Gentian: description, types and varieties, planting and care features

The gentian is a beautiful plant with an unusual name. Due to its decorative and medicinal properties, the culture has gained wide popularity among gardeners. The abundance of multi-colored subspecies of the plant allows everyone to choose an option to their liking. The article will tell you how to grow a flower on a site and take care of it.

The gentian is a herbaceous plant that can be both annual and perennial. In nature, culture is found everywhere, but the temperate zone is the richest in such flowering herbs. The culture grows in the mountains, in meadows, near water bodies. The medicinal properties of the plant were already known in Ancient Egypt. And today, traditional medicine advocates use culture to treat various ailments. The taste of the foliage is bitter. This is what explains the name of the flower. It smells like fresh grass with hints of honey.

The height of the flowers is different. It depends on the variety and varies from 0.1 to 1 m or more. Shoots are usually erect, foliage is green. The flowers are often blue or light blue. However, there are certain types of culture with purple, white and yellow petals. In shape, the flowers resemble a funnel or bell. The flowering period depends on the variety. There are spring, summer and autumn types.

There are many different types and varieties of gentian. Let's consider the most famous ones.

It is a mountain perennial. The culture is frost-resistant, it grows mainly in Western Europe. The height of the flowers is small - about 10-15 cm. The leaves are oval, elongated. The flowers are large, "looking" up. They appear in June. The size of each bud is about 50 mm. The color is blue or bluish. An interesting feature of this variety is the ability of the buds to close in case of approaching rain.

A fairly tall perennial plant. It can grow up to 0.8 m. The leaves are pointed, large, oblong. Peduncles can contain 1-3 buds. The petals are often blue with a purple tint, less often white. Flowering begins in early August.

Narrow-leaved plant with shoots about 0.4 m long. Flowers are large, deep blue, appear in groups. The shape of the buds is bell-shaped. The plant is perennial. The culture blooms in the middle of summer.

This perennial variety can grow up to 0.6 m. The leaves are arranged in pairs on the stems. Flowers grow in bunches. The color of the petals is blue-blue. Flowering begins in June or July.

The species has shoots with dense foliage, growing up to 0.5 m. Flowering begins in the second half or at the end of summer. The buds are colored in a beautiful purple tone on the inside and slightly greenish on the outside. The leaves are arranged in pairs on the plant. Moreover, each pair forms a cross with the previous one, and the name of the variety is associated with this.

Fairly high winter-hardy species. Plants can grow up to 1.5 m. Leaves are oval.As the name implies, the petals of the crop are yellow. The buds are located one under the other. Bushes bloom in the middle of summer.

The growth of flowers of this variety is 0.7-0.8 m. Most of the foliage is located at the base of the plant. Flowers appear in late summer. The bell-shaped buds are bright blue and grow in clusters at the top of the stems.

Low-growing variety. The height of such flowers may not even reach 10 cm. More often these are miniature plants about 5 cm tall. Leaves are elongated, oval. The petals are painted in a light blue tone. Flowering begins in June.

Gentiana pneumonanthe grows up to 0.6 m. Leaves on the shoots are located quite often. The flowers are small, blue with greenish stripes. Bud formation takes place in the leaf axils and in the upper part of the plants. The culture blooms in late summer.

This species is undersized - it grows up to 0.3 m. Numerous shoots are covered with lanceolate leaves. The flowers are ultramarine in color and form groups of 8. The culture begins to bloom in the middle of summer. This wonderful period lasts for about one and a half months.

To date, breeders have bred a large number of crop hybrids. Of these, the varieties "Farorna" and "Gloriosa" stand out, in which blue is effectively combined with whiteness. Varieties with monochromatic buds are also popular. Among them are True Blue, Dark Blue, Bernardi, The Blue Emperor, Elizabeth Brand.

Many varieties of crops are suitable for on-site cultivation. Of course, there are individual characteristics of each species. But you can also give some general recommendations regarding the nuances of planting and agricultural technology. The best place to place a flower will be a shaded area with good humidity.

When choosing a soil, one should take into account the natural habitats of a particular crop variety. For example, the Clusse gentian grows on soils rich in lime. Therefore, it will be correct to plant it in ordinary soil with the addition of rubble or bone meal. There are varieties of gentian that grow in rocky areas (for example, seven-part). Such a plant requires appropriate conditions in the garden.

The most common method of planting a crop is seed. Sowing is carried out immediately in open ground, they do it at the end of April. If the gardener chooses an autumn planting, then the procedure should be carried out at the end of September. If the variety chosen for planting blooms in May, special attention should be paid to the lack of sunlight at the site of the crop at noon. In extreme cases, you need to organize a special shelter.

The culture loves moisture, so regular watering is a must. Particular attention should be paid to irrigation during dry times. Also important periods are bud-laying and opening of flowers. After abundant watering, the soil around the plants should be carefully loosened. It is also advisable to eliminate weeds during this procedure.

The culture is considered unpretentious. As a fertilizer, it is only recommended to add a little peat and horn flour to the soil. Lime crushed stone is also a good addition. This is done in early spring. However, the use of complex fertilizers is permissible. They should be used according to the instructions.

