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Gardeners are constantly looking for bright and unusual plants for their flower beds. When originality and decorativeness are combined with ease of care, this is even better. The unpretentious and visually attractive Lychnis Rosetta is a very suitable option for those who cannot devote a lot of time and effort to the garden, but want to have a beautiful flower garden.
Description of the variety and characteristics
Lychnis, popularly known as “dawn”, is a perennial plant from the Clove family. In nature, it is widespread in the Far East, Siberia, and northern China. Based on different species of this plant, breeders have created many “cultivated” varieties, including Lychnis sparkling Rosetta. They successfully take root throughout Russia in temperate climates.
The flower attracted the attention of specialists for its decorativeness and unpretentiousness. Work in the USSR was actively carried out in the 70s of the twentieth century. Using the method of experimental polyploidy, new tetraploid varieties were created, differing from the “natural” ones in the larger size of the inflorescences and the brightness of their color.One of the most successful achievements of specialists is Lychnis sparkling Rosetta.
Unlike intensively branching wild specimens, the “cultivated” Lychnis Rosetta has one, but very thick and powerful stem. It does not need a garter or other support, and does not break even with strong gusts of wind and downpours. The stem branches only in the upper part.
Lychnis Rosetta is a perennial rhizomatous shrub. The average height is 60-65 cm, in favorable conditions the plant stretches up to 1 m. The stems and leaves are a noble dark green color. The leaf blades are large, leathery, rough to the touch, with a “hairy” edge. The stems are also rough. The shape of the leaves is heart-shaped and elongated, with a pointed tip. They are collected in a basal rosette. The number in each is 15-19 pieces.
The flowering is very bright and pleases the gardener for about a month and a half. It begins in the second ten days of July and ends at the end of summer.
Inflorescences reach 12-15 cm in diameter, individual flowers - 2-3.5 cm. The shape of the flowers is tubular, the inflorescences are something between spherical and pineal-capitate. They are quite loose, each with at least 3 flowers. The petals are twisted, rather wide, four-parted, very bright in color (something between lilac, crimson pink and crimson). Artists call this shade scarlet.
Blooming Lychnis Rosetta is like a bright “cloud” in a flower bed
After flowering, the plant bears fruit. According to the botanical classification, it is a polynut.It contains large bud-like seeds (up to 2 cm in diameter). They are suitable for propagation; new specimens of the flower can be obtained independently.
Methods of propagation of Lychnis sparkling Rosetta
Lychnis sparkling Rosetta can be propagated both vegetatively and generatively. The resulting plants retain the varietal characteristics of the “parent”.
Growing Lychnis Rosetta from seeds
When collecting seeds, it is important not to miss the moment, otherwise the “box” with them will burst and they will fly away. To prevent this from happening, when the fruit begins to crack, you need to wrap it in a napkin, securing it to the shoot.
Seeds remain viable for 3-4 years. Before planting, personally collected planting material, in addition to testing for germination and disinfection to prevent fungal diseases, needs stratification. The seeds are mixed with wet peat or sand and the container with them is placed in the refrigerator for 12-15 days.
To maintain germination for a long time, Lychnis Rosetta seeds should be stored in a paper or linen bag in a cool, dark room.
You can grow a flower and seedlings. But gardeners resort to this method of propagation relatively rarely. This means additional expenditure of time and effort, but seeds already have good germination rates.
Cuttings
The best time for cuttings is the first half of June. From healthy plants at the age of 2-3 years, cut off the tops of shoots 20-25 cm long.The lower oblique cut is kept in a solution of any root formation stimulator for 2-3 hours and planted in a greenhouse or garden bed, with a canopy made of white covering material placed on top. Established plants are transferred to the flowerbed in early autumn. Cuttings take root in almost 100% of cases.
Planting and caring for Lychnis Rosetta
Caring for Lychnis Rosetta is extremely simple. The plant does not require any specific agricultural technology. It adapts to a wide range of climates and weather conditions.
When and how to plant Lychnis Rosetta seeds
Seeds are planted both in spring (April-May) and before winter (October-November). Lychnis will bloom this summer or next year, but in both cases there will be few buds.
When planting in open ground, the depth of planting Lychnis Rosetta seeds depends on the time of year. In the spring, holes of 2-3 cm are enough, in the fall - 6-8 cm. In the second case, in order for the seeds to survive the winter, they are sprinkled with a mixture of humus and peat or sand, and covering material is covered over the flowerbed. The interval between future Rosetta lychnis bushes is 30-35 cm, row spacing is 40-50 cm.
Lychnis Rosetta is unpretentious in lighting - it adapts to both direct sunlight and partial shade. This does not affect the abundance and brightness of flowering.
How to care
Features of caring for Lychnis Rosetta:
- Watering. Usually once a week is enough. In hot weather they give water twice as often. The norm for an adult plant is 7-10 liters. It is best to water it in the morning; lychnis absorbs water most actively during the day.
- Loosening. It is carried out 1-2 times a month a couple of hours after watering. The depth of soil development in a flower bed with Lychnis Rosetta is 4-5 cm.
- Feeding. Lychnis Rosetta does not tolerate an abundance of organic matter. For this reason, it is preferable to plant it in a light, “poor” substrate. During the season (from mid-April to the end of August), it is fed approximately once a month with any fertilizer for flowering garden plants with a minimum of nitrogen in the composition.
- Wintering. Frost resistance of Lychnis Rosetta is down to -30-35 ºС. Therefore, the plant does not require any special preparation for cold weather. You just need to cut off the dried shoots, leaving “stumps” 3-5 cm high.
Watering for Lychnis Rosetta is the most important agrotechnical measure
Pests and diseases
Insects are not too interested in flowers. But occasionally it can be attacked by such “universal” garden pests as aphids and leaf rollers. It is worth inspecting the plant regularly to notice insects immediately after they appear.
An effective preventive measure is to spray the plant and soil in the flowerbed with any strong-smelling infusions every 10-12 days. For these purposes, they use pine needles, citrus peels, tops of tomatoes and potatoes, onions and garlic, wormwood, and tansy. If insects attack Lychnis Rosetta en masse, treat with any broad-spectrum insecticides (the frequency and concentration of the solution is indicated in the instructions).
The main cause of fungal diseases (rust, powdery mildew) is excessive “crowding” in the flower bed with rainy, cool weather conducive to their development.Removal of all affected parts of Lychnis Rosetta (leaves, flowers, shoots) and treatment with fungicides will help to cope with them.
Application in landscape design
In the flowerbed, Lychnis Rosetta is quite “self-sufficient”. A bright spot on a green background (for example, in the middle of a lawn or in front of decorative coniferous trees) immediately attracts attention. It looks good against the background of light walls, fences, and gazebos.
If you want to create a “company” for a plant, the following are suitable for this:
- bells;
- primrose;
- asters;
- chrysanthemums;
- carnations;
- gaillardia;
- nivyanik.
The simplest and most obvious solution is to make a border from Lychnis Rosetta
The plant is suitable for decorating mixborders, rockeries, and alpine slides. If you look at a photo of Lychnis Rosetta in flower beds, it is easy to understand that it combines very effectively with any white, cream and bright yellow flowers. For the winter, the plant can even be transplanted into a pot of suitable size and taken home with you.
Conclusion
Even a novice gardener can grow Lychnis Rosetta. The plant is very undemanding in terms of care, reproduces easily, and rarely suffers from diseases and pests. In a flowerbed, Lychnis Rosetta combines harmoniously with many plants, but it also looks good “alone.”
