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Landscape designers use a certain set of ornamental plants when landscaping areas. Each creative specialist gradually replenishes the collection with new species. Recently, professionals in the field of territory design often choose rare plant crops. Photos and descriptions of shrub amorpha will be of interest not only to designers, but also to amateur gardeners.
Amorpha shrub blooms and bears fruit in temperate climates, adapting to cold winter conditions
Description and photo of shrub amorpha
Shrub amorpha - amorpha fruticosa (shapeless, ugly - lat.) - belongs to the Legume family. The name of the decorative crop does not correspond to reality. The contours of the amorphous bush are distinguished by graphic clarity due to straight, upward-pointing shoots. The height of the plant does not exceed 3 m. The bark of the branches is dark, young shoots are covered with light hairs.
Small elliptical leaves are connected into imparipinnate plates up to 30 cm long, forming a crown
Amorpha shrubby blooms profusely in the first half of summer. At the tops of the branches, inflorescences are formed in the form of a spike, brush, panicle, consisting of small bell buds. The shade of the petals of the ornamental plant varies from white to purple. There are types of bush with yellow or burgundy flowers. The miniature calyx consists of five shortened teeth of equal or different lengths.
After pollination, amorpha shrubby produces pods with fruits. Each size is 8 cm long and 2 cm wide. One or two seeds with a smooth, shiny surface are formed inside the pod. The size of the bean is approximately 1.5 x 3 cm. Up to 0.5 kg of fruit can be collected from one bush. In bushes growing in free territory, self-seeding of bean fruits occurs mechanically.
If the plant is planted on the bank of a river, the seeds are spread by water
Amorpha shrub is immune to diseases and pests, which is appreciated by gardeners who do not have time to care for plantings
Types and varieties
All types of amorpha are deciduous shrubs or subshrubs. The botanical genus includes 18 species, 10 of which are actively used in landscape design. The most common type of bush in the wild is considered to be gray amorpha.
Greyish amorpha, a plant with violet-blue flowers collected in racemes, is found quite often in southern cities.
In botanical gardens and on private plots you can see rarer types of ornamental crops, such as:
- amorpha paniculata - a plant with long leaves and panicle-shaped inflorescences;
Amorpha paniculata has high vitality: even a frozen bush is soon restored
- amorpha is naked - the crown of the bush seems airy, and the foliage seems silky
In bare amorpha, the diameter of the crown is half as large as its height
- herbaceous amorpha - a variety with branches covered with silvery edges and blue inflorescences;
Amorpha herbaceous grows very quickly and forms the crown of the bush
- amorpha dwarf - a bush up to 1 m high, with purple tassels.
In Amorpha dwarf, the crown tier and leaf delicacy are strongly expressed
In addition to the main forms, various varieties of shrubby amorpha are popular. Landscape designers and gardeners especially value:
- Albiflora - a variety with milky white flowers;
Albifola has spike-shaped racemes with small, snow-white flowers
- Pendula is a plant characterized by drooping branches;
Amorpha Pendula is shaped like a miniature weeping willow
All types and varieties of amorpha shrubby are undemanding to the composition of the soil. Agriculturalists consider the main factor when growing ornamental crops to be the allocation of sufficient land space for planting.
Beneficial features
Amorpha is an excellent honey plant. Bees prefer fragrant bushes to other plant objects. During the flowering period, the increase in honey in one hive is approximately 1.8 kg per day. Initially, the product produced by bees has a reddish color. Over time, honey becomes colorless. The peculiarity of this type of useful product is that it does not crystallize for a long time.
The use of amorpha in folk medicine
Amorpha shrub is not just an ornamental plant. The culture contains large quantities of essential oils, the aroma of which can be felt even when rubbing the leaves in the palms.
Also includes:
- vitamins B, C, K;
- microelements;
- amino acids;
- peptides;
- amorphine;
- flavonoids and other valuable substances.
The ornamental plant is used in folk and official medicine. The amorphine component has a neurotropic effect. On its basis, the drug Fruticin was created, used in the treatment of neurological disorders.
Folk recipes suggest preparing decoctions, water or alcohol tinctures from the flowers and fruits of the amorphous shrub. Medications are used to alleviate conditions in a number of diseases:
- tachycardia;
- cardioneurosis;
- vegetative-vascular dystonia;
- epilepsy.
Along with hawthorn, valerian and motherwort, amorpha is part of herbal mixtures designed to relieve anxiety and excitement.
Previously, products based on the fruits of the plant were used to reduce symptoms in the initial stages of schizophrenia.
Contraindications for use
Products containing amorpha shrubby are contraindicated in case of individual intolerance. It is not recommended to use preparations with herbal components for children, pregnant women, and nursing mothers.
