Aubrieta (aubrecia) is an evergreen herbaceous plant from the Cruciferous family. It decorates gardens and rock gardens throughout the European continent, but its homeland is considered to be South America and Central Asia.
Under natural conditions, the plant is most often found in rocky areas and on river banks. Lush flowering bushes cover the ground with a continuous carpet, so aubrieta, like arabis, is planted to decorate personal plots. In addition, the plant is an excellent neighbor for other green “pets” in room conditions. And such a “beauty” will turn an ordinary balcony into a fairy-tale corner, forming a chic floral cascade.
Aubrieta is similar to Arabis, but the plants differ in the size of the pistils, the latter having much shorter and thicker ones. Despite its “southern” origin, aubretia is a frost-resistant plant. When winter comes, it does not shed its leaves, even the color remains the same.. In April–May, the bushes begin to bloom wildly, which lasts up to 50 days. In autumn, the flowering process of aubrieta is repeated.
The palette of shades of the plant’s petals is quite diverse; they can be: pink, reddish, purple, blue and light blue (cascade blue variety), lilac, white, violet. The miniature leaves are elliptical or ovoid in shape, their edges can be either serrated or solid. Small flowers consist of four petals, like Arabis, and the inflorescences are racemose.
Growing conditions
Growing aubrieta, like arabis, is easy both in the open ground and at home. In the first case, it is better to plant from mid-May, when there is no longer any cold weather. The main condition when choosing a suitable site is maximum sun, then the bushes will delight you with an abundance of bright flowers. The soil for planting needs to be loose and permeable; it must have chalk, lime or ash. Oversaturated and peaty soils are not the best option for the plant. Aubriet bushes are so viable that they can easily grow in cracks between stone steps and concrete structures. Therefore, the soil suitable for growing is very poor in nutrients.
Planting a plant
Aubrieta, like Arabis, is quite flexible, so it is planted in the desired order according to the flowerbed plan. The plant should be deepened into the ground taking into account the dimensions of the rhizome, but the interval between seedlings should be about 5 cm. If the plant was in a plastic or ceramic container, then lower it into water before planting in the ground. When bubbles begin to form on the surface, carefully remove the seedling from the pot with a lump of soil and plant it in a hole, the width of which should be 2 times larger diameter dishes. Then you should compact the soil and mulch it with sand. Optimal thickness sand layer - 4-5 cm. At the end, water with a small amount of liquid.
Caring for a garden plant
Aubrieta is unpretentious, but planting and care contain several main rules. When grown in open ground, the plant is watered once immediately after planting, then water is added in small doses if necessary. Excessive soil moisture negatively affects flowers; they fall off and look sparse. Aubretia prefers dry soils, although severe drying out also harms beautiful bushes, so on hot summer days aubretia needs to be watered. Mulching with sand is a mandatory procedure for the plant; it is performed in June, and then at the end of August.
Aubrecia is a perennial, like Arabis, so at the end of summer flowering the bushes need pruning. In the fall, the aubrieta begins to bloom again, but after this process it is not advisable to prune the bush, although many gardeners do otherwise. The next pruning should be done at the beginning of spring. In winter, the leaves of the plant do not fall off, but if the frosts are very severe, this may happen. To avoid dropping the green mass, it is recommended to sprinkle the bushes with straw, although dry leaves will also work.
Perennial aubrieta does not like heavy feeding, so the soil should be fertilized very carefully.
When is the best time to feed a plant? Complex fertilizers are applied 2 times a year: with the arrival of warmth before the inflorescences appear and in the fall after the last pruning. Complex fertilizers are used as top dressing.
Diseases and harmful insects
Diseases and pests rarely affect flowering bushes. However, sometimes aubrieta becomes infected with powdery mildew. This disease is characterized by the presence white plaque on leaves and flowers. Affected areas turn black and wilt, and overall bush growth is inhibited. Fungal disease It is treated with a special drug – colloidal sulfur.
The most dangerous enemy of aubration is aphids. These pests can carry viral diseases; to combat them, the plant must be treated by special means: Fufanon, Karbofos or Biotlin.
How does a plant reproduce?
