In a spring flower bed, one cannot fail to notice large rosettes of lush green foliage, with bright pink inflorescences on dense erect peduncles. This is badan, landing and leaving in open ground which will not cause trouble even for a novice florist. But the garden, thanks to its unpretentious, catchy and very useful plant will truly transform.
Perennial garden varieties of badan come from those parts of Asia where other representatives of the green world would not be too comfortable. Plants settle not only in alpine meadows and lowlands, but also on rocky ledges, highlands. Such conditions "hardened" the flower, often called saxifrage for its endurance.
V landscape design, as in the photo, badan found its place on alpine slides and near water bodies, in group plantings with others decorative perennials... Monoplanting of this rapidly growing and forming picturesque clumps of dense foliage of culture is quite common.
Growing badan and caring for it on the site will not make it difficult for an eternally busy summer resident. The main thing is to find a perennial appropriate place and create conditions for growth and flowering.
The unpretentiousness, frost resistance and endurance of bergenia in nature are fully transferred to garden varieties. Therefore, even a beginner can grow them in his flower bed. Like other perennial crops, badan is planted with seedlings or daughter rosettes separated from an adult plant.
But before you plant the badan, you need to choose a suitable place for it. The culture feels best in areas with loose light soil. Such soil helps the surface roots to receive nutrition, oxygen, and also the badan's much-needed moisture.
When choosing a location, preference is given to areas where the badan will not suffer from drought and direct sunlight, as well as from the proximity of spring stagnation of water. In partial shade, the plant will be quite comfortable, but if the outlets have to spend a lot of time in the sun, the soil under it will be mulched.
Badan has no special requirements for the composition of the soil. It is great if the soil has a slightly alkaline reaction in the area where the badan is to be planted. However, even on a weakly acidic substrate, the plant can adapt, bloom and multiply.
As soon as the snow begins to melt, bergenia leaves appear from under it. True, the foliage left over from last year managed to suffer during the winter.
Therefore, in the spring, care when planting badan in the open field begins with the removal of damaged or dead leaves. They are followed by the rosettes, which are designed to stimulate growth and support the plants during flowering.
When the pink or lilac bells in panicle inflorescences fade, the plantings are fed again. This time, fertilization will restore nutrient reserves and accelerate the growth of outlets.
The application of dressings is combined with watering or carried out on already wet soil. Since badan reacts well to water, it must be watered:
In the hot season, when the soil loses moisture due to evaporation, and the roots can dry out, the soil is mulched. It is especially important to do this, as in the photo, when leaving after planting bergenia.
You can get young plants of badan on the site by sowing seeds of the variety you like or by dividing an already grown plant.
Seed propagation of badan involves cold stratification.
Seeds sown in grooves with a depth of no more than 0.5 cm of a furrow are embedded in moistened soil and sent to the cold. Ideally, if the planting container is taken out into the open air and covered with snow, which will maintain optimal humidity and prevent future seedlings from freezing.
In early March, the container is placed in a warm place, in the light, but not in direct sunlight. At a temperature of 18–19 ºC and maintaining high humidity, the seeds begin to swell and hatch in 20–25 days.
Caring for a berry flower after planting involves watering and careful loosening of the soil around the seedlings. If the passages are too dense, they are thinned out, leaving one plant at a time of 3-5 cm.
In 45–55 days after sowing, young plants dive, spreading from each other at a distance of at least 6–7 cm. By June, you can determine where to plant badan. But before that, the seedlings are hardened, gradually increasing the residence time of the boxes with seedlings in the fresh air. In the first half of summer, the strongest seedlings are brought into the ground. The rest are replanted in August.
The badan root system is located close to the surface of the soil, so making large, deep holes is not worth it. It is enough to scoop 6–8 cm soil with a scoop, and pour some sand on the bottom of the hole as drainage. Since the plant will gradually expand its boundaries, grow, the interval between the holes is made at least 40 cm. After planting, the soil is compacted and watered.
If most perennials bloom on next year after disembarking in the ground, then the badan is in no hurry to show the summer resident its inflorescences. The first buds are formed only after 2–3 years, but at the same time the berserk already forms daughter rosettes.
This is an excellent planting material that can be easily separated from adult plants in summer, after flowering and until the first days of September. The rhizomes of such plots are practically under the surface of the soil or protrude above it, and even a beginner can cope with their digging.
