Flower growers in many countries love to grow such a decorative flower as matthiola bicornuum. Planting and caring for it is incredibly simple, which allows you to not spend a lot of time and effort.
As night falls, mattiola begins to emit a delightful aroma that fills the entire garden.
At the moment, many different species are known, but the decorative properties of Matthiol bicornus are not too different. During the daytime, she hides the beautiful petals of her flowers.
Night violet Matiola pink - photo, planting and care
General description of the genus
This genus includes annual and perennial herbaceous plants of the Cruciferous family. In nature, representatives of this genus are distributed throughout Southern Europe, the Mediterranean and surrounding regions.
All species and varieties belonging to the genus Matthiola have a number of common characteristics:
- plants have a single stem or form woody bushes covered with a felt edge;
- foliage is dense, pubescent, lanceolate, edge entire or serrated;
- flowers with four petals are available in a wide range of colors from white to yellow or lilac tones. Characterized by a sweet aroma. The flowers are collected in inflorescences - spike-shaped panicles;
- the fruit is a dry, flat pod with protruding tubercles from the seeds.
The evening smell attracts a large number of nocturnal insects that pollinate the flowers of the gillyflower.
Varieties
About 50 species of matthiola are known in nature . Thanks to breeding work, they gave rise to several hundred varieties.
The species that are most often used in ornamental gardening include the following.
Two-horned or night violet
Double-horned violet is an annual plant with an erect or branching stem, which is popularly called night violet .
Cold-resistant, unpretentious plant, can grow in partial shade.
Matthiola bicornuum pink.
Its features include:
- thin branched lodging stems reaching a length of up to 50 cm;
- inconspicuous flowers with a pale pink or purple color.
They are closed during the day and open only at night and in cloudy weather.
Gray-haired or left-haired
Cold-resistant annual , characterized by the following features:
- erect branched stem;
- flowers are simple or double, 3-7 cm in diameter, the inflorescence is a loose raceme;
- Fruit with seeds is produced only by non-double varieties of gillyflower. Terry varieties lack stamens and pistil, so no fruit is formed.
Mattiola gray-haired pink.
Important! In terms of the strength of the aroma, matthiola gray is significantly inferior to matthiola bicornuum.
Like night violet, gillyflower flowers are excellent honey plants.
Mattiola two-horned description and characteristics
Mattiola bicorna is planted annually, as it is ready to please for no more than a year. This flower is unusual and differs in many characteristics. Features include:
Mattiola has a straight or spreading stem, this fact depends on what variety it belongs to. A large number of shoots with thick fluff, like the foliage, are scattered throughout the flower;
If you properly care for the flower, it can reach 60 centimeters in height;
The bright green leaves are covered with large teeth;
Small and not too brightly colored flowers are collected in inflorescences whose shape resembles graceful brushes;
Flowers open after sunset and fill the entire garden with a pleasant aroma; with sunrise, the flowers close;
Matthiola blooms for a long time. It can last from the first days of summer and end only when frost comes;
The ripening of small seeds occurs in pods. Seeds can be stored for 3 years maintaining good germination.
Features and landing conditions
After picking, matthiola bicornuum seedlings do not take root well , so it is preferable for them to be grown from seeds immediately in a permanent place. But gillyflower is grown using the seedling method.
What do the seeds look like?
Matthiola seeds are small , black, brown or greenish in color and have a light membranous border, flattened . When properly stored, the seeds remain viable for 2-3 years.
Preparing for sowing
Night violet seedlings do not tolerate picking well, so it is better to plant them in the garden right away. Mattiola loves sunny places and does not tolerate stagnant water . Only very depleted soil needs to be fertilized.
In order for the seeds to germinate together, they are first prepared for sowing:
- Soak for 24 hours in water at room temperature, change the water several times;
- The water is drained, the seeds are wrapped in a moistened cloth and placed in the refrigerator for several days.
Seeds are sown in beds in April after a two-week period of stable above-zero temperatures. Light frost down to -5℃ is not scary for seeds:
- Before sowing, for convenience, the seeds are mixed with sand and sown in furrows to a depth of 0.5 cm;
- The first seedlings will appear in 5-7 days. When the seedlings develop 2-3 true leaves, they are thinned out at intervals of about 20 cm;
- To ensure flowering continues until late autumn, seeds are sown every 10-12 days.