Reproduction of bushes occurs through cuttings and seeds. In this case, you can initially grow seedlings and then transplant them into the ground. But more often, aubretia, like arabis, is preferred to be sown directly on a flower bed. Before sowing, dig up the soil in a layer of 15-20 cm, then clear it of debris and add ash and chalk (lime). Aubrieta seeds should be sown not infrequently, but not too thickly. The seed is not buried in the soil, but simply sprinkled on top with a layer of sand up to 5 cm. Then the sand is watered a little using a watering can. If you sow in the spring, the shoots will sprout within 2-3 weeks, and if you sow in the fall, the shoots will appear only the next spring season.
The plant is also propagated by cuttings. After summer flowering, pruning is performed, and after it there are many removed stems that can become cuttings. These plant residues are planted in a greenhouse, suitable soil– peat and sand in a ratio of 1:1. At the end of summer, the seedlings should form roots, then they are moved to a permanent place. Usually, the “young growth” manages to gain strength before winter, but if the climate of your area is very harsh, leave the plants in the greenhouse until the weather warms up.
Reproduction by dividing the bush is very painful for the plant. The easiest way for aubration to carry out this procedure is in the autumn and spring period s. The bush is dug up and divided into parts, each component must have strong shoots and rhizomes. Then the particles are placed in the holes. But the rehabilitation process for aubrieta after such a forced injury is difficult, so it is better to propagate the plant by seeds or cuttings.
Aubrieta: growing from seeds
A flowering bush can be easily grown from seeds by purchasing a bag of seed of the required variety in the store. But when growing a plant at home using this method, you can lose the best parental qualities. And one more disadvantage of such bushes is that they begin to bloom in the second year after germination.
The seedling method of propagating aubretia is considered the most reliable. At the end of winter, take seeds of a certain variety and plant them in separate peat tablets or in special pots with peat and humus. Then, together with these containers, the seedlings are planted in the ground. Place several aubrieta seeds on the surface of the moistened soil, sprinkle them with a sand layer of up to 5 cm, then lightly moisten the sand with a sprayer. The container is covered with glass or film and then placed in a warm place. At a temperature of 19-22 °C the seed germinates best.
Crops are ventilated every day, watering is carried out if necessary. The sprouts hatch in about 21-30 days, after which the greenhouse is removed from the pot. If the seedlings grow reluctantly, then 10-14 days before planting, the soil is fertilized with a weak solution of complex mineral fertilizer. Aubrieta does not like picking, so it is advisable to plant the plant seeds immediately in separate containers.
Plant varieties
In its natural environment, this plant includes 12 species, some of which are cultivated. The most popular varieties among gardeners are:
- aubrieta deltoid (lilac or bluish flowers, gray-green leaves with several teeth along the edges) - Royal Violet, Red Carpet, etc.;
- aubrieta cultivated or hybrid (bred on the basis of the previous variety, tolerates snowy winters well, has miniature elongated leaves with jagged edges, different shades of flowers) – Charming Morocco, Gloriosa, Carnival, etc.;
- cascading (blooms in spring, petals are bluish, blue, lilac or pink-red, ideal for decorating a balcony) - cascade blue, cascade purple, etc.
Pay more attention and time to your green “pet”, then you will be proud of the result!
Flowers of aubrieta or aubrieta, popularly known as “windbags,” are a genus of flowering plants. The cruciferous family. Perennial low-growing plant. The flower is named after the French artist Claude Aubriette. Can be found in southern Europe and central Asia. The plant is characterized bright colors buds that bloom in white, pink and purple to blue colors. The shoots are short and form dense thickets resembling a carpet. The leaves of the plant are small, green, oval in shape with solid and pointed edges. They grow up to 25 centimeters in length.
Flowers on the aubrieta plant can usually be seen in April and June, a flowering period lasting approximately one and a half months. Bears fruit. The fruit is a pod with elongated seeds of a brownish hue.
Growing aubriet flowers from seeds is done exclusively by seedlings, and this requires effort and time. But the result exceeds even the wildest expectations. Look at the photo of aubrieta flowers, this is a wonderful illustration of the aesthetic appeal of any cascading variety:
Growing aubrieta from seeds: planting and care rules
It is preferable to grow and bloom in sunny places, so when caring for it, it is advisable to place the plant in the sunny half of your garden or home.