It is necessary to divide the plant so that at least three healthy buds remain on the root cuttings. Leaves are cut from seedlings, leaving a couple of the strongest. Landing is carried out to a depth of 3 to 5 centimeters. In order for the berry to have room for growth, a gap of at least 30 centimeters is left between future plants. In the first month, feeding is not needed, but it should be regular and abundant.
At proper care The badan planted in open ground blooms a year earlier than seedlings, that is, in the second or third year after the start of independent life.
When to transplant badan? This plant can grow in one place for a very long time and without visible problems. Therefore, a transplant is undertaken when it is required:
The uncontrolled spread of plantings leads to their excessive density, which is fraught with diseases and the accumulation of pests.
Most often on badan there are fungal diseases caused by crowding and high humidity... Signs of such infections appear on the leaves in the form of brown or whitish spots, blackening or tissue necrosis.
The affected leaf plates dry out, and the disease grows. You can cope with the trouble in growing and caring for badan:
Among the pests that damage the plant, slugs and slobbering pennies should be called. If insects can be dealt with with insecticide treatments, then worms are a big threat. The plants affected by them are dug up and, in order to prevent the spread of the nematode, are destroyed. The area where badan grew is repeatedly treated with insecticides against soil pests, and then left fallow until next year.
Badans are hardy, however, in winters with little snow, some cultivars can freeze. So that in the spring the curtain does not look bare, and then does not recover for several years, the young, who did not have time to fully acclimatize, the plants are recommended to be insulated. This can be done with the help of a thick layer, for which they use fallen and dried leaves, spruce branches, and high-moor peat.
Badan can become a real decoration of a country garden. This amazing herbaceous shrub with a long peduncle covered with numerous flowers is beautiful from the first days of spring to late autumn. Its leaves are bright, juicy, in some varieties they are huge, like burdocks - they can turn any corner of the garden into a fairy tale - be it a pond, a rocky hill or a modest garden path... It's also nice that planting a plant in open ground and caring for it will not be a difficult task for a beginner.
Badan is an evergreen herb of the saxifrage family. Its Latin name - Bergenia received in honor of the German scientist botanist Karl Bergen. Large fleshy leaves resemble elephant ears in shape, hence the common name of the plant - elephant ears.
A native of Asia, in nature the flower is found in meadows, and in lowlands, and among rocky placers. Its unpretentiousness to growing conditions played important role when creating cultivars.
Badan leaves are collected in a dense rosette. The root system is powerful but superficial. During flowering, several long naked peduncles appear, strewn with numerous goblet flowers. Flowers, about 2 cm in diameter, have, depending on the variety, different colors - from white to bright pink.
Badan blooms in the garden one of the first in spring.
Badan rosettes have not only decorative value. From overwintered blackened leaves, you can brew delicious, aromatic tea. In Siberia, such a drink, and the badan itself, is called Mongolian tea, and in Altai it is called Chigir tea. Regardless of the name, the brewed leaves help reduce arterial pressure, normalize the work of the gastrointestinal tract, cleanse blood vessels and increase immunity. Thanks to the tannins contained in the plant, Mongolian tea is used for intestinal disorders.
Landscaping has recently become more and more popular with gardeners and summer residents. The craving for beauty pushes them to ennoble, if not the entire garden plot, then at least a separate part of it. With the help of incense, it is easy to create any compositions in a natural style. This plant looks spectacular both in single plantings and in combination with other plants. Smooth burdock leaves of this flower against the background of openwork foliage of astilba or multi-colored host will create unique picture wildlife.
Badan feels great on a sunny hillock, among stones. When creating a tiered composition, badan is an excellent solution for a parterre. Planted along the path, badan will decorate the garden and eliminate the need to fight weeds.
Badan loves humidity and coolness, and these properties can be used by planting a plant near a pond. He will become bright accent or part of the composition in the vicinity of sedge, hosta, fern.
A small pond with badan looks very romantic
Badan has 10 species with many varieties that differ in size, color and leaf shape. Flowering is also different in terms of timing and effectiveness - there are forms with double and semi-double flowers of original colors.
