It would seem that this wild plant is unpretentious by nature, but it turns out that it is difficult to tame it to cultivated living conditions. To understand how to grow heather at home, you need to know the intricacies of its planting, watering, temperature conditions and soil requirements. In the article we will look at how to grow heather in the country, when and how to plant/care for it.
Heather is an evergreen flowering shrub, up to several tens of centimeters high. Some varieties bloom from July until late autumn, but the main flowering time is September-October. Lifespan is up to 50 years, as for wild ones. The developed varieties have a shorter lifespan.
The leaves, up to 0.3 mm in size, resemble scales covering the trunk of the plant or are arranged in 4 rows to it, triangular. The color can vary depending on the variety and time of year, acquiring in addition to green also yellow, copper or reddish shades.
Flowers of up to 30 pieces on one branch are a racemose inflorescence. They can be of different colors with different shades: white, pink, purple, red. The fruits with seeds are in a four-leaf box that opens longitudinally along the partitions.
The characteristics of the most popular varieties of shrubs are presented in the table:
| Variety | Characteristics |
| Red Favorite | A shrub up to 20-30 cm tall with a dense crown, blooms with dark pink double flowers. |
| Allegro | Height up to 40 cm, erect shoots, blooms with pink or bright red flowers. |
| Esie Purnell | Reaches 50 cm in height, light pink flowers half cover the branches of the plant. |
| Perestroika | Shrub up to 25 cm tall, dark green foliage, blooms with red flowers. |
| Velvet Fascination | Differs in slow growth. Maximum height 0.5 m. Blooms with white flowers. |
The leaves and flowers of heather differ from other plants in the heather family. Heather is considered a very sun-loving plant, so it is best to place it on a windowsill with plenty of light, but it is better to avoid direct sunlight. In more shaded corners it will, of course, survive, but its flowering will be more sparse. During the summer season, the plant can be taken outside, placed on the veranda, or taken to the country house. Read also the article: → "". In this case, it is better to avoid additional transplants, since the shrub does not like this and takes a long time to take root in a new place.
In winter, the plant needs a temperature no higher than 12C; for this it can be placed in a winter garden or on a balcony. In case of severe frosts, you can insulate it a little by placing the pot with the shrub in a cardboard box and wrapping it in a plastic bag or covering it with covering material. You can put an additional layer of pine needles under the root, which will act as a natural insulator.
We prepare the soil from several components:
The proportions are approximately 1:3:2. But the most important thing is that the soil ispHapproximately equal to 4-5. In a neutral or alkaline environment, the plant will die. If it is not possible to add pine needles, it can be replaced with tree bark compost.
Prepared soil for planting shrubs Tip #1. In order to achieve what you needpHBefore planting, the soil can be additionally shed with acidified water. To do this, you can use food acids: acetic acid (1 ml of 9% per 0.1 liter of water), citric, malic, oxalic (1.5 ml per 1 liter of water).
In general, the plant is very accustomed to soil that is poor in nutrition, so it is better to place more emphasis on acidifying the soil. Before planting, it is recommended to add sulfur to the soil at the rate of 80 g per 1 square meter. m. In the future, it will be possible to select fertilizers without calcium impurities. According to many gardeners who grow heather, fertilizers for azaleas sold in stores have proven themselves well.
There are several ways to plant heather at home:
Seed germination even under natural conditions is 90%, so the long process justifies the effort and time spent. The process is very labor intensive. The stages are shown in the table:
This type of reproduction is inherent in many bush plants:
After a few weeks, roots will appear on the recessed part of the plant, after which it can be separated from the main bush. In nature, the growth of this shrub occurs in the same way.
In this case, an already woody branch is cut from an adult plant and placed in water or deepened into soil prepared from peat and sand. The soil must be constantly moistened, but not flooded. You can add urea and mineral fertilizers to the water for irrigation every two to three weeks. After 2-3 months the branch will give roots. Then it can be transplanted to a permanent place.
