blooming of your pets for a couple of weeks before. Seedlings need to be fed on a regular basis, using complex fertilizers, and after picking - to begin to temper. To plant asters the open ground follows in April-May, when the stem reaches 10 cm and there are 6-8 large leaves on it. Do not be afraid of the fact that the plant will freeze - asters are resistant to cold, and hardened seedlings withstand nocturnal temperatures of 3-5 ° C without problems.
It is desirable to prepare a place for flowers from the fall: dig deep or loosen the soil, add humus or compost, and add ammonium sulfate, superphosphate and potassium salt to it in the spring. This should be done if in the previous season other crops grew in this area, and the soil is depleted. The more we fertilize the asters themselves in the open ground, we will discuss further. By the way, place for planting asters choose sunny, warm. Keep in mind that groundwater should not come close to the surface. Otherwise, good drainage is required.
Make furrows in the prepared soil and spill them well, and then plant the seedlings, keeping an interval of at least 20 cm between them. Sprinkle the seedlings with dry ground. You need to pour the asters in 2-3 days.
Care for the asters after planting them in the open ground is necessary, and it consists in the following:
- Watering. Asters love copious watering, but only in dry weather. Excessive moistening to them at all to nothing, as well as excessively moist soil.
- Loosening. The soil of the flowerbed should be loosened after each irrigation, while removing the weeds. The depth of loosening is about 5 cm.
- Hilling. It is carried out once, before the beginning of flower branching. You need to bite an astrum to a height of 6 to 8 cm - so you will accelerate the growth of the roots, and the plant will become more sturdy.
- Feeding. They are required to bloom asters were more
abundant and long. Feed the plant should be at least three times: potassium sulfate, ammonium nitrate and superphosphate are required after a couple of weeks after planting, with the appearance of the first buds and at the beginning of flowering. - Removal of dried buds. It is necessary for the plant to use force to form new inflorescences.
- Prevention of diseases. For this, one should observe a crop rotation, alternating growing asters with other crops year after year, removing and burning sick plants, spraying flowers with bordeaux for prophylactic purposes, and digging soil and adding mineral fertilizers for better growth of flowers.