Heart-leaved badan is the most popular species, native to Altai. The plant is undersized, no more than 40 cm in height, with thick, dark green, heart-shaped leaves. Bell-shaped flowers of white, pink, lilac and lilac flowers... Flowering begins in May and lasts 20 days. This is a very frost-resistant species - the leaves overwintering under the snow can withstand temperatures down to -40 o C.
One of the most frost-resistant species- hearty incense
Badan thick-leaved is found in Altai, Sayan and Mongolia. An evergreen herb grows up to 60 cm in height. Glossy leathery leaves of a rounded shape are collected in a dense rosette. The paniculate inflorescence consists of numerous bell flowers of delicate pink or lilac... Badan thick-leaved is distinguished by early flowering - from the end of April to June. The decorative effect is preserved throughout the summer thanks to the juicy leaves, some of which turn red by the fall, enhancing the showiness of the plant. Winter-hardy view - the foliage does not change color under the snow and the plant meets the spring with green and purple colors.
Badan thick-leaved - a large plant with shiny leaves and luxurious flowers
The variety Galina Serova is attractive due to the variegated color of the leaves and for the same reason prefers a sunny location. The large leathery berry leaves with white strokes are adorable throughout the summer, and in the fall, when the green color changes to red, a fireworks effect is created in the garden. It blooms in May-June with bell-shaped pink flowers. Winters well under the snow.
Galina Serova is a rare variety of badan, characterized by variegated leaf color
In Europe, Schmidt's badan is most popular. It differs from other varieties with matte large leaves and the presence of peculiar "wings" growing from the center of the rosette. Bright pink flowers collected in a spherical inflorescence on a low peduncle. The plant is winter-hardy, unpretentious, blooms in May-June, but retains its decorative effect throughout the summer.
Rose balls-inflorescences of Badan Schmidt fell in love with European gardeners
Badan Bressingham White is a hybrid, shade-tolerant variety. Prefers moist places, while it does not impose special requirements on the composition of the soil. Large, dark green glossy leaves form a rosette 30 cm high. White flowers are collected in loose inflorescences. Blooms in May – June. Frost-resistant variety.
Bressingham White is a hybrid grape variety with spectacular white flowers
Badan Abenglut is a shade-tolerant, unpretentious, frost-resistant variety. Planting in sunny places withstands, but does not grow magnificently, besides, in bright light, the flowering period is shortened. Bright green leaves, collected in a low rosette, acquire a beautiful bronze tint in autumn. Purple semi-double flowers on thick red peduncles delight the eye from April to May.
Badan Abenglut attracts attention with bright semi-double flowers
Badan is not the most capricious plant, therefore, not only an experienced gardener, but also a beginner can cope with it. It can be grown almost throughout the entire territory of our country, however, in hot, arid regions, care will be complicated by frequent watering. In this case, it is better to plant it in partial shade - under trees or on the north side of the building. In general, badan can withstand summer temperatures up to +30 o C and above, the main thing is that in hot weather it receives enough moisture and is shaded at midday.
For good growth and flowering, it is important to find a suitable place in the garden. Here the opinions of experts differ - some believe that a sunny area is needed for flowering, others advocate partial shade. And then only personal experience will become the best advisor.
When choosing a place for badan, as for any other plant, it is necessary to take into account the climate of the area. For example, a sunny site in Siberia or in the Moscow region is quite a comfortable place for many species of plants, at the same time, not every weed will withstand the sun in the South Urals. Therefore, when choosing a place for a plant, you need to make an amendment for climatic conditions - in the steppe zone with scorching sun and dry winds, it is better if the site is shaded, ideally near a pond, in a temperate climate the sun or partial shade is suitable.
Badan prefers light, loose soil. The fact is that the powerful rhizome of the plant lies close to the surface and such a soil structure will provide it with the necessary moisture and nutrients. Sometimes the roots are too close and even go out, so the ground around it needs to be mulched, especially in sunny places. The composition of the soil does not really matter, but waterlogging should be avoided. You can not plant a flower in places with possible spring flooding.
Bergenia planted in tubs or pots is a real decoration of the summer garden. The plant develops well and blooms in a container, moreover, it can be easily moved if the chosen place turned out to be unsuccessful.
To plant in a flowerpot or tub, you must:
When choosing a planter or tub for bergenia, you need to make sure there are good drainage holes. So that they do not get clogged with earth during watering, shards are laid on the bottom, and already on top - a layer of drainage.
