Secrets of the lush blooming bells

Bellflower (Latin Campánula) is a genus of the most common herbaceous plants from the Bellflower family.

The family includes more than four hundred species growing in countries with a temperate climate.

The bell grows in the Caucasus, Siberia, Asia, Europe, and also in North America. The bulk of natural forms with great success is grown by people in gardens, as it is decorative, winter-hardy and rather undemanding in care.

Garden species of bells developed by selection have numerous inflorescences and a wide color spectrum. However, they are more difficult to care for, since they make more claims to the conditions in which they grow.

However, if you do not pay attention to the small capriciousness, among the majority of the bells it is possible to find plantswhich will be suitable for any landscape and climate zone.

Varieties of bells

Countless bells are divided into groups according to various characteristics. By life expectancy - perennial and biennial bells, as well as a number of species are considered annuals.

Since there are over 300 species of this plant in the world, we divide it into three large groups and talk about habitat, namely forest, meadow and mountain bells.

Forest bells grow splendidly under the trees, but there are an order of magnitude less, unlike the sun-loving ones. The owners of forest areas, thirsting to ennoble their own land, can safely choose this category of bells.

Shade-loving and shade-tolerant forest species include:

• The nettle-bell is a shadow lover, it reaches a height of 1 m. The name was given in accordance with the shape of the leaves. The flowers of this species are quite large, shirokopolokolchatye, racemes and reach 4 cm in diameter.

  There are also species that have a terry flower shape.Flowering time can be defined as June-July.

• The bell is broad-leaved - just as the bell is stinging, shade-loving. At a height of about 1.5 m. It has straight leafy stems, as well as single flowers with basal leaves that are in the outlet. Usually they are white or dark blue. The peak of flowering occurs in the month of July.

• Bell peach - lover of the sun, but also shade tolerant. Stems in length exceed 1 m. If we talk about what kind of bells are, then this species is distinguished by a variety of garden forms. Usually they are blue flowers with racemes. Flowering period - from June to early autumn.

• The bell is crowded - just like the peach-bell, shade-tolerant and unpretentious. The height can vary up to 0.8 m. The flowers are usually bright blue in large inflorescences of spherical shape. The flowering period is all summer. Garden forms of this plant are distinguished by double flowers.

There are many meadow species that require areas with direct sunlight, most similar to the natural landscape. The most interesting bell Crimean and medium.

• Crimean bell - taxon that grows only in the Crimea. In height it can reach from 15 cm to as much as 50 cm. It has straight, thick stems and loose inflorescences of lilac flowers that grow on long pedicels.

• The bell is an average - one of the most popular species of this family. Pyramidal bush less than 1 m in height. The most distinctive feature are pink flowers. It is considered a decorative variety "Cup and Saucer", the flowers of which are associated with a tea pair.

Mountain bells are considered the most popular in the family, because such cultures as rock gardens, rocky gardens and rockeries have been popular for a very long time. Usually flowers grow at the foot of the Alpine mountains or on the gravelly-stony slopes.

This species can be divided into rock and meadow. The most decorative are: the Scheuchzer bell, the bell is tirsovidny, the bell is birch-leaved, and the bell is gargansky.

• Sheichzer's bell grows mainly in alpine meadows. It is a rhizomatous perennial, the stems of which rise and reach a height of 30 cm. One or several flowers have a light purple color.It usually blooms all summer.

• Bell tirsovidny - meadow biennial, up to 50 cm high. It has a thickened and straight stem. The leaves form a rosette, usually broadly linear and down. Cream and yellow flowers form a dense spike inflorescence. Flowering occurs in mid-summer.

• The birch-leaved bell grows in rocky cracks and reaches a height of up to 15 cm. The flower buds have a reddish color, and the flowers that have already opened become snow-white in color. Flowering occurs at the end of May and lasts more than a month.

• Gargan bell is rocky and can be grown in the dark. The bell forms a neat bush with a height of 15 cm. Blue-blue flowers in the shape of an asterisk reveal only at the beginning of summer.

These species are all diverse and good in their own way. They should be landed on your site.

How to grow bells on your site

For ornamental plant species that are quite common in horticulture, growing, caring for and planting bluebells does not present enormous difficulties, since this crop is mostly unpretentious and can adapt to different conditions of existence.

However, the preservation of the decorative form during the growing season and the size of the buds, long-term flowering and continuity of growth are possible only with the optimal creation of such conditions under which all the features of agricultural technology for various species will be taken into account.

Watering and fertilizer soil

A large number of plants prefer open and lighted areas, however, some that grow in the forest belt, develop better if they are in the shade. Even the light-loving varieties of the bell bear the partial shade quite well, and also grow better in such conditions than in the fully open sun.