Tip #2. It is more convenient to germinate roots in water, since this will clearly show the condition of the root system, and there is no risk of the soil drying out.
With this type of propagation, the roots are deepened by 20 cm, to the level of the root collar. If the seedlings were bought in a store with a developed root system, then when transplanting the clods of earth you need to knead them a little or soak them in water in order to straighten the rhizomes. The plant itself will not straighten its roots and over time will begin to suffer from a lack of nutrients.
An adult bush is dug out of the ground and old branches are cut off. The roots are divided into several parts with the obligatory presence of at least one young shoot on each and planted in a prepared pot with soil. Water with acidified water. The last three propagation methods involve using them after the bush has flowered.
In the winter season, watering is carried out less frequently, as needed, to prevent cracking and drying of the soil. It is necessary to avoid the appearance of a gap between the soil layer and the walls of the vessel in which the shrub grows. This may entail drying out the root system itself, while watering will be carried out as normal.
Loves daily evening spraying, but not enthusiastically. This procedure is needed more to protect the plant from pests and dry summer air. Still more adapted to dry climates. Fertilizing with mineral fertilizers that do not contain calcium 1-2 times a year, excluding the moment of flowering.
Fertilizer must be applied carefully, avoiding getting on the leaves and stem, so as not to burn the plant. Quantity is approximately 1.5-2 tbsp. l. per plant. Pruning can be done before or after the plant blooms. For the first two years it is better to do gentle treatment. Read also the article: → "". Subsequently, try to carry out this procedure in early spring, cutting just below the faded inflorescences, preserving the crown. It is better not to touch woody branches, but to correct their shape by cutting off young shoots. Shredded cut branches can be used to cover the surface of the soil under the plant, which will help retain moisture and act as additional mulching.
Question No. 1. Is it possible to use soil dug up along with heather for planting?
Of course you can. This soil is close in nature to it, so it will be an excellent option for adapting it to a new place. But nevertheless, fertilizing at home and periodic watering with acidified water will remain mandatory conditions of care.
Question No. 2. How to water a plant correctly?
It is better to water the bush often, but not abundantly. Avoid drying out the soil. Water carefully at the root so as not to get on the leaves and avoid rotting. Melt water is suitable (can be prepared artificially using a freezer), settled, acidified, and purified with filters.
Question No. 3. How to choose the right heather in the store?
Due to its properties of maintaining flowering and green foliage even after death, it often becomes the reason for an unsuccessful attempt to grow this shrub at home. To avoid this, you need to remember a few rules:
It is also necessary to distinguish common heather from other plants of the heather family, since care for them may vary. For example, its close relative Erica, which requires less alkaline soil for planting, is often sold under the name heather.
Question No. 4. How often should a plant be watered with acidified water?
At home, this procedure can be done once every 10 days.
Question No. 5. How long after planting should heather bloom?
As a rule, the plant begins to bloom at the age of 5-7 years.
Blooming heather looks beautiful and solemn. Mistake #1. Planting plants bought in stores in autumn.
As a rule, plants sold in stores are imported, brought from warm countries. Therefore, it is better to plant in temperature conditions close to that climate. Over the summer, the new plant will adapt, take root, and can be kept, according to the recommendations, at a temperature not exceeding 12C.
Mistake #2. Spraying plants at low temperatures.
Spraying is carried out daily only in hot weather; at temperatures below 20 degrees, this action can lead to the death of the plant. Do not water or irrigate the crown of the plant during bright sunshine.
Mistake #3. Pruning involving woody branches.
Processing with pruning shears is carried out only to give shape and at the moment when it is possible to distinguish young shoots from woody ones. If you cut off a tree shoot, the plant will not recover.
Heather belongs to the large heather family, which has more than 500 species. The homeland for most species is Africa. Heather– This is an evergreen shrub, the stems of which are dotted with small flowers, shaped like bells, in various shades of lilac, lilac, white, pink and violet.
