Verbena is a unique ornamental plant, which, in addition to pleasing the eye with its attractive appearance, does not require increased attention to itself in terms of care.
It is possible to grow vervain both in the open field and on the balcony, creating unique branch compositions.
The article will look in detail at the rules of planting and care for the vervain.
What is this perennial plant?
Verbena is a perennial plant that is cultivated in Russia as an annual. In garden floriculture, hybrid verbena, whose height reaches 25 cm, is in special demand.
Verbena flowers are small, but their color is quite wide:
- red;
- white;
- pink;
- Navy blue.
All of them form inflorescences in the form of scutes. Differs culture long flowering. You can see the first flowers in the second half of June, which will delight you and those around you before the first frosts.
Attention! There are some types of vervain, which are able to endure even light frosts.
Requirements to the place of cultivation
The peculiarity of this culture is that it is perfectly acclimatized anywhere in the garden. They are perfect for decorating the territory, which is empty after the flowering of early spring plants.
But there are a number of conditions, under which the verbena will get acclimatized and will delight everyone with colorful and long flowering. This will require:
- Choose a plot that is well lit by sunlight. Buds and leaves of the plant do not fade even when exposed to direct sunlight.
- As for the soil, loam is perfect. But this is not a prerequisite. The main thing is that the soil is permeable and loose. This can be achieved even on heavy soils. You just need to add sand to the ground.
- Be sure to take care of drainage. Suitable for this broken brick, broken stones, expanded clay or crushed stone. This layer will perfectly protect the verbena roots from the harmful effects of excessive moisture. Water will freely penetrate the drainage, and its stagnation will be absent.
Landing rules for verbena
Seeds
In open ground
Planting seeds of vervain in open ground to perform in specially prepared grooves. They should be located at a distance of 0.7 m. Sprinkle with earth and pour water. Within 10-14 days the first shoots are formed. Now is the time to make a liquid mineral supplement.
At home
Since vervain is great for growing on a balcony, seed planting is carried out according to the following scheme:
- Spread the prepared planting material over the surface. The soil should be soft and loose. You can sprinkle a little sand.
- Moisten the substrate, but do not fill. For these purposes, suitable spray.
- Cover the container with glass or film to create a greenhouse effect.
- If no previous stratification of the seeds was carried out, then the containers should be placed in a refrigerator for 2-3 days. Under the influence of low temperatures, seeds are stimulated, as a result of which the first shoots appear earlier, they grow rapidly and bloom profusely.
- Seedlings should be near the battery. Temperature before germination should be 20-25 degrees.
- The soil should be moistened periodically using an atomizer. Do not allow drying or excessive wetting of the ground. You can see the first shoots in 1-3 weeks.
- Now you can remove the film, move the container to a well-lit and cool place.
- Pick up seedlings in pots to hold when the seedlings grow to 2-3 true leaves, and their height reaches 8-10 cm.
Seedlings
- Planted seedlings should be planted in the wells, located at a distance of 20 cm. If the species is creeping, then the distance should be increased to 25-35 cm.
- When the ground is excessively dry, then in each planting hole to adjust 1.5 liters of water.
- Wait until it is absorbed, and then put the roots of the plant in the resulting gruel.
- Now sprinkle a dry bed with a seedling flower with dry soil and press the soil around the crop a little.
- In the first 1-2 weeks the plant is thoroughly watered. This will allow him to quickly settle down and bloom earlier.
When can this be done?
If you choose a seedling method, then seeds to be planted in a prepared container and substrate in early March. When growing verbena in the southern regions, planting material can be sent directly to the ground in late April-early May.
A photo
See a photo of how verbena seedlings are grown and how it is transplanted into open ground.
Transplanting Tips
So that after the transplant verbena quickly took root, It is worth following some recommendations:
- When the vervain is planted in the open ground by the seedling method, then the plant should be put into the well together with the earthy clod. This will allow the root system to take root and develop actively.
- Do not thrust into the soil, which is saturated with organic matter. This will lead to the fact that the culture will not multiply and bloom.
- If you plant a plant in the shade, it will stretch, forming an actively green mass.
Verbena Care
Soil loosening
After planting, caring for vervain, you need to pay attention to the loosening of the earth. This procedure will allow you to saturate the roots with oxygen, therefore, their development occurs more actively. To spend loosening costs after watering. In addition, it is important to timely remove weeds that take nutrients from the soil.
Watering
Verbena responds positively to moisturizing, but you should not be too zealous. Keep the soil near the bushes is not too dry. On one bush should go up to about 5 liters of water. Best of all, she was defended. Watering is enough 2-3 times a week.
Top dressing
Fervent with fertilizer is not worth it. Over the entire vegetation period, make feeding 3-4 times. Organics contribute 1 time per season. Mineral feed to apply more often 2-3 times.
Breeding methods
Seeds
Planting of planting material is carried out in early March., as it slowly and unsuitably germinates. Keep the seed in a cool place. Best for this fridge. For seedlings of vervainy, a long juvenile period is typical.
Verbena seeds are not very small, so it does not make sense to mix them with sand. Lay them out in boxes filled with loose, permeable soil. After covering the seeds with earth, and the capacity of the film.
When growing seedlings should be moderated in watering. Otherwise, plants can get a black leg. Pickling of seedlings into separate containers occurs after 2-3 true leaves have been formed.
After a successful picking, when the plant stuck in a new place, you have to pinch the tops to form shoots. Then the bushes of verbena will be thick, and abundant bloom.
Cuttings
This breeding method is suitable for already mature plants.
Reference! If it is necessary to preserve the varietal characteristics of vervain, then vegetative propagation will fit perfectly.
For this it is necessary to use the upper and middle cuttings taken from the middle of the shoots.
Prepared plant cuttings easily give roots in a glass of water in 10-15 days. After the formation of the rudiments of the roots, the cuttings are transplanted into individual containers.
Diseases and problems
If you fully care for the plant, it will fully resist diseases. When excessive soil moisture can occur powdery mildew. The cause of its development are fungi.
They affect the green part of the plant, causing the leaves to dry and fall away. To remove the affected leaves, and a bush to process special means.
Also, excessive watering of the plant will cause it to wither and wither. This indicates rotting of the roots, leaves and stems. It is necessary to stop watering and treat fungicides.
Verbena can be affected by insects such as mining ears. They eat leaflets and disrupt metabolism. To combat it, it is worthwhile to treat verbena with anti-pest agents, which you can buy in a specialty store.
Conclusion
Verbena is a plant whose flowers are distinguished by a wide palette of shades. In this way, you can create a unique flower arrangement on a flower bed with different colors. Only for this you need to strictly follow all the rules of agricultural technology. Now you know everything you need to properly plant and care for vervain.
Cultivation from seed, care and planting of vervain on video: