Alyssum rocky - sunny flower for a spring garden
Do you like blooming ground covers? Plant in your garden alissum rocky. This amazing plant will delight you with an abundance of flowers twice for the season. Their sweet scent will attract not only bees, but also just passers-by, who will admire the bright flowers. What is so remarkable about the rocky alissum, and how to grow it?
Description plants
As one of the varieties of alyssum, rocky grows in the form of compact bushes. Their height does not exceed 30 cm, but in diameter the bushes grow up to 40 cm. They consist of many shoots, which eventually lignify at the base and branch strongly. Growing up, the alyssum bush forms a dense and extensive curtain. The leaves are small, elongated, gray-green, covered with a delicate downy.
Towards the end of spring, yellow inflorescences begin to bloom on the branches. They are small, but there are a lot of buds, and the flowering itself lasts more than a month. Emitting a sweet scent, alissum is wonderful honey plant... Insects flock to its scent and pollinate the inflorescences. By the fall, fruits are tied in their place - small pods with seeds.
With proper care, alyssum can please with flowering a second time closer to September.
Rock Alyssum is not particularly demanding and often used for growing on alpine slides. It is also different increased frost resistance. Even after a short drop in temperature up to 15 ° frost, the bushes remain "alive".
There are many varieties of rock alyssum, but they all have a yellow color. The difference lies in the height of the plants and the timing of flowering.
One of the most popular and beautiful varieties can rightfully be considered alyssums:
- Golden wave (bush height about 40 cm, blooms in May);
- Inca gold (height no more than 15 cm, blooms in late spring);
- Gold placer (height 20 cm, blooms in May-June).
Rock alyssum - cultivation features
Alyssum seeds are distinguished by good germination, which allows you to grow it from seed without any problems. They can be sown directly to the flower bed at the end of April or at the end of March - for seedlings.
Alyssum grown from seedlings will bloom in 2 months, and from seeds only in the second year.
For bushes of rocky alissum, it is necessary to take sunny plot. He loves good lighting, where he can reveal himself in all beauty. The plant is not very demanding for watering, except if summer is very hot and no precipitation. The flower is able to grow on any soil except waterlogged. To make the bushes lush and bloom longer, faded buds should be trimmed. And after the end of flowering, the branches are also shortened. Alyssum can be propagated easily by cuttings or by dividing the bush. He quickly takes root and easily transfers transplant.