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Planting and caring for the dicenter is a matter of keen interest to lovers of bright perennials. A beautiful pink flower, shaped like a heart, can become a noticeable element of any flower bed, but you need to grow it according to all the rules of care.
Features of growing dicentra
Dicentra on the horticultural market is presented in a huge variety of species and varieties. Varieties of perennial differ among themselves mainly in shades of color, however, the features of planting and caring for the dicenter remain approximately the same.
- Perennial does not tolerate dry air, but loves shady places. Therefore, it is possible to plant a dicenter in the country in areas where other, sun-loving perennials would grow poorly – this allows you to decorate the unoccupied space with bright colors.
- Dicentra, planted in the shade, blooms quite late, but at the same time it has a bright color and a long flowering time. Therefore, the garden in which the dicentra is planted pleases the eye with multi-colored shades until the middle of summer.
- Different varieties of dicentras can produce white, yellow, pink, purple or red flowers. Not only perennial varieties are well combined with each other, dicentra is suitable for joint planting with other flowering plants and for subsequent care. This allows you to create beautiful and intricate flower beds.
Planting dicenters requires increased care and knowledge of agricultural technology from the gardener. But the care of the accustomed flower is quite simple. An important advantage of the dicentra is that the perennial tolerates winter cold well, unlike many flowers, it has a high level of frost resistance and requires minimal shelter during winter care.
How to plant dicentra
There are several ways to plant a perennial plant. Growing dicenters from seeds at home is popular. Although the effectiveness of this method is lower than that of cuttings or dividing a bush, when planting a plant for the first time, there is often no other choice but to use the seed method.
Growing dicentra from seeds
The first stage of seed planting is the correct preparation of planting material. In order to increase germination, the seeds are first stratified, that is, they are subjected to long-term processing at low temperatures, which increases their endurance.
- For stratification, the seeds are washed, mixed in a small container with loose sand or moist soil, and closed for 3 months in the refrigerator.
- From time to time, the seeds need to be checked and, if necessary, re-moistened the soil.
- You need to start stratification at the beginning of winter, then in March the seeds will be ready for planting.
In March, stratified seeds are sown in prepared soil for dicenters in seedling boxes. The soil for the plant is selected standard – light, quite nutritious and loose. Soddy soil, sand and peat are ideal as a soil mixture.
The first shoots of seeds will appear in about a month. Seed care dicentra is quite simple, the sprouts need moderate watering as the soil dries. Also, in a room with sprouts, you need to keep the temperature around 25 degrees and prevent drafts, although regular airing of the dicenter is necessary. The place for the plant should be sunny, but not under direct rays.
Around the end of April, the sprouts will get stronger enough that they can be swooped down – only the strongest seedlings are left. After that, the sprouts are planted in open warmed soil. If a sudden cold snap occurs in May, perennial sprouts will definitely need to be covered in the garden with a film or other material. Such care will not allow the freezing of flowers.
When to plant dicentra in open ground
It is necessary to plant a perennial plant in the soil in the last days of April or early May. It is important to wait until the last return frosts are gone, and the soil warms up in depth. Young perennials do not tolerate cold well and may die in a new place before they properly take root.
Also, the dicenter is allowed to be planted in the fall, but no later than September. Before the onset of the first cold weather, the roots of the plant must properly develop and strengthen in the ground.
Where to plant dicentra
Dicentra tolerates both sunny and shaded areas well. However, it is best to plant and care for the dicenter in the Moscow region in places with enough light, but good natural shading. So the dicentra will please with early flowering, but will not be harmed by the direct rays of the sun. The plant can be planted in the shade of small garden shrubs, so the perennial will not only get comfortable conditions for it, but also effectively shade the greens of tall plants.
From the point of view of the soil, the perennial is undemanding. Optimal for it is a moderately moist, nutritious soil with high friability and good drainage. The plant prefers soil with a weak level of acidity.
Site preparation
The site for planting a perennial must be prepared in advance – a few months before planting the dicenters in the ground. If planting is scheduled for spring, then the site is prepared and fertilized in the fall, if in the fall, then in the spring.
The soil in the selected area is properly dug up 30 cm deep and 3 kg of humus per meter of space is laid. Also, complex minerals must be added to the soil – in a few months, fertilizers will be properly absorbed into the soil and create the necessary microflora in it.
Landing rules in open ground
Immediately before planting a perennial, holes in the ground are prepared for it – the depth and diameter should be at least 40 cm, and the distance between individual plants should be around half a meter.
A drainage layer of crushed stone or other material is poured onto the bottom of the prepared pits; special attention should be paid to this stage of planting and care if the soil at the landing site is extremely wet. Fertile soil mixed with compost is poured over the drainage layer, up to half the pit. When planting dicenters in the spring in the ground, the sprouts are lowered into the hole and covered with earth to the end. The initial care of the planted plants is that they need to be watered and the soil around them should be slightly crushed.
