Proper planting and care of perennial lavatera, photo. Lavatera: garden rose, cultivation and care Lavatera three-month planting and care

If you are wondering what flowers to plant on your property to make it both beautiful and easy to care for, then you won’t find a better place for lavatera. The plant blooms from June until frost. It is extraordinarily beautiful, easy to care for, requires minimal labor, and is drought-resistant: in a word, a godsend for very busy gardeners. This article will tell you how to grow lavatera in open ground without hassle.

Lavatera got its name from the word of Latin origin “lavatum” - to wash, since the color of the flowers is very pure. Lavatera is popularly called khatma or dog rose.

Three types of lavatera are used in gardening:

Lavatera annual or in another way it is called Lavatera three months. It grows up to 120 cm in height and the entire bush is abundantly covered with flowers, which makes it especially decorative. Blooms from July until frost.

Lavatera annual

The most popular varieties in our latitudes:

Silver Cap with salmon-colored flowers;
Mont Blanc is a white flowered variety;
Lovelines blooms with pink flowers;
Pink Beauty has bright pink buds;
The Ruby Queen features carmine-colored flowers;
Sun Goddess is a mixture of lavatera seeds with a wide range of flower colors.

Lavatera perennial

Lavatera perennial or Thuringian. The most popular varieties:

Lilac Lady - has lilac flowers;
Bregon Springs – with pink buds;
Burgundy Vine - blooms with pink flowers;
IKatcher is a variety with beautiful pink flowers.

Two year old lavatera

Two year old lavatera or tree lavatera. It grows up to two meters in height and has a slender stem with reddish-purple flowers similar to hibiscus inflorescences. Varieties:

Candy Floss - has light pink flowers;
Rosea - with beautiful salmon-colored flowers.

There are three more types of lavatera, which are intended for warm latitudes, but can also be grown here:

Lavatera seaside, which has lilac flowers in two shades;

Lavatera maritima

Cretan lavatera has pubescent tomentose stems and purple or lilac flowers;

Cretan Lavatera

Moorish lavatera is the most heat-loving with pubescent stems and purple flowers.

Moorish Lavatera

Attention! Lavatera is not only an ornamental plant. The perennial Thuringian lavatera is a medicinal crop.

Reproduction and planting of lavatera

Lavatera propagates by seeds. The seeds are collected in early autumn, by which time the plant's inflorescences have turned into brown boxes. If you shake the box, the contents will rustle, which means the seeds are ripe and ready for harvesting.

Lavatera seeds

The plant is grown in two ways:

Seeds are sown immediately in open ground in May. Before planting, dig up the soil, adding a bucket of humus and a spoonful of nitroammophoska per square meter. Then the seeds are sown to a depth of 1 cm. After a couple of weeks, seedlings appear.
Seedlings. First you need to decide on the timing of planting seeds for seedlings. If the flower garden is to be decorated in May, then the seeds should be sown in early March. Earlier sowing will produce larger plants. Before sowing lavatera seeds, it is necessary to pour drainage into the bottom of the boxes and soil on top. The seeds must be buried 1 cm in moist soil, then covered with glass. When the seeds germinate, the glass should be removed. Further care of the seedlings consists of moistening the soil. Grown plants are planted in the ground in rows with a distance of 20 x 25 cm and watered regularly.

Lavatera seedlings

Lavatera reproduces excellently by self-sowing, which greatly simplifies the gardener’s task.

Advice. To get one large bush of lavatera, seedlings or seeds need to be planted in a circle at a distance of 20 - 25 cm between holes, placing five seedlings in each hole.

Plant care, fertilizers and feeding

Lavatera prefers to grow in sunny areas, but also develops well in partial shade. It can grow in any soil, but develops better in soils rich in organic matter. Drought-resistant, watering is necessary as the soil dries out once a week in extreme heat. Frost-resistant, tolerates temperatures down to -3 degrees. Tall varieties require additional support and garter of stems.

Do not water Lavatera too often. Once a week will be enough

At the beginning of growth, it is necessary to remove weeds and loosen the soil; when the lavatera reaches vegetative maturity, it will cope with the weeds itself, taking its place in the sun. By promptly removing faded inflorescences and seed pods, you will simultaneously stimulate the plant to continue flowering for a long time, and also replenish your seed fund for future years, since the seeds do not lose their viability for up to five years.

Nutrient feeding of lavatera is necessary only if the crop grows on very nutrient-poor soil. Feed the plant no more than once a month. The first feeding is done at the beginning of the growing season with a solution of urea and nitroammophoska: a tablespoon per 10 liters of water. The second time the lavatera is fertilized when flower buds appear with potassium and phosphorus fertilizers.

Attention. The older the plant, the darker its foliage becomes. Pale green leaves indicate a lack of nitrogen and phosphorus.

Diseases and pests

Fortunately, lavatera is one of those plants that practically does not get sick and is not damaged by pests. Sometimes the plant may be favored by aphids. It is enough to wash it off with water with the addition of laundry soap, or spray it with a systemic preparation.

