Stonecrop (sedum) - a plant of the family Crassulaceae. Prefers arid areas. Originally from the African and South American continents, it grows on the slopes, meadows of Europe, Russia, in the Caucasus. Sedum is translated from the Latin "sedo", which means "subside." The people called "rabbit cabbage", "febrile grass", "young".
Description
Sedum is a perennial or two-year succulent. Its varieties are heat-loving, winter-hardy, and groundcover. Dense shoots branch out, forming shrubs and shrubs, many species are ampelous. Leaves without stalks, fleshy, oval, found flat, bloated. They are located opposite each other.
In different varieties, the color of the leaves is different - green, pink, gray, with reddish stains. Bright sun, shadow, wind, soil composition also affect the color of stonecrop. The root system is represented by tubers.
Umbrella-shaped inflorescences bloom in summer or autumn. Their color is scarlet, blue, pink, white, yellow. Dense and bent petals form a narrow tube, stamens are visible from it. The flowers smell pleasant and attract bees, bumblebees. Many varieties are poisonous.
Due to the content of alkaloids, tannins, glycosides, flavonoids, organic acids, vitamin C, the plant has healing properties. Its parts tone, cleanse the skin, help from heart diseases, painkillers are prepared from the leaves.
Stonecrop: varieties and species with photos, caustic, prominent and others
About 500 varieties and types of sedum are counted. Only a few of them are grown as ornamental.
| View | Description | Varieties |
| Ordinary | Perennial, has an erect, thick stem. Flat, oval, ribbed sheet plates. Petals look like little stars, bloom in July. |
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| Tart | Miniature appearance up to 5 cm (poisonous) with dark green, thick leaves and golden petals in the form of stars. Drought-resistant, winter-hardy. It blooms in spring until the end of summer. |
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| Morgana (monkey tail) | Thick light green foliage, elongated. Meter shoots beautifully twist in hanging flower pots. Red-pink flowers look like little stars appear in early spring. |
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| Bent (reflexum) | Evergreen edible perennial. The leaves are narrow, blue, grow densely on short stems. It blooms in July in yellow. |
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| False | Short, winter-hardy with creeping shoots, growing like a carpet. Green leaves are oval, after frosts they turn purple or bronze. Purple inflorescences bloom in July-August. |
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| Prominent | Erect with light green, gray, blue leaves. It blooms in August and October with different shades of pink. |
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| Kamchatsky | Winter-hardy perennial with dark, elongated leaf blades. It blooms from July to September with a bright orange color. |
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| White | Green stems and small leaves grow in a dense carpet. Paniculate inflorescence blooms in August, snow-white flowers have a fragrant aroma. Winter-hardy, loves partial shade. |
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| Sieboldi | Creeping stems, leaves blue-gray with a red edging, rounded in the form of a fan. Blooms in October with light purple. | Mediovariegatum - foliage blue-gray with an edge, in the middle a creamy broad band. |
| Evers | Rounded, wide leaves create a solid bluish-green carpet, light pink petals open in July, and remain until frost. Grows in the mountains. |
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| Tenacious | Diamond-shaped leaves with small cloves, blooms yellow-orange in June-August. | Milk-like - dark red shoots with bronze color of leaves and orange color of flowers. |
| Purple | Erect stalk with fleshy, smooth, waxed oval leaves and pink shades of petals. Flowering continues from July to September. |
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Seedling Selection
Seedlings must be healthy, stems, leaves elastic, without signs of disease, traces of pests, while taking into account the variety of the flower.
Low will create a flowering canvas, high - look beautiful in a group or singly.
Location
He prefers a stonecrop planting site with access to the sun, open, with soil without stagnation of water. Sunlight provides a decorative flower. They do not plant under deciduous trees, otherwise young shoots will not germinate.
Sedum planting in open ground step by step
Stonecrop is grown on moisture-permeable soil, where it grows magnificently. Before planting, they dig the earth, add compost or humus. Ground cover requires fertilized, light, loose soil. Some varieties grow on loamy, sandy, calcareous soils.
Planted in the spring, ideally in May.
Stepwise actions:
- For each specimen dig a hole 20 cm deep and 50 cm wide.
- The bottom is covered with drainage (coarse river sand, pebbles).
- Above ground, peat, humus 3: 1.
- A depression is made in the middle of the well, such as a seedling root.
- Put a seedling.
- Sprinkle with soil, crush.
- Watered.
