Description of catharanthus varieties, propagation, cultivation and care in open ground

Catharanthus is an ideal plant for the garden; planting and caring for it will not take too much time. This is a low shrub, lush and leafy, abundantly strewn with phlox-like flowers. Catharanthus does not stretch upward; it looks good near a border or in the foreground of a flower bed. It can be planted in a pot and grown as an ordinary indoor flower.

Description and features

Catharanthus is an ornamental crop that feels great in a pot and in a flower bed. Belongs to the Kutrovye family, native to Madagascar and India. Catharanthus are called periwinkle, cayenne jasmine, and Madagascar vinca. It is grown in an outdoor flower bed as an annual, but at home in a pot it can grow for several years. This is a poisonous plant that is used to treat cancerous tumors.

Catharanthus has a tap root up to 35 centimeters long. An erect, but flexible and highly branched shoot forms a bush 35-65 centimeters high. The stems are covered with green bark, which later turns brown. Sometimes the bush grows up to 1.45 meters.

The leaves are opposite, short-petioled, oblong, with a round or sharp tip. The length of one leaf is up to 8 centimeters, width – up to 3 centimeters. The surface of the leaf is smooth, shiny, greenish, with a light vein running through its center.

The flowers are located in the axils of the leaves and at the top of the stems. The buds bloom alternately, so the flowering of the catharanthus is long. A flower with a diameter of up to 3-4 centimeters consists of 5 petals fused at the base. Yellowish anthers peek out from the narrow oblong central part. Flowers appear after 65 days.

It blooms all summer and is pollinated by insects.After pollination, sickle-shaped leaflets up to 5 centimeters in length are formed in place of the flowers, with small dark seeds inside.

Planting in open ground

Catharanthus is a heat-loving crop native to the tropics; in Europe it is cultivated as a houseplant. True, in summer the flower can be planted in a flower bed. Before planting catharanthus, you need to choose a suitable place for it. The plant prefers sunlit areas or partial shade. You can plant catharanthus near a pond or near a fountain.

When to plant

The plant is planted in a flower bed when the temperature rises to 20 degrees Celsius. Seeds are sown in the garden bed in mid-May, and the finished seedlings are transplanted only at the end of May. Seedlings are prepared in advance: seeds are sown in boxes with substrate in March.

Seed preparation

The seeds are soaked in water with a growth stimulator for 23 hours. Then pickled in potassium permanganate for 30 minutes. Then they are dried and sown immediately in a flowerbed or in boxes with substrate for seedlings.

Soil requirements

Catharanthus can grow on loam and sandy, non-acidic soil. 3 weeks before planting, it is recommended to dig up the soil, dilute it with sand and peat, and fertilize it with rotted humus. Garden, leaf or turf soil is suitable for catharanthus. It is advisable to pour some stones or expanded clay at the bottom of the flowerbed for drainage. In soil that is too swampy, catharanthus can rot. The soil should not be acidic; to normalize the acidity, you can add a little ash to the soil.

Planting scheme

The seeds are poured into shallow grooves at a distance of 3 centimeters from each other, and sprinkled with soil 1 centimeter thick. Then the plantings are watered, covered with film, and after a week the seeds germinate.Grown seedlings are thinned out, leaving larger sprouts. If pre-grown seedlings are transplanted into a flowerbed, then a separate hole is prepared for each plant to the depth of a glass or pot containing a small bush. The plant, together with a lump of earth, is planted in a hole. Be sure to keep your distance. There should be a distance of at least 25 centimeters to the neighboring flower.

Care

Catharanthus is an unpretentious crop. However, this plant will bloom profusely and for a long time if it is properly cared for.

Watering young animals

The growing plant needs to be watered regularly, and in hot weather, the leaves should be irrigated with water. If the catharanthus lacks moisture, it very eloquently signals this - its leaves curl into a tube. The bushes are watered daily with soft, settled water, preferably rainwater.

Loosening and weeding

After watering, the soil must be loosened and the resulting hard soil crust must be removed. This procedure will saturate the earth with oxygen. Weeds that appear must be removed from the flowerbed so that they do not take away nutrients.

Mulching

The ground around the catharanthus can be mulched, for example, with sawdust, small pebbles, or sand. Mulch will protect the soil from evaporation and prevent weeds from breaking through.

Top dressing

Catharanthus need to be fed in the spring. The first time fertilizing is applied 3 weeks after emergence. During the growth period, nitrogen fertilizer is added to the soil. Before flowering, the bushes are fed with phosphorus and potassium preparations. You can use complex fertilizers for flowering plants. Catharanthus are fed once every 3 weeks.