Planted in a flowerpot, badan feels no worse than in a flower bed
For the winter, a pots or tub with a flower must be transferred to a greenhouse or veranda and covered with lutrasil. Plants grown in the southern regions where the frost does not drop below 5 ° C can winter in containers outside. In all other regions, there is a threat of cracking the pot from frost and freezing of the roots.
It is most convenient to propagate badan by dividing the rhizome or by rooting outlets, but growing from seeds also gives good results. In the first and second cases, young plants will bloom in the second, less often in the third year, but grown from seeds only in the third or fourth.
At the beginning of September, carefully dig up the ground and cut off pieces of rhizome, 15–20 cm long. Each segment should have at least three buds. In the prepared place, dig out shallow grooves at a distance of about 30 cm from each other. Lay the rhizomes horizontally, sprinkle them with a light soil mixture, water and mulch. If all the conditions are met correctly, the berry will take root before the onset of frost and overwinter successfully.
You can root a piece of rhizome not only in the open field, but also in a pot
It is possible to propagate by rosettes after the flowering of berserk and until the beginning of September. The procedure is simple - separate the sockets from the mother bush and plant them in a prepared place. The operation is best performed with a sharp knife pretreated with alcohol or chlorhexidine. Sprinkle the slices with crushed coal.
The holes should be no deeper than 30 cm and the distance between them is 30–40 cm. The drainage layer will protect the roots from rotting if the land is dense and the summer is rainy. Water and mulch the planted plants.
The family of badan rosettes is divided using a sharp knife
Badan seeds for germination need preliminary stratification - storage in a wet state at a temperature of 1-3 o C for three months. The best method is when the seeds are sown in prepared containers, covered with a layer of snow, placed in a bag and buried in a snowdrift. If there are no such conditions, you can use a refrigerator.
Step-by-step process of growing seedlings from seeds:
When the badan seedlings have 4-5 true leaves, the sprouts are planted in separate cups
In June, when the threat of return frosts has passed, and the night temperature will not drop below 12-14 o C, hardened seedlings are planted in a prepared place. It is advisable for the first time to cover the plantings with lutrasil or other non-woven fabric, so that during rooting, young plants do not suffer from the sun or wind.
Badan care, due to its unpretentiousness, is simple. It is important to remember that the plant does not tolerate overdried soil, so watering should be regular and abundant. Do not remove the lower leaves that have lost their decorative effect - they cover the roots of the bergenia and help to retain moisture. If the desire to clean the sockets is great, you should mulch the soil around the plant.
Badan bloom occurs in April-May - the timing and duration depend on the variety. Faded arrows are cut with scissors, if there is no need to get seeds from the plant. At favorable conditions re-flowering is possible in late August or September.
The overgrown badan densely covers the ground with its foliage, it is not for nothing that it is considered a ground cover plant. Where this flower grows there are no weeds, which means that there is no struggle in the form of weeding either.
Weeds do not grow under overgrown berry leaves
Fertilizing badan is practically not needed - the overfed plant begins to fatten and blooms worse. Once a summer, after flowering, you can feed the plantings with a diluted complex fertilizer.
In the fall, remove old, dead leaves of bergenia. You should not try to cut them off with scissors or a knife, it is better to carefully cut them off without leaving a petiole.
Badan does not tolerate a transplant, so you should not touch it without special need. It grows well in one place for 10-12 years, expanding in breadth. It is necessary to take this feature into account when planning plantings, since growing up, bergenia can be aggressive towards other plants. To prevent this from happening, it may be worth limiting its spread with curbs or stones.
Badan is quite frost-resistant - almost all of its varieties can withstand temperatures down to -35–40 ° C, but under snow. In snowless winters, roots located close to the surface may freeze slightly. To prevent this from happening, it is worth taking care of the shelter. For these purposes, dry fallen leaves or straw, pressed on top of spruce branches, are perfect. In the spring, it is necessary to remove the shelter, without waiting for the appearance of above-zero temperatures, otherwise the badan can support.
The reddened leaves of badan warn of the approach of winter
In areas with mild winters, where -10 o C is the maximum decrease, the badan does not need shelter.
Badan is a non-capricious plant and almost does not cause trouble to its owners tsam. The plant is almost not affected by insects and diseases, therefore it does not require preventive treatments.
