Aster Heather: description and care

Aster ground cover heather belongs to the family of Compositae plants, the genus Astrope. This kind of flowers in the natural environment can be found in the southern and eastern regions of the North American continent. Herbaceous plant is used to decorate landscape landscapes. Features of this culture in its many advantages.

Description of the plant

Astra heather (photo above) - a beautiful perennial plant. Has straight, branchy stems, which are lowered to the ground. The height of the aster reaches no more than 1 meter. Leaves are linear in shape, located along the stalk and colored green. Small inflorescences in the form of baskets are an ornament of this plant. Their diameter does not exceed 1-1.5 cm.

The heather aster perennial can have one of the shades:

• white;

• pink;

• blue.

The middle of the inflorescence can be red-brown or yellow-brown.

The leaves, arranged in three rows near the basket, are lanceolate and have a pointed shape. The active flowering of the asters begins in the autumn period and lasts from September to November. The plant produces fruits in the form of small flat seeds.

Characteristics of the species

Astra heather creep is used to create landscape designs, because it is easy to form a thick bushes pyramidal and oval-pyramidal shape. A huge number of flower baskets as if woven into a single carpet. This type of asters is characterized by special properties, ideal for decorative decoration of landscape landscapes. Let's note the main qualities of an astra:

• Heather aster (perennial ground cover) has abundant and long flowering, which allows using it for decorating garden areas.

• The plant is frost-resistant, able to withstand temperature changes and its decrease, down to -35 degrees.

In Russia, this species is not in high demand, but in the US and Europe, almost no design of the garden site can not do without heather aster.

Features of growing a plant

Astra heather does not belong to capricious cultures, it is unpretentious in care and can grow in almost any conditions. However, there are requirements that it is desirable to perform in order for the plant to develop fully and to please the eye:

• Asters like to grow in open solar areas or where there is a small penumbra.

• In order for the aster of the heather to bloom abundantly and develop well, it is necessary to create conditions that are as much as possible similar to natural ones.

• You can not plant a flower in heavily shaded areas. In this case, the plant will be painful, and parasites will begin to attack it.

• For the cultivation of wild plant variety, almost any kind of soil is suitable, except marshy, solonchak and heavy soil.

• If cultivated aster heather, planting and care for it should be more thorough. For such a variety you need to choose the right soil. Ideally, it should be loamy, fertilized, to the extent humidified, it is equally important to ensure good drainage.

• If the soil on the site does not contain the microelements necessary for normal growth, organic fertilizers must be applied before planting. It can be humus or compost.

• In the spring planting it is desirable to introduce nitrogen fertilizers (20 g) into the soil, this will speed up the growth of the plant.

• The most common method of reproduction of flowers is division. The plant is best planted in the spring. Delyonki quickly take root and by the fall begin to bloom. The disadvantage of autumn planting is that not all seedlings have time to take root. The onset of early frosts can lead to the death of the immature plant.

These flowers do not require complex care. Aster ground-cover heather is unsuited, but nevertheless, in order for the plant to be healthy and beautiful, efforts should be made. It is important to regular watering, but it should only be held by warm water. Periodically, it is necessary to introduce mineral and organic fertilizers into the soil, they stimulate the growth of the plant. Weeding and loosening should be carried out as required. Although aster heather is not very susceptible to diseases and various pests, prevention of it does not hurt.

It is important to remember that poor soil hydration and lack of fertilizers lead to the fact that the flower leaves quickly turn yellow and fade. This reduces the frost-resistant and decorative properties of the plant.

Where to plant asters?

Astra heather is an unpretentious flower, but it looks spectacular in garden and park design. Its flowering from September to November is adorned with flower beds, laying whole carpets of small inflorescences. The plant retains its decorative functions for a long time, because of which asters are very appreciated by gardeners. The flower has a high frost resistance, differs abundant flowering and does not require special care. Florists know a lot of tricks on growing this plant. First of all, it is important to choose a place for planting asters.

The plant is very fond of sunlight, so it is better to select open, unprotected areas for growing it. The most suitable soil is loamy and sandy loamy soil. It is difficult to grow a heather aster, if in the ground the groundwater is located close to the surface, the plant does not tolerate excessive moisture.

For 4-5 years, there is no need to transplant the flower to another place, at the end of this period, you need to change the site. This is a kind of prevention to prevent possible diseases.

It is best to choose a site where marigolds or calendula grew up to asters. It is undesirable to transplant a flower to the places where a carnation, gladiolus or tulip was grown, since these plants are susceptible to the disease of furassiosis, which causes fungi.