Rust on lavatera leaves

Can be affected by a fungal disease - rust. Yellow or orange swellings (pustules) appear on the leaves on the underside, which darken when ripe, crack, and spores spill out of them, which infect healthy plants. The fungus feeds on living tissues and leads to the death of the plant. If you find a diseased plant, remove the infected parts, and the remaining parts should be sprayed with fungicides, such as Topaz or Hom. If the damage is significant, then it is better to get rid of such plants completely.

Advice. Maintain crop rotation to prevent diseases. Do not plant lavatera in its original place for 4 years.

Combination with other plants

Lavatera can be combined with a huge number of other plants that grow in traditional flower beds. Lavatera with pink flowers looks good in combination with crops that bloom with blue and purple flowers:

verbena;

Lavatera on a personal plot

brachycoma;
delphinium.

White varieties of lavater are universal and go with almost any color, but look especially good with lilac petunia and blue ageratum. But the Lavatera variety “Ruby Carpet” looks great with Lanstera

In landscape design

Lavatera is often used in landscape design in single or group plantings; it looks good as a bright spot on a grassy lawn, at the foot of large trees and shrubs. Tall varieties of perennial lavatera can be used as a screen for decorating a fence or outbuildings on the site.

Lavatera looks great in mono plantings

In group compositions it is incredibly beautiful if you plant plants according to a certain color palette. For example, first plant a group of lavatera with white flowers, then a group with pink ones, and the next group with a mix of pink and white flowers. It is also good to combine plants in height, using different varieties. Perfect for cutting into bouquets. Lavatera is capable of transforming the most dull landscape with its lush flowering until frost.

Other uses of lavatera

The perennial Thuringian Lavatera is used as a medicinal plant in folk medicine. The roots of the plant contain a lot of mucus and vitamin C, so in terms of its pharmacological properties, Lavatera is close to marshmallow.

Lavatera is also grown for use in folk medicine

A decoction of the roots is used for colds, coughs, hoarseness, various gastrointestinal ailments and women's diseases. An infusion of the root is used as an anti-inflammatory agent for dermatitis. For rheumatic and neuralgic pain, the leaves of the plant are used. Poultices from the leaves are used for purulent skin lesions, boils, and lichen.

Caring for lavatera in the garden: video

Good afternoon, dear readers!

Any gardener strives to ensure that his garden looks well-groomed and beautiful, while requiring minimal care. Therefore, unpretentious plants enjoy well-deserved love and recognition. One of them is Lavatera. This beautiful flower seems to have been specially created by nature for lazy or very busy people. Lavatera can be grown not only in the garden, but also on the balcony, as well as indoors.

There are both perennial varieties of this plant and those that are grown during one season. Choose any variety of lavatera and enjoy its vibrant beauty.

Lavatera, also called wild rose, belongs to the genus Malvaceae, which includes only about 25 species of plants that have settled on the Australian continent, in East Asia and the Mediterranean. The name Lavater was given in honor of its discoverers - two brothers, Swiss doctors named Lavater. The wild rose was discovered and described a long time ago - in the 16th century, but it gained particular popularity about 2 decades ago. And now it is difficult to find a garden in which these bright and at the same time delicate flowers do not grow.

Lavatera bushes can grow from 50 to 150 cm in height. The plant has powerful roots, strong branches and abundant green mass. Lobed, pubescent leaves grow in an alternate pattern. The flowers are large, up to 10 cm in diameter. In some species they grow singly, while in others they form spike-shaped inflorescences or racemes. The color of the flowers can be pink, yellow, white, crimson, purple.

The flowering period is long - from early summer to mid-autumn. Lavatera is suitable for cutting; the flowers remain fresh for more than a week. The plant can be grown in any soil and is resistant to wind and drought.

Types and varieties of lavatera with photos

Mont Blanc variety

In gardening, annual and perennial varieties and a species that is grown as a biennial are cultivated. The annual species is Lavatera trimonthis. “Lavatera arborescens” is grown for two seasons. And “Lavatera Thuringian” is a perennial.

An annual plant that grows up to 1.2 m. It has two leaf shapes: at the bottom of the bush they are heart-shaped or round-toothed, the upper leaves have 3 or 5 lobes. Flowers bloom in July. They have a funnel shape and a diameter of about 10 cm. The buds are formed in the axils of the leaves. The color of the petals can be white, pink or red. Flowering is abundant.

Popular varieties:

Ruby Queen is a powerful branched bush that grows up to 1 meter in height; the flowers have a rich red color.
The sun goddess is a large plant with a height of 110 cm. The leaves have a rich dark green hue. The flowers are 6 cm in diameter and come in a wide variety of colors.
Silver Cup - the variety grows up to 70 cm. The flower petals are pink with darker veins and a silvery tint.
Mont Blanc - the bush has a maximum height of 60 cm. The funnel-shaped buds have a delicate white color with dark veins.
Beauty is a large plant with flowers of white, pink and carmine colors.
Novella is a compact variety suitable for growing in flowerpots. Maximum height in a pot is 20 cm. In open ground it grows larger.
White Sherub is a low bush (just over 30 cm) with single white flowers of a decent size. Ideal for growing in pots and flowerpots.

