Winter sowing of aquilegia
In the spring, summer residents have a lot of trouble, because they need to have time to plant both garden crops and flowers. To free yourself up a little time, you can carry out a sub-winter sowing of aquilegia. Then, with the arrival of heat, it remains only to tidy up the flowerbed and, with a calm soul, start seedlings of tomatoes or peppers. What is the best way to plant a catchment before winter and when is it better to do it?
When to cook the garden
As usual, for the autumn planting of aquilegia, the soil must be prepared in advance. In the month of September, the flowerbed should be dug up so that the earth is loose. To improve the structure of the soil, it is recommended to add humus or compost.
Mineral fertilizers do not need to be applied before winter planting.
Timing of winter landing
It is better to start sowing seeds of aquilegia in the second half of autumn, when the ground “cools down” to 2-4 ° C at depth. Depending on the region of cultivation, this can be October or even November. Planting earlier can help the seeds to sprout. This is completely useless, because young seedlings will not survive the winter, moreover, they simply will not live to see it. With the first good frosts, the plants will disappear. And if sowed when it is already cool, the seeds will simply "go into hibernation." After passing through natural stratification, they will rise, as expected, with spring warmth.
Thanks to the natural cooling process, seedlings from seeds sown before winter turn out to be stronger.
Winter sowing aquilegia - planting methods
For autumn planting, it is necessary to use dry seeds, without soaking and other preparatory treatments.
You can sow them in one of the ways to choose a grower:
- Wait until the first snow falls. Scrape it a little with your hands in the garden, but so that a snow layer remains on the ground. Scatter seeds over the snow - they are so clearly visible that it will help to avoid thickening of the crops. Pour a little earth on top, collected in advance, and then - with snow, which was collected from the flower bed.
- Before snow falls, sow directly into the soil. You can make grooves or just scatter the seeds, then cover them with a thin layer of soil.
- Sow especially valuable varietal specimens in pots with a light substrate, and only then dig in containers in the garden.
In the last two cases, crops should be covered before the first frosts. For this, a good mulching layer of fallen leaves or spunbond is suitable.
Sowing aquilegia in the winter allows not only to get healthier plants, but also to save time on spring troubles. In late spring, young bushes can be transplanted to a permanent place. And already next year, aquilegia will delight the first flowering.