The soil for planting aubrieta should be light, neutral, not necessarily fertile. It is strictly forbidden to plant the plant on soil containing clay or peat.
Before planting aubrieta, the soil for the plant should be loosened with special care.
Excess moisture will not benefit the flower, but will only harm it, especially in winter, so do not neglect the amount of watering. This will cause severe root rot. It is best to plant a flower on rocky hills, hills, or, in the absence of them, on soil with drainage equipment.
Before organizing care for the shaving plant, it is necessary to take into account that if there is a lack of moisture, the plant will lose its attractiveness. However, after you start watering again required quantities and volumes, the plant will come to life again.
Over the course of one season, it is recommended to mulch the soil near the plant a couple of times, preferably with a layer of two to three centimeters.
In spring and autumn, it is advisable to feed the plant with mineral fertilizer.
After the aubrieta flowers for the first time in the spring, it is recommended to cut its stems almost to the very root so that it does not grow and young shoots appear on it as much as possible.
After you prune the plant, it will bloom again in the fall, of course not so abundantly, but still. Over time it will show its charm.
To maintain the attractiveness of the plant, it is advisable to remove wilted branches and flower stalks in due time.
There is a need to weed and water the plant only for the first time after planting. Later, when the plant grows, it will spread over the ground like a luxurious carpet that will not allow various weeds to crawl out.
Despite the incredible cold resistance to winter frosts, there is a high risk of the plant's leaves falling off, which does not add beauty to it. Most, in order to avoid such troubles, cover the plant with dry foliage for the winter so that at least a little heat is retained.
Aubrieta is propagated by seeds, cuttings and by dividing bushes.
For planting, it is recommended to plant seeds in the ground in spring or winter. A plant planted this way will only produce flowers the second year after it is planted, so don't be discouraged if you don't see flowers the first year. The seeds should be given time to dry, then placed in soil that contains loam, sand and clay. Then water and cover plastic bag or glass. It is better to ventilate the sprouts periodically, and as soon as they sprout, you can safely transplant them into a larger container. When the sprouts have significantly increased in growth and are cramped, it will be possible to transplant them into open ground. Growing aubrieta with seeds using the seedling method makes it possible to obtain full flowering already in the first year after planting.
Sowing aubrieta seeds should be done in early autumn or late spring. It is necessary to mulch the soil with sand. It is better to sow seeds in beds, otherwise the sprouts will get lost in the weeds. In addition, the flower can be sown at home. To do this, the seeds should be placed with a mineral from the hydromica group two months before the last frost ends, then hidden under plastic wrap. When you notice the first shoots, immediately remove the polyethylene film and, after the end of the night frosts, transplant them into the soil to a permanent place of growth.
Aubrieta can also be planted immediately in open ground, but it is advisable to do such a procedure in winter, when various weeds will not be able to harm the growing flower in any way.
It is recommended to grow flower seedlings in early February. In this case, it will be possible to observe beautiful flowers on the plant at the end of spring. It is better to plant seedlings in shallow containers. After a week will pass, you should start feeding mineral fertilizers plant every ten days and combine this with watering.
Reproduction is also common of this flower by cuttings. Planting a plant in a similar way is carried out as follows: sprouts that have not yet fully matured are separated from the bush, the lower leaves and roots in the sand are removed. Then the future flower is placed in a greenhouse with sand and peat soil. It is recommended to plant cuttings in August, but you need to make sure that roots have already formed on them. When you start planting a flower, be sure to ensure that the distance between the sprouts is 13-15 centimeters. I would like to note that over the years the plant turns into more demanding and weaker, so it is advisable to carry out cuttings annually.
There is also a method of propagation by dividing the bushes, but it is not recommended to do this with this type of plant, due to the fact that such a procedure is painful for the flower and you can accidentally damage it and it will die. You can divide the bush only as a last resort, if you did not have time to cut the cuttings or you need to transplant the flower to a new place. This also requires extensive experience in working with plants.
The main varieties of aubrieta for landscape design and balconies
Aubrieta has a couple of features that make it more widespread in our gardens, namely, long and abundant flowering, as well as the ability to overwinter with leaves.
