2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Caragana (lat. Caragana) - deciduous shrub or tree of the legume family. Another name for acacia. In nature, Karagan is found in mountainous regions, forest and forest-steppe zones of Central Asia, Siberia and the Far East. Currently, about 90 species have been identified, 6 of them are used in traditional medicine. The Latin name of the plant is derived from two words "kara" - black and "gana" - ear, which is directly related to black-eared foxes living in thickets of one of the caragana species.
Characteristics of culture
Caragana is a multi-stemmed shrub, less often a small tree with greenish-gray bark 1-7 m high. Leaves are compound, paired, alternate, consisting of 2-10 pairs of whole leaves. Flowers are small, yellow or golden-yellow, single or collected in bunches of 2-5 pieces.
The fruit is a pod, presented in the form of a long and narrow pod with a length of 3.5-5 cm, the valves of which twist when cracking. Caragana fruits are edible, in terms of the content of proteins, carbohydrates and fats they are not inferior to peas. Fruits ripen in July.
Karagana is distinguished by increased drought resistance, frost resistance and smoke resistance, easily adapts to urban conditions, grows without any problems along the shores of fresh water bodies. Karagana is a good honey plant.
Growing conditions
Caragana grows well in open sunny areas, and semi-shaded places are not forbidden. The culture is not demanding for soil conditions, it grows best on loose, moderately moist, sandy loam soils with a large amount of peat. Caragana also grows on saline soils.
Reproduction and planting
Propagated to caragana by seeds, layering, cuttings, grafting and dividing the bush. The most effective and simple way is considered to be seed. Seeds are sown immediately after collection in open ground, or in early spring after daily soaking. The planting depth of caragana seeds is 3-4 cm. The first two years, the seedlings develop very slowly, later the growth increases and by the age of five the plants already reach 1.5-2 m, and then they bloom.
By dividing the bush and layering, the tree caragana, the Ussuri caragana and the shrub caragana are propagated, the layering is separated from the main bush, cutting the binder rhizome and digging it up together with an earthen clod. This procedure is carried out in spring or autumn. Cutting is also quite effective, usually up to 70% of cuttings are rooted. Before planting the cuttings in the ground, they are treated with a 0.05% solution of indoolylbutyric acid.
Care
Due to the fact that caragana enriches the soil with nitrogen, it does not need additional fertilizing, although it responds positively to the introduction of rotted organic matter. Mineral fertilizers are applied only when planting young seedlings. Watering is carried out regularly and abundantly. The soil near the trunks is periodically loosened and rid of weeds, if possible - mulch.
Every spring shrubs undergo sanitary pruning: old, diseased, broken and frozen branches are removed. Tree caragana, or yellow acacia, also requires formative pruning, this is necessary so that the bushes and trees form a lush and beautiful crown. It is not necessary to cover the plants for the winter, almost all species can easily tolerate even severe frosts.
Pest control is an equally important procedure for caring for caragana. Dangerous for the culture of golden beetles, leaf beetles, glass beetles, longhorn beetles and acacia aphids. To combat them, use approved insecticidal preparations or infusions of various herbs.
Application
Caragana is used as an ornamental plant. In Russia, the shrub is grown everywhere: on city streets, in gardens, parks. Often, Karagana is used in the formation of hedges and protective strips along roads and fields. The plant is especially decorative during flowering.
Karagana is also used in group and specimen plantings. In the latter case, the standard caragana looks the most harmonious. Since the plant has a very strong root system, it is ideal for strengthening ravine and sandy slopes. By the way, caragan is widely used in folk medicine, its flowers help to get rid of headaches, heartburn, sclerosis, and liver diseases.
