Periwinkle

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

Periwinkle (Latin Vinca) - flower culture; perennial plant of the Apocynaceae family. Other names are burial ground, coffin-grass. Under natural conditions, periwinkle grows in Asia, North Africa, as well as in temperate regions of Europe.

Characteristics of culture

Periwinkle is an evergreen or deciduous creeping shrub or grass with erect, strongly branching shoots. The leaves are deep green, smooth with shine or leathery, elliptical or ovoid, opposite.

The flowers are large, solitary, axillary, reaching 3-7 cm in diameter. The calyx is small, with narrow and sharp lobes, at the base it is equipped with miniature denticles. The corolla is spliced, funnel-shaped, with a long cylindrical tube naked or pubescent in the pharynx, has a five-part wheel-shaped limb. The fruit is a double cylindrical leaflet. Seeds are elongated, without a tuft.

Growing conditions

Periwinkle develops well and blooms profusely both in sunny and shaded areas. The culture is not demanding for soil conditions, however, it develops best on fertile, loose, moderately moist and well-drained soils with a neutral pH reaction.

Reproduction and planting

The periwinkle is propagated by seeds, cuttings, layering and dividing the bush. In cultivated form, periwinkle rarely gives seeds, therefore, most often it is propagated by cuttings. Cuttings are cut in late August - early September. The cuttings root quickly enough and at the end of September they are transplanted to a permanent place. Young plants for the winter are mulched with peat or humus, especially for pubescent periwinkle.

Evergreen forms of periwinkles are propagated by layering; for this, the lodged stems are pinned to the soil in shallow grooves. Immediately after rooting, the cuttings are removed from the mother plant. With proper care and favorable conditions, the culture grows strongly and displaces other plants, so it must be thinned and transplanted in a timely manner.

Care

Periwinkle is considered a stable and unpretentious culture. Needs regular and moderate watering, especially during flowering. Periwinkle reacts positively to feeding with organic and mineral fertilizers. To obtain more lush bushes, young plants are pinched. Most periwinkles are frost-resistant, but in the conditions of central Russia they require shelter for the winter. Plants are rarely affected by diseases and pests, so preventive treatments are not needed.

Application

Periwinkle is a flowering and highly decorative plant, often used for landscaping shady areas. Small periwinkle fits harmoniously into rocky gardens - rockeries and rock gardens. Plants are also grown under the crowns of trees and lush shrubs. Periwinkle is also used as a soil plant.

Some forms are grown in containers and pots, such as herb periwinkle or pink periwinkle. The second species looks especially impressive, its shoots hang beautifully on the walls of the container and cover it with a green "cloak". Ideal partners of culture are ornamental shrubs and trees, as well as shade-tolerant and short plants such as horny goat weed, lungwort, primrose, spit, hyacin, heuchera, forget-me-not, etc.

The plant is also used in folk medicine, it is believed that periwinkle is useful for diarrhea, scurvy, bleeding and toothache. All parts of the plant contain an alkaloid that has properties that inhibit cell division and prevent the formation of various kinds of tumors. Vinca extracts and compounds are used in immunosuppressants, antineoplastic and nootropic drugs.