How dicentra rises
Since dicentral seeds germinate with difficulty, mainly in horticulture, they are first planted in a seedling box, and then in open ground – this allows a slight increase in germination. In this case, the first sprouts of the planted dicentra appear about a month after planting.
However, sometimes it is possible to plant a dicentra with seeds immediately in open ground. It is customary to plant in autumn, in September, in which case the seeds will sprout in 30 days, after which the sprouts will need to be thinned out. Immediately after diving, the young dicenter is mulched, and then covered with a film or fallen leaves. Under shelter, seedlings wait out the winter, and with the onset of spring they start active growth, although some of the plantings may die during the winter period.
Dicentra Care
Planting a dicentra with seeds is considered the most difficult stage in growing a plant. But in order for the perennial to please with beautiful and abundant flowering, as in the photo of planting and caring for a perennial dicenter, you need to properly take care of the plant.
How to water
According to the rules of care, the flower needs moderate moisture, it is important not to allow the soil to dry out or become waterlogged. Therefore, the dicenter is watered after planting as the soil dries up – the earth should always remain slightly moist. The perennial does not respond well to hard water; moisture must be defended before watering so that it becomes softer.
It is important to remember that dicentra roots need access to oxygen for normal development. After each watering in the process of leaving, it is recommended to loosen the ground around the flower a little, and at the same time remove weeds from the soil in a timely manner. During the period of drought, watering and loosening is carried out more often, but without undue zeal, if the water begins to stagnate in the ground, the root system of the plant will rot.
How to feed dicentra
For abundant flowering, a perennial plant after planting must be regularly fertilized. Care consists in the fact that in the spring, nitrogenous top dressing is applied annually to the soil for dicenters – this contributes to the abundant development of the green part of the plant.
During the flowering period, the dicenter requires superphosphate, and in the fall it is recommended to fertilize the soil with organic matter, shed it with mullein infusion and mulch it abundantly with humus. It is enough to feed each species once per season, this amount of fertilizer will be sufficient for the dicenter and will contribute to its healthy and rapid growth.
Trimming
A flowering perennial does not need a strong formation. Dicentric stems naturally bend to the ground thanks to large buds; you also do not need to tie them up during care, although it is advisable to plant a flower in a place sheltered from strong winds.
Perennials need minimal pruning only to maintain beautiful flowering. It is very simple to perform it – you need to pick off wilted buds from the plant in a timely manner in order to make room and resources for the growth of new flowers.
Dicentra transplant
The root system of a perennial is prone to rapid growth, and at a certain stage, rotting processes can begin in the entangled roots. Therefore, from time to time, the dicenter needs to be transplanted, the rules of care recommend doing this about once every few years.
- It is necessary to carry out a transplant in April or early May; transplantation of dicenters is also practiced in the fall after the end of flowering.
- A perennial flower is carefully dug out of the ground, trying to injure the roots to a minimum, and left for a short time in the air so that the roots dry out.
- After that, the overgrown perennial is divided into several parts with healthy roots, making sure that several shoots remain on each part. Places of cuts can be sprinkled with ash to prevent infection.
- Dicentral segments are planted in new holes and watered, and then lightly mulch the ground at the roots.
It is possible to plant a dicenter with a rhizome in a single order, or it is possible to form small groups from a perennial for subsequent care. In the latter case, 2-3 parts are planted in the hole at once, separated from the main plant.
Preparation for winter
Dicentra is a fairly cold-resistant plant, but in the winter season the ground part of the flower freezes completely. Therefore, in autumn, it is customary to cut the leaves and stem of a perennial almost flush with the soil, at a height of 3 cm from the surface. It makes no sense to keep the above-ground parts; in any case, they will not endure the winter.
Caring for the dicenter in the fall and preparing for winter consists in the fact that before the onset of cold weather, a shelter is built for the flower, the remaining stumps of the plant are completely covered with a peat layer of about 5 cm. If you make the layer thinner, the earth may freeze too much. At the same time, it is also not recommended to throw a flower with peat more abundantly, otherwise the roots will begin to rot, which will lead to their decay.
With the onset of spring, the layer of covering material is removed, this should be done immediately after the establishment of a stable thaw. Otherwise, under shelter in conditions of warming, excessive moisture may develop, which will harm the health of the plant.
Protection against diseases and pests
Planting and caring for the Broken Heart Dicentra includes the mandatory protection of the plant from diseases and pests. In general, the perennial is highly resistant to diseases, but some of them are still dangerous.
