The Japanese beauty is the pearl of any homestead or summer cottage. She pleases the eye with her unusual, original color crown from May to the fall season. During flowering exudes a gentle pleasant aroma. With proper planting and care, willow Hakuro Nishiki will have an attractive appearance for many years.
Material Content:
Grade description
A fast-growing shrub of the willow family, which under optimal conditions reaches 3 m in height and 2.5 m in diameter. The leaf is narrow, up to 7 cm long. After blooming, a salad color appears, which eventually becomes interspersed with white and pink. With age, the leaves lose their unusualness, become monophonic.
Branches of the willow variety Hakuro Nishiki are shiny with yellowish or reddish hues, have the same length. Earrings are a little curved, thin, formed in the third year.
To decorate the crown, preserve the unusual color of the foliage, annual pruning of shoots is recommended. In addition to the bushes, the willow grows in the form of a tree, if grafted on a stem. The spherical crown on a thin trunk looks very elegant.
Due to its resistance to frost, it has a wide distribution area in decorative gardening. It is found in the wild on coastlines and wet meadows of the Japanese islands, Korea and the Primorsky Territory of the Far Eastern Federal District.
Outdoor landing
Despite the fact that the plant does not require special care, planting should be done according to all the rules, as it determines the further growth and development of the culture.
Of great importance is the planting material. It should be purchased in proven, trustworthy places.These include nurseries, specialized horticultural enterprises.
Preference should be given to seedlings with a closed root system. So that the plant does not experience a stressful situation, is well rooted and developed, it is necessary to buy seedlings grown in the area where planting is planned.
Observing the natural conditions of culture growth, we can draw conclusions and create suitable conditions in our garden plot.
Site and soil preparation
Japanese willow loves sunlight. In the open, the bush will attract the eyes of others throughout the summer. Penumbra is allowed, but not more than half a daylight hours. Lack of sun leads to the loss of variegated foliage. In addition to the fact that it acquires the usual green color, it will still be faded. The branches stretch up and, accordingly, difficulties arise with the formation of the crown.
A big plus is the presence on the site of a natural or artificial pond. The plant loves moist soil, planting on the coastline is the best option.
If the willow does not fit the soil, it may prematurely drop the foliage. Therefore, it is necessary to plant in slightly acidic, light, fertile soils.
Since the willow has a surface root system, it is possible to use clay soil with the addition of peat, coarse river sand and forest humus. Sandy soil is diluted with turfy soil, dolomite flour is introduced into the acidic soil to a depth of 20 cm, and it is filled with water from above. The crop does not tolerate excess lime, so it is not worth using it at all or in moderation.
How and when to plant
The timing of planting seedlings depends on the vegetation of the buds. It is better to do this before they appear - in April or May. It is advisable to dig a hole the day before the earth settles. It should be wider than the volume of roots and deep enough to lay on the bottom a drainage of sand, gravel or gravel, not less than 20 cm high.
If several plants are planted at once, then the distance between the seedlings is not less than the volume of the crown of an adult bush.
To stimulate growth before planting, it is advisable to soak the roots in water with the addition of honey or mullein. The soaking procedure is mandatory for seedlings that were purchased with an open root system.
No need to deepen the seedling, the root neck should be 2–5 cm above the ground.
After planting, the soil is compacted, watered abundantly, mulched. Any improvised means (peat, sawdust, gravel) can act as mulch. If the willow is on the stem, it is useful to make a periosteal fossa to retain moisture.
Whole-leaved willow Hakuro Nishiki: care
To grow a full-fledged decorative shrub or tree on a stem, you need to make some efforts. This is especially true for the first year after planting, when rooting takes place, adaptation to a new environment.
Watering schedule
Drying of the soil under the crop is unacceptable, this will lead to coagulation of leaves, fading color. Particular attention should be paid to hydration during the month after disembarkation and in summer at high temperatures. The first years, when the culture is actively growing, watered two buckets of warm, defended water twice a week. In addition to watering, it is recommended to spray the crown with airborne droplets in the morning or in the evening to prevent sunburn.
It is very important to prevent excess moisture so as not to create conditions for fungal diseases.
Fertilizer and fertilizing
To emphasize the unique properties of the plant will help organic matter and mineral nutrition. Fertilizers are applied depending on the type of soil before planting during digging. Humus is added to sandy soils, clay is diluted with peat. For 1 square. m. of sod-podzolic soil requires 80–90 g. of complex mineral fertilizers and 5 kg of compost.
Organics are added no more than once every 3 years, mineral fertilizers every spring and autumn.