Did you know? Heather is the national flower of Norway.
In nature, the most common heather is common, and slender heather and wintering heather are adapted to home conditions.
Heather slender– an evergreen shrub up to 40 cm high. The leaves are light green, up to 5 mm long. The flowers are pink-red in color, located at the ends of the side shoots, 4 pieces each. in everyone.
Wintering heather grows up to 50 cm in height, and its flowers are larger (up to 2 cm) and are white.
Did you know? In Scotland, heather leaves were used to make a yellow dye into the fabric that was then used to make the famous Scottish plaids and kilts.
These plants are sun-loving, but do not tolerate heat well. To achieve the best results when growing heather at home, you need to create a suitable microclimate for it and do not forget to regularly ventilate the room.
If you decide to plant heather at home, keep in mind that it is cultivated at home as an annual plant. You can continue to grow it: after the plant has flowered, you should feed the soil and then prune the bush, only then the plant will retain its attractive appearance next year.
The root system of the plant must be closed, otherwise it will be damaged and the heather will die.
The shoots should be elastic and leafy, and there should be active vegetative buds at their ends.
Indoor heather species are very demanding on the soil. Peaty or acidic sandy substrates are best suited for them. The pot should be deeper than the length of the roots.
To ensure that the plant never ceases to delight you with its beauty, you need to know how to care for heather at home. To do this, just follow simple but important rules:
Heather requires regular, but not excessive, watering to simply keep the soil moist. Spraying is necessary only in the warm season.
Important! If you overdo it with watering, the heather will shed its flowering buds. The soil must not be over-moistened!
Heather needs fertilizing every year. To do this, use complex mineral fertilizers, which can be bought in a special store. They need to be scattered around the plant, but it is very important not to touch the flowers and leaves; they can “burn” from a high concentration of fertilizers.
Heather is very difficult to transplant because it has an underdeveloped root system. It can cause damage to the roots, as well as mycorrhizal mycelium.
Therefore, heather for home use is usually purchased in special containers and replanted together with a lump of earth. Also, replanting can destroy heather if the new soil is not sufficiently acidified and turns out to be neutral or alkaline.
Heather reproduces at home in three ways:
Plant the seeds You can do it at any time, no special conditions are needed for this. The seeds are planted in bowls with a substrate that consists of one part coniferous soil, two parts peat soil and one part river sand. There is no need to “burrow” the seeds into the soil. The bowl must be covered with glass until shoots appear.
If all conditions are met, they should appear approximately 3-4 weeks after sowing. Humidity should be kept high during the first week, and then the sprouts should be misted about 4-5 times a month. In the summer, be sure to take them out into the fresh air.
Important! Direct rays can damage fragile sprouts, so they need to be protected from direct exposure to the sun.
You can plant them in pots after 8-10 months.
Cuttings For propagation, cut at the end of summer. For this purpose, it is necessary to use non-flowering, strong shoots. Cuttings should be rooted in separate pots. A loose soil mixture of equal proportions of peat and sand, poor in nutrients, is suitable, and it must be constantly moistened. Rooting occurs at a temperature of +15-20 °C.
However, the most reliable, simple and fastest way to propagate heather is division of rhizomes into two parts. This procedure must be carried out after flowering. The plant needs to be removed from the pot and divided into parts.
Important!The earthen lump cannot be shaken off; the plant must be divided together with it.
In any case, it will not be possible to avoid damage to the root system, but still try to do this as delicately as possible. Then both parts are planted in pots as independent plants, watered abundantly and always fed.
Diseases and pests affect the heather flower much less often at home than when grown outdoors, but there is still a risk, mainly associated with excess soil moisture.
The main pests that can attack the plant are scale insects. Morning spraying with soapy water is used as treatment.
When water stagnates in the roots, the plant is affected by gray rot. The first signs are a gray coating on the shoots, falling leaves, and partial death of young shoots.