A biennial plant with straight 2-meter stems and oval-shaped leaves, up to 20 cm in length. Its flowers are shaped like hibiscus flowers. The color of the petals contains darker veins, the main background is most often dark purple. Flowering lasts from early summer to mid-September. Variegated varieties have been developed. The most commonly cultivated in gardens are:

Candy Floss is a variety with pale pink buds.
Rosea is a bright lavatera with a rich pink color.

Lavatera Thuringian

A large branched perennial plant up to 2 m high. The leaves can be round or heart-shaped, they have slight pubescence. The color of the leaf blades is greenish-gray. In the lower layers of the bush they have a lobed shape. The flowers are solitary, the buds are painted pink in various shades, the diameter of the inflorescences is up to 10 cm. The flowers are formed in the axils of the leaves, from where they grow on long stalks. Common varieties:

Bregon Springs is a tall, powerful bush up to 130 cm in height. The leaves are three-lobed, with a grayish tint. The pink-purple flowers have visible crimson veins.
Lilac Lady is a variety that produces delicate lilac flowers.
Barnsley Baby is a plant with white and pink buds.
Burgundy Vine is a variety with pink inflorescences on which purple veins stand out.
Eye Catcher - The flowers of this lavatera are a rich pink color.

In the southern regions of Russia you can find a plant called “Lavatera Primorskaya” (it is also called “Lavatera bicolor”). The bush of this variety grows up to 1.5 meters in height, the flowers combine two shades of lilac.

Lavatera Moorish, growing up to 80 cm, is also intended for growing in warm climates. It has pubescent stems and rounded leaves with a pointed tip. The flowers are small, dark red, about 3 cm in diameter.

Lavatera Moorish

Lavatera is grown by seedlings in order to get it to bloom faster, because in the middle zone you have to wait quite a long time for stable warm weather. Wild rose is not afraid of heat and drought, but can be sensitive to cold temperatures, since in the wild it grows in warm climates. It is recommended to sow seeds in open ground in the spring, after the end of frost.

When growing lavatera in seedlings, sowing is done much earlier.

It is recommended to sow lavatera seeds for seedlings at home in late February or early March. It is necessary to take into account the timing of planting plants in open ground. If you sow in March, by mid-May you will have strong bushes that can be planted in the flowerbed. In warm regions, lavatera can be transplanted into the flower garden earlier. Therefore, it is better to start harvesting seedlings in February, and plant them in open ground in April.

The bottom of the seedling box is covered with a layer of expanded clay, and soil is poured on top. Lavatera is not picky about the composition of the soil, so for growing seedlings you can buy universal soil at a gardening store. The earth is pre-moistened. The seeds do not require soaking; they are sown dry, immersed approximately 1 cm deep. The top of the crops is covered with glass or film to create a greenhouse effect. Typically, seedlings appear 1-2 weeks after sowing.

The cover must be removed briefly every day to allow the plantings to be ventilated. Make sure the soil is constantly moderately moist. It is best to water the crops using a spray bottle with settled water at room temperature. Condensation from the glass or film is removed so that it does not fall on the tender sprouts, otherwise the seedlings may rot.

Helpful advice! Periodically turn the seedling box with the other side towards the light so that the seedlings do not bend.

It’s even better if you install additional lighting next to the seedlings. Make sure that the lamp is located no closer than 30 cm from the seedlings. As soon as the seedlings get stronger, the top cover is removed. Plants dive after the appearance of two pairs of true leaves, while pinching the root by 1/3.

Planting in open ground

Bushes are planted in open ground in rows, maintaining a distance of 20-25 cm between them. For tall varieties, support will need to be provided.

For a heat-loving plant, frosts are disastrous, so lavatera is planted in open ground in the middle zone no earlier than the second half of May. Otherwise, all your work on growing seedlings may go to waste.

Before planting, you need to dig up the ground with a bayonet-deep shovel.
For 1 square meter of flower bed you need to add 5 kg of ready-made compost or humus.
In addition, mineral fertilizers are scattered over the surface of the soil, mixing one tablespoon each of nitrophoska, urea superphosphate and potassium sulfate.
All this will provide the plants with a supply of nutrients necessary for full growth.

Lavatera should grow in a sunny place, otherwise the flowering will be much weaker. Choose open, illuminated areas for planting it. All care comes down to watering in dry weather and tearing off faded buds. In hot, dry weather, the plant is watered once every 7 days.

On a note! Lavatera does not like excess moisture, so if you doubt the need for watering, it is better to postpone it for another couple of days - this way you will definitely not harm the plant.

There is no need to trim or shape the bush. In the fall, seeds are collected from the plant, which can be used later for planting. Closer to winter, lavatera prepare shelter for perennial varieties. The bushes are bent to the ground, fixed and covered with spruce branches on top or sprinkled with peat. You can also use dry leaves for this purpose.

Fertilizers

During the entire growing season, lavatera is fertilized twice: fertilizing is applied to the soil before planting seedlings and after the first buds appear on the plant. Flowering bushes are fertilized with a solution of sodium sulfate and potassium sulfate, adding 1 tablespoon of each fertilizer to a bucket of water. Fertilizing is especially important if lavatera grows in poor soils.