Nitrogen promotes plant growth. In the spring, before the swelling of the kidneys, shoots can be stimulated by spraying with a urea solution.
In the fall, fertilizers with phosphorus and potassium are used. They contribute to kidney formation next year.Forms of fertilizers in the form of granules and powder are convenient for use. The former have a prolonged action, the latter can be scattered over the volume of the trunk circle and watered.
How to cut willow
In early spring, before the start of the growing season, a compact crown is formed. The shoots are cut off, leaving at least 4 buds, while the latter should grow on the upper side of the branch. Haircut stimulates the rapid growth of new shoots, and subsequently beautiful, unusual color of foliage.
To maintain the shape of the ball during further trimming, new shoots are left longer than last year by 1 or 2 buds, depending on the volume of the desired crown. Stem growth is removed.
In the summer, a haircut is done twice - in June and August. Last time in the fall with sanitary and preventive purposes.
Transplant Nuances
You can transplant the plant quickly and painlessly. In order for the willow to quickly take root in a new place and not die, the following rules must be observed:
- pre-thin the crown;
- transplant in non-hot morning or evening hours in spring or autumn;
- dig in to get a basal coma;
- when planting, do not allow compression or curvature of the roots;
- create a favorable water regime;
- to mulch a parabolic circle.
Gardeners transplant willow from spring to autumn, but still the best time is April, when the buds on the plant have not yet appeared.
Dig the willow carefully so as not to damage the roots. If it was not possible to dig out the culture along with an earthen lump, then each root must be spread and evenly distributed in the soil. The best plant age for transplant is 3-4 years.
Winter preparations
In the autumn, after the willow leaves the foliage, sanitary pruning is done, diseased or damaged shoots are removed, the land is dug.
Shrub species of willow is more resistant to frost than standard. The crown itself also suffers from the cold. To prevent freezing, the culture is insulated with covering material, such as lutrasil, spanbond, agrofibre. Burlap is also suitable for these purposes.
Breeding willow Hakuro Nishiki
In the spring, before the start of the growing season, cuttings from two-year-old branches and older are cut. Planting material should be 20-30 cm long, have at least 5 buds. If necessary, cuttings are prepared in the fall, after the leaves are discarded. In this case, they are stored in the basement, pre-packaged in a bag or placed in a basin of wet sand.
You can plant a culture immediately in the ground, leaving at least 2 buds above the ground, but for better rooting of the cuttings, they are placed for two weeks in a container of water. When the roots grow, they are transplanted into small pots or in a permanent place.
The stalk can also be grafted onto the stem. For this, a plant of the same genus, but more strong and hardy, is chosen as a stock. In April, the top of the prepared stem is cut off and a cleavage is made into which a stalk with an oblique cut is inserted. The trunk must be pulled by any banding material, grease the place of grafting with garden var. Usually, a ready-made booth is landed on the site, but if you wish, you can try to vaccinate yourself. Graft growth gives after 3 weeks.
How to get rid of pests and diseases
Yves Hakuro Nishiki is no exception to the rule. Like other garden shrubs, it is sick and exposed to the invasion of harmful insects.
Prevention is easier than cure, therefore, first of all, preventive measures are applied, which are expressed in the following measures:
- compliance with agricultural technology;
- sanitary pruning;
- garden cleaning in the fall;
- whitewash of the stem;
- weeding and loosening of the soil of the bore circle.
Stagnant water in the root system, crowded plants, excess nitrogen fertilizers lead to the growth of harmful fungi and the multiplication of insect larvae.
Prevention will help to avoid the disease:
- necrosis of the cortex;
- rust;
- powdery mildew;
- willow scab.
A willow affected by necrosis is likely to die 90 percent. The remaining diseases are fungal. To prevent and treat every spring and autumn, the plant is treated with fungicides.
Insects harmful to Japanese willow include:
- aphid;
- birch fly;
- Khrushchev
- willow leaf beetle;
- spider mite.
The fight against insects is to treat the plant with natural or chemical insecticides, a soap-kerosene solution. Powders of the crown will help with pepper, mustard, chopped tobacco leaves.
Use in landscape design
Willow is used to decorate the garden not only on personal courtyards, but also for decorating the forest park zone and squares. The culture planted on the shore of the reservoir not only harmoniously fits into the environment, but also protects the shore from erosion.
Group plantings are used as the original hedge. Single copies look good in any corner of a garden, park. Willow is planted near the resting places of the townspeople. The plant contrasts with other cultures in color, and the possibility
crown formation is used to give the landscape zone original forms. Willow Hakuro Nishiki stands out for its brightly colored branches even in winter.
