Heuchera: varieties with descriptions with characteristics, planting and care rules with photos

Heuchera is a herbaceous perennial plant of the Saxifrage family. It has very good decorative qualities, therefore it is an obligatory participant in garden compositions. The main advantage of this plant is its rich foliage. All varieties of ornamental geyhera delight with a long flowering period and picturesque foliage of various shapes, shades, textures.

Features

Heuchera is native to the forests and mountains of North America. For the first time, the plant was described by the German botanist Johann Heinrich von Geicher, who lived in the 17th-18th centuries. Modern breeders have bred many ornamental varieties that have spread throughout the world and are successfully used to decorate gardens and parks.

The color and shape of geyhera leaves are amazing and varied. They are dark, yellow, amber, purple, green. May contain veins, various patterns and blotches. Often there are red-leaved varieties. The surface of the foliage is smooth, velvety or corrugated.

Heuchera flower outfit is no less beautiful. The flowering season is long. The plant throws out small bells collected in paniculate inflorescences.

According to decorative features, two large groups of plants are distinguished:

• decorative and floral are distinguished by the special beauty of flowering;
• Deco-deciduous boasts a wide variety of foliage colors.

Main species

Specialists know more than 70 varieties of geyhera. Some of them belong to mountain species, the rest of the plants are derived from forest varieties of wild geyhera. The most popular are several types that are distinguished by the best decorative qualities:

1. Red Heuchera has several varieties, including Blood Red, Carmine Red, Purple Palace.
2. Blood red. Its flowers resemble bright red bells. The variety is cold-resistant, therefore it is actively bred in Russia. It has round serrated leaves with a dense texture.
3. Hybrid. It is a hybrid of blood red and American geyhera. She combined their best qualities. It has large inflorescences of white pink or coral shades.
4. Purple Palace. A variety of red geyhera, has beautiful leaves of deep red hues. It is very unpretentious, therefore it is often used by landscape designers.
5. Small-flowered. Possesses the best decorative properties. It has beautiful carved leaves, painted in silver or purple. Small pink flowers are united in inflorescences in the form of elongated panicles.
6. Heuchera Starburst (Old Castle) is actively planted because of the rich color palette. Differs in unpretentiousness, pleases an eye all warm period of time. Combines well with dwarf shrubs to create garden arrangements.
7. Green. Has foliage of all shades of green. Sasha variety is very popular, with lacy olive leaves.
8. Hairy. Large leaves and peduncles have a velvety surface.
9. Geihera Rio. It has elegant cream and yellow leaves. The plant blooms in mid-summer. It is an original decoration of the flower bed, so it is often used by gardeners and landscaping masters.

Crop specifics

There are two ways to plant a geyhera on your site: by growing a seedling from seeds or by purchasing it in a specialized store. For better growth in decorative deciduous varieties, the emerging flower stalks are cut off. In decorative flowering varieties, flower stalks are removed after the end of the flowering period.

Sowing seeds

Long-term storage of planting material affects germination, so only the freshest seeds should be taken for sowing.They are sown shallowly in prepared soil, carefully sprinkling. This method has the right to exist, although it does not ensure the preservation of the species qualities of mother plants. There is a high chance of obtaining instances without unique decorative properties.

Seedlings

The method of growing seedlings is more reliable. Do it indoors or in a special greenhouse. After the sprouts get stronger, they are planted in open ground. To do this, make holes up to 4 centimeters deep, keeping a distance of 20-25 centimeters. The earth must be thoroughly loosened and moistened. Normally, seedlings appear a month and a half after planting.

When is the best time to plant

Planted seedlings in the ground at the end of March. At the same time, a place is chosen depending on the type of geyhera:

1. Varieties with bright red foliage feel good in full sun and become even more attractive. They can be planted on the south side, subject to regular watering.
2. Varieties with delicate foliage colors will suit the east or west side, where there is shade or diffused lighting.

