Lavater from seeds at home

There are many beautiful flowers and ornamental plants today, but among them there are very few that do not need complex care. A plant for the lazy is jokingly called lavateru. This flower is also decorative, as well as unpretentious: both a beginner and a very busy grower can grow a beautiful bush strewn with large flowers. Lavatera was at the peak of popularity twenty years ago, but today this plant is returning to landscape fashion, increasingly decorating gardens and parks, flower beds and flowerpots.

About growing lavatera from seeds, about when a flower needs to be planted in the ground and on seedlings, how to do it correctly, will be described in this article. Here you will find photos of flowers and describe the most popular varieties of lavatera.

Description of the species

Lavater flower naturally grows in Australia, the Mediterranean and East Asia. On the territory of Our Country, this fragile plant began to be grown recently – about twenty years ago. Here the flower is better known as the “wild rose”.

Lavatera belongs to the genus of tree, shrub and herbaceous plants from the Malvaceae family. In total, there are about twenty-five types of wild roses, most of which have medicinal properties.

Breeders have long turned their attention to lavater, and by now many cultivated flower species have already been bred. There are both annual and perennial wild rose varieties.

The characteristics of the lavater are as follows:

• tall tree-like or herbaceous plant capable of growing up to 50-150 cm;
• the root system is very well developed, able to go underground by 50 centimeters or more;
• the crown is dense, the shoots (or branches) are powerful;
• leaves are large, lobed, covered with hard hairs, arranged alternately;
• inflorescences are very large – from 7 to 12 cm in diameter;
• the structure of the flower may differ slightly depending on the variety: bell, gramophone, like hibiscus and others;
• petals can be articulated into a single inflorescence or be separate;
• the color of the flowers can be white, pink, salmon, raspberry, purple, yellow or violet;
• inflorescences are found both single and spicate or racemose;
• lavatera blooms in early summer, continues to bloom until mid-autumn;
• the plant is drought-resistant, loves the sun;
• a strong lavater is not afraid of a strong wind;
• able to grow on soils of any composition, but blooms more abundantly on loose and fertile soil;
• wild rose is very unpretentious, rarely affected by diseases or insects.

Varieties of a flower

At home, flower growers grow several types of lavater, which are better than others adapted to a temperate climate and more unpretentious. The most popular types of wild roses are:

1. Lavatera three-month or one-yearcapable of growing up to 120 cm in height. The most popular varieties: Silver Cap, Mont Blanc, Ruby Queen, Beauty, Novella.
2. Dog rose or Thuringian lovatera – a tree-like perennial plant about two meters high. Favorite varieties in Our Country are Lilac Lady, I Catcher, Burgundy Wine.
3. biennial arboreal lavathera with a straight slender stem, up to two meters long. Known varieties such as Rosea, Candy Floss.
4. seaside wild rose grows only in the southern regions of the country. It grows up to two and a half meters, has two-color inflorescences.
5. Cretan lavathera – the most thermophilic species that can be grown only in areas with a subtropical climate. The height of the bush of this wild rose reaches 180 cm, the inflorescences are small (up to 3,5 cm in diameter), but very plentiful.

Ways to grow a wild rose

Lavater is grown only from seeds, and they can be sown directly into the ground or planted seedlings. In the climate of Our Country, the wild rose perfectly reproduces by seeds, flowers even appear on their own where the seeds were sown last year.

Seedlings of flowers are recommended to be grown for earlier flowering of lavatera. It is in the seedling method that the plant is propagated in nurseries, planted in gardens and parks, and cultivated on an industrial scale.

Sowing in the ground

Nevertheless, it is recommended to sow lavatera seeds directly into the ground only in the southernmost regions of the country. In this case, the grower needs to wait for stable heat, which usually happens no earlier than the second half of May.

Before sowing, a suitable site is selected. The most important condition for abundant flowering of lavatera is a sufficient amount of sun. Otherwise, the flowers are unpretentious, but it is better to choose loose, nutritious soil, take care of drainage.

