Ipomoea is a large genus of perennial plants belonging to the Vnkov family. Since most types of morning glory are of tropical and equatorial origin, in our climate these plants are grown exclusively as annuals. There are two varieties of morning glory: vine-like and shrubby. Planting and caring for morning glory do not present any particular problems, since the seeds have good germination, and the plant is unpretentious. In addition, thanks to the inherent endurance of all bindweeds, the plant copes well with many difficulties that it encounters on its way, both literally and figuratively.
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Introduction
Liana-like morning glory is able to braid various supports and small buildings with its stems and branches, while rising to a height of about 5 m. As a rule, these plants have a not thick, but very strong stem, capable of clinging to numerous irregularities and objects on the surface, or braiding supports, both artificial and natural.
Ipomoea moonflower flower
Shrub forms, on the contrary, usually form small, almost spherical bushes up to 60-70 cm in diameter. In rare cases, shrub forms have stiff stems that allow bushes to grow up to 3 m in height and about 1.2-1.5 m in diameter.
The growth rate of these plants is very high. Within one and a half, sometimes two months (as a rule, this period falls on May - the end of June), three or four plants are able to completely braid a gazebo measuring 5 x 5 x 2.5 m.
In the same way, you can completely braid a fence or fence, saving yourself from the views of neighbors, fill a window with leaves so that annoying sunlight does not get into it, braid a terrace to protect yourself from the sun. Well, and so on. Ipomoea is excellent as an annually updated gardener.
Braiding with morning glory the entrance to the house
But that's not all. The plant, thanks to its beautiful and bright colors, has a wonderful decorative effect. Some species have so many flowers that the ground is often not visible under them. Ipomoea flowers can have a wide variety of sizes (from 1 to 10 cm) and colors (from white to dark purple). The flowering period of the plant is from 1 to 4 months, despite the fact that most flowers do not last more than 6 days (and some even bloom for only one day). A large number of flowers on the plant allows you to extend the flowering process until almost the first frost.
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In order to grow strong and healthy morning glory, with a large number of flowers, you need to know and follow their growing rules. It all starts with choosing a meta where you want to plant a plant. Undoubtedly, the purpose of the plant in landscape design plays the main role here, and if you want to plant a plant near the gazebo that needs to be braided, you will have to plant it there.However, it is important where to do it - on the north or south side.
Most morning glory love sunny sides and direct sunlight. Such plants should be planted on the south side of the braided objects. If morning glory prefers partial shade - on the eastern or western sides. Some integumentary morning glory like to grow in the shade, for them, respectively, the north side is used.
A variety of Ipomoea purpurea
If the plant has relatively thin stems and branches, then it will suffer from the wind. Therefore, in windy areas, some protection should be provided and supports should be placed so that the plant can gain a foothold on them.
Ipomoeas do not tolerate stagnant water at the roots, so their landing site should be well drained. Plants tolerate drought normally, but the formation of buds may slow down and abundant flowering will not work. Therefore, it is not necessary to bring the plants to such a state, it is necessary to periodically water them and loosen the topsoil to a depth of 5-6 cm.
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cultivation
In most cases, morning glory is grown using seeds.. Vegetative propagation is rarely used. This is explained by the fact that an annual plant may not have time to fully form from the cutting in the remaining time until the end of the season. Seed cultivation of morning glory has proven itself and has been used by gardeners in Europe for more than one century.
There are two main ways to grow morning glory from seeds - by direct planting in open ground and by planting seedlings. Both have their own nuances, advantages and disadvantages.
Ipomoea, braided fence
Of course, it is best to plant the plant immediately in open ground., since at the same time we get rid of the unpleasant obligation to constantly fiddle with seedlings, however, in some areas, the time for a full-fledged plant cultivation may not be enough due to the short duration of the warm season.
Growing morning glory in seedlings also has its drawbacks. Approximately one third of morning glory varieties tolerate plant transplantation very poorly, even at the seedling stage. In addition, morning glory seedlings have very high growth rates, so the option is not ruled out that you can seriously miscalculate over time and get wildly growing plants (up to several centimeters per day) located in a box with seedlings, while still outside temperature is around zero.
In general, to choose a method for growing morning glory, you need to weigh everything well and plan carefully so as not to make a mistake with the timing of planting seeds for seedlings.
seedling way
It is recommended to plant seedlings of morning glory at the end of March. This will make it possible to get plants ready for transplanting into open ground already in early May. Before planting in the ground, the seeds must go through the spitting stage. To do this, they are placed in water and soaked for about a day. Once the seeds swell, they can be planted in seedling soil.
