Rules for planting and caring for aquilegia in open ground

It is impossible to imagine a spring flowerbed without soft blue or purple bell-shaped flowers with long spurs. We are talking about aquilegia, which blooms in May; planting and caring for this crop does not require too much effort. The plant is sown in a flowerbed in the fall, and in the spring, starting in March, seedlings are grown. Aquilegia tolerates all the vagaries of the weather and blooms from May to July.

Description and features

Aquilegia is a perennial herbaceous plant from the Buttercup family. This plant is also called columbine, and popularly - bell, eagle, boots, spur, doves. Translated from Latin, aquilegia means collecting water. Raindrops roll down the leaves into the soil, as their surface is covered with a water-repellent film.

Aquilegia is often found in meadows and forests of North America and Eurasia, growing in the Sayan Mountains, Altai, and the Urals. Garden hybrid varieties are used to decorate flower beds. This is a medicinal plant with a sedative effect, but is poisonous when eaten fresh.

Aquilegia grows up to 40-80 centimeters in height. It forms a spreading bush with a lush rosette of leaves at the base and long, erect, highly branched stems, at the tops of which there are flowers. The culture has a taproot.

The leaves below are long-petiolate, bluish-green, trifoliate, at the top they are sessile or short-petiolate, simple or trifoliate. At the end of summer or autumn, after flowering ends, new leaves appear. They then overwinter and die off in early spring. In their place, young leaves grow again.

The crop blooms from May to July. The flower of an aquilegia, depending on the type, can be simple or double, with yellowish stamens in the middle. The shape of a simple flower is similar to a bell with 5 petals, 5 sepals and spurs in which nectar accumulates. The size is 4-6 centimeters. Flowers are solitary or collected in inflorescences of 2-3 pieces, often drooping. There are varieties without spurs (Chinese and Japanese varieties). Flowers can be snow-white, blue, yellowish, pale purple, crimson, multi-colored.

After pollination, in place of the flowers, a fruit is formed - a multi-leafed plant resembling a box. Inside there are many small black seeds. They remain viable for no more than 1 year.

Seeds can be sown immediately in the ground (in autumn).

Kinds

There are about 100 species of aquilegia. No more than 35 varieties are cultivated. All types are divided into European and North American.

Alpine

Aquilegia, growing in forest and alpine regions. Listed in the Red Book of many European countries. This is a perennial herbaceous crop that grows up to 40 centimeters in height. The flowers are large, single or collected in small inflorescences, deep blue or pale blue with a white border, bell-shaped, and have curved spurs.

Ordinary

Perennial, used for breeding new varieties. In aquilegia, the branched stem-peduncle grows up to 30-70 centimeters in height.A lush rosette of long-petiolate trifoliate leaves is formed at the base. Aquilegia blooms with blue, pinkish, purple, sometimes white, bell-shaped flowers with curved spurs.

Fan-shaped

Rock-dwelling perennial. The peduncle stem grows up to 15-50 centimeters in height. At the root, a compact rosette of fan-shaped, trifoliate leaves is formed. The flowers are lilac-blue, white at the edges, bell-shaped, with curved long spurs. A winter-hardy crop that blooms in May.

Hybrid

This species includes hybrids created by breeders. Most new varieties are obtained by crossing European and North American species. Hybrids are distinguished by a longer flowering period, flower shape and color, resistance to disease and adverse weather conditions.

Canadian

This aquilegia is native to North America and grows on mountain slopes. Forms a spreading bush up to 60 centimeters high. Single, up to 4.5 centimeters in diameter, drooping, yellow flowers have pinkish sepals and spurs and long, protruding stamens.

Dark

This aquilegia is native to the Alps and Apennines. Plant height is 30-80 centimeters. It blooms with dark purple or deep blue bell-shaped flowers with curved spurs.

Skinner

Wild forms grow in mountain forests in the southern United States. It is a herbaceous perennial with a stem height of 60-70 centimeters. Yellow flowers, covered with pink sepals on top, have small reddish spurs. Heat-loving species, blooms in August.

Golden-flowered

The culture comes from the southern regions of America. Herbaceous perennial with erect stems up to 1 meter high. It has deep yellow, 5-petalled, bell-shaped flowers with pale sepals and curved spurs.

Olympic

The perennial comes from the Caucasus and Asia Minor. This plant has large light blue flowers with spurs, covered with more intensely colored long sepals. The culture grows to 40-60 centimeters. Blooms from May to June (30 days).

Popular varieties

Based on the main types of aquilegia, often by crossing them, a huge number of new varieties have been developed. Crops of different heights, shapes, and flower colors are used to decorate flower beds, borders, and are grown as a potted plant or for cutting.