In the garden, you can use it to decorate slopes and create a low-growing flower border; it looks especially good along the edge of a wall. The main varieties of aubrieta are used in landscape design to decorate flower beds, flower beds and ridges. But there are types for landscaping balconies and loggias, these are the so-called cascade objects.
Among the varieties of aubrieta varieties, the following types can be distinguished, a description of which will be found below.
Aubrieta cascade (cascade)
The leaves are evergreen. Flowers of blue and red shades of four petals with a small yellow eye. It produces color in June and also in April-May. It reaches a height of up to 15 centimeters. Prefers sun or partial shade in absolutely any alkaline or acidic soil. Blooms later than any other species.
Aubrieta “Enchanting Morocco”
This is a hybrid variety of aubrieta. The flowers are large in size (diameter - 1.5 centimeters), from blue to red. Flowers can be seen in May-June.
Aubrieta hybrid
Flowers can be pink, purple, red or white. Blooms in spring. It grows up to 10 centimeters in length and up to 50-60 centimeters in width.
Varietal varieties of hybrid aubrieta:
- "Royal Cascade" Stems hang down, up to 25 centimeters long. The flowers are soft pink.
- “Red Cascade” Carmine-colored flowers.
- “Fruit Assortment” This is a bright variety mixture. Flowers in various shades of pink and red.
- "Lizzie" Reaches up to 15 centimeters in height. The flowers are up to one centimeter in diameter, bright red.
- "Campbell" The flowers are large, bright blue.
- "Deborah" Red flowers. It reaches a height of up to 20 centimeters.
- Alix Brett Flowers are raspberry-colored, slightly double.
- Astolat Leaves are variegated. The flowers are purple.
- Bressingham Pink Double flowers, pink.
An aubrieta will be an excellent decoration for a flowerbed or alpine hill - low-growing perennial, covering the ground with a continuous carpet of small delicate flowers. This crop is ideally suited for creating vertical compositions. We will tell you how to grow aubrieta in this article.
Brief description of the plant
Aubrieta perennial belongs to the flowering crops of the cruciferous family. This ground cover plant got its name in honor of the French artist Claude Aubriette. Aubrieta is widespread in Europe and Central Asia. Small bright inflorescences are painted in different tones of blue and purple; there are also plants with white, red or pink buds. Short shoots of aubrieta intertwine with each other, forming a dense, impenetrable mat on the ground. The foliage of this crop is small, oval, slightly pointed.
The flowering period of the plant occurs at the end of spring or at the beginning of summer and lasts for 40-50 days. In place of faded buds, fruits appear in the form of small pods with oblong brown seeds.
Thanks to abundant flowering, as well as the ability to preserve foliage even in winter, aubriet is widely used in our country as an element landscape design. This plant looks great in rock gardens, ridges, borders and vertical flower arrangements. Cascading obriets can serve as decoration for a loggia, balcony, or veranda.
Crop varieties
Among the many varieties of this plant, the following types are the most popular in the gardens of our country:
- Aubrieta deltoid is a short-growing perennial, the bush of which reaches a height of no more than 12 cm, and grows up to 60 cm in width. The shade of deltoid aubrieta flowers can be different, pink and purple colors are the most common, red or blue varieties can be found less often. This culture is divided into several varieties:
- "Aureovariegata" has light buds lilac shade, and its leaves along the edge are decorated with a golden border;
- "Alix Brett" is distinguished by double inflorescences of a bright crimson hue;
- “Astolat” is an aubrieta variety with rich purple buds and variegated foliage;
- The inflorescences of the “Bressingham Pink” variety have double pink petals;
- The stems of the Doctor Mules aubriet are decorated with small purple flowers;
- The Red Carpet variety looks very impressive thanks to the bright red hue of the buds.
- Aubrieta cascade is a crop variety often used to create vertical flower arrangements. The dense interlacing of short stems bears many evergreen leaves that cover surfaces like a carpet. Cascading aubrieta blooms in late spring and early summer, producing single buds in blue or red shades. Flowers consist of 4 petals and a yellow center. This culture is used to decorate rocky slopes, building walls, fences, and borders. garden paths and flower beds. The height of the bush reaches 15 cm.