The foliage can be sprayed with Epin-Extra fertilizer solution. Wood ash can be used as fertilizer.When fertilizing the soil, you must strictly observe the proportions and not exceed the permissible norms. Take no more than 30 grams of fertilizer per square meter of land.

Diseases and pests

In cool weather or during prolonged rains, this heat-loving plant may become ill. Most often, catharanthus are affected by a fungal infection; yellow, brown, and light spots appear on the leaves. To prevent possible diseases, plants are sprayed with fungicides (Fitosporin) in the spring.

In the heat, catharanthus are exposed to insect attacks (spider mites, scale insects). Spraying with insecticides (Actellik, Fosbecid) will save you from pests.

Trimming

The tops of bushes 15 centimeters high need to be pinched so that more lateral shoots are formed. Strongly protruding shoots are shortened to give the bush a compact, spherical appearance. Be sure to trim off weak and yellowed shoots. Varietal (hybrid) catharanthus independently form a low bush. From such plants, only the yellow leaves and stems are cut off.

Winter care at home

Some gardeners grow catharanthus in the garden in the summer and take them indoors for the winter. The bush, together with a lump of earth, is carefully transplanted into a deep and narrow pot, watered and cared for all winter as if it were an ordinary indoor flower. The stem with leaves can be cut off before wintering. In this case, the root remaining in the ground is not watered, but kept in a cool place until spring. You can immediately sow the seeds in a container with substrate and grow catharanthus as a houseplant, and take it outside in the summer.

Humidity

Catharanthus grows in conditions of high humidity. In a hot room with dry air, the plant develops slowly, and its leaves curl and dry out.

Spraying

Catharanthus leaves should be sprayed with water daily. In hot weather, the bushes are irrigated several times a day.

Watering

Water the catharanthus with soft and settled water. Watering is carried out daily. The liquid collected in the pan must be poured out. In winter, plants are watered less often than in summer, but make sure that the soil does not dry out.

Lighting

Catharanthus prefers diffused lighting. A flower pot can be placed on the windowsill. The plant needs to be shaded from the midday rays of the sun.

Temperature

In spring and summer, catharanthus are provided with a temperature of 20-25 degrees Celsius. In autumn and winter, the air temperature can be slightly lower, reaching 18 degrees above zero.

Top dressing

In winter, catharanthus is not fed. This flower is fertilized only in spring and summer. Typically, fertilizing is applied twice: in the spring - during the growth period and in the summer - before flowering. The bushes are first fertilized with nitrogen substances, and then with potassium and phosphorus.

Pot

A deep and not too wide pot with a drainage hole at the bottom is suitable for catharanthus. Place some small pebbles on the bottom for drainage, and then fill the container with substrate.

Pruning and shaping the bush

Catharanthus branches are pruned in the spring. The upper shoots are shortened by a third. This method helps to rejuvenate the plant and form a spherical low bush. Cuttings can be placed in a jar of water for subsequent rooting.

Transfer

Catharanthus grow quickly, so every year they are transplanted into a larger pot. If the roots are crowded and there is not enough space for development, the crop will stop blooming, and the leaves may turn yellow. Transplantation is carried out in the spring, using the transshipment method, so as not to damage the roots. In a new pot, the plant quickly comes to life and begins to grow actively.Some gardeners in the spring transplant catharanthus from an indoor pot to a flower bed. In this case, you need to first prepare the soil and dig a hole.

Reproduction

Catharanthus propagate by seeds, cuttings or dividing the bush. The right time for reproduction is spring. It is better to purchase seeds of varietal and hybrid catharanthus in a specialized store.

Growing from seeds

In March, seeds are sown for seedlings, and at the end of May the grown plants are transferred outside. To plant catharanthus, take small containers (boxes) and soil for geraniums. You can independently prepare a substrate from turf (leaf) soil, humus, sand and peat. Before sowing, seeds are soaked in water and then disinfected with potassium permanganate. Spread evenly over the surface and sprinkle with earth. Containers with seeds are watered and covered with glass.

After a week, seedlings appear; the optimal temperature for keeping seedlings is 20-25 degrees Celsius. The seedlings are watered regularly, and after 3 weeks, when 3-4 true leaves appear, they are planted in separate plastic or peat cups. Before transplanting, containers with seedlings are taken outside for several hours so that they get used to the outside temperature. Catharanthus are transplanted into a flower bed at the end of May, when the threat of night frosts has passed.

