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Spotted lamb (Lamium maculatum) is a perennial herbaceous plant that until recently was not popular with gardeners. But everything changed when landscape designers began to widely use culture, as it has the ability to quickly fill free space and maintain decorativeness throughout the season. In nature, the plant grows in the European part of Our Country, in the Caucasus. It occurs on forest edges, clearings, in ravines, on the banks of rivers.
Laminaria speckled has high frost resistance
Description and characteristics
Laminaria speckled (in the photo you can see the plant in more detail) is one of the fast-growing ground cover crops. Its shoots are prostrate, branching, which, when in contact with the ground, easily take root in the nodes. Plant height reaches 25 cm, and growth diameter per year is 50-100 cm, depending on the variety. Shoots are tetrahedral, their surface is slightly pubescent. The thickness of the stem is 4 mm.
The leaves of the lamb are speckled heart-shaped, pointed, they have serrations along the edge. The color of the plates is dark green, but at the same time the central vein is noticeably distinguished by a silvery tint. There is also occasional spotting. Their length reaches 5,5 cm, and the width is about 5,0 cm. The leaves are oppositely located on the shoots. The root system of the lamb is speckled, fibrous, superficial.
The plant blooms constantly from May to November. The buds are small, shaped like a snapdragon, when fully opened, their diameter does not exceed 3 cm. They are collected in whorl inflorescences of 8-10 pcs. Corolla pink in light or dark tones, its tube is bent almost at a right angle. The upper lip is dome-shaped and hangs over the lower one. The calyx is shorter than the corolla. Each flower has four stamens. The lower lip has a spotted pattern, consists of three lobes, the middle of which is well developed. The anthers of the mottled nettle are in the shape of a figure eight. Pestle bare pink shade, bifid. The stamens and stylus protrude from the corolla tube. Peduncles at the speckled cyme rise above the foliage.
The life of a bud is two days. But new inflorescences constantly appear on the plant, so it seems like a continuous process. After pollination, small fruits are formed, visually divided into four parts. They appear from June to November.
Spotted lamb does not need complex care and is undemanding to the composition of the soil. It can grow in the open sun and in partial shade, forming a dense carpet on the soil surface. The culture does not tolerate high soil moisture for a long time. Therefore, when landing in the shade, you should choose well-ventilated places.
Flower stalks of the mottled nettle break easily
This culture is not afraid of weeds, as it is able to drown out their growth, forming a continuous green carpet. An exception may be perennial weeds with a powerful root system.
Varieties of lamb speckled
Thanks to the selection, it was possible to develop new varieties of culture with a variety of shades of leaves and flowers. This stimulated the growth in popularity of the speckled lamb not only among professionals, but also among amateur gardeners. To understand the range of proposed varieties, you should consider the most popular of them and study their features.
Pink Pewter
Perennial groundcover, 15-20 cm high. Its stems branch at the base and are covered with soft hairs. The leaves are oval, veined, with teeth along the edge. The color of the plates of the Pink Pewter lamella is silver-white, with a dark green edging. The flowers are white-pink, collected in whorls of 10 pieces. Buds appear on the plant in May-June, depending on the growing region. Planting rate – 9-11 pieces per 1 sq. m.
The Pink Pewter variety is characterized by a moderate growth rate.
Bacon Silver
A variety of culture, characterized by high decorative qualities. The height of the spotted Beacon Silver (lamium maculatum Beacon Silver) reaches 20 cm, and the growth diameter is 30-60 cm. The variety blooms at the end of May and continues until September. Bacon Silver is distinguished by serrated leaves of a silvery-green color with a green edging. The hue of the buds is purple-pink.
Laminaria speckled Bacon Silver is characterized by abundant flowering
Aureum
The variety is distinguished by bright yellow foliage, with a silver stripe in the center. The height of the plant reaches 15-20 cm, and the width of the growth is 90 cm. It blooms in early summer for 1-1,5 months. The color of the buds is light purple. Laminaria speckled Aureum (Аureum) is characterized by high frost resistance and endurance.
This species should be planted in open areas to preserve the decorative effect.
White Nancy
The variety is distinguished by silver-white serrated leaves with a thin green border around the edge. The height of the plant does not exceed 20 cm, and the width of the growth is 50-60 cm. Flowering, like other species, occurs in late May or early June. The color of the buds is white.