Lack of flowering can be a problem. In this case, you should check the fulfillment of all agrotechnical conditions. If the berry grows well, but does not bloom, it may lack sunlight, since it is planted in full shade.
The lethargy and yellowing of the berry leaves may indicate stagnant water when the roots are in sour soil. This happens if the plant is planted in a clayey area without drainage. To save the sockets, you need to transplant them, not forgetting to rinse the roots in a solution of potassium permanganate.
Badan has been cultivated since the middle of the 18th century. It is suitable for landscaping shaded areas. The birthplace of the flower is Siberia, but it is popular in Europe as a medicinal and garden plant.
Badan blooms very early. In the spring, as soon as the snow melts, green rosettes of leaves appear above the ground. Following them, inflorescences open: pink, white, red, lilac. Peduncles grow and bloom at the same time. The first bells still open between the elastic leaves, and the last one rises to a height of several tens of centimeters.
Badans bloom lasts almost 2 months. Dead plants become a wonderful backdrop for the rest.
Until the middle of summer, badans will be at rest. Then the growth of rhizomes and buds begin, which will become flowers in 2 years.
In the fall, badan becomes decorative again. With cold weather, the leaves acquire a bright color. First, a red border appears on them, then all the plates are drawn with bizarre patterns. In some varieties with the first frost, the entire surface of the leaf becomes crimson or purple at once.
Badan is used in gardening personal plots. Many varieties have been bred - different in peduncle height, leaf diameter and petal color, but the agricultural technology is similar for all species.
The place for the badan must be chosen once and for all - when transplanting, the plant will hurt.
Badans tolerate a lack of light and do not freeze even in cold winters. They can be planted in the sun or shade. However on open place they never grow as green, large and lush as in partial shade. Away from the direct sun, the plants look the most juicy and vibrant, but they stop blooming.
If the flower is used for landscaping an alpine slide, it must be planted from the north side.
Practice shows that 90% of the success in growing this flower depends on the soil. Badans need the same soil on which they grow in nature - poor organic matter, stony.
If there is no desire or opportunity to make a substrate, you need to at least add a little sand and small stone to the hole.
Badan does not tolerate even temporary stagnation of water, therefore it does not grow on clay soil. But, planted near a pond or stream on good drainage, it will grow and bloom.
Badan is propagated by dividing the bush. Delenki are planted in May-June. The planting material looks like a root, which has root buds and 2-3 leaves.
The delenka is planted to a depth of about 10 cm. There should be at least 50 cm between neighboring plants, since the bushes will grow not in height, but in width.
When propagating badan by seeds, you will need purchased land for flowers. Seeds are sown in early spring in a wooden box. It is not necessary to deeply deepen, it is enough to make grooves 5 mm deep:
For germination, a temperature of 18-19 degrees is required. The seeds need at least 3 weeks to germinate.
Seedlings are planted in the garden when it grows up and gets stronger:
Badan grown from seeds develops very slowly. By the fall, he has only two leaves. In the first winter, the bush must be covered with litter from the garden. Plants will bloom in the third or fourth year.
In the spring, clean the bush of last year's dried foliage and trim the long shoots. Further, the plant will have enough standard care.
Badan needs regular watering. Water should be rainwater or well water heated to a temperature environment... With a strong drying out of the soil, the leaves wither. After watering, they do not recover, which affects the decorative effect of the flower.
Varieties with large bushes are capable of independently inhibiting annual weeds that grow under their leaves. Miniature varieties have to be weeded much more often, as they are not able to control weeds. Usually, one weeding a week is enough to make the berry flower bed look attractive.
The plant responds to complex mineral fertilizers. Tukey is brought in twice:
For feeding, it is convenient to take Kemir Kombi's complex fertilizer. A tablespoon of granules is diluted in 10 liters of water and this volume is poured onto two square meters of the flower bed.
By the time of the second feeding, the lower leaves, which are more than 2 years old, begin to wither. In order not to injure the plant, you do not need to cut off these plates - they are still alive and useful, as they protect the roots from overheating.
To feed the berry correctly, lift the old leaves lying on the ground with your hand and pour the fertilizer solution directly under the stem.
Badan rarely gets sick and is almost not damaged by insects. When lifting groundwater spots caused by pathogenic fungi may appear on the leaves. The pathology is called ramulariasis.