Ipomoea seeds
The composition of the soil may be as follows:
- peat - 4 parts
- leaf ground -4 parts
- sand - 2 parts
- humus - 1 part
The soil before planting the seeds must be disinfected with a solution of 0.2% potassium permanganate. It is not necessary to carry out heat treatment of the soil.
The depth of planting seeds in the ground is from 1 to 2 cm. In this case, 2-3 seeds should be planted in each hole. Seeds are covered and watered with a small amount of water. In order not to wash them out, it is best to use water from a spray bottle for irrigation. After that, the seedling box is taken to a dark and warm place.
After 1.5-2 weeks, the first shoots should appear. As soon as they appear, it is necessary to take the box to a sunny area and start watering the plants daily with boiled water at room temperature.
Ipomoea seedling
When two true leaves appear, the plant is picked. It must be done very carefully so as not to damage the root system of young shoots. It is advisable to pick a plant with a relatively large clod of earth so that the likelihood of damage to the roots is minimal.
Picking is best done in individual containers, the best choice of which is a peat pot, since it is he who allows you to transplant the plant into open ground with it. Thus, complete preservation of the root system during transplantation is achieved.
Landing in open ground
For any form of planting material, the soil in which morning glory is planted must be fertilized. You can use, for example, humus, adding it in the amount of one bucket for each planting point, or you can use mineral fertilizers at the rate of 30-40 g per 1 sq. m.
Ipomoea seedlings before planting in open ground
After the site is fertilized, dug up and loosened, you can start planting. For plants grown directly in open ground, bypassing the seedling phase, sowing in open ground is carried out in early to mid-May. At the same time, 3-4 holes are made in the places of the intended cultivation of plants, 2-3 seeds are planted in each of them. Over time, they can be threaded, or, in extreme cases, transplanted. Seeds are covered with earth and watered.
Seedlings are usually planted in the ground from mid-May and later. The main criterion by which seedlings are already mono planted: increase in air temperature to + 16-18 ° С.
Ipomoea planted in open ground
Holes for plants are dug at a distance of about 20-30 cm from each other, their depth should correspond to the size of the earthy coma with which the seedling bush is transplanted. After the planting is done, the plants are watered and for the first 2-3 days they are sheltered from the wind with the help of some kind of fence.
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As such, morning glory does not require self-care. This plant is very unpretentious, and its cultivation does not pose any problems. All care consists in regularly performing simple and unpretentious actions related to maintaining the plant and soil in proper condition. The frequency of such events is from a week to two.
Growing morning glory on the balcony
So, what is needed to care for the plant:
- regular and moderate watering; no more than once a week, about 10 liters under it;
- loosening the soil at the roots to a depth of about 5-6 cm within a radius of at least 50 cm from the main stem;
- top dressing every 7-14 days at doses recommended for garden flowering plants.
These rules are very simple and following them will help you grow a healthy and beautiful plant that can turn any landscape object in your garden into a fairy tale within 1-2 months.
Bloom problems
If everything is fine with the plant, then flowering begins in the first decade of July, with a slight spread earlier or later by 10-15 days. If all possible terms have been passed (and they may vary slightly for each variety), then it is necessary to look for the reason why the plant did not bloom.
Bindweed
Such a reason may be hidden in the following:
- Too much nitrogen compounds in the soil, or vice versa - too little nitrogen.
- Excessive (or vice versa - insufficient) watering; often this is the cause of a decrease in the size of the flowers or their number.
- Too late planting seeds in open ground, which naturally leads to a shift in time of all plant life periods, including flowering.
Each of the considered cases is quite easily corrected. For example, the amount of nitrogen can be measured using various indicators. Watering is adjusted based on soil moisture, in particular its upper layer. In the latter case, you just need to give a little more time to the plant.
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Ipomoea varieties
Despite the toxicity of morning glory, it is very popular among gardeners, as well as landscape designers. The possibilities of this plant in decorations of various flower beds and hedges have long attracted the attention of people associated with these activities. Separately, it should be mentioned its application to the landscaping of various vertical surfaces - walls, balconies, arches, hedges and other. Often morning glory is the only possible variant of some idea.
That is why designers and gardeners have always set the task for botanists to diversify the varietal set of morning glory as much as possible, since the plant is used for a fairly wide range of tasks. Considering almost three thousand years of selection of this plant, we can say that botanists did an excellent job.
