Walking through the park in the warm season, you can see beautiful bushes with long flexible branches, densely strewn with small flowers in inflorescences. This is a perennial shrub from the rose family - an ornamental spirea, which has about 90 species and varieties. The plant is very unpretentious, valued for its high decorative qualities, long flowering period, and resistance to extreme weather conditions.
General information about the plant
Spiraea vulgaris can be found in nature. The shrub feels comfortable in the temperate climate of steppes, forest-steppes, semi-deserts, as well as in northern latitudes. In Russia, it is bred as an ornamental plant to decorate parks, gardens and personal plots. The plant is also planted to strengthen the soil, since it has a well-branched root system.
Spiraea is also a valuable medicinal plant. Some of its varieties are a source of essential oils, minerals, phytoncides, vitamin A and ascorbic acid.
Spiraea is a deciduous shrub. Its height can vary from 15 centimeters to 2.5 meters. The plant is unpretentious to the quality of the soil, feels good in the polluted, gassy atmosphere of the city.
What colors can it be?
Each type and variety of spirea has its own flowering time, and during this period it pleases those around with the bright colors of its inflorescences. The color range ranges from snow-white, pink, soft beige, to rich colors, including burgundy and lilac.
- Varieties whose flowering period occurs in spring often have white inflorescences covering the entire length of the shoots.
- Summer bloomers have all shades of red. At the same time, those that bloom in early summer are often painted in a soft pink color, while those that bloom late have burgundy or bright crimson shades.
The foliage of spirea is no less beautiful than the inflorescences. In some species it changes colors: red becomes green with the onset of summer. In autumn, yellow or orange hues appear. There are varieties with two-color leaves. The variegated spirea is very beautiful.
Varieties of spirea
The types and varieties of plants are also pleasing with their variety of forms.Depending on the location of the branches, the crown of the bush can be pyramidal, weeping, erect, creeping, cascading, or spherical.
According to the time of flowering, all plants are divided into two large groups - spring-flowering and summer-flowering. They differ in the nature of flowering, the type and shape of the inflorescences:
- Spring-flowering varieties bloom very amicably, but for a short time. Flowers bloom on last year's shoots.
- Summer-blooming spireas bloom much longer. At the same time, newly appeared flowers gradually replace those that have already faded. Inflorescences appear on this year's shoots.
The shape of the inflorescences is also different. It can be corymbose, spicate, pyramidal and paniculate. There are also shrubs with single flowers. Inflorescences can cover the entire shoot, its upper part or the very end.
Billard
Billard's spirea is a powerful bush, reaching 2.5 meters in height. It grows throughout Russia - both in its southern and northern regions. The plant is distinguished by a long flowering period, covering the entire warm period of time. It has straight vertical stems forming a lush spherical crown.
Spiraea Billarda blooms in large inflorescences made up of 10-20 small flowers of rich pink color. The inflorescences have the shape of a pyramid or candle.
Average
Medium spirea is a shrub with a large crown formed by branches growing vertically upward. Natural habitat - forests and forest-steppes of Siberia, Central Asia and the Far East.
It is a spring-flowering species, as it begins to bloom in mid-May. By the beginning of summer, flowering ends. The plants have corymbose inflorescences formed by groups of small white flowers.Due to its beautiful rounded crown, the bush is attractive even in the period when flowering is already over.
Paniculata
Spiraea paniculata bushes can reach one and a half meters due to straight branches extended upward. The beauty of the plant is given by the dense foliage of an emerald hue. The plant belongs to the late-flowering species. In mid-summer it blooms with bright pink flowers, collected in fairly large inflorescences in the form of elongated fluffy panicles.
Little Princess
The plant got its name due to its small size - up to 60 centimeters in height. It is long-flowering - blooms all summer and half of autumn (until the end of October). It looks very picturesque as part of garden compositions.
The plant has a curly, dense crown thanks to deep green foliage. As autumn approaches, the color turns orange, then red.