To the delight of gardeners, Lavatera is one of those plants that rarely get sick. The only pest that can attack it is aphids. At the first sign of the presence of a harmful insect, treat the bushes with a soapy solution or apply an industrial insecticide.

Rainy weather can cause rust to appear on lavatera leaves. Fungal spores ripen in yellow pustules that are located on the underside of the leaf. If measures are not taken in a timely manner, the disease will quickly spread to healthy plants. If a fungal disease is detected, all affected leaves and stems must be removed. After this, the bush is treated with a fungicide. The drugs “Topaz” and “Hom” help well. If the plant is severely affected, it is better to remove it completely.

Wild rose is good both in single and group plantings. With its help you can create a bright spot on a grassy lawn, or near tall bushes and trees. Some people use tall varieties of lavatera to decorate fences and outbuildings on their summer cottage.

You can successfully combine lavatera varieties with different flower colors in a group planting, alternately planting bushes with white, pink and purple flowers.

Tall and low varieties of wild roses are also combined with each other. The advantages of the plant include a long flowering period; lavatera can decorate the garden until the onset of frost. It also looks great in bouquets. Lavatera can be planted in group compositions with dahlias, phlox, asters, and nasturtiums. Its beauty is enhanced by irises, sage and lanster. Lavatera plantings can transform the most dull landscape.

Growing lavatera: video

If you want to have a beautiful flower bed on your site, but have absolutely no time to care for flowers, Lavatera will help you out. Those who like variety can plant annual wild rose varieties and then grow something else the following season. In the case when you want to plant beautiful flowers and forget about the hassle of planting for several years, you can safely plant perennials. Either way, Lavatera is a plant that will not disappoint you.

When planting a flower garden, gardeners select beautiful, long-flowering and unpretentious varieties of flowers. Among the huge variety, many of them choose lavatera. It is also called “wild rose” or “khatma”. Lavatera is a perennial plant - a godsend for gardeners. It blooms from June until the first frost, ideally complementing and decorating any corner of the garden. Thanks to the large selection of varieties, everyone can find a plant suitable in color and size for growing in open ground.

Description of the flower

Thanks to the efforts of breeders, a large number of perennial and annual varieties have been created, reaching from 20 to 150 cm in height. Each of them has a powerful root system, a strong stem and lobed leaves, which are arranged in a regular order.

The flowers are large, reaching 18 cm in diameter and have a variety of colors: yellow, white, pink, purple, red or crimson. Depending on the variety, they can be arranged singly or in several pieces, forming spike-shaped inflorescences. They begin to bloom in the first half of summer and bloom until the first frost.

Lavatera is a plant for the lazy. It is undemanding to the soil, unpretentious in care, drought- and frost-resistant. The culture can grow both in the sun and in the shade, and is not afraid of gusty winds. It looks attractive not only in gardens, but also as a cut flower. Flowers in a bouquet remain fresh for 7 days.

Varieties and types

The discoverers of the flower were brothers named Lavater. They discovered it in Europe, near Zurich. Later it began to be found in Australia and North America. The plant can be either annual or perennial. Each species has its own varieties with individual characteristics.

Lavatera Three months old

Powerful annual, reaches a height of more than a meter. The lower foliage is heart-shaped, the upper leaves are three- or five-lobed. The flowers are solitary, large, up to 10 cm in diameter. The closer to the sun, the more abundant the flowering and the shorter the flower stalks. The five-petalled inflorescences of Lavatera Three Months are carmine, white or pink in color.

The most common types:

Silver bowl

A beautiful drought-resistant plant up to half a meter high. The funnel-shaped flowers are large, soft pink in color with dark veins. They appear from the axils of leaves up to 15 cm in diameter. The Silver Bowl variety is planted along the fence or in flower beds. Flowering begins in July and lasts until October.

Silver Cup

A cold-resistant variety with large branched shoots, reaches a height of 70 cm. The purple flowers are large with dark veins and a silvery tint. Flowering occurs from June to September. Looks impressive in group plantings and mixborders.

Ruby Queen

Low-growing, attractive, profusely flowering variety. During flowering, single pink-carmine flowers cover the entire plant, from which it is impossible to take your eyes off throughout the whole summer. This splendor is planted in flower beds next to bright annuals, in group plantings and in mixborders. The flower looks harmonious against the background of roses, iris and fragrant tobacco.

Novella

A new low-growing variety that can be grown both in a flower pot and in open ground. Flowering is abundant and early. The first flowers appear when the plant grows 20 cm. They are large, pink, and do not fade for a long time. The decorative appearance remains throughout the summer, regardless of weather conditions.

White Sherub

A low variety with numerous snow-white flowers. It is ideal because it can be grown at home and in open ground.

Mont Blanc

Strongly branched, low-growing annual with large snow-white flowers and large emerald leaves. Unopened buds have a pink tint. The variety is planted in flower beds with other bright annuals, to create borders, in group plantings for cutting and in flower pots. When grown in a container, the plant will be more compact and will not grow more than 20 cm in height.

