2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Pulsatilla (lat. Pulsatilla) - shade-tolerant winter-hardy perennial from the Buttercup family. Other names are sleep-grass or lumbago.
Description
Pulsatilla is a very beautiful perennial, equipped with incredibly spectacular rosettes of basal leaves - with the onset of autumn, these rosettes acquire a bright orange-red color.
The height of the hairy stems of this plant is usually in the range of five to forty centimeters. And the flowers of the pulsatilla are always solitary, rather large in size and silky from pubescence. As a rule, they bloom either before the leaves appear, or in the spring at the same time with them. This plant usually blooms from April to May. And the fruits of the pulsatilla look like bizarre multi-roots.
In total, the Pulsatilla genus includes more than thirty species. Currently, this plant is listed in the Red Book.
Where grows
Most often, the beautiful pulsatilla can be seen in the steppes or in the dry meadows of Europe, the Caucasus and Siberia.
Usage
Pulsatilla is a consistently ornamental plant, which is why it can often be seen in many gardens. This plant is very beautiful not only at the time of flowering, but also at the fruiting stage - the pulsatilla fruits that look like many roots give it a special decorative effect during the fruiting period, and this fact is also very much appreciated by many gardeners.
Group plantings of pulsatilla will look especially great on the edges of larch and pine forest park areas, as well as on open lawns that mimic natural growing conditions. And in small garden plots, Pulsatilla will become a real decoration of rocky gardens and alpine slides. This beauty looks especially impressive when planted next to equally dry-loving species.
Pulsatilla has also found wide application in veterinary medicine. However, one should not forget that this plant is poisonous - its juice can provoke a number of different skin ailments.
Pulsatilla is also mentioned in ancient legends. According to an old German legend, a young shepherdess named Elsa grazed goats on the picturesque hillsides near her village. But one day, trying to hide in a hot spring afternoon from the bright sun, she completely unexpectedly wandered into the edge of a dense pine forest. And when the girl sank down on the soft grass under the pine tree, she suddenly heard a very melodic ringing - as if someone were playing on tiny bells. These marvelous chimes lulled Elsa, and she fell asleep, and waking up, the shepherdess found that all her goats had fled a long time ago. The frustrated girl looked around, and her gaze was presented with the source of iridescent sounds that lull her to sleep - as it turned out, the sounds came from the fluffy lilac bells of sleep-grass flowers ringing in the wind. These beautiful flowers were scattered all over the forest!
Growing and caring
Growing pulsatilla is not an easy task, but with due diligence, it is quite real. Despite the fact that in general this beauty prefers light shading, it will grow very well in sunny areas. As for the soil, the most suitable for its cultivation will be permeable sandy loose soil. And this plant responds very well to periodic feeding with humus.
Reproduction of pulsatilla is carried out exclusively by seeds - first they are sown in pots, and then, in spring or autumn, after some time they are moved into open ground, trying to maintain a distance of ten to twelve centimeters between plants. At the same time, it is important to take into account that the pulsatilla does not tolerate transplantation in an adult state! And even more so, do not dig up wild plants - being planted in the garden, they die very quickly!