Cuttings

Catharanthus can be propagated using green cuttings. To do this, in the spring you need to cut off the apical stems 10 centimeters long and root them in well-moistened sandy-peaty soil. During rooting, the cuttings are covered with a transparent plastic bottle. They need to be ventilated and irrigated with water daily. After rooting, the cap is removed and the plant is cared for as usual.The grown bush can be transplanted into a flowerbed after 3-4 weeks.

Dividing the bush

During replanting, the catharanthus bush can be divided into two parts, and each division, along with the stem and root, can be planted in separate holes or in different pots. It is better to divide the bush in early spring.

Popular types and varieties

The catharanthus genus consists of 8 species and several ornamental varieties. Mostly pink catharanthus is cultivated. This is a small branched bush with greenish, oblong leaves and five-petaled flowers of snow-white or various shades of pink.

Burgundy

A low, lushly flowering bush (up to 40 centimeters). The flowers are medium in size, with 5 petals, crimson, with a light center.

Pacifica White

Compact lush bush up to 25-35 centimeters high. Against a background of dense foliage are white, five-petaled flowers with a red eye in the center.

Epricot

This catharanthus has cream flowers with a crimson center. The bush grows up to 35 centimeters in height.

Ice pink

Catharanthus has small pale pink flowers with a red eye. The bush is compact, up to 35 centimeters in height.

Grape Cooler

A low bush with oblong shiny greenish leaves. The flowers are light pink, with a crimson center.

Peppermint Cooler

Snow-white flowers with a bright red center. The branching bush reaches 40 centimeters in height.

Red Cooler

Catharanthus with bright scarlet flowers. The diameter of one flower is up to 5 centimeters.

First Kiss Blubbery

Bush 35-45 centimeters high. The flowers are lilac with a dark center.

Cascade

Ampelous catharanthus with cascading shoots. This lush bush has stems up to 75 centimeters in length.The leaves are small, oblong, rounded at the end. The entire bush is strewn with delicate, five-petaled crimson or lilac flowers with a white center.

Titanium

An ampelous crop with stems up to 75 centimeters long. The flowers are five-petaled and red.

Deep Rose

Pink catharanthus with 5-petalled, medium-sized flowers. The bush is compact, up to 40 centimeters in length.

Grape

This crop has lilac flowers with a pink eye. The plant itself is low (up to 40 centimeters in height).

Red

A plant with a lush bush, abundantly strewn with red flowers. The height of the crop is 30-40 centimeters.

First kiss

Abundantly leafy, branching bush 30-40 centimeters high. It has oblong, shiny, dark green leaves and delicate flowers up to 6 centimeters in diameter. The edges of the petals are light, the center of the flower is darker. The flowers may have a lilac or coral tint.

Reproduction

Catharanthus can be propagated by seeds, cuttings or dividing the bush. The ideal time for reproduction is early spring.

Cuttings

For propagation, take the upper stems obtained during spring pruning. The length of the cutting should be 10-12 centimeters, the lower leaves are torn off. The branches are placed in a jar of water or in a moist substrate and rooted for 3-4 weeks.

Seeds

It is better to buy seeds for sowing in a specialized store. After all, the catharanthus in the flowerbed do not have time to ripen during the summer. You can dig up these plants in the fall and grow them indoors. In this case, the seeds will ripen by spring. They are soaked for a day and planted in boxes with substrate in March, and at the end of May the grown seedlings are transplanted into a flower bed.

Dividing the bush

In the spring, when the bush is transplanted from a pot to a flowerbed, you can divide it in half. The catharanthus is divided into 2 parts, the stem is cut with a knife at the very base, and then each part of the bush, along with a piece of root, is planted in separate containers or holes.

Features of growing at home

Catharanthus love water. You should always remember this and not leave the flower for a long time without watering. In hot weather, the bush can be sprayed with water. Once a year it is advisable to transplant it into a larger pot. In spring and summer, catharanthus is given complex fertilizers for flowering plants. In early spring, the stems are shortened slightly. In the summer, flower pots can be taken out onto the veranda or outside.

Use in medicine

Catharanthus contains 65 different alkaloids. Most of them are in the roots. Alkaloids have antitumor activity. Leaves and stems are used to treat malignant tumors. Tinctures, decoctions, and extracts are made from them. Raw materials are collected closer to September, during the period of seed ripening. Leaves and shoots are dried in a dark and hot place. Dried herbs are used during the first year, then they lose their medicinal properties.

With the help of catharanthus, leukemia, breast cancer, uterine cancer, sarcomas, varicose veins, stomach ulcers, and prostatitis are treated. The plant normalizes blood sugar levels, lowers blood pressure, cures psoriasis, and is used as a pain reliever. For treatment, well-dried raw materials are used, since fresh leaves and stems are very poisonous..