Preparing the soil for planting aster

Preparing the soil for planting asters should be dealt with in the autumn. Before digging up the earth, it is infiltrated by humus or compost. Perekopka must be deep. If the soil is low in fertility, in the beginning of spring it is necessary to fertilize its mineral components, which are combined with deep harrowing. For these purposes,

• potassium salt;
• Superphosphates;
• Ammonium sulphate.

In the soil with high acidity and in the weakly soils add lime and wood ash. If the ground water is close, the drainage layer should be arranged to grow the asters, for this purpose fine gravel is suitable. To improve the structure of the soil, it is recommended to add a little river sand to it.

Before planting, we need to remove the weeds, loosen and level the soil surface.

How to plant asters?

To get early flowering, it is recommended to plant the astra in the form of seedlings. Planting seedlings in open soil is carried out in early May. Before this, the soil should be well spilled with water. The distance between the seedlings should be at least 25 cm. The row spacing is within 50 cm. Since the astra is planted in moist soil, watering the plant immediately after planting should not be done. The first watering is carried out 2-3 days after the drying of the soil.

Within 7 days, the plant will take root, and then you can make a feeding by adding a weak solution of the mullein under the bush. Before carrying out such procedure it is necessary to water abundantly a flower bush.

The plants are planted in the evening or in cloudy weather. If the landing falls on sunny days, it is important for young seedlings to provide a small shadow.

Care of the plant

Astra heather does not require special care, but still, to make the plant grow strong and healthy and on it formed large inflorescences, it is worth paying some attention to it.

In the hot period, the flowers require abundant, but not frequent watering, after which it is necessary to loosen the soil. In aster the root system is superficial, therefore it is necessary to loosen gently, not deeper than by 5-6 cm. The plant is contraindicated in excessive moisture, but drying of the soil leads to rapid wilting. Everything should be in moderation.

To reduce the risk of fourosiosis, we recommend regularly weeding the weeds near the flower. With proper care, the plant develops without diseases and pests.

To prolong flowering, you need to periodically remove inflorescences that have faded, leaving only a few pieces to have germinated seeds.

Perennial varieties are resistant to low temperatures, so do not require shelter in the winter.

Reproduction by seeds

Planting the seeds of the plant in the open ground gives a good result. It can be carried out in the spring, late autumn and even early in the winter:

• Spring planting is carried out in the first half of May. Seeds are placed in the ground to a depth of not more than 2 cm and watered with warm water. The soil is mulched using peat and compost. Fresh seeds have good germination, after a week sprouts will break through from the ground. A little later, it is necessary to thin the plants, leaving a distance of less than 15 cm between them.
• In late autumn (mid-November), the seeds are planted in the frozen ground. The furrows are prepared in advance before the onset of cold weather. Pits with seeds are sprinkled with dry, warm compost.
• In winter, the sowing is carried out from December to January, but this is only if the snow cover is at least 10 cm thick. You need to prepare furrows from autumn. The seeding takes place directly on the snow. On top of the beds are covered with dry mixtures of humus or compost. As soon as the thaw comes, the seeds will be in a favorable environment and will quickly sprout.

Multiplication by division

To spend perennial asters it is possible by means of division of a bush. In this plant should be at least 5 years. Planting in the fall period, immediately after flowering. The division should be done very carefully, since the root system of the asters is very tender. After planting, the plant does not have time to fully recover until frost, so it is recommended to cover it with dry foliage or lapnik.

Using aster for landscape design

A variety of varieties and different colors made the astra one of the most frequently used plants for creating landscape designs. There are flowers of dwarfish sizes (about 25 cm) and simply giant forms (up to 1 meter in height).

Astrami is decorated with flower beds, curbs and rock gardens. High and medium asters combine well with yarrows, rudbeckies and cereals of decorative varieties. Carnation, calendula, gypsophila and marigolds are planted together with dwarf forms.

Popular species of perennial asters in Russia

Recently, gardeners prefer to plant perennial asters. Their flowering purple, blue and purple hue begins in late August - early September and lasts until late autumn. Plants are unpretentious and do not need careful care. Astra heather is very popular in the US and European countries, whereas in Russia the most famous varieties of perennial asters are:

• The Novobelgiy.
• Shrub.
• The New England.
• The Alpine.

If you want to create a paradise in your garden that will please you with its flowering until late autumn, you should pay attention to a flower such as a ground cover. Planting and caring for the plant do not cause special difficulties, and even a horticultural amateur can cope with them.