The bush blooms with corymbose pink inflorescences located at the ends of the branches. Fading inflorescences are gradually replaced by young ones. This ensures long flowering. During the period of active flowering, foliage is not visible due to the large number of delicate inflorescences.
Willow
The shrub has elongated wedge-shaped foliage, which resembles the crown of a weeping willow, although the branches are located vertically. A dense mass of leaves forms a picturesque spherical crown.
The plant is moisture-loving and, given good conditions, grows quickly. It has a long flowering period - from the second half of June to mid-September. Small flowers form trapezoidal inflorescences at the ends of branches in rich pink or burgundy.
Willow spirea is known in folk medicine as a medicinal plant. A decoction and tincture of leaves and branches are used as an anti-inflammatory, wound-healing, antipyretic, and anthelmintic.
Wangutta
Spiraea Wangutta – a good option for decorating local areas and summer cottages. This shrub is informally called “May snow.” During flowering, long flexible branches are covered with snow-white flowers, which are collected in calyxes of inflorescences. Merging into one mass, they take the form of a snowdrift lying on the branches. Behind the “snow”, green foliage is practically invisible. Bent over under the weight of the inflorescences, the shoots give the bush the shape of a cascade.
oak leaf
Spiraea oakleaf is often used for landscaping park areas. The plant is unpretentious and thrives in low temperatures.
The shrub has a dense round crown. The plant is not a long-flowering plant. Blooming in early May, by the end of the month it is already deprived of flowers. It blooms with lush white inflorescences that completely cover the branches.
Nippon
The homeland of Nippon spirea, as the name suggests, is Japan, or more precisely, the island of Shikoku. This is a tall shrub (reaches a height of 2 meters and above). It has a spreading crown formed by flexible branches. The foliage changes color throughout the year from dark olive to green, and then, in autumn, to red.
The plant belongs to the early flowering varieties. It pleases the eye with flowering at the end of May, which continues until August. White flowers are collected in corymbose inflorescences.
Thunberg
A low shrub with an openwork crown formed by graceful curving branches. The plant's homeland is considered to be Korea, Japan and China. The plant is light-loving, belongs to frost-resistant varieties, but freezes out at very low temperatures. Does not require frequent watering.
Along with flowers, Thunberg's spirea is decorated with thick leaves that change color from yellow in spring to green in the summer heat.With the arrival of autumn cold weather, the plant becomes red-leaved.
Gorodchataya
Spiraea crenate in Russia is found in the steppes, as well as on the mountainous slopes of the Caucasus and Central Asia.
The shrub is a low-growing variety (no more than a meter in height). It got its name due to the shape of the leaves - oblong, with a characteristic crenate edge. Corymbose inflorescences consist of yellowish flowers, up to five millimeters in diameter. It is a short-flowering species (blooms in June, no more than 15-20 days).
Plant selection criteria
All varieties of spirea are beautiful and picturesque all year round, regardless of whether the plant blooms or not.
When choosing a plant type for a summer cottage, they rely on the following criteria:
- Crown shape. Formed by a graceful interweaving of branches. Bushes with lush crowns are best used as single plants. Planted in a composition, they will interfere with the growth of other plants.
- Flowering time. Plants that bloom earlier bloom for a short time, while late bloomers delight with flowers until mid-autumn. Experienced gardeners, when composing compositions, skillfully combine different types of shrubs. This ensures continuous flowering of spirea during a warm period of time.
- Deciduous cover. Many varieties of spirea have original leaves of unusual colors. Foliage color can change many times depending on the season.
The use of spirea in landscape design
The shrub is popular for landscaping. It is often used as a single object. It is also suitable for creating compositions in combination with other plants. These are mainly shrubs (lilac, viburnum, willow) or conifers (juniper, spruce, pine).
Spiraea is used to create a hedge, mixborder or background for a flower garden.Dwarf varieties successfully frame paths or become decorations for rockeries. Bushes are often planted in apiaries. Fragrant flowers are honey plants.