Lavatera Thuringian

Powerful, tall perennial, reaching a height of up to 2 meters. Large silver-green leaves, heart-shaped and lobed. Single, large pink flowers appear from the leaf axils on long stalks.

This type includes:

Bregon Springs

A powerful, tall variety, reaches a height of 150 cm. Large silver-emerald leaves are located on long, highly branched shoots. The variety blooms profusely and for a long time with pink-purple flowers with crimson veins. Overwinters without shelter.

Lilac Lady

A tall variety with large purple flowers blooming directly from the leaf axils. The flowers are large - up to 15 cm in diameter, the bush is powerful - up to 120 cm. The silver-emerald leaves are large, lobed in the lower part of the plant, entire-edged in the upper part.

Barnsley Baby

A compact, medium-sized bush, reaches a height of 80 cm. Large snow-white flowers have pronounced pink eyes. The flowers are beautiful and delicate and can be grown in containers, but they will look better in flower beds next to sage, catnip and cereals.

Lavatera arborescens

A biennial species with a straight, powerful stem, reaching a height of 2 meters. The delicate emerald leaves are large and fleshy. The flowers are red-purple with dark veins, very similar to hibiscus flowers. After wilting, the variety produces fruits in the shape of a head of cheese. Flowering begins in mid-June and lasts until the end of September.

Rosea

Tall biennial with a powerful woody root system. The slender, erect stem reaches a height of 150 cm, and is completely covered with soft five-lobed gray-olive foliage. Cup-shaped, medium-sized pink flowers. The tree-like variety is covered for the winter and pruned in the spring.

Lavatera propagation methods

The flower can be grown in two ways: seeds and seedlings.

1. Seed method - planting in open ground is carried out only in the southern regions in late April - early May. Before planting the seed, dig up the soil, add 10 liters of compost and 2 tbsp. l. nitrophoska per 1 sq. m. Make a shallow trench on the prepared soil, water it with warm water and sow dry seeds. Cover with nutritious soil and cover with covering material. In good weather, sprouts appear after 7 days. After they reach 5 cm, the film is removed and the seedlings are thinned out.
2. Seedling method - this method is used for earlier flowering. When planting seedlings in May, the seeds are sown in containers in mid-March. Before sowing, it is necessary to prepare nutritious soil and lay a layer of drainage on the bottom of the pot. Seeds are sown in moist soil to a depth of 1 cm and covered with glass. The container is placed in a well-lit, warm place for 2 weeks. After germination of the seedlings, the shelter is removed, and the seedlings are planted in separate containers.

Caring for seedlings is simple. It consists of timely watering and additional lighting.

Planting and care

Lavatera is planted in open beds when the soil warms up to +10-15 degrees. For the flower, choose a sunny place, protected from gusty winds. The soil should be light and well drained. When growing tall varieties, a support is immediately installed for each plant.

Planted according to a 20 by 25 pattern. This distance will allow the flower to fully grow and develop, as well as look decorative and compact.

Lavatera is an unpretentious plant. At the beginning of growth, care consists of timely removal of weeds, careful loosening of the soil and watering when the soil dries to a depth of 10-15 cm.

In order for it to bloom magnificently and abundantly, faded inflorescences are removed and the soil is fertilized. The first feeding is carried out during the growing season. To do this, use nitrophoska diluted in a bucket of water. The second - during the formation of buds. Take 1 tbsp per bush. l. potassium and sodium sulfate per 10 liters of water.

The older the plant, the darker its leaves. Soft green foliage indicates a lack of nitrogen and phosphorus.

Lavatera is a plant that in rare cases is attacked by insect pests and various diseases. Sometimes aphids appear on it. To get rid of it, the bush is sprayed with a soap solution or with Biotin, Actellik or Akarin.

If crop rotation and care rules are not followed, the flower may develop a fungal disease - rust. Orange pustules appear on the inside of the leaf blade, which, when ripe, scatter spores, which can lead to massive infection. If rust is detected, all affected leaves are removed and the bush is sprayed with fungicides.

What to do after flowering

After wilting, a seed capsule appears in place of the flower, which must be left to ripen. An indicator of ripe seeds is a dried brown box. It is carefully separated from the bush, opened and the seeds are poured onto newspaper to dry. The prepared material is stored in a dry place, in a paper or linen bag.

If annual varieties are planted in the garden, then at the end of the season they are dug up and the soil is carefully dug up.

Lavatera can be planted in the same place for 4 years.

Perennial varieties are bent to the ground for the winter and covered with leaves or spruce branches. Before covering, the plant is fertilized with phosphorus-potassium fertilizers.

The culture is interesting not only for its decorative appearance, but also for its medicinal properties. Lavatera Thuringian leaves treat wounds, skin diseases and purulent formations. Decoctions from the roots are used for colds and gastrointestinal diseases. The infusion has an anti-inflammatory effect.

