Nothing decorates the garden like lilac flowers. They are not only beautiful, but also fragrant. When to plant lilacs, and how to do it correctly, it is useful to know for beginners and experienced gardeners who have decided to decorate their site with this ornamental plant.
Material Content:
Choosing and preparing a place for planting lilacs
Lilac grows well on loose, fertile land, in which there is a lot of humus. Problems can arise if the soil is alkaline, it must be neutral or acidic. For acidification, leaf compost is introduced into the landing well.
Shrub does not like areas where groundwater is located close to the surface. Knowing such a problem, it is advisable to arrange a lilac planting site on a small embankment, and make good drainage at the bottom of the pit.
They dig a planting hole in advance; its depth depends on the soil on the site.
The poorer it is with nutrients, the deeper the pit should be (up to 1 meter). Then it is filled with prepared soil substrate. As fertilizers add ash and superphosphate. If the soil is very acidic, put more ash.
When creating a hedge, the distance between the holes is 70 cm to make dense thickets. Most often, bushes are planted at a distance of about 2.5 meters.
The optimal time for planting shrubs in spring, autumn
When it is better to plant lilacs - in spring, summer or autumn, depends on the purchased planting material. It is advisable to plant seedlings with open roots immediately after purchase.
They take root best in August, manage to take root before the winter, and give a good growth next spring.
Container seedlings with a closed root system can be planted throughout the warm season - from April to September inclusive, they are easier to tolerate the transplant.
How to choose planting material
There are about 30 natural species and many hybrid varieties of lilacs. Hybrid heat-loving varieties are often grown on rootstocks.
Most varieties in the middle zone of Russia grow well without rootstock. therefore It is advisable to choose a root culture.
Caring for it is simpler; the bush is not threatened with degeneration into the wild form with incorrect pruning.
In addition, root-bearing lilacs recover well after freezing, they are more durable and healthy than grafted specimens. If you buy seedlings with an open root system, they are immediately planted in open ground. Therefore, the purchase time should correspond to a favorable season for planting - this is April, May or August, September.
It is interesting:Gaylardia perennial
A visual inspection will help you choose the seedling correctly. If it has open roots, they should be well-branched, about 30 cm long, shoots without signs of disease and pests.
What can I plant lilac in the open ground
Lilac feels good if planted alone. The plant will soon grow, and will delight in abundant flowering.
It is a pity that the flowering of lilacs is not long, only a few weeks. Therefore, in the garden it is planted next to other ornamental shrubs that have different flowering periods.
Looks great lilac next to the mocker.
Hydrangea of various varieties, viburnum, cherry, decorative maple varieties, coniferous shrubs - this is not a complete list of neighbors for lilacs.
Step-by-step instructions for planting lilacs in spring, autumn
The method of planting lilacs in open ground largely depends on whether the seedling was purchased - root or grafted.
Step-by-step instructions for planting your own root lilac:
- Before planting on a lilac seedling, all broken and dry branches are cut.
- A landing pit for a bush is prepared in advance.
- Place a lilac in it so that the root neck is at ground level.
- The roots are covered with earth, slightly shaken the bush to fill all the voids, and trample.
- A root hole is made so that during watering, water accumulates under the roots of the plant. A recess is also made around the perimeter of the crown to retain moisture.
- Watered, spending about 5 liters of water per 1 bush.
Planting a bush grafted on ordinary lilac, it is placed in a hole slightly above ground level, making a small mound (8 cm). This helps reduce future wild growth that can drown out the main variety.
A plant grafted onto Hungarian lilac or stock of privet is buried in the planting hole 6 cm below the soil level. This is necessary in order to subsequently transfer the plant to its own roots.
Planting lilacs in autumn is similar to spring. Choose a day when the sun is hidden behind the clouds or a warm evening. Before planting, the roots and the crown (for 2 buds) are slightly cut the seedling.
Plant care after planting
Before rooting occurs, the lilac seedling is obscured by direct sunlight. Regularly watered with settled water, loosen and mulch the soil. After about 1-2 weeks, the shading can be removed.
In the first two years, if fertilizers were added to the planting hole, the seedling does not need additional fertilizing. In the second year it can be fertilized with urea. Then, complex mineral fertilizers and slurry are introduced annually.
In the early spring and autumn, after leaf fall, preventive spraying of bushes from diseases and pests is carried out. In summer, the site is freed from weeds, the soil is loosened in near-stem circles, and lilacs are watered once a week if there is no rain.
In April, before buds open, annually cut all broken, diseased and frozen branches. In the third year after planting, bushes begin to form, removing everything unnecessary, leaving only 8-10 strong shoots.
Correct annual pruning is important for copious flowering.
You can not cut all the flowers for bouquets, next year such a lilac will not bloom. Shrubs need to leave at least 1/3 of peduncles, because it is at their base that the flower buds of the next year are laid.
Adult bushes do not need shelter for the winter. In the fall, it is possible to carry out water-charging irrigation; in young seedlings, truncate circles are mulled with a layer of peat or sawdust up to 10 cm high.
