Content
Heather aster is a perennial that is very popular in the USA and Canada and grows freely in nature. In Russia, the flower is not common. The plant is valued by gardeners for its decorative appearance, frost resistance and unpretentiousness.
Description of the ground cover heather aster
The plant belongs to the Asteraceae family. The culture is characterized by strong, well-branched shoots reaching 70-100 cm in height. Externally, the flower resembles a shaggy bush.
The upper leaf plates of the heather aster are small in size, up to 1-1.5 cm in length, needle-shaped, arranged alternately. Their color is dark green. The lower leaf plates grow up to 6 cm in length, spatulate in shape.
Flowering in most varieties of perennial groundcover heather aster continues throughout the fall: from September to November. The buds have a pleasant aroma and a variety of colors: light purple, white or blue with a brown center.
Wild aster has small, white or pinkish flowers.
The family is characterized not only by frost resistance, but also by the ability to withstand temperature fluctuations. Plants are not afraid of spring frosts and periods of drought.
The culture is characterized by rapid growth in width, which requires the construction of restrictions. If the branches are not tied up, they gradually bend downwards. Young shrubs have a spherical shape. Designers use this characteristic feature to create various landscape compositions from shrubs.
After flowering ends, flat-shaped seeds are formed. Since the buds of the heather aster form in the autumn months, the seed does not have time to ripen. This characteristic feature forces gardeners to abandon the propagation of heather aster by seeds.
Varieties of creeping heather aster
The plant began to be cultivated in 1732. Breeders have developed many hybrids that differ in the color of the buds and the size of the bush. The principles of planting and caring for heather small-flowered aster varieties are similar.
Pink Clou
The decorative properties of the flower are preserved throughout the summer and autumn months.
The shrub grows up to 30-40 cm in height and has a spherical shape. During the flowering period, it is strewn with small buds of a white-pink hue.
Herbstmyrthe (Herbstmyrthe)
The hybrid grows more than 1 m in height and is a beautiful spreading shrub. The inflorescences are collected from small buds of white color with a lilac tint. Their diameter does not exceed 10-12 mm. The middle of the flowers is yellow.
The flowering period of the heather aster is 1.5 months, the first buds are formed in early September
Snow flurry
The heather aster shrub is low-growing: no more than 10 cm in height. The plant grows quickly in the soil, strewn with white buds so densely that outwardly the flower seems to be covered with a snow-white blanket. Flowering lasts from September to November.
Landscape designers often prefer to plant heather aster on rocky hills so that the branches descend beautifully, reminiscent of an avalanche.
Blue Star
This variety of heather aster looks unusual: a bush of medium height, up to 70 cm in length, has squat branches with needle-like leaf plates. Externally, the plant looks like heather or dwarf conifer. Inflorescences appear in September and fade at the end of October. The color of the buds of the heather-like groundcover aster is soft blue with a purple tint and a yellow core. Often the photo does not convey the beauty of the variety’s shade.
Heather aster is suitable for single planting on a site or in groups, but gardeners also grow the plant in containers
Lady in Black
The small-flowered autumn aster reaches 120 cm in height. Under the weight of the flowers, the branches fall to the ground, so the plant looks like a ground cover. The color of the buds is milky white, the core is pinkish-brown.
Heather aster has good immunity and is not afraid of pests. Prefers sunny areas.
The variety looks great in a composition with astilbe, verbena bonnard, bright daffodils or tulips
The variety looks great in a composition with astilbe, verbena bonnard, bright daffodils or tulips
Golden Spray
Heather aster is branched, reaches a height of 80-100 cm. The leaf blades are linear, arranged alternately. Aster inflorescences form from September to October. The diameter of the bud does not exceed 1 cm. The flowers are white, but with a bright golden core.
When planting heather groundcover asters, they try to place other drought-resistant crops nearby: liatris or solidago, so that the group will enjoy flowering until late autumn.
The variety Golden Sprays is frost-resistant, prefers sunny places and fertile soils
Propagation of ground cover heather aster
Despite the fact that the plant can be propagated by seeds, this method is rarely used: collecting seed material is difficult due to the characteristics of flowering.
If this method suits the gardener, then you should use one of the options:
- Before the first frost, carefully tear off the aster inflorescences and lay them out in a thin layer on a sheet of paper on the windowsill;
- In the fall, dig up the bush and transplant it into a pot, and then bring it home, where it should be provided with lighting and a temperature of 18-20 °C.
These methods of obtaining seeds are imperfect: the material has a low level of germination.
You can get good crops if you collect the seeds as follows: pick the buds 50-60 days after the start of flowering, dry them, then collect the material. But this method is practically not feasible: frosts will not allow the seeds to ripen.