A plant that wraps around a small object
In total, there are currently about five hundred species of this plant in nature. Of these, 25 are used by humans for landscaping garden plots and buildings. On the basis of these species, several hundred varieties and varieties of various variants of morning glory have been obtained. Some of them can climb vertical planes up to 5 m in height. Others, on the contrary, are shrubs no more than 50-60 cm in diameter. Consider the most popular varieties of morning glory, which are used in landscape design of the temperate climate zone.
Quamoclit pinnate
This plant native to South America is a climbing vine with medium-sized flowers (2.5 to 3.5 cm in diameter). Quamoclite petals have a variety of colors. Most often it is red or purple, but there are also purple and even blue specimens. The flowers of this creeper are shaped like stars.
With proper care and properly selected soils and top dressing, this plant can reach more than 5 m in length. Its leaves are many small "strips", as if dissected along; they are highly decorative and always attract attention.
The peculiarity of the plant lies in a fairly long flowering - from mid-July to the end of September.
The plant prefers sunny areas and moderately moist soil. The soil should be neutral or slightly acidic; the best option is to use a mixture of sand and leafy soil. It is practically indifferent to watering, since with its root system it is not a problem to obtain the necessary moisture even during a drought.
The negative aspects of this plant include their almost complete intolerance to transplants, even in the case of seedlings. Very often, when transplanting, the growth of the plant slows down significantly and in about a third of cases the plants die. That is why the seedling method of growing it is not recommended - it is preferable to plant seeds immediately in open ground.
Slaughter
Another name for the plant is cardinal liana. Its growth is almost two times lower than that of a quamoclite and is about 2.5-3 m. A feature of the plant is the leaves of a very original shape, which have long pinnate processes at the end.
The flowers of the plant have a diameter of up to 2-3 cm; their color is predominantly red or pink. They have a very long and thin funnel, the size of which exceeds the size of the flower itself.
The flowering of the plant begins at the end of July and lasts until the beginning of September.The number of flowers, as it depends on the applied top dressings: if at the budding stage 20-30 g of phosphorus-potassium fertilizers are applied under each bush, the number of buds can be significantly increased. These dressings are recommended to be applied until mid-August every 7-10 days.
The best place for morning glory Slaughter are sunny areas and sandy soil. Its fertility and humidity do not play a special role. Watering can be rare, but it is advisable to loosen the moist soil after each time and, if possible, prevent the formation of a crust on it. It is advisable to tie them to supports when the shoots grow more than 1-1.5 m.
The plant is an annual obtained as a result of selection work in the middle of the 20th century. Despite the fact that most hybrids are sterile, Slaughter morning glory reproduces exclusively by seeds, although relatively few of them are tied.
Planted in open ground at the end of April or as seedlings in March. Planting seedlings in open ground is carried out in early May. In the state of seedlings, it tolerates transplantation normally, but it is impossible to transplant adult plants, like quamoclit, - in most cases, the plant dies.
bright red
She is the Star Beauty, she is also the fiery red Quamoclitus. It is an annual plant from Mexico. The height of this morning glory is 3-3.5 m. Unlike many quamoclits, the leaves of this variety have a "traditional" shape, without pronounced stripes or pointed ends. The shape of the morning glory leaves is bright red heart-shaped, the leaves themselves are quite large in size - up to 10 cm.
The similar shape of the leaves and their size make it possible to almost completely hide many shortcomings behind the green cover. These can be wall surfaces or defects in various structural elements that are braided by the plant.
The flowers of this creeper are small, up to 1.5 cm in diameter, but they are very bright: bright scarlet on the outside, yellow on the inside. Flowering time is in July. The plant fades quickly, in addition, by the time the seed pods are formed, the foliage darkens. And by the beginning of September, the plant completely fades.
Usually, in order to avoid such a rapid loss of decorative qualities, the planting dates of this morning glory are sometimes postponed from April to May, thus “shifting” the flowering time from July to August; At the same time, the seeds still have time to form before the onset of cold weather.
The plant also prefers sunny areas, however, does not like heavy soils. Therefore, it is desirable to use loose soil based on leafy soil, with a small amount of sand. Requires moderate watering and fertilization once every two weeks.
Sometimes, instead of the original bright red morning glory, its flattened hybrid is used. It has larger flowers, in addition, its flowering time is about one and a half times longer and it fades in September, not in August.
vane
Another name is the Spanish flag. The plant was bred in the middle of the 19th century. A feature of this species is the original shape of its stems and the color of the flower petals. The stems are very strong and tend to twist a little, which improves their adhesion to the supports. Plant height can reach up to 3 m.