This article is dedicated to the wonderful flower - lavatera, growing it from seeds, tips on how to plant and how to care for this unpretentious plant. The lavatera flower is rightfully considered one of the most beautiful; lavatera is often called a garden rose. Despite the fact that changing fashion has not ignored even flowers, lavatera has firmly taken its place in our backyards.

Lavatera or hatma (lat. Lavatera) is a genus belonging to the Malvaceae family. These plants are shrubs, herbs or low trees. There are perennial lavatera, annual lavatera and tree or biennial lavatera. The genus is relatively small, has only 25 species, its natural habitat is the Mediterranean countries, Australia, Central Asia, and North America.

The height of the plant varies from 0.5 to 1.5 meters. It has a powerful rhizome, a thick stem and regular large leaves, most often pubescent. The flowers are white, in all shades of pink, crimson and purple, and can reach a diameter of 10 cm. They are collected one or more in spicate or racemose inflorescences. Flowering continues from early summer until autumn.

Breeders love this plant, new varieties are constantly appearing. Let's look at the varietal and species characteristics, vegetation and appearance of the lavatera.

Lavatera three months old

L. three-month-old is grown as an annual. This is a plant with a powerful stem up to 120 cm. The flowers are single, large, in some varieties up to 12 cm in diameter. Popular varieties:

Lavatera “Silver Bowl” is medium-sized, about 70 cm in height. The flowers are large, salmon pink with darker veins.
Lavatera "Novella" - suitable for indoor and container floriculture. In a pot it reaches only 20 cm, in open ground - up to 60. It blooms very early with large pink flowers.
Lavatera "Mont Blanc" is medium-sized, up to 75 cm high, with large white flowers.

Lavatera three month old "Novella"
Lavatera three month old "Mont Blanc"

Lavatera "Ruby Queen" is tall, up to 1 m tall, with carmine-red flowers up to 10 cm in diameter.
Lavatera "Pretty" is medium-sized, up to 70 cm tall, fast-growing and cold-resistant. Flowers pink, carmine, white.
Lavatera “Moonlight” is tall with a stem up to 1.25 m tall. The large flowers, up to 10 cm in diameter, are pale pink and have a silvery tint. Blooms until frost.
Lavatera “Melange” is tall, up to 90 cm in height, branched and strong. Flowers are from 6 to 9 cm, white, pink or red.
Lavatera “Bride” is medium-sized, up to 70 cm, with white flowers.
Lavatera "Tanagra" is short, up to 50 cm, the flowers are pink, small, up to 5 cm in diameter.
Lavatera “Enchantress” is tall, up to 1 meter, flowers up to 6 cm, white, pink and crimson.
Lavatera "Ruby" - tall, up to 1 m, large flowers, up to 10 cm in diameter, ruby color, blooms all summer.

Lavatera three month old "Rubin"

Lavatera Thuringian

L. Thuringian or Dog Rose is a perennial plant with powerful stems, sometimes reaching 2 meters, with hard leaves of gray-green color. It usually blooms in all shades of pink. The petals are strongly narrowed at the base, with gaps. The perennial Lavatera is more capricious than the three-month-old Lavatera, which is perhaps why it has been somewhat forgotten about. But recently, fashion has returned, and new varieties, most often of foreign selection, are appearing on sale, more compact forms are appearing and the color range is expanding.

Lavatera "Barnsley" - a distinctive feature of the variety is that on one bush there is simultaneously a large number of white and pink buds of various sizes.
"Lilak Lady" - blooms with lilac flowers.
"Ai Ketcher" - bright pink flowers.
"Bredon Springs" is a highly branched shrub with dense foliage up to 1.3 m in height. The flowers are pink-purple, with reddish veins. Requires shelter for the winter.

Lavatera Thuringiana "Lilak Lady"
Lavatera Thuringian "Bredon Springs"

Other types

Four more species of lavatera are grown, which are cultivated in open ground only in the south. In the middle zone, these are more likely to be greenhouse plants.

Tree-like or biennial can reach a height of up to two meters. They have large leaves up to 20 cm long and purple flowers with darker veins, they are similar to the flowers of Chinese hibiscus. The flowering of this plant is short, from July to August. Mainly grown in containers.

Primorskaya L. (bicolor) has lilac flowers of two shades.

Lavatera tree or biennial
Lavatera primorica (bicolor)

Cretan lavatera has lilac or purple flowers on hairy stems.

Moorish l. – flowers are purple, stems are pubescent.

Reproduction of lavatera

How to grow lavatera? It propagates by seeds; their germination rate, if stored correctly, is good. In order to collect the seeds in time, it is necessary, after the boxes turn brown, to pick one and lightly knead it with your fingers. If the seeds fall out easily and are gray-brown in color, they are already ripe. Shake them out of the boxes onto paper and dry them in a dry, well-ventilated area. Seeds are stored in a paper or cloth bag.

Lavatera seeds

They can be sown directly into the ground, or you can grow lavatera from seeds through seedlings, followed by picking. This is done when it is necessary to obtain flowers as early as possible or in regions with a cool climate.

Sowing seeds in open ground

Three-month-old lavatera seeds are sown directly into the ground in April-May, when warm weather sets in.

