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Lily of the valley loosestrife (cletroid or cletroides) is a perennial herbaceous shrub. Rarely found in the wild. In Our Country, the area of the main concentration in the Far East in Primorsky Krai. Grow up in gardens, on personal plots. The design uses cultivars bred on the basis of a wild-growing species.
Description of cletrovid verbeinica
Lily of the valley loosestrife is a herbaceous plant intended for cultivation in open ground. The culture is used for landscaping shaded areas. During flowering, the plant attracts a large number of various butterflies, which gives the landscape a special flavor of wildlife.
Characteristics of culture:
- A perennial plant forms a lush, dense bush that grows rapidly, taking up all the free space. It reaches a height of about 1,3 m, the volume depends on the age of the shrub, the average is 1,5 m.
- The culture is characterized by intensive shoot formation. The stems are upright, rigid, strong, do not fall apart, the crown keeps its shape well. The shoots are light green, with a small edge, ending in an inflorescence. Closer to the upper part, up to three flowering lateral shoots are formed on the stems.
- The flowers are small, milky in color, form a spike-shaped pyramidal inflorescence with a drooping sharp crown 30 cm high.
The flowering period of lily of the valley culture falls on the entire summer period
- Light green leaves are long (up to 15 cm), thin, lanceolate type with sharp ends and smooth edges. The location is dense, regular. In autumn, the crown turns bright yellow, the leaves do not fall until frost.
- The root system in structure resembles the root of a lily of the valley, hence the specific name. The system is superficial, creeping, rapidly expanding. The loosestrife, occupying the living space, displaces any herbaceous plants from the site.
Lily-of-the-valley loosestrife is decorative throughout the growing season. In the spring it attracts attention with a delicate green crown, during flowering the bush is completely covered with white inflorescences, the autumn yellow crown becomes the decoration of an empty garden.
The variety of cletrovidnogo verbeinica
Loosestrife (cletroides) lily of the valley is rarely found not only in areas, but also in the natural environment. This is the most desirable specimen when decorating white gardens.
The only variety based on a wild species is Lady Jane loosestrife. The plant is distinguished by a dense bush about 90 cm high, with a whorled arrangement of leaves. Inflorescences are long – up to 35 cm, large.
The flowers of the loosestrife Lady Jane are white with a pink or red core.
Lily of the valley loosestrife in landscape design
Lily of the valley loosestrife is used to create white gardens. The plant is harmoniously combined with shrub forms, with wildflowers. Culture decorates garden areas or shady areas. The banks of reservoirs are decorated with seedlings, waterlogged places are closed, where nothing but loosestrife grows.
Examples of using lily of the valley loosestrife in design:
- To design a garden seating area.
The loosestrife is planted on the edge for knocking out large trees
- Use in composition with different types of flowering plants.
A corner of the wild without a white-flowered shrub would look unfinished.
- Make out the foreground of the rabatok.
Mass planting along the edge is used as a curb option
- Flower beds are decorated with a single planting.
A white solitaire in the center of the flower bed gives a neat, well-groomed look.
- Planted in rockeries and rock gardens.
The plant is ideally combined with natural stone
Features of reproduction
Lily-of-the-valley loosestrife produces seeds in the form of boxes, they ripen in mid-September and are quite suitable for sowing. Lady Jane is also suitable for generative propagation, the seeds retain the characteristics of an adult plant. Gardeners do not use the seedling method. From the moment of laying the seeds to flowering, a lot of time passes. The generative method is used in the nursery to obtain a large number of seedlings.
You can increase the number of loosestrife by cuttings, but the method is also not popular due to the length of the process. The plant quickly builds up the root system, over the summer it can increase in volume by 2-3 times.
In the spring, the mother bush is dug up, divided and planted around the site.
The lily-of-the-valley loosestrife quickly takes root, the next summer the plant will bloom. To stimulate shoot formation, the culture is recommended to be seated every three years.