- In particular, tobacco mosaic poses a threat to dicentra. Symptoms are manifested in the fact that stripes and spots appear on the young leaves of the flower.
- With ring spotting, and on adult foliage, pale elongated rings are formed, shaped like oak leaves.
- Also, the dicenter can become ill with mycoplasmosis, as a result, the growth of the flower slows down, the peduncles are bent, and the color of the flowers themselves becomes yellow or green.
Dicentral ailments occur most often due to improper care and an excess of moisture, therefore, for prevention, the perennial must be properly watered, follow the recommended care and prevent waterlogging of the soil. If the plant is already sick, then the soil around it must be shed with fungicidal solutions. Also, careful sanitary control of the site helps to protect the perennial from diseases. It is recommended to cut off and destroy wilted flowers of the plant in time, prevent the development of weeds, regularly loosen the ground and remove plant debris from it.
Dicentra demonstrates high resistance to pests. Of the insects on a perennial plant, only ordinary aphids are found. For the purposes of care and prevention, the leaves of the plant should be periodically inspected for infection, and if aphids are found, they should be treated with Biotlin or Antitlin.
How to propagate dicentra
The seed method of propagation and cultivation of dicenters is mainly used to plant a perennial in your garden from scratch. But to further increase the plantings of dicenters, it is more reasonable to use other breeding methods, they bring a more reliable result.
Reproduction dicentra cuttings
Cuttings are the most elementary method of propagating the dicentra in the spring on the site.
- Young shoots of the plant and root shoots up to 15 cm long are used as cuttings, if root shoots are taken for planting, then their length can reach up to 20 cm.
- Immediately after cutting, it is advisable to keep the cuttings for about a day in a root-forming solution – the dicenter will germinate without it, however, the solution will speed up rooting.
- Dicentral cuttings can be planted in spring or summer directly into the ground, but most often the plant is placed for care first in a greenhouse or seedling box at home. Greenhouse germination conditions allow you to maintain the desired temperature and prevent drafts during the period when the stalk is especially sensitive to external conditions.
- When growing at home or in a greenhouse, the cuttings must be buried in soil suitable for perennials, create a stable temperature of about 25 degrees and regularly moisten the soil for the next 3-4 weeks.
When sprouts appear on the cuttings, care for the dicenter will need to be continued. The plant is transferred to a permanent place in the ground only the next year, regardless of whether it is a greenhouse or home cutting.
Reproduction dicentra by dividing the bush
Planting and caring for a magnificent dicentra includes regular transplanting and planting a bush – the dicentra grows quickly, and its roots begin to interfere with the healthy development of the perennial. Simultaneously with the transplant, the division of the bush is usually carried out, this allows you to rejuvenate the mother plant, make it easier to care for it and at the same time increase the planting of dicenters in your area.
- Dividing a bush of a flowering perennial is quite simple – for this, the plant must be completely dug out of the ground and left for a short time so that the roots dry out a little and wilt.
- Then the bush is carefully divided with a knife into several so-called divisions, each of them should have 3-4 healthy shoots.
- On a new selected site, several small holes of a standard size are dug, about 40 cm in diameter and in depth, with a mass planting, a distance of approximately 50 cm is left between them.
- Segments, or delenki, are planted in holes in a new place, watered and mulched in the same way as in the usual planting of a plant in open ground.
What to plant next to the dicenter
A perennial plant looks beautiful in single plantings, but it acquires an even more spectacular look when combined with other plants. Other perennials are well suited for joint planting with a dicenter and further care, preferring similar conditions – fertile soils with low acidity and light shading.
In the flower bed next to the dicenter, you can plant for easy care:
- tulips and irises;
- anemones and corydalis;
- primrose;
- ferns and bergenia;
- hostas and lungworts;
- geyher and brunners.
Tall spectacular peonies and roses are also suitable for joint planting with perennials and joint care. The dicenter looks good in the vicinity of astilbe and delphinium, anemone and hellebore. You can use the dicenter for monotonous or multi-colored flower beds; in any composition, the flower will not get lost.
What flowers should not be planted dicentra
A feature of planting and caring for the dicenter is that the plant prefers shaded areas of the garden. This means that planting a perennial is not recommended next to sun-loving flowers, such as phlox and daisies, lavender and chrysanthemums, monards and asters.
Perennials that prefer maximum sunlight will not be able to grow safely in places that are good for dicenters, they will not be able to provide proper care. In turn, the Broken Heart flower, when planted in bright sun, can also grow much worse, despite good care.
Conclusion
Planting and caring for a dicentra allows you to decorate your garden with bright, attractive and unusual perennial flowers. The only difficulty when planting a plant is that it is difficult to propagate by seeds, but it is quite easy to care for an adult dicentra.