The soil is dug up, leveled, shallow grooves are made, and watered with warm water. The seeds are sown, embedded in the ground and covered with lutrasil. Hatched seedlings are ventilated in warm sunny weather. When the sprouts reach 5 cm, the covering material is removed, the seedlings are thinned out, leaving the plants at a distance of 25-30 cm from each other and lightly hilled.

Be sure to water young plants. Give the first fertilizing with liquid or fertilizer dissolved in water a week after opening.

Perennial lavatera is quite easy to grow from seeds. They are sown in the ground in early spring. Shoots appear after a few weeks, when the soil warms up to 15 degrees. Growing seedlings are cared for in the same way as annual lavatera seedlings - they are watered, thinned and hilled.

Seeds should be sown as rarely as possible so that fewer young plants have to be removed. After thinning, sprouts will remain; they can be rooted if you pinch the root by 1/3 before planting.

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Growing and caring for seedlings

To determine when to plant lavatera seedlings, you need to know when warm weather sets in in your area. If the plants are supposed to be planted in May, we will sow in March.

First you need to prepare the container. If you need a large number of seedlings, use shallow wooden boxes with slats that fit tightly together. When you need few seedlings, you can take shallow bowls. Place drainage at the bottom, add soil and compact it well. Tamping is necessary to ensure that the seeds do not fall through when watering, otherwise they simply will not sprout. Pour 2-3 cm of sifted soil on top, water the soil well with warm water. When the water is absorbed, sow the seeds as sparingly as possible and cover them with soil. Install labels with the name of the variety.

Cover the boxes with glass or transparent film and find a warm, bright place for them. Maintain humidity, ventilate and remove condensation. When the seeds germinate, the glass or film can be removed.

When two pairs of true leaves appear, plant the seedlings into pots 5 cm in diameter, pinching the roots 1/3 of the way. Most likely, it will be necessary, otherwise the seedlings may stretch out and lie down. Water newly planted plants a little every day; if you overwater, there is a danger of blackleg appearing - a specific disease of seedlings and young seedlings, leading to the death of the plant. After 10 days, feed with universal fertilizers diluted 2 times weaker than written in the instructions.

Transplanting seedlings into the ground

When the weather is warm, at least 15 degrees, plant the seedlings. Choose a place that is well lit throughout the day. Dig up the soil, adding organic fertilizers for digging, just don’t overdo it, this plant doesn’t like too rich soil. Level the ground, dig holes and water them generously. When the water is absorbed, plant the plants. Water daily for the first ten days.

Seasonal care

Lavatera is a persistent plant, and if planting and caring for it seems difficult to someone at first, it will pay off with beautiful long-term flowering. Lavatera grows on almost any soil; it is cold-resistant and can withstand prolonged drought. True, if the summer is dry, watering is still necessary, infrequent, but plentiful.

She needs feeding only a couple of times a season - at the beginning of the growing season, when she takes root in a permanent place, and during the budding period. Another feeding will be required for those varieties of three-month lavatera that bloom before frost.

Large plants require support. Weeds must be pulled out, and the soil under young plants must be loosened. When the crop grows, we stop loosening so as not to damage the roots. The question is often asked whether lavatera should be pinched. The answer is no. Lavatera is not pinched. It is necessary to prune faded branches so that flowering continues long and abundantly. Also, annual plants are cut off after flowering.

As you can see, once the lavatera has taken root, growing and caring for it is not difficult.

Diseases and pests

When planting Thuringian Lavatera, keep in mind that it is prone to rust. It's difficult to fight her. As a preventive measure, even before budding begins, you can treat the plant twice with a copper-containing preparation at an interval of 2 weeks. If the disease does appear, the affected parts or the entire plant must be removed from the site. Do not plant lavatera in an infected area for several years.

This flower is also threatened by an invasion of aphids - treat it with insecticides and fight anthills.

It is extremely rarely affected by other pests and diseases.

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Application in landscape design

Lavatera is always a welcome guest in the garden. It looks great as a tapeworm (single focal plant) and in group plantings. It is used to create large and small landscape groups, mixborders, as a border and in continuous plantings.

In parks, planted on a clearly visible slope, these flowers from afar can seem like a ruby carpet if the color is chosen accordingly. As a backdrop, when it is necessary to separate one part of the garden from another, tall varieties will look great.

Any perennials and annuals of blue and purple color of the appropriate size - verbena, sage, can become a companion for lavatera. When planted together with roses, the flowers will highlight each other's beauty.

If you have a small area and want to have plants of different colors, you can buy a mix of lavatera “Melange” or a mixture of lavatera “Podruzhka”, made up of tall plants of different colors. Lavatera flowers look great in bouquets.

We told you how to properly care for the beautiful lavatera plant. As you can see, this is not a difficult matter. Just follow a few easy rules so that the plant growing in your garden gives joy and lush flowering until frost.

The name Lavatera appeared thanks to two brothers - doctors from Lavatera, who discovered the existence of the flower. The location of the flower is most often in countries with mild climates: North America, Australia.

