Astilba flower - favorite of a shady garden

Effective ornamental plant, original garden flower, astilba adorns the garden all garden season. The bush is spreading, the broomsticks are colorful on the tall peduncles, but even when they do not blossom (and they bloom for a very long time, appearing by mid-summer), massive, twice and thrice-cut leaves on confident red cuttings create a very cheerful picture in the garden. Astilbe's flowers are beautiful! These are the smallest inflorescences, collected then in elastic, then in loose tufts (depending on the variety). There are all shades of white, pink and red. The rhizome of astilba is so powerful that we do not need to control weeds , it copes with them.

Astilba the Chinese

Perennial to a meter in height with complex, shiny, elegant leaves. The flower is astilba lilac, sometimes pink or white in dense inflorescences up to thirty-five centimeters long. Blooms from the middle of June for two months. Among the cultivated plants since 1859.

Spread

Different types of astilba in the wild are common in many regions of North America and East Asia. Of the ten wild-growing species, cultural new varieties are successfully removed. The types of astilba are subdivided in this way: dwarf (up to thirty centimeters), short (up to sixty cm), medium-sized (up to ninety cm) and tall (up to one and a half meters). The varieties of astilba differ according to the time of flowering: early varieties bloom already in June, more preferred - closer to the middle of July, and later - by the end of summer, but blossom already before the snows. And even then long ago the faded Astilby brooms look decorative!

Soils

The flower of Astilba prefers soils humous, fertile and moisture-consuming. In the sun requires abundant and frequent watering, as well as mulching, so that the roots do not overheat and moisture persists. This frost-resistant plant, but the root likes to grow up, so it is better to cover the astilba in winter with lapnik so that it does not freeze.

Astilba Flower - Reproduction

Approximately once every five years in spring or autumn, astilbum needs to be rejuvenated by dividing the rhizome. Do not recommend to keep it in one place. Rapidly growing varieties are divided and more often - as soon as the growing root begins to bulge out of the ground and substitute the youngest, vulnerable and fertile buds for all winds, frosts and droughts. It is better not to forget about this also because the old rhizomes become wooden and it is very difficult to dismember them. Moreover, this is the best way to reproduce astilba.

The rhizome must be divided so that on each plot there is at least one faded stem with buds at the base - these are the future and fast flowers. Astilba and without obvious kidneys will grow superb, just blossom later. When planting in the ground, a pit is dug about thirty centimeters deep and wide, and a couple of handfuls of bone meal and ash are poured into it, about thirty grams of mineral fertilizers, which is higher than normal, but so it is necessary to add humus, water, and everything is mixed. Already planted delenki fall asleep mulch thick layer.

It is also possible to propagate astilbum with seeds. In February or March, they should be sown in a room - under a film, simply by scattering on the surface of moist soil. In a couple of weeks there will be shoots. The soil needs to be gradually moistened, and at the end of spring, young plants can be planted directly into the open ground to a permanent place. Do not forget about watering and feeding! The main thing is to have enough phosphorus and potassium, that is, you need bone meal and complex fertilizers.