- Aubrieta hybrida has small flowers of various shades. Depending on the specific variety, you can find buds of pink, red, purple or white color. The hybrid aubrieta bush grows up to 10 cm in height, and in width it occupies up to 50-60 cm of space. The culture thrives in open, sunny areas and can tolerate both hot weather and slight frost. There are several varieties of this plant:
- aubrieta “Charming Morocco” is the most common type of hybrid culture. It has quite large flowers, painted in a variety of colors: blue, blue, red, pink, purple. The size of the buds is 1.5 cm, the bush grows 10 cm in height. The flowering period of “Charming Morocco” occurs in May and June;
- the Royal Cascade variety produces stems reaching a length of 25 cm and decorated with light pink flowers. Ideal for decorating vertical surfaces and multi-level flower beds;
- "Red Cascade" has inflorescences of a rich red hue;
- the “Lizzie” variety grows up to 15 cm in height, the shoots of the bushes are decorated with red buds, the diameter of which is approximately 1 cm;
- The Deborah variety also has red inflorescences, but the bush of this crop grows up to 20 cm;
- The “Fruit Assortment” varietal mixture looks quite impressive in garden design, which produces multi-colored buds painted in various shades of pink and red.
Methods for propagating aubrieta
Planting aubrieta with seeds
The most popular method of propagating the crop is by seeds. Buy seed material at any flower shop will not be difficult, but you can also store the seeds yourself if you have already grown this crop before. When propagating from seeds, it is important to take into account that the plant will not produce buds in the first year after planting, but will bloom only after a season.
Aubrieta seedlings can be grown in an apartment. If you are going to transplant the sprouts into a permanent flower bed in the last weeks of May, then you can start sowing the seeds as early as February. When growing aubrieta from seeds, prepare light, fertile soil. You can buy land for flowering plants in a specialty store. Place the soil in a wide container and sprinkle a thin layer of fine sand on top. Sow the grains into the ground, trying to keep the same distance between them. Lightly moisten the soil with a spray bottle, cover the container with plastic wrap and leave for 3-4 weeks for germination. When the first shoots break through the ground, remove the plastic from the container.
While the seedlings are developing and strengthening the root system, you should carefully care for them. Do not allow the soil to dry out, provide the plants with access to air and sunlight. You should also not water too much. When irrigating sprouts, it is advisable to use a spray bottle so that the stream of water does not erode the soil at the roots and damage them.
After about a month, when the weather is warm outside and there are no frosts at night, the aubrieta seedlings can be transferred to open ground. If after a month the weather outside still does not allow planting the plants in the flowerbed, the sprouts will need to be distributed into separate containers so that they are not crowded in a common container. However, you can avoid unnecessary work if you plant the seeds of the crop immediately in a permanent place of growth. It is best to do this in September, but you need to be sure that night frosts do not begin prematurely. In addition, weeds should be carefully removed from the flowerbed, otherwise the young shoots of the aubrieta will die.
Vegetative methods of propagation
Some gardeners prefer to propagate the crop using cuttings. To plant aubrieta using this method, you should inspect the bush and find shoots that are not fully ripened. Then the sprouts are cut off, cleaned of soil and sand, and the lower leaves are torn off. After this, the cuttings are planted in a greenhouse, having previously prepared a soil mixture of peat and sand. It is best to transplant rooted cuttings into a flowerbed at the end of summer. Don't forget to make sure that roots form on the sprouts. When planting cuttings, keep a distance of 12-15 cm between them. Since aubrieta becomes weaker and capricious over the years, many gardeners recommend cuttings every year - this way you will constantly maintain the high decorative qualities of the flower garden.
Reproduction of a crop by dividing a bush is theoretically possible, but in practice this method is used extremely rarely. Aubrieta does not tolerate this procedure well; the damaged roots of the plant may dry out and the flower will die. TO in a similar way resort only to extreme cases those gardeners who have extensive experience working with plants.
Shaving care
When planting a plant in open ground, it is important to prepare correct composition soil. It is advisable to mix garden soil with fine sand. When sowing seeds or seedlings, place the bushes in even beds so that they do not get lost among the weeds.