Plants are unpretentious in their environment if they are properly cared for (no matter what, they are not afraid of cold, heat or dampness, and are perennial)

Lavatera - perennial plant that loves light most of all. Flowers can reach a different palette: lilac, soft pink, red, etc.

A lot depends on the Lavatera variety; for example, its growth can be less than half a meter or, on the contrary, reach almost two meters, growing along with it large stems and spreading leaves.

Popular varieties

- a flower with gorgeous iridescent lilac petals. Does not require careful care. Perennial;
– has a pink inflorescence, reaches a height of 130 cm, curls strongly and its varietal feature is a leaf with a gray-green tint. It blooms for a long time, delighting with purple inflorescences with crimson veins. Winters well under light cover. The sympathy of gardeners is often on the side of “Springs”;
— Flowering: from July to August, pleases with white and pale pink buds. Height: 120 cm.
- medium height, well accepted on loose surfaces, beautiful pink tones of the inflorescence;
- “dwarf” variety, 40 cm, this variety is distinguished by its huge inflorescence buds, which have white tones. The variety is also well suited for growing on a windowsill or in a pot.

Instructions for landing

Any variety of lavatera loves the sun;
Loose soil is what the dog rose needs;
From the fertilized soil, the lavatera will begin to develop leaf mass, but there will be no flowers(see below about feeding);
The roots will begin to rot from too much water;
Before planting, the bud must be compacted to avoid air around the seeds;
Lavatera cannot live without feeding.

There are some tips that will significantly reduce your concerns:

Sprouts should not be yellow, lethargic or spotted
Lavatera roots should exceed 3-5 cm in length

Also, there is a special soil preparation algorithm:

Dig up the selected sunny area;
The area is pre-watered, it can be fertilized, but this is already a guarantee of poor inflorescence
Feeding before planting. As written above: 1 tsp. superphosphate, urea, potassium sulfate.
Level the soil with a rake and make oblong grooves.

You can even say that the algorithm for planting flowers is standard and there is nothing new in it.

The plant is suitable for open ground in April/May!

How to plant in open ground?

Place the plant in the groove 1 cm;
Spill generously;
Upon reaching 5 cm, you can remove the material from the surface of the hole and introduce fertilizing;
Feed after cleaning the covering, shed generously

After 30 days, the flower will “come to its senses” and begin to bloom.

It is important to take proper care. For the plant and its growth, several factors are needed: sun, watering (once every 7 days at normal humidity. If severe aridity - no more than 3 times a week), fertilizing and timely removal of weeds.

About feeding:

Some gardeners fertilize using nitrogen during growth (this affects a strong stem and hardy root). After the flower reaches the desired height, you need to add a solution of magnesium, potassium and phosphorus to the fertilizing.

Lavatera flowering

Nuances when watering

Make sure that when watering the roots are not washed away with water, otherwise the plant will disappear;
Lavatera should be watered only with a nozzle, and only at the root;
In preparation for the winter period, watering and fertilizing are reduced to a minimum.
In hot weather, watering once or twice a week is sufficient.

Fertilizer – important or not?

Fertilizers – more suitable for depleted soils. The plant will have enough fertilizer and nutrients to feed it.

Reproduction

The plant will develop if the seeds are collected in the autumn (September or early October). How to determine the readiness of the seeds? The box should dry out and the seeds should “rustle” when tapped. In winter, the boxes are stored in dark and DRY places. Already in the spring, the seeds “reach” and are ready for planting.

Seeds are planted in two ways: directly into the soil (for warm regions) or by growing seedlings in a greenhouse.

Diseases and prevention

The only disease she is afraid of is rust. Rust occurs in humid weather and is caused by a fungus. The disease is easy to recognize: there will be a brownish “bump” (pustules) on the back of the leaf. The treatment is also simple: at the first stage, the leaves are cut and burned, and the plants themselves are irrigated with “fungicides” containing copper (“Topaz”, copper sulfate, etc.) If all else fails, then the plant is excluded from the garden and burned..

On the part of insects, lavateta does not tolerate aphids, which there are also ways to combat: treating the plant with wormwood, hot pepper, onion or cinnamon. There are also special recipes:

Recipe 1

Leave 300-400 g of fresh celandine herb collected during flowering (or 100 g of dry) in one liter of water for 24 hours, then boil for 30 minutes. Over low heat. Spray when cool.

Recipe 2

40 g of dry tobacco leaves pour 1 liter. water and leave to steep for 48 hours. Strain and add water to 2 liters.

What can you do with the “garden beauty” when she has grown up?

Tall varieties are used to make hedges, flower figures, and flower arches.

Plantings of flowers of several colors look fascinating, and you can also add a climbing plant to the lavater, which will envelop the “neighbor” and you will get a living carpet.

To summarize, lavatera has many healing properties: preparations containing dog rose are used in the treatment of:

cough
colds
migraine
Gastrointestinal tract, etc.

Freshly cut lavatera leaves help with purulent diseases.

So, Lavatera is easy to plant and care for, the main thing is to follow the watering regime, then the plant will delight you with flowering even in cloudy weather. It is necessary to feed, treat, and eliminate weeds in time to avoid consequences and not spoil the plant.