When they appear, it is urgent to treat the plant with antifungal drugs. Treatment is carried out in 2-3 doses with an interval of 6-10 days. For prevention, early spring or late autumn is best.
If the leaves turn brown and the tops of young shoots begin to wilt, this is a sign that you overdid it with fertilizers.
Another plant can affect powdery mildew. Because of this disease, young shoots begin to dry out and the leaves become covered with a grayish coating. For treatment, as in the case of gray rot, you need to use antifungal drugs.
Particularly dangerous viral diseases. Symptoms: noticeable deformation of flowers and shoots, their unusual coloring. In this case, the plant urgently needs to be dug up and burned, since there are no effective treatments for these diseases.
If the plant is located outside, then in order to protect it in winter during severe frosts, it is best to cover it with the paws of coniferous plants. Spunbond or jute mesh is also suitable for these purposes.
Heather should not be covered with straw, leaves, sawdust and especially plastic film. At home, the temperature suitable for heather is +8 +12°C. Maintaining such conditions at home is not difficult.
Caring for heather is significantly different from caring for most houseplants. But if you have a desire to have something truly unusual and beautiful at home, then be sure to try growing this plant.
Heather is often confused with the charming representative of the numerous Heather genus (Ericaceae) - Erica, but despite all the external similarities they have noticeable differences.
This shrub has always been a legendary plant in the cultures of many countries. In Norway it is the national flower.
According to Scottish legend, when God distributed plants throughout the earth, only Heather agreed to live on their poor, windswept soil. For which he was awarded special endurance, exquisite beauty and amazing durability.
An evergreen, fast-growing shrub that can be creeping or highly branched. It has very decorative foliage in various shades of green (from light green to silver gray). Some varieties have foliage that is red, orange, bronze, or gold. The leaves are small, whorled, narrow, oblong (0.5-2 cm), triangular, sometimes pubescent. They give the shrub a special modest charm. But when the Heather blooms, it becomes a bright star and a decoration of the house or garden for a long time.
Small, barrel-shaped bells are formed by four to five simple or partially fused petals of incredible colors. Even Heathers with double and super-double flowers have been bred, as if strewn with small fragrant roses. They almost completely cover the bush, turning it into a blooming outbreak. Small flowers are collected in lush pyramidal or round paniculate inflorescences.
Heather has a delicate aroma and is an excellent honey plant.
In nature and gardens, Heather blooms from June to August, but at home, flowering may shift to October-March. Withered flowers dry out without losing color, and remain on the plant for several months, maintaining its high decorative value. Therefore, they can not be cut for a couple of months. But if dried flowers are removed, other branches will grow and bloom more abundantly.
Heather is an unpretentious plant. There are some features of its cultivation that need to be taken into account, then it will delight you with its flowering for many years. After all, Heather lives up to 30 years.
In a temperate climate, for the summer the bushes can be moved to the balcony, even to a sunny place, not forgetting about frequent watering and spraying.
For more luxuriant branching and flowering, branches are pinched. After flowering ends, the bush is subjected to formative pruning.
Reproduction is possible in a greenhouse or greenhouse. Seeds and cuttings take root well, but flowering occurs in 3–5 years. Therefore, it is easier to purchase an already mature plant at the beginning of flowering.
Late blight, fungal and viral diseases (gray rot, powdery mildew), spider mites, aphids.
By seeds, air layering and apical cuttings, division of rhizomes.
When purchasing such a beautiful plant as Heather, you should pay attention to the condition of the branches and flowers. The fact is that a bush can die from even short-term drying out of the soil during transportation. This will not affect the appearance at all. It does not lose its decorative effect for months and stands perfectly as a dried flower. But I still want to get this treasure alive. Therefore, you need to check the condition of the plant before purchasing it. The branches should be flexible, alive, and the flowers should not fall off.
Having brought Heather into the house, it is worth giving it a short cool shower, which will wash away possible pests (especially spider mites) and have a beneficial effect on the plant. Immediately place the pot with the plant on a tray with wet peat or pebbles.
