Spiraea Japanese Goldmound

Spiraea Goldmound is a low-growing ornamental shrub of the deciduous group. The plant is highly regarded in landscaping because it retains an attractive appearance until the first frost, which allows you to bring color to a faded autumn garden. This shrub is especially popular with gardeners due to the low price of planting material and the unpretentiousness of the variety.

The undoubted advantage is the resistance of the Goldmound spirea to air pollution – this quality allows you to grow a plant not only outside the city, but also as a decoration for city parks and playgrounds.

Description spirei Goldmound

Spiraea Japanese Goldmound is represented by a low cushion-shaped bush, as seen in the photo below. The height of the shrub is on average 50-60 cm, the diameter is about 80 cm. The leaves of the spirea are elongated, narrowed at one end and serrated along the edge. They are shaped like an egg. The crown of the shrub is dense. The color of the leaf plate of this variety varies depending on the time and growing conditions:

• young, freshly blossomed leaves have a pinkish-red color;
• in summer, spirea changes its color to golden yellow when grown in open, well-lit areas;
• during the same period, the plant can be painted in delicate light green tones if it is grown in the shade;
• by autumn, the color of the leaves smoothly turns into an orange-red hue.

The flowering of the variety begins in June and ends by the end of July. The flowers of the Japanese Goldmound spirea are small, pale pink. They form dense inflorescences in the form of shields on the shoots of the current year. In October, small fruits form in place of these flowers.

Spiraea Goldmound in landscape design

This variety is used in landscape design to create flower arrangements on the lawn, dense borders, curtains, rock gardens and rockeries. Spiraea Goldmound also looks spectacular in single plantings. In addition, the shrub is often grown in wooden containers as a decoration for a terrace in a summer cottage.

Planting and caring for Japanese Goldmound Spirea

Planting Goldmound spirea and subsequent care of the plant is not difficult. This horticultural crop is undemanding to the composition and quality of the soil, although it prefers well-drained moderately moist soils. The variety grows best on loamy and sandy loamy soil of low acidity, but it also develops well on other types.

Spiraea Goldmound is thermophilic, so when choosing a place to plant a shrub, you should focus on well-lit areas. With a lack of light, the bush changes its color from rich golden to light green.

Preparation of planting material and site

Spirea seedlings before planting must be carefully inspected and discarded unsuitable. Healthy plants bend easily, have greenish bark, and moist roots without black spots on the cuts.

Immediately before planting, the planting material must be disinfected without fail – this will help minimize the risk of the bush becoming infected with a fungus. For disinfection use a weak solution of potassium permanganate.

The site chosen for planting spirea is dug up 1-2 weeks before and organic fertilizers are applied to the soil.

Rules for planting spirea Goldmound

Landing spirea varieties Goldmund in open ground is carried out at the end of March. The procedure is very simple:

1. On a pre-prepared site, they dig a hole with a depth of about 40-50 cm. In this case, one should focus on the size of the root system of the bush – they dig a hole with a margin of about 20%.
2. Drainage is placed at the bottom of the landing pit in the form of broken bricks or gravel.
3. A soil mixture of peat, sand and soddy soil is placed on top of the drainage, and a small hill is formed from it.
4. A seedling is installed on this hill and the roots of the spirea are spread along its slopes.
5. Then the root system is sprinkled with the top layer of soil from the site.
6. Planting ends with moderate watering.

Watering and top dressing

The drought resistance of the variety is average, so spirea bushes must be watered regularly. Otherwise, the drying soil will inhibit the growth of the shrub.

Spirea is fed mainly on poor soils. When planted in fertile soil, the variety develops well without additional processing of the site.

As top dressing, special mulching compounds or organic fertilizers are used. They are brought into the ground once a year – in the spring.

Trimming

It is recommended to prune the Goldmound spirea once every 1-30 days, however, this procedure automatically excludes the subsequent flowering of the bush. That is why, before planting a shrub, it is necessary to determine its role. Abundantly flowering forms are not pruned, unlike decorative leafy ones.