Barlow Rose

A variety of Aquilegia vulgaris. Herbaceous perennial up to 60 centimeters high. It has large (up to 5 centimeters), densely double flowers of a soft pink color. It blooms twice - at the very beginning and at the end of summer. Openwork leaves retain their green color until frost.

Winky

A hybrid characterized by long and abundant flowering. Grown in open gardens and in pots. It has a compact bush 0.50 meters high. A dense, lush rosette of leaves grows at the base, above which rise erect peduncles with upward-turned flowers of dark pink, white and purple color. Winter-hardy variety.

Blue Star

A tall, spreading bush with fan-shaped green leaves radiating from the base in different directions. The flowers are white-blue, drooping, bell-shaped, with 5 petals and 5 sepals and small curled spurs.

Flashlight

An aquilegia variety bred on the basis of a Canadian species. Above the lush rosette of bluish-green basal leaves rise erect peduncles with orange-pink drooping flowers that look like lanterns.

Citrina

Aquilegia with lemon-yellow, simple flowers with spurs. The sepals are much longer than the petals, they diverge in different directions.In the middle of the flower there is a bunch of yellowish stamens.

Alba

Aquilegia with a lush openwork skirt of leaves at the base and tall stems-peduncles. The flowers are white, drooping, bell-shaped, with long radiating sepals and curled spurs.

Music F1

A compact bush up to 0.50 meters high, with a lush rosette of basal, openwork, bluish-green leaves. The flowers are creamy-yellow (bluish, pink), simple, with long sepals and spurs.

Origami F1

A low bush (up to 35 centimeters) with a fluffy skirt made of openwork leaves. The flowers are simple, with long spurs, often bicolor (white-blue, pink-burgundy).

Clementina

Aquilegia with double soft pink (snow-white, deep blue) flowers, similar to asters. The flower heads are turned up.

Winki

A low, compact plant (up to 50 centimeters) with a lush rosette of openwork basal leaves. The flowers “look” up, as if they are winking at everyone. Aquilegia blooms with soft red or purple flowers with a diameter of 5.5 centimeters.

Blue ice

A low bush (up to 15 centimeters) with a raised rosette of openwork leaves. The flowers are simple, drooping, blue-white or purple-cream.

Crimson old

Hybrid aquilegia. The stem grows up to 60 centimeters in height. It has red flowers with a white center.

Biedermeier

A low-growing, decorative hybrid, the stem of which grows up to 0.30-0.40 meters in height. The flowers are double, two-color (red-yellow, white-blue).

birds of paradise

The bush of this crop is tall (up to 0.80 meters). The flowers are large, double, of various colors, similar to asters.

Giant McCana

Hybrid culture. It has a tall (up to 1.2 meters) stem. The flowers are of all different colors - large, rarely drooping, and have long spurs.

Nora Barlow

A plant with two-color or single-color large flowers, similar to dahlias. Flowers can be soft pink, deep red, dark purple.

Yellow crystal

This variety of aquilegia has a tall (up to 0.80 centimeter) stem. The flowers are simple, deep yellow in color, with long sepals and spurs.

Ruby port

A variety bred on the basis of Aquilegia vulgaris. Forms a lush bush with dense foliage at the base. The stems grow up to 0.9-1.1 meters. The flowers are double, large (up to 4.5 centimeters), dark red. Grown to decorate flower beds or cut flowers.

Columbine

Aquilegia with large double flowers, similar to asters. The flower heads are turned up. They can have a snow-white, reddish, purple color.

How to sow seedlings

Aquilegia is grown in 2 ways - seedlings and non-seedlings. Seeds are sown for seedlings in spring or autumn. In any case, the seeds must first be stimulated with cold for at least 1 month. Hybrid store varieties do not require preliminary preparation or processing.

Spring sowing

In the spring, in mid-March, aquilegia seeds are sown as seedlings in boxes with a nutrient substrate. They sprout in 7-16 days.

Preparing the soil and container

To grow aquilegia seedlings, buy a substrate for flowering plants or prepare your own soil mixture. Soil composition: turf soil, compost (humus), sand (all ingredients are taken in equal proportions). Small boxes or pots with a drainage hole are suitable for growing seedlings.

Preparing planting material at home

Before planting, seeds need cold stratification. This pre-sowing treatment accelerates seed germination. In the refrigerator, on a shelf with vegetables, the seed is kept for 1 month.Then the aquilegia seeds are soaked in water, after which they are germinated for several days in the light at a temperature of 25 degrees Celsius.