Planting and caring for lily of the valley loosestrife
White loosestrife lily of the valley – a field plant species, found in the wild near lakes, rivers, in wetlands. Waterlogged soil is a biological requirement of culture. If you create favorable conditions on the site, minimal maintenance will be required. The varietal representative inherited all the characteristics of the species, therefore, their agricultural technology and growing conditions do not differ.
Recommended dates
Young seedlings grown from seeds on their own or purchased from a distribution network are best planted in open ground in late spring. Until autumn, loosestrife will take root and will not suffer from frost. In warm climates, the young plant can be planted in the fall.
Measures to separate the mother bush are carried out at the end of the season, that is, immediately after flowering. The procedure can be postponed until spring, when the earth warms up enough to dig out the plant.
If the spring work was successful, at the end of the summer the plot will begin to bloom.
Site selection and soil preparation
The composition of the soil and the acid-base reaction do not play a role for the lily-of-the-valley loosestrife; the surface root system does not need aerated soils. According to the requirements of the culture, the site must always be wet, stagnant water for loosestrife is a vital condition.
In a dry place, lily of the valley loosestrife will grow only with constant abundant watering.
Bright lighting is not suitable for culture, as well as landing in an open sunny place. At loosestrife, inflorescences begin to turn yellow and dry, the plant loses its decorative effect. Lily of the valley loosestrife is planted in partial shade or in the shade. Culture feels comfortable under the crown of trees or behind the wall of a building. The allotted area is prepared before planting, it is dug up, organic fertilizers are applied, and grass roots are removed.
Landing algorithm
The loosestrife, intended for breeding, is dug up and divided into several parts. The earth is not shaken off and washed off with water. Remove damaged, dry roots, shorten those that go beyond.
Landing sequence:
A hole is prepared with a depth of 10 cm, the width of the hole should be slightly larger than the dimensions of the rhizome.
The bottom of the hole is covered with a layer of compost and peat, you can add ash
The loosestrife is placed in a hole, fall asleep, slightly pressed to the bottom of the recess. If there are young shoots, do not cover them with earth.
Peculiarities of growing
If the lily-of-the-valley loosestrife is properly planted, then the agricultural technology of the culture is standard. The plant is unpretentious, does not require constant attention and develops rapidly. The main care is feeding, weeding and watering.
Watering and fertilizing schedule
Feed the crop in the spring with nitrogen-based products. This is necessary for the rapid growth of shoots and a set of green mass. At the end of June, organic matter is introduced. To make the inflorescences lush, use Agricola for flowering plants. In late autumn, you can feed the bush with organic fertilizers necessary for laying vegetation buds in spring.
A herbaceous shrub planted near water or on waterlogged soil is not watered. The creeping root fully supplies it with moisture. On a dry site, events are held every day.
Weeding and loosening the soil
If weeds grow densely, weeding is necessary. This event is relevant for young seedlings, adults displace not only cultivated species, but also weeds. Shallow loosening is also carried out for young representatives; for adults, aeration is not fundamental. It is recommended to close the root circle with mulch, it will prevent the evaporation of moisture from the soil surface.
Pruning and preparing for winter
The perennial loosestrife lily of the valley winters without additional measures. Before frost, the stems are cut off completely, watered, in regions with abnormally cold winters, covered with straw or peat from above. In the first year after planting, plots or seedlings are spudded in autumn, fed with organic matter and covered with mulch.
Diseases and pests
Lily of the valley loosestrife does not get sick, it can lose its decorative appearance only in bright light or in drought, shrub infections do not affect. Of the pests, aphids may appear on the stems and leaves. When a pest is found, loosestrife is treated with Antitlin. Shoots with a large accumulation of insects are cut off.
Conclusion
Lily of the valley loosestrife is a bright decorative culture with white inflorescences. A rare species is valued for unpretentiousness, frost resistance and rapid growth of the bush.
