Geichera

2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38

Heuchera (lat. Heuchera) - a genus of valuable ornamental herbaceous plants of the Saxifrage family. The genus got its name in honor of the German botanist and part-time doctor - I. G. von Heicher. The genus includes 70 species that are naturally found in North America and some countries in South America. Wild geychera grow mainly on the banks of rivers and in the mountains, some species - on rocky shores and canyons. Today, plants are used not only for decorative purposes, but also in cooking and folk medicine.

Characteristics of culture

Heuchera is represented by perennial herbaceous rhizome plants no more than half a meter high. Leaves are serrated, 5-9-tillobe, long-petiolate, collected in a basal rosette, can have a wide variety of colors - purple, green, brown, silvery, burgundy. The flowers are small, numerous, white, greenish, pink or red, collected in paniculate inflorescences up to 20-25 cm long. Fruits are multi-seeded capsules. Geichera is very popular among amateur gardeners, and they are also used by professionals for landscaping city attractions.

Until the 20th century, gardeners most often cultivated species of Heuchera; later, several hybrid forms were bred by French breeders. Emil and Victor Lemoine were the first to hybridize Heucher; they made a great contribution to the development of this culture and the emergence of new forms and varieties. In the future, American breeders obtained more interesting varieties that many gardeners liked, then this plant began to spread around the world at an incredible speed. Today, when there are many forms and varieties on the garden market that differ in an unusually color range, heucheras have taken almost the first place in the top of the plants often used in gardening.

Among the species Heuchera, blood-red Heuchera, Small-flowered Heuchera, and hybrid Heuchera are especially popular. By the way, hybrid Heuchera will amaze you with any variety of varieties. Breeders have bred luxurious specimens with ruby, chocolate, red, silver, bronze, bronze-purple, cherry, brown with silvery veins, white with green spots, orange and other colors of leaves. As before, breeders are working on creating new varieties that differ not only in beautiful foliage, but also in abundant flowering.

Growing features

Heuchera can be safely attributed to unpretentious plants. For successful cultivation, it needs diffused light, moist and nutritious soil. Some forms and varieties need certain lighting, for example, in sunny areas they give a richer and brighter color of foliage, the timing of flowering and its abundance also change, in semi-shaded areas the foliage becomes more faded, the abundance of flowering decreases. You can experimentally determine what kind of lighting a particular variety needs.

By the way, there are geykhera that accept full shade, they can be planted in shady corners of the garden. These include varieties: Chocolate Ruffles, Mint Frost, White Marble, Molly Bush, Palace Purple, etc. Soils for culture are preferable to light, well-processed, with a sufficient amount of organic fertilizers. Particular attention should be paid to compost or humus, fresh manure should be excluded.

Heuchers do not tolerate cooperation with waterlogged soils, excess water will affect the health of the root system, in the end, it rots and the plant dies without revealing its beauty. Heavy soils are also undesirable, although with a good drainage layer, this is possible. It is recommended to use coarse river sand or fine gravel as drainage; a little crushed bark should be added to the soil itself. The acidity of the soil depends entirely on the variety chosen, mainly it varies from 5, 5 to 6, 5, some are able to withstand a pH of 8, 0 - 8, 5. It is important to provide heuchers with protection from the cold wind.

Care

Wild geychera grow quietly on rocky areas, where, as you know, the nutrient content is negligible, so the resulting varieties do not need regular feeding. Top dressing can be carried out once a year, while the concentration of fertilizers should be slightly less than for other ornamental crops. Watering is recommended only when necessary; excess water is highly undesirable. The main procedure for caring for a geyhera is hilling, it must not be missed. Plants are decorative for 3-5 years, later the bushes begin to fall, respectively, the middle is bare. At this point, it is necessary to divide the bush into several parts and transplant.