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Hydrangea variety Great Star is very popular among flower growers. True, in order for the plant to actively develop and delight the owners with abundant flowering, it is necessary to provide it with the right care and create certain conditions. Actually, therefore, it is worth figuring out what exactly a flower is and what it needs.
Description Hydrangea Great Star
Breeders bred a variety of panicled hydrangea relatively recently, but despite this, flower growers quickly fell in love with the plant. Snow-white inflorescences in the shape of an asterisk look very beautiful and can decorate any garden plot.
A flowering bush of Great Star hydrangea will decorate the garden
Great Star Paniculata Hydrangea is a deciduous flowering shrub. She has an extensive root system with a strong branched rhizome, located almost on the surface of the soil. When loosening, you must be extremely careful not to damage it.
The crown of the plant is lush and spreading. Naturally, if you make regular and correct pruning. An adult bush can reach 2 m in height. The Great Star variety is fast-growing, it can grow up to 20 cm in one year.
The shoots of a flowering culture are strong and upright, strewn with opposite alternate leaves, the color of which is dark green. Due to the beautiful crown, the plant looks very attractive even in the absence of flowering.
Hydrangea Great Star in landscape design
This variety is considered universal, so the shrub lends itself perfectly to modeling. The plant will look great both in a group flower bed and in single plantings.
Many flower growers prefer to plant the Great Star variety near water bodies. This gives the area relief.
Panicled hydrangeas go well with other varieties of flowering crops and can become the main highlight of a flower garden.
Great Star hydrangea can be found in park areas.
Often, with the help of these plants, they zone the territory, create a kind of strip, which consists of several varietal varieties.
In any case, wherever the Great Star panicle hydrangea is planted, it will always attract attention and arouse admiration from people passing by.
Landscape designers prefer to plant a plant singly or in a row on green lawns.
Winter hardiness of Hydrangea Great Star
As for winter hardiness, it is good for panicled hydrangea. Variety Great Star calmly survives the winter with temperatures up to -30 ° C. Such indicators help to grow crops in the middle lane, as well as in Siberia. True, in some regions it will be necessary to insulate the plant.
Planting and caring for Great Star Hydrangea
Growing healthy and flowering Great Star hydrangea bushes is possible only with proper care. This flowering culture is demanding on the conditions of detention. The complex of caring procedures includes watering and top dressing, annual pruning of the plant.
Selection and preparation of the landing site
It is recommended to transfer seedlings to open ground in the spring. You need to purchase planting material in pots or tubs. The main thing is that the roots of the paniculate hydrangea are in an earthen coma. As for the landing site, it is best to choose a site where partial shade prevails, especially in the afternoon. The Great Star variety tolerates bright sunlight extremely poorly.
The shrub is very picky about the soil, he likes high acidity. Flower growers must add peat to the hole. Also suitable for this is a special mixture for azaleas. You can independently make a nutrient substrate for Great Star panicled hydrangea, it includes the following components:
- compost;
- leaf humus;
- peat.
All are mixed in equal proportions and brought into the planting pit. After that, the Great Star seedling is directly planted. The hole is dug to a depth of 50 cm, the width should vary from 6 to 70 cm.
Rules of landing
Planting panicle hydrangea is carried out subject to some rules:
- The hole must be properly prepared. First you need to dig a hole, lay a drainage layer of expanded clay or broken brick on the bottom, add a nutrient mixture. After that, thoroughly spill the soil with water.
- Prepare seedlings. It is required to slightly trim the roots and straighten. After that, place in the center of the pit and sprinkle with earth. The root system of the Great Star hydrangea flower should be located almost on the surface of the soil.
- At the very end, they again spill water, and then mulch. This can be done with sawdust, needles or peat. In this case, the moisture will evaporate much more slowly.
Watering and top dressing
The Great Star variety requires proper care. The plant does not tolerate stagnant water, so watering procedures must be approached responsibly. In summer, the flower is watered once every 7-10 days. For each bush take 10 liters of water. In dry weather, you can increase the amount of irrigation. It is advisable to mulch the soil, then you do not have to regularly loosen and weed the ground.
Some ground cover crops, such as sedum and styloid phlox, provide the same effect. They are planted around an ornamental hydrangea shrub.
As for fertilizers, they are introduced already in early May. At this time, it is preferable to use potash and phosphorus top dressing. You can use ready-made formulations: “Agricola Aqua”, “Crystal”, “Compo”.
These preparations contain a whole range of nutrients that will provide the plant with everything it needs. For foliar spraying, “Zircon” is suitable. This remedy is especially good for young seedlings of paniculate hydrangea.
Hydrangea pruning Great Star
Great Star hydrangeas must be pruned, otherwise the shrub may lose its decorative effect, and flowering will be poor. In addition, the procedure is carried out for other purposes, namely:
- form the desired shape;
- remove old and damaged shoots;
- rejuvenate the plant;
- increase the number of flower buds.