The spots are visible only on the upper side of the plate. Below the leaf is covered with a whitish bloom. A heavily affected bush dries up.
Treatment consists in cutting off diseased parts with a pruner and spraying the bush with Bordeaux liquid or Fundazol.
When caring for badan, it must be borne in mind that he does not tolerate:
In nature, last year's berry leaves remain on the ground, keeping moisture in it. But in the garden, plants are cleaned of dried parts so that they look more beautiful. If badan is an accent plant in a flower garden or rock garden, the wilting leaves will have to be removed, but the soil must be mulched to protect the roots from overheating.
Badan bush grows in one place for up to 8 years. He does not need a winter shelter, as he is not afraid of frost and thaw. In very cold regions, young plants are sprinkled with leaves fallen from trees in late autumn.
Badan is delicious evergreen, which will decorate any flower bed or flower garden. It is often also called bergenia.
This article will consider the most spectacular and unpretentious varieties that can be grown in the country or in the garden.
Planting and caring for incense outdoors is not difficult and time-consuming, but they have some features that gardeners need to know in order to get a unique and beautiful flowering plant.
The badan plant is unique not only for its appearance and beautiful flowering, it is also medicinal.
Thanks to the leaves and rhizomes, badan contains a large amount of ascorbic, gallic acid, carotene. It is used to prepare agents that have anti-inflammatory effects.
Tea is also brewed from the leaves. It strengthens the cardiovascular system, has an original aroma.
The note! Many gardeners compare the flower with elephant ears. Indeed, its leaves are round and large. For the whole season, the leaves constantly change color, which perfectly enliven, decorate the garden.
Consider cultivars that are great for gardening. Among them:
How to grow in the country perennial flower, will be discussed below.
There are 2 ways to reproduce it: by dividing a bush or growing from seeds.
This method produces a healthy and robust bergenia plant.
It is necessary to start dividing the bush in May or June. Its roots are shallow, which makes it easy to dig them out without damaging the main root.
After separation, each root should have 3 buds, 3 leaves. Next, dig holes with a depth of 15-20 cm. Take the cut and place it inside the hole.
The distance between each plant is at least 35-50 cm, since the bergenia grows in width, and not in height.
Remember to water the soil immediately after planting. This breeding method can be used 1 time in 4-5 years.
Growing berserk from seeds is more problematic than dividing the bush. The process is more laborious and time consuming.
The seeds of the plant are small and difficult to work with. Experienced gardeners it is recommended to sow incense in containers and leave them outside for the whole winter.
There they winter under the snow, and with the arrival of warmth they are brought into the warmth.
In May, seedlings are planted in separate boxes, pots or cups at a distance of 5 cm.
Planting badan in the ground in the spring will not be difficult. Particular attention should be paid to the soil, as well as top dressing in a timely manner.
With proper care, bergenia will grow beautiful, decorate the site with abundant flowering.
Badan grows worse on clay soils. The soil should be lightweight, you can dilute it with sand or fine gravel.
Excessive moisture will adversely affect the plant, so it is better that the land is drained. Overflows can also affect flowering and growth of bergenia.
It is best to replant the plant in early spring or in the summer.
To do this, first dig holes 30 cm deep, watered. After the berry is placed, sprinkle with earth.
It is important to remove all weeds that interfere with plant development and take nutrients from the soil.
After 14-21 days, when the flowering period has passed, fertilizers are also applied. Top dressing stimulates the process of maturation, aging of foliage, they begin to change color.
Badan will grow and bloom well if you provide it with regular watering. It is important not to flood the soil, but not to allow it to dry out!
You need to focus on weather conditions and soil conditions. It is also recommended to mulch the soil around the plant, as it promotes uniform evaporation of moisture.
Watering should be done in the morning or in the evening so that the plant does not get burned in the sun from drops of water on the leaves.
If the bergenia does not grow in a central or visible area, dried and fallen leaves can be left on.
They cover the soil, protect the plant from overheating in hot weather.
Cut off leaves from hybrids - herbaceous plants for open ground - not a prerequisite. They do this only for aesthetic reasons. When badan is in a conspicuous place, fallen and damaged leaves spoil the whole look.
Note! If you decide to remove all the fallen leaves, be sure to mulch the soil around the plant. This not only protects against overheating, but also in winter period will help the flower survive frost better.