The speckled lamella variety White Nancy does not suffer from frosts up to -29 ° С
Golden Ennivesary
A feature of the variety are tricolor leaves. The main tone of the plates is green with a wide yellow edging and a silvery stripe along the central vein. The color of the buds of the Golden Anniversary spotted lamb is lilac. The ground cover reaches a height of 20 cm and grows in width by 60-70 cm.
Variety Golden Ennivesari prefers to grow in areas with an openwork shadow at midday hours
Roseum
The plant reaches a height of 45 cm and a width of about 60 cm. The variety is distinguished by green leaves with a light silver spot in the center. Its buds are pale pink. Flowering is abundant and long. The maximum decorative effect when growing a speckled rosemary variety Roseum (Roseum) can be achieved when placed in partial shade. The species is characterized by rapid growth.
Roseum prefers moderately fertile soils.
Annie Greenaway
One of the smallest varieties of culture. The height of the plant does not exceed 15 cm, and the growth diameter is 50-60 cm. Annie Greenaway has tricolor leaves. The main color of the plates is green, but a wide yellow stripe runs along the edge, and there is a marble spot along the central vein. The hue of the buds is pinkish-purple. Flowering occurs in the last decade of May or in the first half of June.
Annie Greenaway’s growth rate is fast
Methods of reproduction
To obtain new plant seedlings, you can use the seed method, dividing the bush and cuttings. Each of these methods has features that need to be considered.
Sowing seeds can be done in early spring, when the ground thaws, or in autumn, before frost. To do this, you must first dig the site and level the surface. It is necessary to plant the seeds at a distance of 1-2 cm from each other, deepening them by 2-3 cm. At the end of the sowing, water. The first seedlings of the spotted lamb appear in 10-14 days. When the seedlings grow up and get stronger, they need to be transplanted to a permanent place in the garden.
Cutting culture should be at the end of August. To do this, cut the apical shoots 5-7 cm long. Remove the lower leaves and plant the cuttings in the soil mixture of peat and sand in equal volumes. Then make a mini greenhouse on top. Rooting occurs after two weeks. All this time, you should keep the substrate moderately moist and ventilate the cuttings. When they grow up, you can transplant them into open ground.
Dividing a bush is the easiest method of propagating a speckled lamb. To do this, it is necessary to dig up the mother plant in early spring and cut it into pieces. Each of them should have well-developed roots and a growing point. Then plant the delenki in a permanent place.
Planting and caring for spotted lamb
You can plant seedlings in open ground throughout the season. The main thing is to ensure regular watering so that the root system does not subsequently dry out. The planting scheme of the mottled nettle – 11 pieces per 1 sq. m. such placement will create a solid green carpet, but the plants will not compete for moisture and nutrients.
A site for culture should be chosen in partial shade. Two weeks before planting, it must be dug up and humus added at the rate of 5 kg per 1 sq. m. After that, the surface should be leveled. It is necessary to plant seedlings of spotted cyme so that the root collar of the plant is flush with the soil surface. At the end of the procedure, water the plants abundantly. Throughout the season it is necessary to control the soil moisture.
At the initial stage of development, loosen the soil between seedlings and remove weeds. Over time, the need for this will disappear when the plants close together.
You need to fertilize spotted yasnotka once a month. In spring and early summer, organic matter should be used, and subsequently phosphorus-potassium mineral mixtures.
At the end of flowering, it is necessary to remove flower stalks and shorten strongly overgrown shoots.
In shelter for the winter, the spotted lamb does not need
Pests and diseases
The speckled lamb has strong immunity, so its cultivation does not cause difficulties even for novice flower growers. However, in cool, humid summers, the plant may suffer from gray and root rot. Therefore, as a preventive measure for diseases, it is necessary to spray and water the ground cover with fungicides “Maxim”, “Previkur Energy”, “Skor”.
Of the pests, spider mites, caterpillars, and scale insects are dangerous for the speckled lamb. You can identify the lesion by the lack of flowering, depressed appearance, deformed leaves, slow development. In this case, the plant should be treated with the preparations “Confidor Extra”, “Aktellik” or “Fitoverm.
What plants are combined with
Laminaria speckled is ideal for creating mixborders, rockeries, filling the space at the base of tall crops.
The best neighbors for her can be: hosts, lungworts, geyhers, tiarellas, ferns.
Conclusion
Spotted lamb is a groundcover that can easily fit into any landscape design and mask unsightly areas in the garden. At the same time, the plant does not require shelter for the winter and does not need complex care. And when favorable conditions are created, the spotted lamb is able to grow and bloom profusely in the first season after planting.
