Care features
We will find out what kind of care will ensure the prosperous life and long flowering of this magnificent ornamental shrub.
Watering
Since the root system of the plant is superficial, it cannot take moisture from the deep layers of the soil. Therefore, regular and sufficiently abundant watering is so important when growing a flower. Watering should start in spring, as soon as buds begin to form and finish just before snow falls in the fall. It is recommended to moisturize the plant especially abundantly before wintering: this will increase the frost resistance of its roots.
The average frequency of watering in normal weather is twice a week. If it is too dry and hot outside, watering is carried out in 2-3 days. And in wet, rainy weather, it is better to postpone the next humidification procedure in order to prevent the formation of a swamp in the flower bed.
The water should be used soft and not too cold. Defend tap water beforehand, otherwise, due to the high content of chlorine and lime, it will quickly make the soil alkaline.
Important: after watering, it is recommended to mulch the soil in the flower bed. This technique will help keep the roots moist for a longer period.
Top dressing
In early spring, you need to feed the hydrangea with full complex fertilizer. During the period of bud formation, a second feeding is carried out using fertilizers with a low nitrogen content. In the fall, it is recommended to add potassium and phosphorus to better prepare the plant roots for the upcoming cold weather.
Pruning
Hydrangea Diamond Rouge is pruned annually. The procedure is carried out in the spring, choosing the time early, before the start of sap flow. When pruning, all shrub shoots should be shortened by about a third of the length, if the branches are damaged, then more. Be sure to get rid of the shoots growing inside the crown and frostbitten over the winter, weak, rotten.
Keep in mind that flower buds are formed in this case on last year's shoots and the current year. Therefore, you can painlessly and without consequences part with all shoots older than two years of age, and one-year-olds and shoots with new buds should be left as much as possible.
Note that the plant is easy to carry the haircut and quickly recovers after it, increases the previous volume and splendor. On the contrary, after regular pruning, the shrub seems to come to life, it becomes more beautiful and elegant. In addition, he already gets rid of many pests and diseases by removing old broken branches.
If quality shoots remain after pruning, they can easily be used for further rooting. This is exactly what most literate gardeners do. Note that semi-lignified cuttings of hydrangea root after cutting by almost 100%.
Attention: if the main procedure is carried out in the fall, then in the spring only sanitary pruning is needed. But from the fall, it is recommended to shorten the shoots more - by two-thirds of the length
Wintering
The plant has quite a decent frost resistance, so there are no special problems with wintering. Without shelter, the shrub even survives 29-degree frosts, but only if they are short-lived. If the climate in your area is more severe, it is still recommended to insulate the plant before winter.
If we are talking about hydrangeas of the first and second years of life, it is recommended to insulate them in any case. This does not require much work - you just need to overlay the bush with spruce branches, sprinkle the root circle with bark, sawdust or dry straw.
Important: the plant's frost resistance becomes higher with age. We met a beautiful hydrangea called Diamond Rouge
This garden shrub pleases with its beauty throughout the summer, has a high cold resistance, and is not too demanding to care for. It is not difficult to grow a flower: applying in practice the simple recommendations from our article, an inexperienced gardener will also cope with the task.
We met a beautiful hydrangea called Diamond Rouge. This garden shrub pleases with its beauty throughout the summer, has a high cold resistance, and is not too demanding to care for. It is not difficult to grow a flower: applying in practice the simple recommendations from our article, an inexperienced gardener will also cope with the task.
Perhaps it is difficult to find a person who does not like the Diamond Rouge hydrangea paniculata. For several years now I have been growing this luxurious tree on my site.
If you decide to decorate your summer cottage with this beautiful plant, then I recommend Diamond Rouge to you! How to properly plant and grow a hydrangea of this variety, I will tell you in this article.
Hydrangeas of different types in the landscape design of the site
As for the external features of the shrub, it is not possible to choose the best type and variety. Each gardener will be able to distinguish and highlight the variety, taking into account their own preferences.
Note! Landscape designers may ignore the difference and use all three of the above types of hydrangea with equal success. Any of the options presented, with proper care, is characterized by abundant flowering and a lot of greenery. Thanks to this feature, the shrub becomes a real decoration of any territory.
Thanks to this feature, the shrub becomes a real decoration of any territory.
Any of the options presented, with proper care, is characterized by abundant flowering and a lot of greenery. Thanks to this feature, the shrub becomes a real decoration of any territory.
All hydrangeas go well with most types of shrubs and trees, including fruit, evergreen and conifers. The varieties are effectively complemented by mowed lawns and undersized flowering plants. With the help of hydrangea, you can arrange alpine slides and artificial reservoirs located on the site. And the result will look amazing.
Hydrangea Great Star breeding
Panicle hydrangea Great Star: photo of the variety
You can propagate the Great Star hydrangea by layering, cuttings and seeds.
The first option is the simplest, it is enough to choose the healthiest and strongest shoot and gently bend it to the surface of the ground. Then he is pinned with the ground and fixed with the help of some kind of weight or pinned with a wire. After it is regularly watered and fed. These procedures can be carried out in conjunction with the mother plant. By the next seasons, the cuttings will take root and can be separated and transplanted into a pre-prepared area.
If it is customary to grow plants using cuttings, then this can be done from spring to autumn, as the gardener wants.
Carrying out this procedure in the spring, it is necessary to cut off cuttings from last year's lignified shoots, when the buds begin to swell.
The presence of two internodes on the handle is a must. The stalk is cut at an acute angle, the top must remain flat.
