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Magical Candle is a popular, unpretentious variety of panicled hydrangeas. The shape of her flower brushes is similar to a candle. Because of this feature, the variety got its name “Magical Candle”, which translates as “Magic Candle”. Paniculata hydrangea Magic Candle will help gardeners with minimal effort to make the garden romantic and sophisticated.
Hydrangea Magical Candle is one of the most beautiful, graceful and spectacular types, thanks to the original inflorescences
Description of hydrangea paniculata Magic Candle
Hydrangea Magical Candle is a lush flowering, compact shrub, 2-3 m high, up to 1,5 m in diameter. The leaves are quite dense and rigid, serrated along the edge, dark green in color. Inflorescences are dense, large, pyramidal in shape. Grow strictly vertically. Flowers of the original color, changing as they bloom. At the beginning they are white-cream or greenish. A little later, the inflorescences of the hydrangea Magical Candle acquire a soft pink hue. At the final stage, the flowers become bright crimson. The budding season begins in early summer and continues until mid-autumn.
Hydrangea Magic Candle in landscape design
Exquisite and luxurious, the Magical Candle hydrangea is one of the most sought after and popular shrubs used in landscaping and gardening. This culture is valued for its abundant flowering and harmoniously combined colors.
Very often, the Magical Candle hydrangea is used in landscape design to create a flowering hedge. Basically, it either decorates the facade of the garden plot, or helps to zone the garden. Hydrangea is also grown in mixborders – complex compositions of flowering perennials and shrubs. They also use it as monoplants, as an independent decoration of the garden.
Hydrangea varieties Magic Candle looks good in hedges
Winter hardiness of hydrangea paniculate variety Magic Candle
Hydrangea (magical candle) Magical Candle is a winter-hardy variety adapted to regions with a temperate climate. The plant tolerates winter well, in particular, it withstands a significant decrease in air temperature (up to -30 ° C).
Planting and caring for Hydrangea Magic Candle
Magical Candle is an unpretentious garden crop. To get beautiful and lush flowering bushes will allow the implementation of a minimum set of activities related to care.
Selection and preparation of the landing site
The place for planting hydrangea Magical Candle should be chosen sunny. It is allowed to place seedlings in partial shade. The soil shrub prefers fertile, neutral or slightly acidic. Alkaline soils must be oxidized by adding peat or potassium salt. Hydrangea Magical Candle does not like waterlogged soils.
Rules of landing
The most optimal time for planting hydrangea Magical Candle are the following periods:
- early spring (before bud break);
- autumn (after the end of flowering).
It is not recommended to plant a young flower near similar shrubs and trees, this can cause competition for nutrients and moisture.
Landing step by step:
- Prepare landing holes. Their size should be twice the size of the root system of the seedling. The recommended layout of the bushes is 1,5×2,0 m.
- Prepare a soil mixture from fertile soil, humus and sand.
- At the bottom of the hole, equip drainage and sprinkle it with prepared soil.
- Place a bush in the hole along with an earthen clod.
- Fill the space around the seedling with soil mixture.
- Pack the soil firmly around the trunk to prevent air pockets from forming.
- Plentifully water the soil in the near-stem circle.
Watering and top dressing
Hydrangea Magical Candle is a moisture-loving variety that needs regular and abundant watering. In a hot period, bushes should be watered often, several times a week, in a moderate period – 4-5 times a month. It is recommended to pour at least 30-50 liters of water under one root. Watering is recommended in the morning and evening, during the absence of sultry heat.
Additional moisture must be provided to plants in a dry autumn. The lack of moisture can significantly reduce the winter hardiness of hydrangeas.
Lush flowering is ensured by regular and proper feeding. Fertilizers must be supplied in the dosage necessary for the plant. An overabundance of nutrients can lead to the opposite effect. Instead of forming beautiful inflorescences, the hydrangea will produce excessive foliage, growing randomly in different directions.
The hole should be 2 times larger in volume than the root of the seedling
To feed the bushes, you can use a variety of fertilizers, which are selected, focusing on the stage of crop growth.
Nutrients | The norm for 1 m2soil | |
At the initial stage of growth | ||
Potassium sulfide | 30-35 g | |
Superphosphate | 35-40 g | |
Urea | 20-25 g | |
In the period of buttoning | ||
Potassium sulfide | 40-45 g | |
Superphosphate | 60-80 g | |
At the end of the growing season | ||
Compost | 15-20 kg | |
Pruning Hydrangea Magic Candle
Annual spring pruning allows the shrub to form a lush and beautiful crown. It is recommended to carry it out before the start of sap flow. On a young bush, about 10 strong branches are selected, which are cut to 1/3, leaving 5 buds. Thin and dry shoots are removed completely.
In a mature plant, in subsequent years, all branches are cut (up to 7 cm in height). This procedure is carried out in order to rejuvenate the shrub.
Also, pruning is a prevention of the appearance of pests, since a thickened crown contributes to their reproduction. At the end of the growing season, cut off all faded inflorescences.
Preparation for winter
The variety is quite frost-resistant, therefore it is necessary to cover the bushes for the winter only when grown in cold climatic regions, in areas with a significant decrease in winter temperatures, dropping to 25-29 ° C. This rule applies to mature plants. Young seedlings need warming, regardless of the region of cultivation. For shelter, you can use any mulching materials or branches of coniferous trees.
Reproduction
Hydrangea can be propagated in the following ways:
- cuttings;
- layering.
To get layers nearby, side shoots are added dropwise to the mother bush. They are placed in specially prepared grooves. In the spring-autumn period, they are regularly cared for – watered and fed. In winter, layering is covered. With the onset of spring, they are separated from the bush and sent for growing in a place that is maximally protected from the scorching sun.
Cutting procedure:
- At the tops of the shoots, cuttings (15-20 cm) are separated.
- Treated with a growth stimulator.
- Placed in well-moistened soil, deepening by 2 buds.
- Watered.
- Fertilize.
- Sheltered for the winter.
Diseases and pests
Hydrangea paniculata Magical Candle has good immunity to diseases and pests, but sometimes the bushes are affected by powdery mildew and aphids. Fungal diseases develop due to high humidity and sudden temperature changes.
To combat fungal diseases, biological preparations are used (Fitosporin, Baktofit, Topaz).
Signs of powdery mildew are twisted leaves covered with a white coating that looks like flour.
Signs of the appearance of aphids are deformation and wilting of flowers, as well as the presence of puncture marks on the foliage from bites.
Destruction of garden pests led by insecticides
Conclusion
Hydrangea Magical Candle is a perennial, lush flowering garden plant. With its spectacular beauty, the shrub pleases from the beginning of summer until the very frost. This crop requires minimal maintenance. Even a novice gardener can plant this shrub in his garden and enjoy its beauty.