Growing shrub amorpha
Shrub amorpha is unpretentious. When deciding on a place to plant a plant, preference should be given to the site:
- with good lighting;
- protected from drafts;
- with drained soil.
Any soil is suitable for growing ornamental crops, but amorpha develops best on light, calcareous soil with a high alkaline level. When planting plants in the ground, it is recommended to add compost to improve its nutritional qualities and river sand to keep the soil loose.
Landing
Shrub amorpha should be planted in the spring, when the soil is well warmed up. Holes are dug for young bushes. The size of each hole should correspond to the volume of the seedling root along with the earthen ball. The work algorithm is as follows:
- In the planting pit, a drainage layer is formed from crushed stone, pebbles, expanded clay or broken brick.
- The hole is lightly sprinkled with soil.
- Place the seedling on the soil layer and bury it, but the root collar should not be deepened.
After planting, water the bush so that the soil is well moistened. Finally, mulch the tree trunk circle with compost.
When constructing an alley, border or living fence from amorphous shrub, a distance between bushes of at least 0.5 m should be maintained. After individual plants close together into a continuous line, corrective pruning is necessary. Then the plantings form a green wall as they grow, but the bushes rarely bloom if they are densely spaced.
Amorphous bushes help cover the bare trunks of tall trees in the garden
Features of care
Caring for shrub amorpha is simple. Since the plant is classified as drought-resistant, water it moderately.Regularly moisten the soil only for recently planted bushes. Due to the fact that the ornamental crop grows well in poor soils, it does not require fertilizer. Only plantings located on completely infertile land need feeding. Mineral complexes or organic compounds (humus, compost), which are incorporated into the soil when digging, are suitable as fertilizers for the plant.
Amorpha bushes require annual sanitary pruning aimed at removing damaged, dried shoots. Experienced gardeners recommend shaping the plant in spring or autumn. The procedure is necessary to give the bush a well-groomed appearance. Experienced gardeners regularly remove root shoots from ornamental crops. Agrotechnical operations are carried out to control the growth of plantings.
Although shrub amorpha is a frost-resistant crop, it is necessary to protect the plant in those regions where winter temperatures are below -20 0C. Due to cold weather, the shoots freeze, and the rhizome may also suffer. To preserve the ornamental crop, at the end of October the soil is mulched using natural materials:
- peat;
- compost;
- dry leaves.
To top it off, the branches of the bush are bent to the surface of the ground and covered with spruce branches.
In the absence of spruce branches, a thick layer of fallen leaves is used to protect plants.
Reproduction methods
Usually, the seed method is used to propagate shrub amorpha. Experienced gardeners use vegetative methods for propagating ornamental crops.
Seeds
Before planting, prepare nutritious, loose soil. Immediately before sowing, soak the seeds for ten hours in warm water.To reduce germination time, stratification is carried out. To do this, the seeds are placed on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator and kept for two months at temperatures from 0 0 up to +5 0C. If the seed is old, it is subjected to scarification. Damaging the shell with sandpaper speeds up the process of sprouts hatching from the ground. A similar result can be achieved by dipping the seeds in boiling water for a few seconds. Details of growing amorpha shrubby from seeds are presented in the video:
By cuttings
Cuttings of the plant are carried out in early June. Cuts of the workpieces are treated with a root formation stimulator, planted in containers with a peat-sand mixture and covered with cellophane or glass on top. The cuttings are grown in a greenhouse environment with high air humidity. When the ground warms up, the seedlings are transferred to open ground.
Dividing the bush
Overgrown plants can be spread by division. The procedure is carried out carefully, trying not to damage the mother bush. The roots are separated using a sharp knife, and the sections are sprinkled with crushed charcoal. While the young plant adapts to its new location, the soil is regularly moistened.
Procurement of raw materials
Flowers of amorpha shrub should be collected at the stage of bud formation. The fruits are harvested when they turn light brown.
As a rule, the color change of beans occurs in August-September
The fruits of the plant should be collected using cotton gloves and pruning shears. Drying is carried out in the open air, spreading a clean cloth under a canopy.Raw materials are considered ready for storage when they become brittle. You can use a special drying device, setting the mode to a division not exceeding +50 0C. Plant materials are poured into thick paper bags, linen bags or glass containers. The shelf life of fruits and flowers without loss of healing properties is two years.
Conclusion
Photos and descriptions of amorpha shrubby help to popularize this beautiful plant in Russia. The ornamental crop, unpretentious to growing conditions, has undoubted aesthetic advantages. One should not discount the fact that the plant is a honey plant and is used in folk medicine.