For Heather, acidic (pH 4.5–5.5) not very nutritious, but loose soil is suitable, which should be constantly moist, but without soaking. It is very important to have good drainage, otherwise the plant may quickly die.
The plant should be watered and sprayed frequently with well-settled soft water at room temperature. During the dormant period, watering is reduced and fertilizing is not done at all.
During the growing season and flowering, the plant responds well to fertilizing with organic fertilizers once a month. At the beginning of spring you need to replant it and feed it once with full mineral fertilizer.
Very interesting is the symbiosis of Heather with some types of soil fungi, which help it absorb nutrients and enrich the soil. The result is heather soil, which can later be used for planting Hydrangeas, Azaleas and plants that prefer acidic soils.
Heather loves cool rooms, fresh air and lots of sunlight. Keeping it at low temperatures of +7–12°C in winter and up to +20–24°C in summer will not allow Heather to die. It does not tolerate even short-term overdrying of the soil and hot, dry air. Frequent spraying will do him good.
The bush grows slowly
Reason: 1) excess nitrogen in the soil, 2) inappropriate soil acidity.
Branches and flowers dry
Reason: 1) non-compliance with the irrigation regime and overdrying of the soil, 2) excessive dryness of the air, 3) insufficient acidity of the soil.
The leaves turned brown and the young shoots withered
Reason: 1) waterlogging and stagnation of water in the soil, 2) excess nutrients.
A grayish-white coating appeared on the leaves
Reason: 1) powdery mildew.
Don’t be upset if you get a dacha plot on poor acidified soils. To design the area, use heather; planting and care will allow you to get wonderful decorative thickets that give the dacha a magical, mysterious atmosphere. At the beginning of summer, the flowerbed takes on an autumn color: among the shrubs covered with dark green foliage there are specimens with white, yellowish and orange leaves covering low bushes.
In July, the air is filled with an intoxicating aroma, and clusters of white, pink, and purple flowers bloom on the branches. Growing this evergreen shrub is possible even in areas where owners come only on weekends.
The small evergreen bush is not afraid of frost: it can survive in the tundra. The plant is not afraid of a little shade, as it is used to growing in coniferous forests under tall pines. Although the bush is unlikely to like the complete absence of sun. Heather loves acidic soils poor in nutrients: sands, sphagnum bogs.
The plant cannot be called a long-liver; cultivation lasts no more than 30 years, adding 2 cm per year. During this time, a rounded decorative crown is formed. The height from the ground to the top is about 60 cm. Breeders have developed varieties with different flowering periods. If you skillfully combine them, you can arrange a relaxation corner on your site, immersed in flowering thickets with a unique aroma all summer long.
An evergreen plant does not shed its leaves for the winter; it does not need to be covered or protected from frost. Such winter hardiness is characteristic of varieties that have retained natural endurance and survival; elite varieties have paid for their beauty with resistance to natural conditions. They are weaker, do not tolerate severe frosts well, and require shelter for the winter. Inexperienced gardeners are better off starting with semi-wild varieties.
In nature, this shrub grows in the partial shade of pine forests or in open clearings. Create the same conditions for it in the open ground: let the shade from the tree foliage cover the flowering thickets at noon, and in the morning and evening they bask in the cool rays. In bright sun the heather will survive, but the flowers will be small and will quickly wither. Planting heather in complete shade is also undesirable: the bushes will not please you with lush flowering.
If you are arranging a decorative corner in a swampy lowland, be sure to provide good drainage. Heather loves moist, but not wet soil; if there is too much water, it will die. The bush will live in dry places and will feel especially great in winter, but it will not develop a lush crown and after a few years the buds will stop forming. If you want to give your pet a chance to grow up in optimal conditions, place it on an alpine slide. The rocky surface will not allow the moisture to completely evaporate, and excess water will flow down.