Aubrieta likes to grow in open areas well lit by sunlight. In addition, the site must be spacious enough. Place flower beds on the south side of buildings, on open slopes. The plant is not too demanding on soil, but for good growth and development of aubrieta, it is advisable to saturate the soil with chalk, ash or a small amount of lime. The ground around the plants can also sometimes be mulched with a thin layer of fine sand.
Aubrieta does not need too frequent or abundant watering. With excessive moisture, the bushes grow a lot of green mass, but bloom poorly. You should also not allow the soil to dry out. On hot summer days, with a long absence of rain, the plant must be watered.
Young aubrieta bushes need to be fed with sodium humate. It is dissolved in water and the flowers are watered twice a day: morning and evening. Sodium humate stimulates the growth of roots and shoots, making the plant stronger and more resilient. The first feeding is carried out when at least 2 true leaves appear on the seedlings. Older crops are periodically fed complex fertilizers for perennial flowering plants. They are applied to the soil 2 times per season: before the aubrieta begins to flower and after its pruning.
Pruning the crop is also an essential part of care. Each time after the end of the flowering period, the shoots of the plant are removed almost to the ground. In such a case, the aubrieta produces new stems in place of the cut stems, which after a short time are also covered with flowers. Pruning the crop allows you to maintain its decorative effect throughout the summer.
Diseases of this crop include powdery mildew. If you notice that the stems and leaves of the bushes are covered with a whitish coating, treat them with a solution of colloidal sulfur. If after treatment the signs of the disease have not disappeared, you will have to get rid of the damaged plants so that powdery mildew does not spread to healthy areas of the flowerbed. Diseased bushes should be uprooted and burned.
Aubrieta is a herbaceous plant characterized by attractive flowers that serve as a harmonious decoration for any area.
Aubrieta perennial: description
A continuous carpet of aubrieta flowers (pale blue, pink, lilac, white), forming dense thickets with their short shoots, will become an important element in decoration vertical garden or designing an alpine slide or flower bed.
The green leaves of the plant are oval in shape, pointed at the edges, and small. In balcony flowerpots, this perennial plant, popularly called windflower, is an expressive addition to the main composition, consisting of large single flowers. The subtle decorative quality of such beauty, created by nature and introducing a touch of tenderness into the surrounding environment, characterizes the small, modest aubriet flower. Growing from seeds - the best way acquire this curiosity on your plot or balcony, which gets along well with all indoor and garden plants.
Characteristic features of the aubriet
Aubrieta, which is not particularly difficult to grow from seeds, is a fairly frost-resistant plant that can tolerate cold winters. The most interesting thing is that in the cold season the flower not only does not change its color, but does not even shed its leaves, standing out as a bright green spot against a snow-white background. In any case, it is better to protect the plant from frost by covering it with fallen leaves of trees. Already in April-May it is covered with attractive bright inflorescences, delighting with their flowering for a month and a half. The fruits are pods with elongated brown seeds.
Surely every fan beautiful decor wants to have an evergreen carpet on his site, which aubrieta can create. Growing from seeds at home takes a little longer than propagating it by cuttings or dividing the bush. Nevertheless, the seed method is very simple and allows you to grow a plant, so to speak, from scratch. It is enough to purchase seeds of the desired variety or several of its types in total, which will create a beautiful natural picture.
Aubrieta: growing from seeds
When to plant seeds? How to do this correctly? When should we expect germination? Such questions often arise among beginners in floriculture, and experienced gardeners once again They try to make sure that the landing dates are correct.
Sowing planting material produced in open ground in spring (May) or autumn (September). You can plant aubrieta indoors, and with the arrival of warm days, the emerging shoots can be planted in the ground. In this case, sowing must be done under film a couple of months before the arrival of warm weather.
The film must be removed when the first shoots of such an attractive plant as aubrieta appear. Growing from seeds (the photo fully conveys the simplicity of this process) is a very popular method, simple and low-labor.
Shaving care
The soil intended for sowing should first be mulched sand mixture, and in order to avoid visual loss of young seedlings among weeds (in open ground), aubrieta seeds should be sown in even beds. The site for future plants should be chosen in a sunny place. The plant can take root in almost any soil, however, preliminary enrichment with lime, chalk or ash will be a good start for aubrieta to feel comfortable on such soil.
