2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Zvezdovka (lat. Astrantia) Is a flowering herbaceous perennial from the Umbrella family. The second name is astrantia.
Description
Zvezdovka is a spectacular herbaceous perennial with luxurious feathery leaves and amazingly beautiful decorative flowers. Zvezdovka's rhizomes are very powerful, and basal leaves sitting on elongated petioles form stunningly beautiful rosettes. Large, large leaf blades are divided, divided into three or seven parts. All of them have a uniform light or dark green color and are endowed with smooth surfaces and jagged edges. As for the sessile stem leaves, they are inferior to the basal leaves both in size and quantity.
The erect shoots of the starlet branch slightly, and towards the end of spring, a beautiful plant begins to bloom. The small-sized flowers of the starlet form attractive umbrella-shaped inflorescences. And the color of these flowers is mainly kept in white and pink tones. An important role in creating an impressive decorativeness of these flowers is also assigned to the wrapping leaves surrounding each inflorescence. These numerous leaves, giving the inflorescences a striking resemblance to asterisks, often have a different shade and are equipped with pointed tips.
In total, the starfish genus has about ten species.
Where grows
The starfish can be found in the Caucasus, in the vastness of Asia Minor, as well as in Central and Southern Europe. Most often it can be seen growing in valleys, in mountain meadows, in river floodplains and along the banks of streams.
Usage
Zvezdovka is actively used to create picturesque compositions of a natural garden, as well as in groups and mixborders. Moreover, this amazing plant is ideal for composing both live and winter bouquets.
In culture, starfish is most widespread in the United States - perhaps this is due to the fact that its graceful buds open just in time for Independence Day, which is considered the country's main holiday in the United States.
Growing and caring
Zvezdovka will grow well in open areas, both in partial shade and in the shade, while it can be grown on absolutely any garden soils, but if you are still guided by the preferences of the plant itself, it will not hurt to know which is the most preferable fertile and well-cultivated loams will be used for growing starfish.
The starlet needs watering only in case of a prolonged drought, in general, it is rarely watered, but at the same time quite abundantly, and the starlet should be watered at the root, while trying to wet the soil as deeply as possible.
Zvezdovka is good in that it can grow for a very long time in the same place without transplanting and dividing. And it is also very winter-hardy, however, the starfish also tolerates waterlogging and drought perfectly.
This plant is endowed with the ability to give quite abundant self-seeding, therefore, in order to timely prevent the appearance of unwanted shoots, all faded shoots must be cut off before seeds begin to set on them. And the starfish is usually propagated by sowing before winter. Most often, reproduction is carried out by means of seeds, however, if you want to preserve the varietal characteristics of the plant to the maximum, it is best to propagate the starlet by dividing the rhizomes. It is usually carried out in early spring, before the leaves bloom on the plants, after which the rhizomes should be placed in a carefully fertilized soil. And after a month you can see the first shoots!