Sanitary pruning is done in order to maintain the shape of the bush. To do this, only dry and broken branches are removed. Healthy shoots do not touch.

You can learn more about the features of spirea pruning from the video below:

Preparation for winter

All varieties of spirea are considered fairly cold-resistant plants. Nevertheless, young seedlings are recommended to be covered for the winter, as they are still weak and are not able to safely winter without protection.

As a shelter, dry leaves or sawdust are used, with which shoots bent to the ground are sprinkled with a layer of up to 15 cm.

Reproduction

It is most effective to propagate the Goldmound variety by cuttings. For this, both green and stiff cuttings are suitable.

The breeding procedure in this case looks like this:

1. In summer, a young non-flowering shoot is selected on a bush and cut at the base.
2. This cut is divided into several more parts of 15 cm, no more.
3. The resulting cuttings are cleaned at the bottom of the leaves and buried in the ground. For this, it is better to use a greenhouse.
4. Landings are covered with plastic wrap to create a greenhouse effect. It is important to make small holes in the shelter for air ventilation.
5. As the cuttings develop, they are regularly sprayed with a spray bottle.
6. In October, planting material is moved to open ground.

Young spireas can also be propagated by dividing the bush. Old bushes are not suitable for this.

The bush division algorithm is as follows:

1. A young bush is dug out of the ground, focusing on the diameter of the crown. Damage to too long roots that extend beyond the specified area is allowed. When extracting the plants, they try not to destroy the earthen ball.
2. Then the spirea is lowered into a bucket or basin of water for 1-2 hours. This is necessary so that the earth becomes softer – it will be easier to clean the root system of the plant.
3. The roots are watered from a hose, removing the earth from them, after which the spirea is taken out of the water and laid on its side.
4. With a sharply sharpened knife or garden shears, the common root system is divided into 2-3 equal parts. At the same time, each division should have a sufficient number of buds and approximately the same volume of roots.
5. The resulting parts are planted in pre-moistened holes and sprinkled with earth.
6. The trunk area is lightly tamped and mulched.

Shortly after planting, the delenka takes root.

Reproduction by seed occurs according to the following scheme:

1. In spring, seeds are sown in wooden or plastic containers with pre-moistened soil. Recommended composition of the substrate: leaf soil and high peat, mixed in a ratio of 1:1.
2. The surface of the soil is mulched with peat for better moisture retention.
3. After 8-10 days, the first shoots appear. They are immediately sprayed with “Fundazol” to protect against fungal infections.
4. After 2-3 months, seedlings are seated in separate containers.
5. When spirea seedlings form a full-fledged root system, they can be planted in open ground.
6. To do this, they are taken out of the containers and the roots are slightly shortened.
7. Then the seedlings are buried in dug up loose soil.
8. Landings are watered and mulched.

After 1 year, the height of the seedling should reach 10-15 cm. In subsequent years, the rate of development of the shrub increases.

Diseases and pests

In the description of the Japanese variety Goldmund spirea, it is stated that the plant’s resistance to diseases and pests is high. It rarely gets sick and is not subject to significant insect attacks. And yet, sometimes the bushes are affected by a spider mite.

The invasion of this pest is evidenced by the appearance of whitish spots on the outside of the leaf plate and the subsequent drying of the shoots. If nothing is done, the shrub will soon begin to shed its foliage. Ultimately, the spirea may die.

The spider mite poses the greatest threat in the hot, dry summer, in August. In order to get rid of it, the bushes are sprayed with Ares.

Conclusion

Spirea Goldmound is a non-capricious cold-resistant plant that even an amateur gardener can grow. Shrub care is reduced to the most basic procedures, and the universal rounded shape of spirea allows you to combine it with many other garden crops. In particular, Goldmound spirea looks good in combination with coniferous shrubs and trees.