Preparations before sowing are very important. First, the seed is stratified. To do this, it is placed in a well-ventilated cool place for at least 2 months. An exception can be made if sowing is planned before winter. In this case, after planting, the seeds will immediately fall into the appropriate temperature environment, due to which everything will happen naturally.

You can not sow directly into open ground, but into a suitable container. A good choice would be a vegetable box - peat and fine sand are placed in it, maintaining a ratio of 1 to 3. After that, seeds are placed in the ground. The size of the seed is important here. If the seeds are small, you should not sprinkle them with earth, you just need to sprinkle them evenly on an even layer of soil and press down a little. If the seeds are large, they must be covered with earth.

You can propagate the culture at home and vegetatively. However, dividing a bush is a method that is not suitable for all varieties. For some species, even an ordinary transplant to a new place is an ordeal, so it is worth clarifying the features of the selected gentian. The process of dividing the roots should be carried out as carefully as possible. The resulting plants should also be planted carefully. Use the transhipment method (dig up flowers along with large clods of soil).

Certain varieties can be propagated by daughter rosettes. They do it in the spring. The mother plant is prepared in advance (in the fall) - soil is poured under it, mulch is added, faded peduncles are removed along with the stems. With the onset of spring, carefully cut off a piece from the edge of the plant and transfer it to a new place. At the same time, experts do not recommend digging the bush completely. You can graft a culture. Cuttings are cooked before flowering. Rooting should take place in a greenhouse environment.

In order for the plant to please with beautiful flowers and an aesthetic appearance, it is important to carefully monitor its condition. If there are signs of any disease or pest attacks, it is important to take urgent action. Consider the most common cultural afflictions.

This disease is manifested by spots of a brownish-gray hue. They are small at first, but grow rapidly. The cause of the disease may be high humidity or too dense planting of plants, which reduces air circulation. If the disease is started, the spots will begin to grow moldy. Therefore, if warning signs are found, the infected parts of the culture should be cut off, capturing the healthy part.

The instrument must be disinfected before and after the procedure. Healthy parts of the plant, remaining after pruning, are treated with Fundazol. Also, for prevention, the bush and nearby crops should be sprayed with a fungicidal preparation.

Fungal disease can be identified by specks of yellow-brown color with a purple border. If such a nuisance occurs, the flower must be sprayed with a copper-containing composition. For example, copper sulfate or Bordeaux liquid is suitable.

This is a very serious condition. Even strong chemicals cannot cope with it. The disease manifests itself with dark brown formations on the leaves. If this fungus is found, the infected specimens are dug up and burned - they should not be left in any case. After the procedure, all other plants in the vicinity should be sprayed with fungicides.

As for pests, the crop can be attacked by thrips, slugs, snails, ants, caterpillars and nematodes.... To get rid of insects, the bushes should be treated with special insecticidal preparations. You can buy them at the gardening store.

Gentians are great for decorating both small areas and spacious gardens. The culture is distinguished by large and bright flowers that stand out effectively against the background of greenery. The palette of colors varies from pale azure shades to deep dark blue tones, which allows you to choose the right option for any landscape composition.

Gentians are suitable for creating group flower beds, they go well with other crops in flower beds. They are also good in solo landings. For example, such a plant will look beautiful and natural in a rocky garden. Alpine, narrow-leaved and spring varieties look especially good among stones. However, any dwarf species can create a touching contrast of the delicate grace of a flower with large cobblestones. If you want to make a more original composition in a rockery or rock garden, you can choose spectacular companions for the culture in question.

For flower beds, large varieties are usually chosen, although it all depends on the intended composition. If the gentian is in the foreground, you can also plant a low-growing species with lodging shoots. As partners, you should choose only those cultures that do not grow too much and do not interfere with their neighbors. Usually gentian is placed against the background of decorative deciduous plants. So nothing overshadows the beauty of the flower. However, there are other options as well. For example, a Chinese decorated one looks great in a company with heathers, cyclamens. Yellow gentian can be combined with bells, sage, sedge. The gullet variety is combined with aconite, astrantia, forest geranium, common goldenrod, doronicum. Ornamental cereals are also a good choice.

Gentians blooming in spring (narrow-leaved, stemless, dinar, alpine) are often combined with arnebia, lady's shoes, sesleria, powdery primrose. Summer species (large, large-leaved, marsh, seven-part) look great with fescue, stemless thistle, elecampane, Balkan carnation. When creating compositions, it is important to remember that some crops will undergo a division procedure. This means that they need to be placed in such a way that the forthcoming work cannot damage other plants.

Some varieties of culture are also used as pot flowers. Vases with such plants can decorate gazebos and terraces. Favorite pot compositions - a hybrid of gentian seven-part and rough. Portable flower beds in pots can be supplemented with sage, ivy, sedge. Landscape meadows are another way to use gentian in landscape design. You can add fern and make beautiful dense "thickets", or you can choose a creeping type of culture and use it to create a living carpet-type lawn. Here, both monopolyans and a combination with other ground covers are permissible.

Often, with the help of a picturesque culture, garden borders are decorated. You can make a bright edge along the tracks from any variety. If the curb runs along the flower beds, it is better to give preference to large species that will not get lost against the background of other lush crops. For example, Daurian and Vatochnik gentian are good in this quality.

In the next video, you will find more information on planting and caring for a gentian.