It is necessary to act according to the instructions:
- Remove all panicle inflorescences. Firstly, dead wood spoiling the appearance, and secondly, faded hydrangea buds can bend under the weight of snow and break branches.
- Cut off all damaged, dry and improperly growing shoots from a flowering shrub. This sanitary pruning is carried out annually, it serves as a preventive measure against diseases, and also gives the flower a decorative look.
- Also, if necessary, eliminate old branches. This procedure helps to rejuvenate the culture.
To trim the thin branches of the paniculate hydrangea, you will need a sharp pruner. For a larger trunk, it is recommended to use a garden saw. The cut is carried out at a distance of 3-5 paired buds from the base.
Autumn pruning of the Great Star hydrangea will ensure good flowering and a lush crown.
Preparation for winter
Hydrangea paniculate Hydrangea paniculata Great Star needs to be prepared for the winter period. They begin to hold events after the culture has faded. This is done so that the plant can successfully overwinter and not die from frost.
Already in the fall, top dressing is carried out, for this they are ideal:
- potassium sulfate;
- superphosphate.
You can also purchase ready-made autumn fertilizers. But nitrogen fertilizers should be abandoned, they can alkalize the soil, which is not suitable for this crop.
In addition, from the beginning of autumn, the number of waterings is significantly reduced, and after a while, any moisture is completely stopped. Before you cover the bushes, you need to prepare them. Do it like this:
- tie the shoots together and wrap with lutrasil;
- build a mesh frame around the flower, it should be 10-15 cm higher than the plant;
- pour dry foliage inside the structure, this should be done to the top;
- cover the frame with a material with a moisture-proof property.
After that, paniculate hydrangea is ready for wintering. The covering fabric should be removed with the onset of spring, when the temperature does not drop to minus.
Reproduction
Hydrangea Great Star reproduces quite well. Most often, flower growers use cuttings and layering for this. You can also use seeds, but this method is time consuming and the germination rate of seeds is low. Either option involves the use of special growth stimulants.
It is worth considering each method of reproduction in more detail:
- Cuttings are carried out in the summer. To do this, choose well-developed cuttings on the bush and cut them off. It is best to take shoots from the side shoots, they take root much better than the top ones. The green crown is immediately removed from the cuttings. Then they should be soaked in a growth stimulator for 6 hours. And then plant the branch in a container with a nutrient substrate consisting of sand and peat. Cover with foil and wait for full rooting. Until this time, they ventilate the greenhouse and moisten the soil.
- Layers are also cut from the side branches of the flower. Then they are planted in a pre-prepared hole and carefully added dropwise. For greater security, fix it with metal brackets or wire. Throughout the growing season produce watering and top dressing. By the onset of autumn, the paniculate hydrangea bush has time to take root well.
- Planting material is sown in late autumn. To do this, you need boxes and a mixture of peat and sand. Shallow furrows are made in the prepared soil, panicled hydrangea seeds are placed in them. The container is covered with plastic wrap to create greenhouse conditions. A month later, the first shoots should appear, before that, airing and moistening should be done regularly. After the inputs gain strength, they must be transplanted into separate containers.
These are the main breeding options for Great Star hydrangea. Each grower will be able to choose the most convenient for himself.
Diseases and pests
Most often, difficulties during the cultivation of paniculate hydrangea arise due to improper care. This may be a lack of nutrients, waterlogging of the substrate. In terms of disease, Great Star shrubs often develop chlorosis when the foliage turns yellow and dries.
Yellow foliage on Great Star panicled hydrangea indicates chlorosis disease
You can fix the problem by spraying with special means: “Chelate”, “Ferovit”, “Antichlorosis”.
Also, Great Star hydrangea often suffers from fungal diseases. Some fertilizers that contain iron will help correct the situation.
Major diseases:
- white rot, brown spots appear on the foliage. Against it, the drug “Fitosporin” is used, diseased bushes are treated with a solution.
From white rot insecticides are used
- gray rot, this fungus can be recognized by the holes in the leaves. You can get rid of it with the help of the insecticide “Fundazol”. It will be enough to spray the plant.
Holes in the foliage are a clear sign of the presence of gray rot on hydrangeas.
- powdery mildew, The main sign of the presence of the disease is oil stains. Carry out the treatment with soapy water.
Powdery mildew is dangerous for Great Star panicled hydrangea
As for pests, aphids and spider mites can be found on the shrub. In the fight against them, purchased insecticidal agents are also used.
Conclusion
Blooming hydrangea Great Star will be able to decorate any garden plot. Of course, if you take good care of it. Only under this condition will the plant delight its owners with annual flowering.