Of all the varieties of gillyflower, only the seeds of summer gillyflower can be sown in open ground.
Growing through seedlings
It is preferable to grow Levka seedlings , planting seeds in late winter-early March:
- the substrate is prepared from a mixture of turf soil and sand (3:1);
- the cups are filled with the prepared mixture, the seeds are planted to a depth of half a centimeter;
- leave a small distance between the seeds to make it easier to plant later;
- the cups are covered with film and placed in a cool place until the seedlings appear;
- after this, the seedlings are exposed to light and cultivated at a temperature not exceeding 15℃, this stimulates the formation of flower buds.
Levkoy shoots.
Flowerbeds are planted at the end of April, keeping an interval of 16-20 cm between seedlings. The main thing is that there are no severe frosts during this period.
Matthiola bicornuosa reproduction
The best way to plant matthiol is considered to be seed; seedlings are grown extremely rarely. The fact is that the root system of the flower is quite weak and may not survive replanting. However, enjoying all the beauty and aromas of these flowers at the very beginning of summer is only possible through seedlings.
First you need to prepare the container and fill it with a suitable mixture before sowing. The soil should be loose, nutritious, water- and breathable. Before planting, it is necessary to treat the container and soil with manganese.
Summer care
Proper care will ensure long-term flowering of matthiola:
- watering. There is no need to water matthiola regularly; short-term drought is not dangerous for it. Watering is required in case of prolonged drought;
- loosening and weeding. To prevent the appearance of a dense crust after watering, the soil must be loosened; it is also recommended to weed;
- feeding Matthiola does not need to be fed with organic matter; it is enough to water it in the spring with mineral fertilizer for flowering plants containing a complex of microelements. If the soil is fertile, then fertilizing is not necessary.
Succinic acid can be used as a plant growth biostimulator It promotes the development of soil microflora, strengthens the plant’s immunity, and does not accumulate in the soil.
Mattiola care
The culture is unpretentious and caring for it is easy. It comes down to regular watering, but in small portions so that the soil is not flooded, weeding and fertilizing. Weeding should not be neglected; the night violet can suffer greatly from weeds. Levka does not need organic matter; you only need to add mineral complex compounds under it, and this is enough to do once in the spring. If the soil on the site is fertile and humus, then the plant does not need to be fed. However, too fertile soil is undesirable for this crop, so that the bush does not grow to the detriment of flowering. Light requirements are low; gillyflower can grow well in partial shade.
Damage by diseases and pests
If lesions of any nature are found on the leaves, they are removed to prevent further spread:
- if fungal diseases , the plant is removed and burned;
- when cabbage , treat with valerian (1 teaspoon per liter of water);
Cabbage butterfly.
- Treating the plant with powdered ash will help prevent the appearance of cruciferous flea beetle
Important! Prevention consists of maintaining a distance between plants, regular weeding and avoiding stagnation of water in the soil.
How to sow seeds: step-by-step instructions
Sowing of seeds is carried out no later than the beginning of March. It is necessary to prepare for this work in advance. The steps must be performed in the following order:
- Preparing containers. To sow seeds, take containers with holes to remove excess water.
- Preparing a soil mixture that must be moisture- and breathable. It is necessary to prepare the soil substrate by mixing turf soil with sand in a 3:1 ratio. No humus, compost, or other organic matter should be added to this mixture. If you purchase ready-made soil, it is recommended to add sand to it to prevent excessive soil compaction. Nevertheless, there remains a risk of seedling death from blackleg. To be on the safe side, pour the finished substrate with a solution of potassium permanganate and then dry it.
Seed stratification is not necessary, but this technique will increase seed germination and speed up their germination:
- Place the seeds in a flat dish covered with a napkin, add water, cover slightly, and leave for a day.
- After swelling, place the seeds wrapped in a moistened napkin in the refrigerator on the bottom shelf, where the temperature is from 2 to 5 ° C. Stratification should last several days to a week.
- Ready seeds should be sown in moist soil, deepening them half a centimeter and placing the seeds at a distance of 3 cm.
- There is no need to water. Cover the container with the crops with glass or film and place it in a warm place where the temperature is 20-22 °C.
- Shoots need to wait from 4 days to 2 weeks.
Seed stratification is carried out taking into account the conditions of the region
Bloom
It is not necessary to remove fading flowers on gillyflowers ; the procedure is more of an aesthetic nature. Withering of flowers and formation of fruits does not affect the duration of matthiola flowering.