Then the cuttings are dipped for several hours in preparations that stimulate root formation and are planted in a container with a previously prepared soil mixture from torus and sand to a depth of 5 centimeters. In order for the plant to take root well, it must be watered and placed in greenhouse conditions. After 30 days, the young seedling will take root and can be planted in the garden. Plants of the first year of life require protection for the period of winter cold.
It is important to remember that the shoots of the first year of life are not suitable for cuttings. The seed method of propagation of panicle hydrangea is only suitable for planting at home
To grow this way bushes will need a lot of effort, time and patience. This is probably why this method is not popular among gardeners. It is also important to know that shrubs rarely grow from seeds that look like the mother plant.
Before sowing, you need to prepare a soil mixture, it should include sand, peat and soil. The seeds do not need to be buried, they must be scattered over the surface and lightly sprinkled with earth. After that, the container is covered with plastic wrap and removed to a place where the air temperature will not drop below 17 degrees. The film must be lifted periodically, allowing the plants to breathe.
The first shoots can be seen in 4 weeks. As soon as the first leaves appear, a pick is carried out during which only strong seedlings are selected and they are transplanted in separate containers.
Nitrogen-based fertilizers can sometimes be added as they grow.
Transplanting to the garden begins only two years later, but before that they must undergo a hardening procedure. To do this, you need to take the containers outside and daily increase the time spent there.
The seed method of propagation of panicle hydrangea is only suitable for planting at home. To grow the bushes in this way will take a lot of effort, time and patience. This is probably why this method is not popular among gardeners.
It is also important to know that shrubs rarely grow from seeds that look like the mother plant.
Before sowing, you need to prepare a soil mixture, it should include sand, peat and soil. The seeds do not need to be buried, they must be scattered over the surface and lightly sprinkled with earth
After that, the container is covered with plastic wrap and removed to a place where the air temperature will not drop below 17 degrees. The film must be lifted periodically, allowing the plants to breathe.
The first shoots can be seen in 4 weeks. As soon as the first leaves appear, a pick is carried out during which only strong seedlings are selected and they are transplanted in separate containers.
Nitrogen-based fertilizers can sometimes be added as they grow.
Transplanting to the garden begins only two years later, but before that they must undergo a hardening procedure. To do this, it is necessary to take the containers outside and increase the time spent there every day.
Transplant after purchase in open ground
It is recommended to plant the plant in the ground in the spring. First of all, you should choose the place where to plant the hydrangea.
Important! The shrub is very moisture-loving, but does not like stagnant water. Therefore, you should not plant it in swampy places or lowlands.
The flower needs constant soft sunlight. The plant must be protected from the wind.
After choosing a place, you will need to dig a hole of about 60 by 60 cm, it is recommended to put coniferous opal on its bottom, sprinkle on top with a small amount of garden soil. After that, take humus and sour peat in equal quantities and also pour it into the pit. The final stage of preparation is the addition of superphosphate. Then a seedling is placed in the hole, watered abundantly, the roots are covered with earth.
Pruning rules
Usually, this procedure is carried out in the spring, so that by the time of flowering the plant looks as it should. By pruning, the hydrangea will look healthy and beautiful, and the inflorescences will become more luxuriant. It is better to try to catch the period when the kidneys swell.
It is not recommended to prune shrubs in autumn, as this can harm and reduce the plant's hardiness before winter, as a result of which it may die.
There are several types of trimming, namely:
During sanitary pruning, as a rule, dried branches and old inflorescences are removed.
Forming gives the shrub a picturesque look and helps control the density of the plant. Usually they are engaged in this type of shrub decoration in the first 2 years after planting.This makes it possible to give the plant the necessary shape and allows you to set the desired direction of growth for new shoots.
The rejuvenating look of pruning gives the opportunity to refresh the hydrangea's look.
The execution procedure and basic rules are as follows:
- before planting, the plant must be thinned out and damaged parts must be removed;
- after a year, sanitary pruning should be performed to enable the plant to develop a strong root system;
- from the second year, the formation of a shrub begins and the removal of old inflorescences and shoots, it is worth leaving only the strong ones so that the plant can survive the winter well.
It is important to remember that every autumn old inflorescences must be removed in order to avoid the accumulation of snow on them, since under its weight the shrub can break
Peculiarities
Great Star is an original ornamental shrub variety bred by French breeders using wild plant species native to East Asia. Description of the botanical characteristics of the species.
- In their natural environment, the bushes reach 10 m in height, but this cultivated variety grows to no more than 3 m.
- In diameter, the size of the shrub is up to 1.5 m.
- The root system is well developed, branched, widely spreads in different directions in the surface layer of the earth, sometimes in size exceeds the volume of the aboveground part.
- The branches of the shrub are even, straight and firm, the bark on them is light brown.
- The leaves are large, oval-shaped and have a deep green color, which changes to yellowish-silvery with the arrival of autumn.
- Striking panicles (25 cm) with two types of flowers appear at the ends of long branches. Some are fruiting, small, with an enchanting smell, their petals quickly fall off, and over time they form into a seed box. Larger flowers, up to 10 cm in diameter, have 4 petals, slightly curving towards the middle, and they are located above small flowers on long thin stems. Their color can be snow-white or bluish, depending on the composition of the earth.
The variety has high winter hardiness, but in cold weather it must be protected, since branches can break under the snow, and in severe frosts they can freeze. "Great Star" is a long-lived culture, its life expectancy is about 60 years.