For example, Campanula campanula (Campánula) is sugary, but if it is hot and dry, it needs to be watered regularly. Forest species of this plant are particularly affected by the lack of moisture.

As for fertilizer, most bells do not need feeding, but still desirable at least once in the spring, even before the emergence of shoots, add a little fertilizer with trace elements.

Such fertilizers can be purchased at any gardening store or department store. It is also necessary to pay attention to the composition.

Nitrogen should be a larger percentage of the total mass of phosphorus and potassium. You can find out about it on the package.

Mulching and weeding

Such care for the bells as mulching should be done after the immediate planting of a plant with a layer of about 5 cm. Also, the procedure is carried out in the autumn in order to prevent freezing.

In order to stimulate the intensity of flowering, flowers that have bloomed are removed. No additional trimming of the bell is required.

Weeding is carried out in several stages:

1. Weeds that appear in flower beds, multiply by seeds. Remove these weeds need to until the moment when the seeds begin to appear. In the future weeds will remain fewer.
2. When using the tool, close contact with the plant should be avoided, as the hoe can penetrate deep enough into the soil and damage the roots of the garden bell.

3. Weeding is carried out in dry weather, because in this case the weeds dry faster. In wet weather, weeds that have been weeded out can become a recurrent source of the appearance of various plant diseases and pests.
4. Weeding the bell is desirable in the fall.

Flower transplant

It is necessary to carry out transfer of a hand bell in the fall or in the spring. In early spring, after the snow melts, you can safely transplant the bell, which has a powerful root system.

In the event that the bell has a undeveloped root system, it is better to transplant the plants when the soil warms up, namely in May. In autumn, the bell is better to replant in early September, in order for the plant to take root before the onset of frost.

Asking how to plant bells with a compact, shallow root system, gardeners give the answer that it is best to plant (transplant) a plant during flowering or during any other growing season.

Bells need to be transplanted with a small earthy clod, so as not to injure the root system of the plant.

The propagation of the bell

In the garden practice, a wide range of methods is known, which is used for breeding the family of bluebells. You need to take into account some features, and then you will be guaranteed success.

It should be borne in mind that most bells grow in the mountains. They are difficult to cultivate in the plain, therefore, breeding and reproduction is possible only in extreme cases. An example is Campanella.

The propagation of the bell can be done by dividing the bush, seeds, cuttings. In this case, the cultivation of the bell from the seed is considered the most popular method.

The type of reproduction depends on various factors and biological features of the plant, life form. For example, single plants reproduce only by seeds, and biennials by seeds and cuttings.

Seeds

In seed reproduction, the collection of bells begins when they turn brown, and until the pores open.After the procedure of drying the fruit seeds must be poured through the open pores.

The seeds of the bell are very small, so they can be mixed with chalk, having previously wiped it into small chips, or with washed sand. The seeds of the bell must be sown directly in the ground or in advance to grow seedlings in order to plant in the flower garden with the arrival of warm days.

Cuttings

Many species breed by cuttings. From February to May, cuttings are cut and planted with three cuttings per cell. The formation of the roots of the bell is possible within 21 days. Removal of cuttings produced in the spring.

For more successful rooting, it is necessary to apply the mist spray unit.

The use of a film is considered to be the same forced solution in order to be able to create high humidity, since the bells are very demanding on the indicators of moisture during growth.

It should be remembered that the film should not lie on the plant. This method of breeding bells is quite effective.

Division bush

When using the method of dividing the bush, the bell is first dug, then it is cut off above-ground shoots and cut into delenki with a knife / spade. Such a delenka should have roots and buds for renewal, then it is planted in a groove in such a way that the buds themselves are at ground level.

Application and useful properties of bells

Basically, the bell can be used for decorative purposes. It also has a number of medicinal properties: anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, sedative, anesthetic.

The bells have also found use in the treatment of certain diseases, such as cough, headaches, fever, uterine bleeding, heavy menstruation.

The bell is an excellent treatment for lichen. Women can also relieve menopause and pain during menstruation. If you have a weakened child in your house, then he will be given strength by a bell-flower decoction added to the bath for bathing.

For medicinal purposes, the seeds and roots of the bell are used to make a decoction, tincture or powder.

Ways to control pests bells

In general, this type of plant is very little susceptible to diseases or pests. The main pest of bluebells is a slug that eats flowers and leaves.

To deal with it is difficult. You can prevent its occurrence by agrotechnical measures, namely by thorough tillage, removal of weeds.

You can also bring in assistants from nature: lizards, toads or hedgehogs. Chemical agents can use metaldehyde.

Also, lovers eat the bells of the mouse, and the roots of the plant enjoy bears. If you want to complicate the life of the pest, you need to deeply gnaw the soil during the growing season. This will significantly destroy the moves of the bear and make it harder for her to harvest food, destroy eggs and larvae.