Preparing a permanent site

In order for the decorative qualities of the plant to be fully revealed, it is recommended to plant it in fertile loose soil. It is important that a neutral or slightly alkaline pH balance (5-6 units) is observed. In acidic soil, the plant begins to get sick and dies. The soil should be moisture-intensive, but moisture stagnation at the roots should also not be allowed. When preparing the wells, a drainage layer of 3-5 mm should be created.

Transplanting in open ground

Having placed seedlings in open ground, you need to regularly loosen and moisten it. A sufficient amount of air and moisture at the roots is an important condition for successful growth. But planting a plant in a swampy area is impossible. Contact with water will lead to root rot, disease and loss of decorative qualities.

Care Tips

Heuchera is an unpretentious plant. Planted in good quality soil, in an area with sufficient sunlight, it requires minimal maintenance.

Crop Watering

The shrub should be watered regularly. Checking the condition of the soil, they conclude that it needs another moistening. In the hot period, the bushes are watered every other day, thoroughly moistening the soil in the planting area. It is impossible to flood the plant too much to prevent rotting of the roots.

Feeding plants

The plant does not require frequent feeding, because in its natural environment it grows on poor soil in mountainous areas. Feeding should begin one year after planting in the ground. Depending on the variety of geyhera, mineral fertilizer is used for deciduous or flowering plants.

Top dressing is applied twice a season - before and after the flowering period, in moderation. The solution is made less concentrated than recommended by the manufacturer.

Cutting rules

Heuchera is an evergreen crop, so it does not need pre-winter pruning. Old wilted leaves keep the roots warm during the winter frosts. They are removed after wintering, cut closer to the soil surface. Peat with humus is added under the bushes (mulch).

How to prepare a plant for winter

For the winter, bushes are covered using spruce branches or rotted oak leaves. In order to remove the protective cover, they are waiting for the final thawing and warming up of the earth.

Protection from diseases and pests

Heuchera is not susceptible to disease. The condition of the plant worsens in the presence of provoking factors - prolonged contact of the roots with water or excessive soil mineralization. The most common diseases are:

• powdery mildew;
• grey rot;
• spotting;
• rust.

The plant is treated with fungicidal preparations: Bordeaux mixture (copper sulfate solution in milk of lime), Fundazol, Fitosporin - M. Of the pests, snails, caterpillars, slugs, leaf parasites are dangerous. For protection, insecticide treatment is used.

It is very useful to make regular hilling of bushes. Then the upper exposed part of the roots will be securely covered from the effects of the external environment.

Reproduction methods

At the age of 3-4 years, geyher bushes need rejuvenation. If this is not done, their ability to resist parasites and diseases will deteriorate, winter hardiness will decrease.

Rejuvenation is done by dividing and transplanting bushes.The procedure is carried out in late spring or early autumn. Divide the bush into parts, providing each with 2-3 sockets. Along the way, the roots are cleaned of rotten areas. The resulting children are seated in holes located at a distance of 30 centimeters. Water plants thoroughly and mulch. Rooting of young geyher occurs within a month.

They also use propagation by cuttings. Cuttings are cut from the parent plant and rooted in greenhouses, planted in a peat-sand mixture. Waiting for the roots of the new plant to form.

Problems Growers Have When Growing

In order for the planting and care of garden geyher to be successful, the rules should be carefully followed. Otherwise, the flower will start to hurt and may die.

1. Having bought seedlings, it is recommended to plant them in the ground as soon as possible. In the dry air of a city apartment, sprouts will quickly die.
2. It is necessary to clearly adjust the optimal amount of liquid when watering. Deficiency will lead to wilting of the leaves, flooding will end with the death of the roots.
3. The lack of a drainage layer in the holes can lead to fluid stagnation and root rot.
4. To preserve the decorative properties, it is important that the plants are planted in fertile soil.

Compliance with the rules of care and planting are necessary conditions for geyhera bushes to grow he althy and picturesque. Well-groomed plants for many years will delight the owners with bright, elegant foliage.

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