More often, gardeners prefer propagating heather aster by dividing or planting cuttings.
The procedure is carried out in the fall according to the following algorithm:
- Dig up the rhizome.
- Divide it into several parts, preserving the integrity of the root system as much as possible.
- Place the shares in the prepared holes and cover them with soil and water.
If, when dividing a plant, you damage the roots or separate a portion with a weak rhizome, then the heather aster may not take root.
To increase the shrub's chances of survival, it is recommended to cover it for the winter, since a weakened flower may not withstand frost.
The process of propagation by cuttings is long: the green shoot is rooted in June, having previously treated it with Kornevin. To do this, it is placed in the ground and covered with a plastic bottle.
Within 30 days, the heather aster cuttings should take root. After this, it should be ventilated periodically throughout the winter so that it gets used to the ambient temperature. In the spring, the cuttings are transferred to open ground. Flowering will occur in the second year.
Application in landscape design
Ground cover is a plant trait for which landscape designers are willing to forgive aster for late flowering. It is used for landscaping areas, parks and gardens. The shrub spreads beautifully along the ground and looks decorative even before flowering.
Low-growing varieties of heather asters go well in group compositions in flower beds with representatives of conifers, as well as irises and carnations
It is preferable to plant tall hybrids close to rudbeckia or decorative yarrow.
Heather asters also look decent in single plantings: it is preferable to place the shrubs in flowerpots or plant them along paths
Planting and caring for ground cover heather aster
All varieties have similar planting principles: sowing seeds, transplanting into open ground. The abundance of flowering of the shrub and the duration of its life depends on compliance with the rules of agricultural technology and the choice of location.
Deadlines
If you decide to use the seedling method, then the seeds are sown in February-March. If the material is planned to be planted directly in open ground, then the timing is adjusted: the procedure is carried out in May or late autumn, before the onset of frost.
Site selection and soil preparation
In the shade, the plant weakens and is susceptible to attack by pests and diseases. More abundant flowering occurs in varieties planted in an area open to sunlight.
Heather aster grows safely on sandy or clay soil
The soil is prepared in the fall, dug up, mineral fertilizers are applied - potassium salt, superphosphate.
In the spring, the soil under the heather aster bed is loosened, weeds are removed, and thoroughly watered.
Landing algorithm
Seeds should be planted in open ground as follows:
- form a bed;
- deepen the seeds 1 cm into the soil;
- water the soil;
- mulch the bed, spreading a thin layer of compost over the surface.
If you moisten the soil in a timely manner, the heather aster shoots appear within 8-10 days
When the sprouts become stronger, thinning is carried out, maintaining a distance of 15 cm between specimens.
If planting needs to be done in the fall, then the material is sown in frozen soil and covered with a layer of compost on top. Shoots will appear in the spring.
Aftercare for heather aster
The bush is unpretentious. In one place it is able to grow and bloom profusely for 5 years.
Principles of care:
- regular but moderate watering;
- feeding three times a season, in spring, when buds appear and after flowering (mineral and organic flower mixtures);
- loosening the soil and removing weeds;
- timely removal of faded buds and leaf blades.
Since the heather aster is frost-resistant, it does not need shelter. Preparation for the winter period involves pruning the aboveground part of the bush.
The shoots of the plant should protrude 20-30 cm in height above the ground
Pests and diseases
The perennial has strong immunity. It can only be weakened by poor care or climate, prolonged rains or other disasters.
Nematodes and spider mites can harm the heather aster. To destroy them, the plant is irrigated with an insecticide solution: Actellik, Akarin, Fitohit, Chlorpicrin, Neoron.
Heather aster growing in the shade is more often attacked by fungal pathogens. One of them is powdery mildew.
If a white coating appears on the leaf blades, the bush should be treated with copper sulfate
Rust can transfer from coniferous crops to heather aster. To determine it, you need to examine the underside of the plant's leaves: brown pustules will be present on it. Gradually the leaves curl and fall off.
As a therapeutic measure, all affected parts of the bush should be removed, the plant itself should be irrigated with fungicides, and the soil around it should be spilled with a solution of the drug.
Among the serious diseases that can affect heather asters is gray rot. To determine it, they inspect the plant; it changes color to brown, begins to rot and becomes covered with a smoky coating.
Treatment of shrubs from rot is carried out by irrigating the perennial with a 1% solution of Bordeaux mixture for 30 days with an interval of 10 days, and all affected parts are removed and burned
The main methods of prevention are competent care. The main causes of diseases are waterlogging of the soil and planting heather aster in the shade.
Conclusion
Heather aster is an unpretentious, but surprisingly beautiful perennial. It is characterized by late flowering and good frost resistance. Hybrids are used both for single plantings and for creating group compositions.
