Phlox: Planting, Leaving

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

Phloxes are interesting in that their appearance cannot be characterized by any common features. Depending on the climate and growing conditions, this flower changes its appearance

On the heights of about four thousand meters, low and terry phloxes with branched stems grow. At the same time, with the favorable influence of the weather, phlox are straight shrubs that can have a height of thirty to one hundred and eighty centimeters. There are also phloxes in the form of dwarf shrubs. Erect phloxes are the most developed and popular in horticultural culture. Phloxes have their own fruits in the form of an oval-shaped box. All varieties of this flower, except for the Drummond phlox, belong to a perennial type of plant.

How to grow phlox from seeds?

Basically, gardeners delight themselves and the guests of the site with the flowering of phlox from May to the end of September. As reproduction, only vegetative methods can be used - through cuttings, layering or division. However, some summer residents still choose the seed planting method. You need to collect seeds from the autumn season in order to sow them before the beginning of the winter period of the year (November-December). The choice of the site also needs to be approached responsibly, because the flowers will amaze with their beauty for several years.

You can plant phlox even if the first snow has already fallen. It is required to scatter the seeds on the frozen soil so that the distance between them is about five centimeters. Top them should be sprinkled with a small amount of sifted soil (thickness from 1 to 1.5 cm), cover it all with snow on top. It is good if the ground is prepared in advance, as it should not be cold. But there is also the possibility of buying soil in a specialized store. Already in early spring, it will be possible to observe the seedlings bursting through the ground. As soon as the first two sheets appear, a pick should be carried out, placing the specimens twenty centimeters apart.

Usually seed propagation is seen in the annual phlox type. To do this, in the spring season, you will need to prepare a special bed, where the seeds are scattered at a distance of four centimeters from each other. Then you need to water them from a sprayer or spray bottle, and then cover with plastic wrap. In this case, it is not necessary to sprinkle a bed on top with soil, but every day it will be necessary to raise the film material for a short period of time in order to shake off the resulting condensation. The seeds need to breathe a little. Remove the polyethylene after the first shoots appear.

How to plant perennial phlox?

The cultivation of perennial and annual crops in the form of phloxes have a lot of similar features and characteristics. However, they also have some differences. Perennial phlox are planted in the spring. But after the procedure, the site must be mulched with humus or dry peat material. Also, the distance between plant specimens should be at least fifteen to twenty centimeters. These flowers require space to grow. Phlox purchased in the fall season does not need to be planted immediately. You should dig them a little to a depth of twenty centimeters. However, this must be done in a place where there is protection from the wind. After the soil freezes, you will need to cover the phlox with dried leaves or peat.

There are times when the planting of a perennial type of phlox flower culture occurs in the autumn. For example, this applies to situations where a bush of flowers grows very strongly in a garden or flower bed. In this situation, it is necessary to dig it out of the soil from the last weeks of August to the first ten days of September, divide the root system by removing the middle part of the bush, and then plant the lateral processes in other places.

Even in the autumn season, phlox are planted, which were obtained in the spring with the help of cuttings. If planting occurs in the fall, then compost will need to be added to the ground. In a situation with a clay type of soil, sand will also be required. Peat is placed in the sandy soil. Phlox planting holes should be located at a distance of half a meter from each other. Delenki will need to be placed in them.

The root system should be straightened horizontally, then dug in to a shallow depth. In the absence of precipitation, planted flower crops will need to be watered abundantly - about two liters of water for each bush. As for the frequency, two or three times a week are enough here. After the soil dries up a little, it should be loosened and mulched with humus or peat. The mulch layer is four centimeters.