Badan evergreen is ill quite rarely, pests also do not often infect it.
With proper care, the plant does not get sick, otherwise various problems may appear, including:
Among the most common mistakes that gardeners make are the following:
Badan flower is unique, winter-hardy and unpretentious plant.
With its abundant flowering, it decorates any flower garden, flower bed. But sometimes flowering occurs only after many years or does not occur at all.
The reasons for this unpleasant event may be the following:
Badan in garden design looks great both in group plantings and growing separately.
Badan hybrid allows you to combine it with other flowers and create original compositions. Bergenia is combined with plants such as:
Bergenia under the tree looks amazing. Another great option is when berry grows among snowdrops, crocuses.
Badan in garden design
The most main feature plants is its unpretentiousness, frost resistance.
Even a novice gardener can cope with growing a flower.
Alone or surrounded by other flowers, the berry looks impressive; it will not leave indifferent any gardener.
Badan, or "elephant ears", refers to flower crops of interest to gardeners around the world. Nowadays, a huge number of hybrids of this plant have been bred, so you can choose the one that is suitable for a specific site.
Badan is a flower culture with large leathery leaves of various shapes and sizes. An interesting feature their ability to radically change color with decreasing temperatures. The plant belongs to evergreens, therefore, decorative plantings are guaranteed throughout the garden season. Badan overwinters in Russian latitudes without additional shelter under a layer of leaves or mulch, even in snowless winters. It is only when growing varieties with early flowering that it is recommended to protect the peduncles during recurrent frosts.
Badan is a culture that combines all the characteristics that an ideal flower culture should have:
The most common in Russian latitudes are the following types of badan:
The height of an adult bush does not exceed 45 cm, its width is about the same. Serrated leaves can be either elongated or broadly oval, up to 30 cm in size. Usually they are colored green, but when sharp drops temperatures acquire a red-violet hue, which is very attractive for flower growers. Small flowers about 1 cm in diameter most often have a pink color of various shades. The peduncle is straight and reaches 50 cm in height. Blossoming of big-leaved bergenia begins early, at the end of April, and lasts for a month.
This species is superior in size to the previous one: a bush up to 60 cm high and up to 75 cm wide is formed here. Leaves with wavy edges are dark green and heart-shaped (hence the name). The flowers themselves are also larger than those of thick-leaved bergenia, and their color is deeper dark shades pink.
They are very popular in decorating plots hybrid varieties, bred by breeders to expand the range of badans. The most interesting varieties with descriptions are presented below.
Variety "Magic Giant" Flowering occurs in May-June. The flowers are light pink, bell-shaped. The leaves are large, rounded, colored green-purple. The bush grows 1 m wide, and reaches half a meter in height.
Variety "Bressingham White" It blooms early - in April-May. The main color of the flowers is white, however, there is a slight pink tint. The variety grows 50 cm wide and 30 cm high. Leaves change color from dark green to purple during the season.
Variety "Sakura" Flowering is very decorative and unusual for badan - the flowers have a semi-double shape and a delicate pink tint and resemble Japanese cherry blossom flowers. The height of the peduncles is 40 cm, and the bush itself is 30 cm. The leaves of the berry of this variety darken strongly in cold weather and become purple-black.
The most the best place planting badan is considered partial shade. But it takes root and grows both in sunny areas and in the shade. But in the sun this flower develops much more slowly, and strong shading negatively affects the decorative effect of its flowering.
Since the roots of badan lie close to the surface of the earth, the fertile soil layer can be only 25 ... 30 cm. It is not picky about the composition of the soil, but it is much more difficult for it to grow and develop on heavy soils, so the soil is often loosened by adding sand. The acidity of the soil should be close to neutral, planting on slightly acidic soils is allowed.
In principle, the seeds and seedlings of badan do not need any additional preparations before planting; as a prevention of the appearance of fungal diseases, they can be pre-treated in a fungicide solution. Seedlings (cuttings or cuttings) with a weak root system can be soaked in special preparations to stimulate its growth, while removing all rotten and dead roots.
If the material is personally collected in October from existing badans, then the seeds are sown in planting boxes and simply left for the winter on a site under the snow, and in March-April they are brought into a heated room with an air temperature of about +20 0 C. If the seeds were purchased in winter , then they are planted in boxes in March on the snow (since the seeds are quite small).
