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Albus broom is an ornamental deciduous shrub from the legume family, which has become famous among gardeners due to its abundant and very spectacular early flowering. It is used by landscape designers to create beautiful landscapes; in addition, the plant is considered a good honey plant, which is important for beekeepers.
Description of broom Albus
Flexible thin branches of bright green color form a dense spherical crown up to 80 cm high and up to 120 cm in diameter. Small narrow trifoliate leaves about 2 cm long have a dark green color.
Flowering begins in April, even before the leaves appear, and continues until mid-June. At this time, the bush is abundantly covered with white flowers with a yellow tint, reminiscent of pea flowers. There are so many of them that the thin broom branches take on an arched shape, bending under their weight. The cooler the weather, the longer the flowering continues. The size of the corollas is about 3 cm.Like most brooms, the Albus variety is a good honey plant. This broom bears fruit in pods filled with small beans.
The average lifespan of Albus broom is about 10 years, after which it gradually loses its decorative qualities and dies. Unfortunately, pruning shrubs for rejuvenation purposes is ineffective.
Winter hardiness of Albus broom
A distinctive feature of the Albus variety is its frost resistance - adult plants can withstand temperatures down to -20 °C, so the shrub feels good in the middle zone without shelter. Plants under 3 years of age are less frost-resistant, so in the middle zone they need protection from frost.
Albus broom in landscape design
The shrub is widely used in landscape design not only due to its long, abundant flowering. The plant looks picturesque the rest of the time, since the thick and spreading, drooping branches with small leaves create a beautiful crown of the correct shape. Albus broom is used both in single and group plantings; several simultaneously flowering broom specimens of different varieties give an interesting effect. The shrub looks good in rocky gardens and goes well with conifers, ornamental grasses, perennials with small flowers, and ground cover plants. It is often used in container plantings, forming a standard tree or a lush bush. You can find this broom in hedges. This crop is also planted to strengthen slopes.
Due to toxicity, the plant should not be planted in close proximity to water bodies, so as not to harm their ecosystem.
Growing conditions for Albus broom
Albus broom is suitable for sheltered areas with diffused sunlight. Hot sun rays can harm the delicate foliage of the shrub. The area should be open and well heated. The shrub grows and blooms poorly in the shade and does not tolerate stagnant moisture, since it is a drought-resistant crop.
Planting and caring for Albus broom
Albus broom is an unpretentious plant, and if you choose the right place for planting and prepare the soil, it requires minimal care. The agricultural technology for growing this shrub involves infrequent watering in dry summers, fertilizing, mulching or shallow loosening, sanitary pruning after flowering, and covering young plants for the winter.
Preparation of planting material
If planting material is not grown independently from seeds or vegetatively, it should be purchased only in specialized stores or garden centers. Most often, cuttings that are 3–4 years old are sold. Younger or adult broom specimens take root much worse. The plant must be healthy, without broken shoots and dry leaves. It is better to purchase a seedling with a closed root system. An indicator of a young plant’s readiness to endure winter well is the presence of lignified lower shoots.
Albus broom is planted using the transshipment method, i.e., together with a clod of earth. This will protect the delicate root system of the seedling from damage and significantly increase its survival rate.
Preparing the landing site
The choice of location for Albus broom must be approached with particular care, since adult plants do not tolerate transplantation well.
Albus broom prefers slightly acidic or neutral soils and tolerates calcareous substrates well. It can grow even on poor soils, but loose fertile soils that allow air and moisture to pass through are best suited, so before planting you need to dig up the area with a spade, add mineral fertilizers for digging and prepare a substrate of peat, compost, river sand and turf soil.
Landing rules
Planting Albus broom is very simple. It is enough to adhere to the following algorithm:
- plant in the spring so that the plant has time to take root before the onset of cold weather;
- It is better to plant cuttings in the evening or in cloudy weather;
- prepare planting holes 2 times larger than the root system of the seedling;
- add a layer of drainage (broken brick or pebbles) to the bottom. The heavier the soil, the thicker the drainage pad should be;
- pour a layer of fertile soil over the drainage;
- place the cuttings in the hole and cover with soil to the level of the root collar;
- compact and water the soil well;
- mulch the tree trunk circle;
- If the weather is hot and sunny, at first it is advisable to shade the newly planted plants from direct sunlight.
Broom can be replanted only in extreme cases and should be done with extreme caution, since an adult plant has great difficulty taking root in a new place.
Watering and fertilizing
With normal rainfall, drought-resistant broom does not need additional watering. In dry, hot weather, the plant is watered abundantly, but not often. Mulching allows you to reduce the number of waterings. Peat is best suited as mulch.
Fertilizing of broom plantings is carried out twice per season. In the spring, nitrogen-containing fertilizers, for example, urea, are applied, and in the summer, phosphorus-potassium complexes are applied. To stimulate vegetation, once every 2 weeks you can add wood ash, scattering it around the tree trunks.
Preparing for winter
Only young plants up to three years of age and rooting cuttings need shelter for the winter. They are covered with dry leaves, spruce branches or non-woven material. Mature bushes do not need shelter, but it would not be a bad idea to mound the trunks high with soil, peat or other organic mulch.
Reproduction
It is very easy to propagate brooms. Unlike many varietal ornamental shrubs, Albus reproduces well by seeds. Sometimes, to increase germination, seed material is pre-stratified - the beans are wrapped in cloth and kept in the refrigerator in the vegetable compartment for two months. You can do without this procedure. In both cases, in the spring, the seeds are soaked in warm water for 2 days, then sown in boxes filled with a mixture of peat and sand to a depth of 1 cm. The boxes are covered with glass or film and left at room temperature. Grown-up seedlings are transplanted into individual containers with a substrate consisting of turf, humus soil and sand in a ratio of 2:1:0.5, respectively.
Transplantation into open ground is carried out in the spring, when the seedlings reach two years of age.
Propagation of Albus broom using cuttings is no less popular. Young green shoots are cut off after flowering and placed in soil consisting of peat and sand. Just as when forcing seedlings, the container with cuttings must be covered with transparent material and watered periodically. After 35 - 45 days, the cuttings will take root, and next spring they can be transplanted to a permanent place.
You can use the method of propagation by layering. When the adult bush has flowered, the lower branches are bent, secured to the ground and sprinkled with soil. Already next spring, the rooted daughter layers can be calved and replanted.
Diseases and pests
Albus broom is little susceptible to diseases and pests. Specific pests of broom, including the Albus variety, are the broom moth, which is controlled with dichlorvos, and the broom moth, which is sensitive to insecticides.
Black spot and powdery mildew in well-groomed plants are rare, but pose the greatest danger; at the first signs of disease, plants are treated with copper sulfate and Fundazol. For preventive purposes, it is recommended to spray plants with a copper-soap mixture.
Conclusion
Albus broom is a very promising shrub for landscaping various areas. Its long, spectacular flowering can transform both private gardens and city streets. Frost resistance, unpretentiousness and disease resistance make it especially attractive for growing in the middle zone.Albus broom is very hardy, it is able to survive with virtually no care, but truly luxurious flowering can only be achieved if agricultural practices are followed.