Markings are made in the flowerbed and grooves are prepared with a depth of no more than a centimeter. Lavater seeds are evenly laid out in the grooves and sprinkled with a dry mixture of garden soil and humus. Now plantings need to be watered and, if necessary, covered with a film. Water for irrigation should be taken warm.

Caring for a sprouted lavater is simple:

• after removing the film, the earth is gently loosened;
• flower sprouts slightly spud;
• water the plants with warm water and mineral fertilizers dissolved in it;
• near tall varieties of wild roses, pegs or supports are driven in.

Seedling method of reproduction

Lavater seeds for seedlings are sown mainly by large flower holdings, which sell these flowers in this form. However in regions with a cold climate, the seedling method is the only possible method of growing heat-loving flowers, therefore, ordinary flower growers often have to sow wild rose seeds for seedlings.

The first thing to determine in this case is when to plant the lavater. If planting in open ground is recommended in the second half of May, then seeds for seedlings must be sown in March.

If the grower plans to grow several different varieties of lavatera, then for each of them it is recommended to prepare a separate wooden box or plastic container. Several plants are more convenient to grow in individual pots or cups.

Soil is best purchased at a flower shop. Lay drainage at the bottom of the container. Sowing is carried out in small grooves, about a centimeter deep. After planting, the seeds are sprinkled with dry soil, watered with warm water and covered with a film.

In a bright and warm place, a wild rose will sprout somewhere in two weeks. After that, the cover can be removed. Before germination, it is necessary to regularly wipe off the condensate and monitor the moisture content of the soil.

It is not necessary to dive the seedlings of the lavater – the flowers do not tolerate transplantation well. Even in common boxes or containers, seedlings feel fine, they have enough nutrition and light. In extreme cases, you can thin out plantings by removing weaker plants.

Planting seedlings in the ground

Lavater can be transferred to a permanent place when the threat of spring frosts has passed, and the earth warms up well enough. In the southern regions, this happens at the end of April or early May, but in colder areas it is better to wait until the end of May or early summer.

Different varieties of lavater are planted in different ways. So tree-like plants need a lot more space, because their roots can grow a meter deep and to the sides. More commonly grown annual varieties are planted at 20-25 cm intervals – this is enough for lush flowering and normal flower development.

Seedlings are carefully transferred to the ground, removing the flower from the planting container. It is necessary to deepen the plants so that about five centimeters remain from the ground to the lower leaves. After planting, the flowers are watered with warm water and left to take root.

Care of the flower garden

The wild rose is very unpretentious, but, like any cultivated plant, requires minimal care. For the entire summer season, flowers will need the following:

1. Watering during especially dry periods. Under each tree-like bush, two buckets of water should be poured at least once every two weeks. Annual flowers need much less moisture, but they should be watered regularly – every five to six days.
2. Tall spreading flowers must be tied up, otherwise the look of the plants will not be decorative at all. To do this, use supports, trellises, arches.

   

3. The root system of the lavater is superficial, so the ground around the flowers needs to be loosened, but they do it with special care.
4. Faded inflorescences must be cut off immediately, as they can leave burns on the leaves and inhibit the development of new buds.
5. The first time the flowers are fed a couple of weeks after planting in the ground. To do this, use a solution of nitrophoska and urea in water. The second time the bushes are treated during the budding period, using potassium and sodium sulfates.
6. The wild rose rarely gets sick. If rusty leaves appear on the bushes, they need to be cut off and the flower should be treated with Bordeaux liquid. Pests also do not particularly like lavater, but if they are noticed, then the bush is sprayed with actara or acarin.

For the winter, annual varieties of lavater are uprooted. Perennials must be bent to the ground, fixed and covered with spruce branches, dry grass or non-woven material.

Conclusion

Lavatera definitely deserves the attention of flower growers and landscape designers. This flower has a spectacular tropical appearance, blooms throughout the summer, does not require complex and constant care.

A wild rose is grown from seeds that can be sown in the ground or in mini-greenhouses. Planting flowers from seedlings is less popular, but is preferred when it is necessary to speed up the flowering of the lavatera.