In order for plants to develop well, the distance between them must be at least 50 cm. In order not to purchase excess planting material, make a calculation based on the area of the flower bed. For each m2 you can plant either 8 specimens of tall varieties or 12 small bushes. With this arrangement, the bushes form a beautiful green carpet and will not suffer from crowding.
You can purchase planting material at flower shops. Please note that the shrub does not tolerate transplantation well. As the root system develops, a mycelium forms around it; thanks to this symbiosis, heather can grow on poor soils: underground fungi supply it with nutrients. If you buy a plant with clean roots, the bush will have to take a long time to take root and create the appropriate environment around itself. It is better to purchase seedlings in containers that can be cut and the root system can be placed in open ground along with a lump of soil and underground inhabitants.
You can buy a bush with green leaves, plant it according to all the rules, but after a while the plant will die. You may have purchased a dead seedling; this shrub does not immediately shed its leaves after death. You can choose a healthy plant based on several criteria:
Heather can be propagated by seeds. To do this, place grains on damp soil, sprinkle them with earth and cover them with film. Shoots appear in a month, then growing seedlings at home continues for a year and a half. In summer, take the pots out into the fresh air, where the plants will develop better. Grown bushes can be planted in open ground.
It is much easier to obtain planting material by cuttings or dividing the bush. In the fall, cut off the tops of shoots that have finished flowering and plant them in pots with soil. To ensure better rooting, the cuttings can be dipped in a root formation stimulator. It is not advisable to dig up and replant bushes, but if necessary, you can use a shovel to separate part of the plant along with the root system and replant it in another place.
The best time to plant bushes in open ground is spring. By autumn, the plants will take root well, become stronger and gain strength for the winter. You can plant it in the fall, but then there is no guarantee that the heather will withstand the cold season well. Do your work in the late afternoon so that the hot sun does not prevent the seedlings from taking root.
Dig holes 25 cm deep and water them with slightly acidified water. Place the roots of the plant in the hole and straighten them so that the shoots are horizontal. Bury the plant and lightly press down the soil around it. Be sure to water the plantings so that the soil lies tightly without air gaps.
After planting, mulch the ground under the plants. You can use peat, compost, just be sure to add forest soil to the mulch. It contains the mycelium that heather needs to obtain nutrients. Cover the surface with small crushed stone or pebbles, they will reduce the evaporation of moisture.
Caring for heather consists of several simple operations:
The plants have a dense but short root system. When the top layer of soil dries out, the shrub begins to suffer from a lack of moisture. Constantly moisten the soil under the plantings so that they do not feel thirsty. Loves heather and moist air, spray it morning and evening, and the bush will always look fresh.
Advice! To ensure constant and uniform soil moisture, install a drip irrigation system under the heather bushes.
Young bushes that have not yet produced buds do not need to be trimmed. In adult specimens, cut off old branches after flowering. To increase the decorative value of the flower garden, when pruning, give the crown a beautiful shape. Try to cut off young branches and preserve as much as possible those that are already woody: new shoots will develop from them.
Heather is used to living in cold regions and is not afraid of winter frosts. Only too much cold with strong winds and lack of snow cover can cause damage. If you experience such weather, cover the bushes with spruce branches for the winter. Don’t forget to remove the cover in the spring so that the plants begin to develop with the first warmth.
Pests hardly attack heather; they do not like hard leaves. Plants rarely get sick, but if you notice a brown tint on the leaves, or wilting of the upper part of the shoots, the bush has been struck by a fungal infection. To prevent this from happening, make sure that moisture does not stagnate in the soil and do not overfeed the plants with fertilizers. Treat diseased specimens with antifungal drugs. If parts of the bush begin to deform or change color, the bush is damaged by a virus. Dig up and burn diseased specimens, and treat the soil and healthy plants with disinfectants.
Conclusion. If you like exotic things, decor with a touch of mysticism and mystery, plant heather in your garden. Create an alpine slide with low coniferous plants and thickets of heather, and you will get an excellent corner for rest and relaxation. You can plant varieties with flowers of different shades and create a colorful composition. A wonderful aroma will add its own touch to the perception of an exotic landscape.
