Hortensia (Latin name - hydrangea) has from 30 to 100 species of plants. Under natural conditions, hydrangea is common in both Americas, in the Himalayas, in East and South Asia.
Hydrangea garden, how to choose a place in the garden
Increasingly, gardeners, along with fruit plants, decorate areas with ornamental shrubs, such as hydrangea. This plant loves light, so when planting choose a well-lit place, but not too open - in the hot period the scorching rays of the sun will burn the hydrangea. It is undesirable to plant the plant in drafts, as it does not like sudden temperature changes. As a result, the leaves will fade and will fall off, and you will not understand, strengthen watering and ruin the root system - the roots will rot from excessive moisture.
One of the nuances of how to properly grow hydrangea in the garden, the selection of neighbors. Hortensia prefers loneliness, pushing her neighbors to her even kind, take care of the distance between them, their root systems should not interfere with each other. It is undesirable to plant a hydrangea near the tree. Its extensive and strong root system will draw all the moisture in the soil, and without water, hydrangea will wither.
Did you know? The name "hydrangea" consists of Greek words - water and - a vessel, and the people of Japan gave the hydrangea a poetic name - Yearning for water.
Planting hydrangea
The optimum period for planting hydrangea is spring, when the soil is warm enough, but the buds have not yet dissolved. Let's figure out how to plant a hydrangea in the spring. The process begins with digging the desired pit size. The recess should be half a meter deep and slightly smaller than the diameter. Place fertilizer mixed with soil in the bottom of the pit. If the area is rich and fertile soil, then adjust the size of the pit and the amount of fertilizer relative to the size of the seedling.
Planting material gently shake off adhering lumps of earth, straighten the roots and plant in a hole. The top of the root system should protrude 2 cm above the edge of the groove. The soil should be lightly cushioned so that there are no air cushions and it does not dry out. After that, the plant should be watered well, seeking to moisten the soil to a depth of about half a meter. Glow around the trunk with needles or small wood bark.
How to water the hydrangea
So, hydrangea has passed the landing stage, and now it needs proper care. In order for the plant to actively develop, grow, bloom magnificently and abundantly, the soil around the roots should not dry out. Check its condition - the top layer may be dry, but the root system must be in a humid environment. Pick off the ground with the wand and evaluate the humidity, because if watering is excessive, rot will appear on the roots. You can water in the morning or in the evening, during the dry season every day. Hydrangea is unpretentious, but the secrets of growing is still there. For irrigation it is better to use rainwater, collect it during rains and let it settle.
Important! In the intense heat of the hydrangea is recommended to water only after sunset.After watering, it is desirable to loosen the soil around the plant, so you saturate it with oxygen. To preserve moisture after watering the soil should be mulched wood chips, needles or other composition.
Rules for feeding plants
When growing hydrangea, frequent organic and mineral supplements are needed. They alternate, conducting dressings at least 3 times a month, then the plant will delight you with lush inflorescences with large bright colors. Hortense loves acidic soil. You can plant needles near the hydrangea, fallen rotten needles will give the soil acid.
Hydrangea has the ability to accumulate aluminum released from acidic soil. Accumulated aluminum in the interaction with other substances in the composition of the plant colors the hydrangea petals in blue. Throughout the summer period, hydrangea can be fertilized with manure, but do not get carried away - as a result of overfeeding, the inflorescences will be too heavy for the branches and break them.
Pruning hydrangeas, how to perform correctly
Hydrangea garden when caring for themselves already in the age of three requires pruning. Tree hydrangea clipped first. The shoots are cut to a length of 3 buds and divided into cuttings. Variety shoots panicle hydrangea cut to one third of their length. In a large species every fourth shoot is removed, paying attention to the branches growing in the center of the bush. Pruning of the stalked hydrangea variety provides her magnificent branching. Hortensia Sargent requires cutting all non-branched shoots up to 25 cm. Regardless of the variety, damaged, dry and broken branches are removed.
In the spring, until the buds have blossomed, the plants cut off the frozen and weak branches: they will inhibit the development of healthy shoots. In the autumn the shrub is cleaned from inflorescences and dry twigs.
Proper cropping of the hydrangea for growing and regular care will ensure a unique palette of colors and aromas in your area during the flowering period.
Interesting fact! According to Buddhist legend, on Buddha's birthday gentle flowers fell from the sky and nectar spilled. So did not the earth appear hydrangea. At the present time in the temples on the birthday of Buddha on the head of the statue of the baby Buddha pour tea brewed from the petals of hydrangea.
How to propagate hydrangea, especially breeding in spring and winter
Hortensia breeds in several ways. Consider each of them in more detail. Sowing seeds of hydrangea is better to do in boxes filled with subacid soil. Seedlings of garden hydrangeas for normal development require careful care in the spring. Powdered seeds are watered regularly. Sprouted shoots are fed with liquid formulations of complex fertilizers. By autumn, seedlings grow about 40 cm in height.
After spring pruning you have ready cuttings, Plant them in a container with peaty-sandy soil, submerging the shoot 3 cm deep. Water and cover with foil. To constantly moisten the soil regularly spray cuttings. When seedlings take root, they can be planted in an open area. The species of large hydrangea is grafted in winter.
In the middle of autumn, the donor bush is dug out, planted in a pot and stored in the basement until cold. In January, transfer the pot to the house and in a lighted place at a temperature of about 10 °. Make up until February. The grown-up cuttings in February are cut off, the lower leaves are removed from them, the lower cut is treated with a growth stimulator and planted in pots until spring.
Attention! In order to protect the cuttings planted in the spring from frost, it is necessary to mulch the soil around the plant stem for the winter and cover it with spruce leaves. The same applies to adult bushes not resistant to extreme cold.For breeding by dividing a bush, dig up a bush in spring. Look at the number of buds on it, by this amount and divide the bush. Fresh roots sprinkle with a coal crumb to protect from diseases, and put in a hole. The soil can be taken the same as for rooting cuttings. Fresh shoots will be this year, but the hydrangea will bloom next.
The easiest way is reproduction by layering. To do this, in annual shoots that have buds, a part of the bark is scraped near the kidneys. Then it is tilted to the ground and this part is added, after having been treated with a growth stimulator. After a few weeks, carefully separate the planted escape and the mother bush.
Now, knowing almost everything about garden hydrangeas, you can decorate your own plot with this beautiful, luxuriantly flowering plant with large fragrant flowers. And every summer to enjoy the riot of colors.