How to plant

Aquilegia seeds are evenly distributed over the surface of a moistened substrate, then sprinkled with earth and covered with a transparent film until germination. From time to time the soil needs to be moistened. Boxes with sown aquilegia seeds are kept indoors at a temperature of 16-18 degrees Celsius.

Autumn sowing

For aquilegia, autumn sowing with freshly harvested seeds is preferable. In this case, the seeds undergo natural stratification. Aquilegia seeds are sown in containers with fertile soil mixture. The boxes are taken outside and buried in the garden bed. They should stay there all winter.

How to prepare the soil

For sowing, you need to take garden or turf soil mixed with humus, peat and sand. All components are taken in equal proportions. The soil must first be disinfected with a fungicidal solution or potassium permanganate.

Landing

Aquilegia seeds are scattered not very thickly on loose, moistened soil, sprinkled with 0.5 centimeters of soil on top. Before frost, crops are mulched with peat or humus.

Deadlines

Sowing of seeds is carried out in mid-autumn (early October). In the spring, when seedlings appear, the seedlings are carefully removed from the box and immediately planted in a permanent place.

Growing

Aquilegia seeds sown as seedlings in March germinate after 7-16 days. Growing seedlings need to be cared for regularly, and at the end of May they need to be moved to a flower bed.

Light and temperature conditions

The seedlings need to be provided with a temperature of 16-18 degrees Celsius. Daylight hours should be 10 hours. If it is too hot or dark, the seedlings will become very stretched.

Watering

Growing aquilegia seedlings need to be regularly (moderately) irrigated with water. It is important to ensure that the soil in the box does not dry out. It is not recommended to fill the seedlings with water, otherwise they will get blackleg and wither.

Dive

Grown-up seedlings of aquilegia must first be thinned out, leaving only the strongest ones in the box. After 4-6 weeks, when 2 true leaves appear on the seedlings, the plants are planted in separate containers (peat cups).

During picking, the root is carefully straightened in the hole, without bending or breaking.

Planting in open ground

Seeds sown in early May or seedlings planted closer to summer will produce only a lush, basal rosette of leaves in the first year. In the second spring several flower stalks will appear. Abundant flowering of aquilegia can be obtained only in the third season. Each flower blooms for 5-10 days, hybrids longer - up to 20 days. The period of full flowering of one crop is about 30 days.

Selecting a location

It is better to plant Aquilegia in a well-lit area. Some varieties prefer light partial shade; in such places they will bloom longer.

Soil requirements

Aquilegia prefers neutral or slightly acidic, light, sandy or loamy soil. It is advisable to dilute too clayey soil with peat and sand, and add a little humus or compost to poor soil.

Deadlines

Seeds are sown in the flowerbed in early May. The seedlings are transferred at the end of May, when the air warms up to 15-18 degrees Celsius. Seedlings that have grown in 1.5-2 months should have 5-6 true leaves, the size of the sprouts should be 10-20 centimeters. Such plants will bloom only in the second year.

Planting scheme

Pre-grown aquilegia seedlings are planted in prepared holes, at a distance of 25-30 centimeters from the neighboring crop.Plants from which they want to obtain seeds are planted away from their relatives to avoid cross-pollination.

Sowing before winter

Purchased hybrid seeds and independently collected seed can be sown in a flower bed in the fall. Over the winter, the seeds will undergo natural stratification.

Preparing the bed

The soil must first be dug to a depth of 20 centimeters. Add a little rotted manure or compost to the soil (half a bucket per 1 square meter of land).

How to sow

Seeds are sown sparsely, in loosened and pre-moistened soil. Sprinkle 0.5 centimeters of soil on top.

How to close a garden bed

Before frost, planting aquilegia is covered with a thick layer of peat or humus. In early spring, the mulch is removed and flower stalks are allowed to sprout.

Deadlines

In autumn, seeds are sown in an open flowerbed at the end of September or early October. It is advisable to sow the seeds before November, that is, before the soil completely freezes.

Care

Aquilegia is an unpretentious and non-capricious culture. However, with regular watering, combined with periodic application of fertilizers, it will bloom longer and more abundantly.

Loosening and weeding

After rains, the soil around the bush needs to be loosened so that a soil crust does not form, which interferes with the circulation of oxygen. It is imperative to remove weeds that appear in the flowerbed so that they do not take away nutrients.

Top dressing

In order to grow a lush bush, aquilegia needs to be fed with humus (0.5 kilograms for 1 crop) or azophoska (1 teaspoon per bush) in early spring. At the beginning of June, it is necessary to apply potassium-phosphorus fertilizers. In August, the bush can be fed with phosphorus supplements.

Moderate watering

Aquilegia tolerates drought well, but for abundant and long-lasting flowering in dry seasons, the plant needs to be watered. If there is regular precipitation, watering is not necessary.

