Delphinium of many years
Valuable perennial, with blue, blue, lilac and violet coloring. For the purity of blue and blue colors of some varieties, this plant is called a "blue miracle."Their slender spicate inflorescences reach two meters in height.
Recently, varieties appeared with white, pink and red colors.
Delphiniums bloom in the conditions of our zone since the middle of June. With the timely removal of blossoming inflorescences at the end of summer, the flowering is repeated. During seed reproduction, flowering occurs in the year of sowing at the end of summer. The annual sowing of seeds makes it possible to have blossoming delphiniums almost all summer.
Delphiniums are preserved for a long time in a cut-five-seven days. In bouquets well combined with white and orange lilies, with peonies, especially white.
Blue and violet delphiniums retain their color and shape well when dried out and can serve as an integral part of the winter bouquet.
The valuable quality of this perennial is the high winter hardiness and drought resistance, ease of reproduction, unpretentiousness in culture.
Propagate delphiniums vegetatively and by seed. The vegetative method is used for reproduction of especially valuable varieties. The most suitable for the delphinium is seed reproduction. However, it should be borne in mind that with the close joint planting of two or more varieties, the purity of the variety is not preserved - seed sowing is provided by a wide variety of hybrid plants. But under the condition of isolation in 100-150 meters the offspring can be quite clean.
Seeds of delphinium quickly lose their germination, so it is recommended to sow freshly harvested seeds - late autumn or early spring. Under normal conditions, the seeds retain their germination capacity not more than one year.
Especially friendly shoots give podzimny seeding seeds in the ground. In spring, seeds are usually sown in boxes in the greenhouse, as early as possible( in February), followed by planting in the ground. Already at the end of summer this year, flowering.
On a permanent place bushes are planted at a distance of 30-40 centimeters from each other.
Vegetative delphiniums are propagated by dividing the bush into parts and by green cuttings. The best time for dividing is the end of August. In extreme cases, bushes can be divided before, in the spring.
Cuttings in the spring as the shoots grow from the base of the bush. Cuttings cut "with a heel", when shoots reach a length of 8-12 centimeters. Rooted in greenhouses or hotbeds, covering with frames or polyethylene film. Two to three weeks after the rooting of the cuttings, the cover is removed, but on hot days, shields are shaded. Planted in the ground in late August and early September or early spring.
The durability of the delphinium bushes is 8-12 years. However, normal flowering is observed in shrubs not older than five years of age. Therefore, it is recommended to periodically renew plantations by applying seed crops or vegetative propagation.
Strong flower stalks during budding and the beginning of flowering, to avoid breakage, tied to stakes.
On poor soils with poor plant development, top dressing is given at the beginning of growth and during budding. It is best for this purpose to use slurry, diluted tenfold, with the addition of mineral fertilizers( 20-30 grams per bucket of water).