The flowers are teardrop-shaped and no more than 20 mm in size. They form spike-shaped inflorescences up to 30 cm in length. In the inflorescence, all flowers are located on one side of the stem. A feature of flowers is the change in their color as they ripen.
At first, the flowers are red, after which they turn yellow, acquire a lemon color, and finally turn white. Such a color effect always makes a strong impression and therefore the morning glory bush is often the center of attention of many guests and visitors. At the same time, up to 12 shades of various colors can be present on the plant at the same time.
Flowering time is about three months and lasts from August to October; if the weather is warm, the plant can safely reach flowering until the first frost.
Grows in sunny and shady areas. Likes moderately moist soils with a slightly acidic reaction. Top dressing in the form of complex fertilizers is applied twice a month. During flowering, it is recommended to slightly increase the amount of water introduced under the plant.
Purple
This climbing plant can reach a record length - up to 8 meters.. It has fairly large flowers, up to 7-8 cm in diameter. Flowers are collected in inflorescences from 2 to 5 pieces each. The color of their petals can vary from pink to bright purple. However, all flowers have the same characteristic feature - they have a white corolla.
The leaves are heart-shaped; their size does not exceed 3-4 cm, the density of the leaves is low.
The plant prefers partial shade, but can grow in the shade. In sunny weather, the flowers that open in the morning are already closed by noon. If the weather is cloudy, then the flowers will be open throughout the day.
Ipomoea purpurea loves moist soils, but you should not water it excessively to avoid root rot. Grows equally well on both acidic and alkaline soils, requires weekly top dressing with complex fertilizers.
With proper care, morning glory very quickly covers large areas in both horizontal and vertical planes. If there are no supports, it turns into a cover plant, completely hiding the soil under it.
The flowering of the plant occurs in July and lasts until the first frost. The number of colors is very large, in addition, they are constantly updated. If you successfully choose fertilizers and irrigation regime, then using the plant as a cover, you can cover almost the entire area it occupies with flowers.
In addition, this plant has many varieties and hybrids, differing in various forms of stems and flowers, pubescence of leaves, double flowers, and so on. The general list of varieties of purple morning glory has approximately 20 varieties.
Tricolor
Despite the fact that the average length of this plant is less than that of the purple morning glory, it is it that, due to strong stems, is able to rise to the maximum height among morning glory. In addition, it is believed that the flowers of this plant have the highest decorative effect.
A distinctive feature of the flower is a special color. The outer edge of the petals can be blue or pink, closer to the center - yellowish, inside the flower - always bright yellow or bright white. The flower itself is truly gigantic in size for morning glory - its diameter reaches 9 cm. In the inflorescence there can be from 3 to 5 flowers.
Each flower blooms exactly 1 day, however, due to their huge number and the constant appearance of new ones, flowering continues from July to October.
The leaves of the plant are located two per stem, their size is 5-6 cm. They are ovoid in shape, and are slightly wrinkled all the time - this confuses novice gardeners and they water the plant intensively. But you don't have to. Ipomoea tricolor prefers moderate watering, and this state of the leaves is the norm for the plant.
Prefers sandy soils, grows poorly on loamy soils. Even on sandy soils, constant loosening is required. It treats fertilizers well; It is best to use universal complex fertilizers. It is not recommended to use only nitrogenous ones - the plant will grow rapidly, but then it will begin to stretch without the formation of buds.
It has about a dozen subspecies and varieties. Blue color occurs in 80% of specimens of this plant.
Nile
Heat-loving annual plant up to 3-3.5 m long. It has the largest flowers among morning glory - their diameter can reach 10-11 cm. The most common pink color of the flower, but the flowers can also be red and blue and purple. Just like the tricolor morning glory, this species blooms only for one day. The leaves of the plant are located on the stems in two and have an oval or heart-shaped shape.
Flowering Ipomoea Nile lasts almost 4 months - and July to October. This species reproduces exclusively vegetatively, since the plant itself is fruitless. This species was bred in Japan using complex hybridization of several related varieties.
Prefers slightly acidic soils and peat-containing soils. Requires heavy watering and weekly fertilization. It is advisable to start fertilizing from phosphorus-potassium fertilizers a month before flowering - already from mid-June. Best of all, this variety feels in partial shade, away from large trees.
From Planting to Flowering
Ipomoea: description, popular varieties, growing from seeds, planting and care (50+ Photos & Videos) + Reviews
So where in Russia can you order Ipomoea seeds marked “Giant Flower”? That is, so that the flower then grows with a diameter of 15 cm? They sell all sorts of stuff on the internet. Where?