Garter

Tall varieties can be tied to a support. For gartering, wooden sticks, bamboo, and twine are used.

Root powder

Every year you need to add a little fertile soil under the bush. This is done in order to sprinkle the roots emerging to the surface.

Removing dry flower stalks

Fading flowers must be constantly removed without giving them the opportunity to form a seed pod. In this way, you can achieve longer flowering of aquilegia. If a plant is grown for its seeds, the flowers are left untouched and the seeds are allowed to ripen. Dry flower stalks are removed in the fall, after collecting the seeds. They are cut to the level of the basal rosette of leaves.

Pruning after flowering, preparing for winter

After flowering, the flower stalks of hybrid crops must be cut off along with the unripe boxes, since their seeds are not used for sowing. Before wintering, adult bushes are usually not insulated. However, it is advisable to cover young plants with spruce branches or dry leaves. Under bushes older than 5-6 years, a layer of compost or humus is poured before wintering.

Transfer

Adult aquilegia does not tolerate transplantation well. The plant is replanted only in extreme cases. For example, at the age of 5-6 years, during vegetative propagation (dividing the bush).

Diseases and pests

In cool, damp weather, weakened plants growing in poor soils may become sick. In hot weather, aquilegia is often attacked by insect pests.

Powdery mildew

Fungal infection. Signs: a white fluffy coating appears on the leaves and stems.As a preventative measure, the plant is sprayed in the spring with a solution of fungicide (Fitosporin-M) or colloidal sulfur.

Rust

A fungal disease that causes numerous orange spots to appear on the undersides of leaves. Subsequently, the affected surface dries out and the plant withers. For prevention, bushes are sprayed with a solution of copper sulfate, colloidal sulfur or a fungicide.

Gray rot

A fungal infection that appears on leaves and peduncles in the form of gray mold in damp weather. Fungicides (Topaz, Champion) are used for prevention.

Nematodes

These are tiny worms that live in the ground. They feed on roots and stems. The leaves of affected plants turn yellow and curl, and the buds dry out. Nematicides (Carbation, Terakur) save from nematodes.

Aphid

Tiny light green, soft-bodied insects that live on the underside of leaves and feed on their sap. They cause yellowing and drying of leaves and poor flowering. Spraying with insecticides (Karbofos, Actellik) saves from aphids.

Spider mite

A small red insect that lives on the underside of leaves and weaves a white web. It feeds on plant sap, causing the leaves to become covered with yellow spots and dry out. Acaricides (Kleschevit, Iskra) save you from ticks.

Reproduction methods

Aquilegia reproduces by seed or vegetatively. It is better to buy seeds of hybrid varieties in a specialized store.

Cuttings

In the spring, young leaves that have not yet had time to bloom, the first shoots are broken out at the base, placed in a Heteroauxin solution and rooted in a damp sand-peat mixture. The cuttings are covered on top with a transparent jar or plastic bottle. Rooting occurs within 20 days.

Dividing the bush

In early spring (April) or after flowering in autumn (September), the bush is divided. For propagation, choose an old plant aged 5-6 years. The bush is divided into 2-3 parts. Each division should have healthy roots and a couple of renewal points. Ground leaves can be trimmed, leaving no more than 2-3 leaves on each section. The divided bush takes a long and painful time to take root in a new place due to damage to the root, and in the first year it does not even bloom.

Independent collection of seeds and their selection for sowing

The seeds are collected when they are fully ripe. You can put bags on the boxes to prevent seeds from spilling out of them without permission. True, with the seed propagation method it is not always possible to obtain a new plant identical to the mother one. In this case, varietal characteristics are not preserved. It is better to buy ready-made hybrid seeds in the store.

How and why to use forcing

Aquilegia is often grown as a cut flower for the spring holidays. To do this, in the fall the bush is dug up, divided and planted in pots. The containers should stand in the cold in a dark place for some time. In January they are brought into a warm and well-lit room. A stressful situation awakens the plant, and it blooms by March 8th.

Use in landscape design

Aquilegia is used to decorate flower beds, mixborders, rock gardens, and make flower arrangements. This flowering crop with a lush rosette of basal, openwork leaves looks great in single plantings. Aquilegia is combined with irises, lupins, bells, ferns, and ornamental grasses.

Application in medicine

Aquilegia contains many biologically active components (alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, tannins, vitamins, minerals).Thanks to them, this culture is used as a diuretic, sedative, anti-inflammatory, and analgesic. All parts of the plant are used for medicinal purposes; they are picked, dried and made into tinctures or decoctions. It must be remembered that fresh aquilegia juice is poisonous.