Brahikoma, from the family of astroves, is not very famous among the florists, although its bright beautiful flowers, like chamomiles, perfectly adorn the balconies and household plots. In the article you will learn how to grow a brachicant, and what care is needed for it, so that its flowers will please you all summer.
Brahicoma: description
The flower growers mostly grow one species - the brachicum and the white-leaved. This is a one-year-old low-growing (up to 25 cm) plant with branching stems, located in a compact bush, pinnately distinct elegant green leaves and pleasantly smelling small flowers 2-3 cm in diameter. The flowers have a middle, around which are thin bright petals, which depends on the variety.
Its peculiarity is that the brachycoma blossoms from June to September and in sunny and cloudy weather.
Among the varieties of brachicoma common in our country, we can distinguish:
- The blue sissy is blue;
- Swan Lake - a mixture of white, lilac and violet;
- The blue baby is violet-blue;
- Nega - a mixture of white, pink and blue;
- Waltz - soft blue, lilac and pink with a dark center;
- Margarita - star-shaped with a black center and different colors: white, blue, pink, lilac, violet.
They are suitable for landscaping balconies, flower beds, cottages , curbs, and also look good in rock gardens . They perfectly match with other colors, especially as an addition to the ampel.
Brachicoma: growing out of seeds
Seeds of brachycoma are harvested in September, their germination lasts 3 years.
Cultivation of a brachicola begins with the end of February. Then the seeds are sown in flat containers to obtain seedlings. To do this, without burrowing, distribute seeds on the surface of moist compacted soil or in the grooves made and cover with glass (film). If the temperature is maintained at 18-20 ° C, sprinkling water and airing, then in 5-7 days there will be friendly shoots. When 2-3 present leaflets appear, they should be dived into separate deeper cassettes (cups) or placed at a distance of 5 cm. To do this, carefully remove the lump of earth with the plants, carefully remove the roots from the ground, separate them and each one pinch the main root .The resulting seedlings are planted in a hole made in the moist earth with a stick, lightly press the soil around and moisten abundantly from the spray gun. Further care of plantings is reduced to timely moderate watering, fertilizing once every 2 weeks and tempering plants, which consists in removing containers with them in good weather for open air.
Plant a brachicant in an open ground with a radical earth coma from the end of May. The flowers of the brachicola are dissolved 70 days after the germination of the seeds.
Seeds of brachycoma can be sown in May and in open ground. The grown plants are thinned, leaving a distance of 20 cm between them.
Brachicoma: planting and care
To plant a brachicola, light fertile soils are best suited in well-lit areas. Drainage is necessary, as it does not like overmoistening.
At home, pots with a diameter of up to 20 cm are used in which it is necessary to mix leaf earth, sand, humus and turf in the proportions 1: 1: 2: 3. Also, mineral fertilizers are added to this soil mix.
Brachicum in flowerpots can be grown even under winter. In the second case, it is necessary to sow the seeds in September, but the plant needs to provide a temperature that is comfortable for growth and flowering.
Measures for the care of a brachy mycosis:
- intensified watering during the period of growth of young plants and drought, at the rest of the time - regular moderate watering;
- fertilizing twice a month with mineral fertilizers (except for manure);
- regular loosening and weed control;
- timely removal of diseased plants;
- to stimulate flowering, regular pruning of discolored and damaged shoots is needed;
- to form bushes pinch the tops of young plants.
- in conditions of warm winter, the plant can be left for the second year, covered with lapnik or straw.
Among the pests affecting the brachyk, one can note only snails.
Thus, simple measures for planting and caring for the brachycee, as well as resistance to diseases and pests, allow these flowers to become a beautiful decoration of your flower beds and flowerpots.