- Around lay a few pebbles, indicating the hole.
The distance between the seedlings is 10-15 cm, between the rows - 20 cm.
Open Sedum Care
Outdoor care is simple: periodically fertilize, water. Every week, loosen the soil around the bush, weed from weeds. Dry shoots and leaves are removed. They monitor the appearance of diseases and pests.
Watering
In a too dry summer, sedum is watered abundantly. At the same time, they do not allow overmoistening of the soil, in order to avoid rotting of the roots, they do not do this after rain.
Top dressing
Sedum is fed with fertilizers for succulents. In April - the first time before flowering, in August - the second, after it. In spring, nitrogen-containing fertilizers are applied, in the autumn it is not necessary, this will violate the susceptibility of the plant to low temperatures.
Instead of organics, they use infusion of mullein, it is bred with water 1:10, but not fresh manure.
Pruning
Forming pruning gives a beautiful shape to the bush, while damaged and weakened parts of the plant are removed. Use sharp and disinfected tools.
In perennial varieties, stems are cut low in late autumn and cover the remaining stumps. In spring, young shoots appear.
Landing rejuvenation
Plant rejuvenation is done every 3-4 years. In spring or autumn they get rid of old shoots, young dig, divide. Parts are transplanted, the soil is supplied with ash and sand.
Wintering
The stonecrop usually tolerates low temperatures well, but some varieties require shelter for the winter. With the advent of the first frosts, shoots are cut, leaving 3-4 cm, covered, covered with earth.
Pests and diseases
Stonecrop is resistant to diseases and pests, they infect a plant very rarely, mainly due to a violation of temperature and humidity. It can be:
- Fungal infection - dark spots appear. The affected parts are removed, treated with fungicide.
- Thrips - black dots, sticky discharge, falling leaves. Processed by Fitoverm, Actellik.
- Aphids - leaves dry, curl, green insects are noticeable. Apply drugs - Spark, Confidor.
- Weevil - depleted "patterns" on the leaves. Treated with malathion.
Breeding
Propagated in simple ways:
- Seeds - collected from plants in the garden (the fruits are dried and cracked) or bought in a store. Freshly harvested seed has a higher germination capacity. Sown in spring (March-April) in a substrate of earth, compost, sand 1: 1: 1, pre-moistened. Sprinkle lightly. Create the conditions of the greenhouse: cover with a film. Then put in the place where the temperature is +5 ° C. Regularly ventilate, moisturize. After 14 days, the dishes with seeds are transferred to a heat of +20 ° C. Seedlings are expected in 7-14 days. When two normal leaves are formed, they are seated. Seedlings are tempered, taking out into the open air, before planting in the flower garden. In regions with a warm climate, seeds are sown immediately in the ground when frosts pass. After 2-3 years, the plant will bloom.
- Cuttings - cut them into a length of 15 cm from the upper parts of the shoots. The lower leaves are removed, dripped into a moist mixture of soil with compost and sand. Two days later, watered. After the formation of roots, after 2-3 weeks, transplanted.
- Dividing - for this, take an adult, 4-5 year old bush. Varieties suitable stonecrop prominent, ordinary. They dig out, clean from the earth, cut off sick, rotten stems, roots. Divided into several small bushes, always with buds. Slices sprinkled with wood (activated charcoal), dried for two days and planted.
Stonecrop at home
Stonecrop is grown less often in a room, it needs bright sunshine, in winter - additional illumination. The plant is placed on the southern windowsill, no need to shade. The pot is selected low, wide, with drainage holes.
They buy a soil mixture for cacti or make it themselves: turf, leafy soil, sand equally. The bottom of the pot is covered with a drainage layer.
Watered sparingly, avoiding waterlogging. In summer, once a week, in winter - once every two weeks. From spring to early autumn, fertilize with mixtures for succulents. In summer, the temperature is set to + 25 ... 28 ° C, in winter - + 8 ... 12 ° C. Spraying stonecrop is not required, sometimes only a warm shower.
Mr. Dachnik recommends: the use of sedum in landscape design
Sedum gives extraordinary beauty to borders, flower beds, rockeries, garden paths, alpine hills. Creeping and shrubby species create an original composition with the rest of the flowers in the landscape design. In autumn, most plants lose their attractiveness, and stonecrop for a long time pleases with a decorative look.
Gardeners decorate the site, growing sedum in pots, containers. Some form a plant in a greenhouse, then take it out to the street or plant it in open ground.