When choosing varieties, you need to take into account that the more the breeders worked on the species, the more capricious the plant turned out. The varieties, not very different from their wild ancestors, require little care, only needing moist soil. Bushes obtained through numerous crossings and pollinations are more demanding both in terms of care and growing conditions. Start with simple specimens, they are also very beautiful and will help you create a unique design for your summer cottage.
Many gardeners want to grow plants in their home garden that do not lose their beauty and bright colors throughout the year. These crops include heather, an evergreen plant that grows as a low shrub. The natural habitat for this crop is wooded and forest-steppe glades, in which the soil is enriched with peat. However, due to its hardiness and resistance to drought, heather also does well on hillsides.
The plant is cultivated in North America, in temperate latitudes of Asia, and in the Azores. Sometimes you can find entire clearings covered with a multi-colored carpet of heather. It is truly a beautiful sight. In addition, the plant has a pleasant and light smell, thanks to which the air in the heathland is filled with an unusual aroma. Considering the unpretentiousness of this culture, it can be successfully cultivated in Russia. Of the entire abundance of plant varieties (and there are about 470 species), only two of them can be grown at home. Heather is planted at home in pots placed on the balcony or windowsill. We will tell you more about the characteristics of this crop, as well as how to properly plant and care for heather at home in the article.
Indoor heather: plant description
The plant belongs to the Heather genus of the Ericaceae family. The main characteristics of heather are as follows:
There are many varieties of common heather (Calluna vulgaris). All of them can be divided into several large groups:
1. Green-leaved group of heather. As the name implies, this group contains all varieties of crops that have green leaves:
2. A group of heather blooming with white flowers:
3. A group of heathers with silver leaves:
4. A group of heather with golden leaves:
5. A group of heather blooming with double flowers:
6. Group of crops with unopening flowers. These include the following varieties:
In terms of propagation, heather is a fairly unpretentious plant, and can easily be propagated both by dividing the bush and by seeds or cuttings. At the same time, it is quite difficult to say exactly which method brings the best results, since the growth of a particular plant depends on a large number of factors. Heather can be propagated at home at any time of the year, since the temperature in the room is usually maintained at an optimal temperature for the plant.
For propagating this plant by seeds, the most suitable room temperature is from +18°C to +22°C. Seed propagation order:
Propagation by cuttings is carried out mainly at the end of summer. Material for planting cuttings is cut at the end of summer or early autumn. In order for the cutting to take root, it is placed in a pot with a sand-peat mixture, which consists of materials in equal proportions. The resulting soil is constantly moistened, but fertilizing should not be applied to it. The rooting process occurs most quickly at average temperatures from +15°C to +22°C and at normal humidity. The plant obtained in this way, according to florists, is more resistant to diseases and blooms earlier than heather grown from seeds.
The most popular method of propagating heather among gardeners is division. It accelerates plant growth and does not require complex manipulations to achieve results. Divide only on faded plants. A bush of the plant along with the soil is taken out of the flowerpot and divided in half, after which the two bushes that appear are planted in pots. At the same time, substrate, fertilizers and moisture are added. Heather planted in this way takes root very well.
Caring for heather flowers at home
Next, we’ll look at how to care for heather at home. Although this crop is considered quite unpretentious, careful care is required to ensure its normal growth. The main steps for caring for heather are as follows:
Although heather is conventionally considered an annual plant, when grown at home, its life can be extended. This is done by properly pruning the bush after the end of the flowering period. After the heather has bloomed, about a week should pass, and after this time, all shoots of the heather are carefully trimmed. After a few days, it is necessary to fertilize the plant to give it new strength to grow.
Heather feeding is mainly carried out during the period of active flowering. For this, mineral fertilizers are used at a rate of no more than 50 g/m2 for adult plants, and no more than 30 g/m2.
Diseases and pests of heather indoors
