2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Cortaderia (lat. Cortaderia) - a genus of herbaceous plants belonging to the Cereals family. The genus got its name due to the peculiarities of the structure of the foliage, to be more precise, the pointed edge (translated from Spanish "cortar" - to cut). Representatives of the genus are actively cultivated in European countries and the USA. One of the species (Sello cortaderia) is cultivated in South America, but not as an ornamental crop, but for paper production.
Plant characteristics
Cortaderia is represented by plants, the stem of which reaches a length of 2-3 meters. In the process of growth, plants form dense sods. The foliage is long, linear, arched, curved. Panicle-shaped inflorescences, silvery, not more than 50 cm long, consist of small flowers. Female flowers, in turn, are pubescent. The hairs of the pubescence are silky, silvery-white, sometimes with a pinkish tint. Male flowers are devoid of pubescence. Most species of cortaderia bloom in late summer - early autumn.
Among the most common species, the Sello cortaderia should be noted, also called the pampas grass. By the way, the species in question received its name in honor of the botanist F. Sello, who in 1818 studied the flora of Brazil. The plant got its second name (pampas grass) due to the fact that in nature it is found mainly in the pampas - the South American steppes located in the southeast of the mainland in the region of the mouth of the Rio Plata and bounded by the Andes.
Pampas grass is represented by perennial herbaceous plants, reaching a height of 2.5-3 m. It is characterized by rough, evergreen, long, bluish-green or silvery-gray foliage up to 2 m long. The tips of the foliage are very sharp, often with a sharp movement they cut the skin of the hands. The flowers are small, silvery; there are also yellowish and purple representatives. Flowers are collected in panicles up to 40 cm long. Flowering is long, occurs in the second or third decade of August and ends in the first or second decade of November.
To date, breeders are actively working with pampas grass. Unusual varieties have already been bred. For example, Sunningdale Silver is famous for its very fluffy panicles, for which it was awarded the AGM Award. The cultivar Albolineata is also of interest. It is characterized by an average height - no more than 200 cm and variegated foliage with yellowish tips. It should be noted that both varieties feel great not only in the subtropical zone. They quickly take root in any conditions, of course, except for the cold northern regions.
Lack of plants
The only drawback is that the plants form a lot of seeds (it's hard to believe, but on average, one plant gives more than 500,000 seeds per season), which are self-seeded, as a result of which a huge number of bushes are formed. They can overwhelm other crops and are difficult to control. Burning the grass does not work well as the root system remains intact. And you can get rid of unnecessary copies only by means of special chemicals that destroy the root system, thereby suppressing the spread.
Breeding features
Representatives of the genus are propagated mainly by dividing the bush. This is the easiest way. The division is carried out in early spring, part of the bush is separated with a shovel, and then transplanted to a new place along with an earthen lump. Also, the cortaderia is propagated by seeds in a way. Sowing is carried out in seedling boxes filled with a sand-peat mixture in the third decade of March - the first decade of April. Seeds are stratified before sowing (refrigerated for 30 days).
Since the seeds are very small in size, they are not buried, but only scattered over the surface of the mixture and slightly pressed, then the mixture is moistened with a spray bottle. The first shoots usually appear after two weeks. It is important to provide young plants with regular watering, diffused light and an air temperature of at least 18C. Before planting cortaderia seedlings in open ground, it is hardened. It is planted in the ground not earlier than the beginning of June, when the threat of night frosts has passed. With seed reproduction, flowering occurs only in the fifth year after sowing.