Deadlines
Among the decorative varieties of gillyflower there are:
- summer gillyflower , annual, flowering July-August;
- autumn , can be one- or perennial, flowering from the last ten days of August to November;
- winter biennial , blooms in April-May.
Autumn and winter varieties in the middle zone are cultivated only as greenhouse plants.
Peculiarities
Simple matthiola flowers are characterized by short flowering, no more than five days .
Terry varieties bloom for 15-20 days.
How to properly care?
Growing pansies is not particularly difficult. All they need is fertile soil with good drainage and a place exposed to sunlight. Regardless of the climate, the soil must have high levels of water resistance, since in conditions of waterlogging the plant becomes infected with root rot. If the quality of the soil is in doubt, plant your tricolor violets in a high bed.
If you want your tricolor violets to bloom as long as possible, you need to promptly remove all wilted flowers, and when cold weather arrives, mulch the beds - the roots of violets are shallow, so artificially warming the ground will help prolong the period of budding and flowering. It would be a good idea to cut off all the seed pods in August - then the plant will delight you with its lush color until the onset of serious cold weather.
If you planted violas in September-October, then you need to save them in winter. To do this, create a high bed near a wall or other vertical structure.
It is very important during this period to exclude the harmful effects of wind and high humidity - they can destroy the wintering flower. Planting should be done a month before the onset of frost, otherwise the roots simply will not be able to adapt
Snow cover is a very good shelter for pansies, but if the winter turns out to be little snow and cold, then you need to cover the beds with coniferous branches or spruce branches.
The best varieties of matthiola with photos and names
Matthiola Vintage Matthiola incana Vintage
Matthiola Vintage Matthiola incana Vintage Peach photo
Mattiola gray Vintage is an indispensable attribute of garden design in an old style. The charm of this variety cannot be compared with any other flowers. These are delicate pastel shades, lightness, special purity and lightness. Double flowers are very decorative, fitting into the garden design of almost any style.
Matthiola Cinderella matthiola cinderella
Matthiola Cinderella matthiola cinderella photo
The Cinderella series is distinguished by large double flowers, collected in dense, tall inflorescences. The shades are varied, and mixed plantings look especially impressive.
Matthiola bouquet Katz Matthiola incana Katz
Matthiola Katz Matthiola incana Katz photo
Katz series - amazingly beautiful bouquet flowers with large double inflorescences on high peduncles. The shades are varied: from white, beige, peach and cream to pink, lilac, violet, lilac and purple.
Matthiola Harmony matthiola harmony
Matthiola Harmony matthiola harmony mixture photo
The Harmony series is no less charming; it looks great in mixed plantings, playing with colors from white and cream pastel shades to rich pink and purple. The inflorescences are large, dense, with massive double flowers.
Matthiola Rich Aroma Matthiola Incana Rich Aroma
Matthiola Rich Aroma Matthiola Incana Rich Aroma photo
Large double flowers of all shades with a thick spicy aroma - this is the Rich Aroma series. Mixed plantings next to the recreation area will give aesthetic pleasure and fill everything around with a pleasant aroma.
Matthiola bicornis lilac variety Lilac Matthiola bicornis lilac
Matthiola bicornis lilac variety Lilac Matthiola bicornis lilac photo
The variety is loved for its unprecedented hardiness: frost- and drought-resistant, not picky about soil, blooms beautifully even without care. But the most important advantage of the Lilac variety is its incomparable strong aroma, literally filling the space with a whole cloud of pleasant aroma.
Matthiola appleblossom Matthiola appleblossom
Matthiola Matthiola incana Appleblossom photo
Another vintage variety with delicate double flowers in pastel colors and a pleasant aroma. The flowers really look like apple blossoms.
How and where to plant matthiola in the garden
How to plant matthiola in the ground
Choose a well-lit, open place for planting. It is advisable that other representatives of the Cruciferous family are not previously grown in this place, since the soil may be contaminated with fungal infections and pests.
Transfer the seedlings along with the earthen ball to the depth of the root system. Maintain a distance of 20 cm between the bushes: if planted very densely, blackleg damage may occur. It is better to plant in the evening or in cloudy weather. The soil must be fertile, loose, neutral. Heavy soils are destructive.