Growing from seeds requires timely watering, but without excess. Otherwise, excess moisture will lead to active growth shaving leaves and minimal or complete absence of flowers. Preserving the attractiveness of the plant will be facilitated by the timely removal of faded flower stalks and dried leaves.
Aubrieta, growing from seeds of which is the most in a simple way its reproduction may lose the qualities inherent in a particular variety. This is a disadvantage seed method, as well as the long wait for flowers to appear: in the second year after planting.
Cuttings as one of the methods
Gardeners often use the method of cuttings, which allows them to get this without much effort. beautiful plant, like a hybrid aubrieta. Growing from seeds is a more time-consuming method, unlike cuttings. In this case, it is necessary to separate sprouts that are not fully ripe from an adult bush. Future flowers should be planted in a greenhouse with a soil mixture of peat and sand. Planting of aubrieta in a permanent place of growth should be done around August, making sure that the young plants have roots.
Feeding the aubrieta
Feeding the plant should be done carefully, because an excess of fertilizers can negatively affect the growth vigor of the plant. It is optimal to apply fertilizing material 2 times a year. This is the spring period (before flowering) and autumn (after the final pruning of the plant this year). Pruning is done immediately after the end of flowering, almost to the very base. This will give a start to the growth of new, stronger shoots, which after a short time will be covered with beautiful flowers of various shades. Thus, pruning the aubrieta is aimed at creating its non-stop flowering throughout the summer.
Like any plant, aubrieta is prone to damage various diseases. Most often she suffers from powdery mildew. When the first signs of the disease appear, the plant should be treated with an aqueous composition of colloidal sulfur. If the drugs used are ineffective, the only correct solution will be to clear the area of the diseased plant: the living carpet, unfortunately, will have to be torn out and destroyed.
Varieties of aubrieta
- Raspberry sea. The name itself speaks about the color of the flowers and the composition they create. Bright and lush flowering will delight others for 2 months. This variety grows well in height, so it can be used to decorate retaining walls and fences.
- Red King. The flowers of this variety of aubrieta, whose height is 10 cm, are large - about 5 cm in diameter. Excellent propagation by cuttings.
- Cote d'Azur. The flowers will delight you with their incredible blue color for 2 months. The variety is frost-resistant.
- Enchanting Morocco. A very decorative and lush variety.
- Cascade series. The bushes are lush, with long creeping shoots. Bred specifically for growing on balconies, flower beds and alpine roller coaster. The variety combines purple, pink, red, turquoise shades, enlivening the natural composition with such multifaceted diversity.
Aubrieta as the most beautiful element of the site
Meticulous care and love - those important factors, which the obrieta needs. Growing from seeds, about which most gardeners give positive reviews, is very simple method, which consists only in making the right choice plot, its preparation and the seeding itself.
If the seedlings are successful, the aubrieta will become one of your favorite plants and a permanent resident of the garden plot for many years, delighting those around you with the lush greenery of a continuous carpet and abundant bright flowering.
Italy and Southern France). It has become widespread throughout Europe as a successful decoration for gardens and rock gardens. And the flower is named after the French artist Claude Aubrier, who had a passion for botanical illustrations. Let's find out what's good about obrieta? Planting and caring for this plant will also not remain outside our attention.
What does aubrieta look like?
These plants are characterized as evergreen, perennial and creeping. Their branches do not rise higher than 10-15 cm above the ground, forming expressive hemispherical curtains. The leaves are small, pubescent, with a jagged or solid edge, shaped like an ellipse or an egg, arranged one at a time, alternately. The plant looks spectacular at any time of the year, and even when it is not blooming, it still pleases its owners with green, succulent leaves. The flowers are four-petalled and small, no more than 1 cm in diameter, forming small racemes. The genus includes 12 species of plants, differing in the shade of the petals: red, pink, purple, blue, and less often white. This is how multi-colored it is - aubrieta. The photos of flowers presented in the article allow you to form your own opinion about this ornamental plant.
Species common in Russia
The most popular is the cultural aubrieta (Aubrieta x cultorum Bergmans), which combines several varieties and forms that differ in the colors of the petals. The shoots of the plant do not exceed 20 cm, the leaves are small, with jagged edges, spatulate-oblong. (diameter about 1 cm), different colors- from purple to dark purple. During flowering (about 40 days, from May to June), the leaves are not even visible under a dense layer bright inflorescences. The varieties currently bred are characterized by more large petals, terry branches.