The substrate in the box should be loose and breathable. After planting, the seeds are sprinkled with a small amount of sand. The soil in the boxes must be kept moist before and after emergence, but at the same time, there must be no excess moisture.
Planting in the ground in a permanent place of badan when grown from seeds usually occurs in June, when the seedlings reach a height of 10 ... 15 cm. Immediately before planting, it is advisable to add ash, humus and complex mineral fertilizer, and then stir with a spatula. The holes are positioned so that the distance between adjacent berry seedlings is at least 30 cm.
If the purchased seedlings are rooted in the substrate, then they can be planted throughout the season according to the scheme 35 ... 40x35 ... 40 cm.
If a badan root was purchased, then it is planted in a permanent place, having previously soaked in water and treated in a fungicide solution. When buying such planting material, it is important to pay attention to dormant buds (there should be at least 5 of them), as well as to the general condition of the root: if there are traces of rot, or it looks dried out, then it is better to refuse such a purchase.
Watering should be moderate. Badan belongs to drought-resistant plants and does not need too frequent watering, and excess moisture threatens to rot the roots.
Watering in the case of berry care depends mainly on weather conditions(it is clear that in stable hot weather, the soil will have to be moistened more often) and on the growing conditions: for example, when using mulch around the plantings, they will stand without water for up to 1.5 weeks.
Top dressing should not be frequent, since their excessive introduction will negatively affect the flowering of the culture. It is enough just to apply in early spring a complex mineral fertilizer in bulk under the bushes, and with watering it will gradually penetrate into the ground. The second feeding is carried out after the blooming of bergenia.
Loosening and removal of weeds must be timely, especially if the berry is grown without mulching the land around the plantings. Loosening must be done carefully, since the roots of the plant are close to the surface. Weeds are removed as the berry grows, and with the active growth of the bush, it independently displaces all "neighbors".
Natural materials can be used as a mulching material: sawdust, bark, peat or humus from leaves. Mulch is laid in a layer of 1.5 ... 2 cm, and, if necessary, sprinkle it.
This flower crop can be propagated in three ways.
Division is carried out in early spring or late summer. The resulting cuttings are planted immediately in the open ground according to the 35x35 cm scheme, you can first cut the side roots to stimulate their growth. This method of reproduction is very convenient, but you can divide the bushes only at the age of at least five years.
This method is best done after the blooming berry. As a cutting, a segment of rhizome with an apical bud is most suitable, while all massive leaves must be removed from it and 2 ... 3 young ones should be left.
Cuttings are planted directly into open ground, keeping a distance of 35 cm between them. You can pre-soak them in a solution of a root formation stimulator (for example, in Kornevin or Kornesila). Before the onset of winter, the newly-made seedlings have time to take root. Badan, propagated in this way, will bloom in 2 years.
This method is considered to be longer in terms of waiting for flowering - the berry from seeds will bloom only at 4 years of age. The rules for sowing badan seeds were described above.
Badan is resistant to pest damage, since because of its chemical composition few people want to feast on them. The main problem in its cultivation can only be the nematodes living in the soil, and the drooling penny, for the reproduction of which shady planting conditions are favorable. It is recommended to fight such pests with the use of chemical preparations, therefore, processed bergenia is categorically not recommended to be consumed for food and for medicinal purposes.
If the berry is suddenly attacked by slugs or snails, then you need to take care of collecting old leaves from the bushes, and collect the pests by hand.
Also, this culture can be affected by fungal diseases, in cases of acquiring already infected seedlings or if the rules of agricultural technology are not followed.
It consists in removing faded arrows and dried leaves. In this case, it is advisable not to leave hemp, but to carry out the cutting by hand without a secateurs or a knife. If the leaves are used for medicinal purposes, then they are left to winter on the bush, and in the spring they are harvested and dried.
After flowering, the berry is fed with the introduction of a loose complex mineral fertilizer.
This flower culture is very widely used in landscaping. garden plot: it looks harmoniously as a tapeworm when planting, for example, in a lawn, on alpine slides, in group compositions, as well as as a decoration for borders and along the edges of paths.
Growing various varieties of badan helps the gardener-florist to bring to life the most interesting design ideas, but when planting, you should always take into account the ability of the berry to grow and suppress the surrounding plants.