Aubrieta deltoidea - the ancestor of all hybrid varieties because it bears fruit. Their lilac or purple-blue loose racemose inflorescences delight the eye for 30-35 days, also in May. They are distinguished by more dissected delta-shaped gray-green leaves with a pair of teeth on each side.
Aubriet flower: choosing a place to plant
What location does this plant prefer? It must be sunny, partial shade is allowed only in a hot southern climate, and in a moderate climate it will only cause harm: the aubrieta will stretch out and stop blooming. The soil should be light, not too fertile. Fertilize it with ash, lime or chalk. You should avoid waterlogged clay and oily soil with a high peat content. IN winter time moisture can be simply destructive for flowers such as aubrieta. Planting and caring for the plant are carried out in raised areas, well-drained and rocky hills, in the spaces between stones. Watering is only required - only in particularly dry times. Exceptions are the southern regions, where summers are very hot.
How to grow a colorful "mat"
Have you decided that your site should be decorated with aubrieta? Planting and caring for a plant will cause you a lot of trouble, remember this. You cannot plant it and stop monitoring its development, otherwise very soon the flower will cease to perform a decorative function. You can propagate aubrieta in three ways:
- Cuttings. The cut parts of the plants are planted in a greenhouse, in soil made of river sand and peat (in equal quantities). Many species root 95% of the time under artificial fog conditions, while some varieties root only 25%. At the end of August, the rooted petioles are transplanted to a permanent place so that they take root there before the onset of the first frost. It is recommended to maintain a distance between bushes of 10-15 cm. It is better to leave the most valuable specimens in a greenhouse until spring. Young plants are frost-resistant only in the first year of life and can easily tolerate cold; in the future, it is advisable to carry out cuttings annually.
- Propagation by seeds. They are sown in ridges in open ground before winter (in September). Be sure to mulch with sand. Flowering occurs in the second year. Reproduction indoors is possible: seeds are sown two months before the expected last frost (from January to April). Vermiculite with seedlings is covered with plastic film. When the seedlings sprout, the film is removed and after the end of frost they are planted in the soil in a permanent place. Note that when aubrieta is propagated by seeds, the varietal properties are not preserved.
- Reproduction by dividing the bush. It is done in rare cases in spring or autumn, if cuttings have not been made or the bushes need to be urgently moved. The plant reacts extremely painfully to such a procedure.
Features of care
For many summer residents and lovers of bringing beauty to personal plots Shaving will not cause any difficulties. Cultivation, carried out under careful control, is also easy to implement. But you don’t need to stop there, the plant needs ongoing care. Even if the soil on which aubrieta grows is quite light, it is very useful to apply sand superficially (mulching) in a layer of 3-5 cm 2-3 times per season. When flowering ends (in May or early June), the plant is pruned to promote rapid, compact growth later on. In this case, in the fall you will again admire the colorful inflorescences. If the winter is predicted to be long, with sharp temperature fluctuations, it is worth covering the aubrieta with a dry sheet for this period.
- You should buy seeds in the spring, and when purchasing seedlings, pay attention so that the roots do not grow out of the holes in the bottom of the pot and become intertwined.
- Manure and mineral nitrogen cannot be used as fertilizers (it reduces winter hardiness).
- Varieties with blue and purple petals are long-lasting, but pink and red-flowered plants do not please the eye for so long.
- A flowering carpet along the edge of a border or in rock gardens looks simply gorgeous. But this is far from the only way to decorate a site using a plant such as aubrieta. A cascade of bright inflorescences descending along a fence or the wall of a building certainly evokes amazement and admiration!
- Aubrieta goes well with other creeping plants: blue and planted with yellow rock alyssum, protruding white and Caucasian pink rhizome, and basic-leaved red soapwort. Pink and red harmonize with dwarf bearded irises, phloxes of Douglas or bells of Pozharsky.
Connoisseurs of floriculture will certainly find the right approach to the aubriet plant. Planting and care will not cause them much inconvenience, and a bright carpet of small flowers will delight the owners and impress guests.
