Alyssum sea: the best varieties, recommendations for growing

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Alyssum sea ( Alyssum maritimum ) is a popular type of alyssum that is suitable for gardeners who want to beautifully decorate their backyard, but without much time and hassle. It is an interesting externally and unpretentious ornamental plant. Belongs to the cruciferous family. Its positive qualities include a strong pleasant fragrance that attracts bees to the garden. It bears the second name “sea lobularia”.

Description

Sea Alyssum is a herbaceous ground cover with a dense, wide-spread crown. Its height is 30 – 35 cm. The shoots are flexible, creeping, growing rapidly, with strong branching. The leaves are lanceolate, oblong, with a pointed apex. Their color is dark green, but due to the light pile they acquire a silvery sheen.

On the tops of the stems compact inflorescences are formed – brushes, consisting of small flowers with four petals of lilac, purple, cream, white tones. Flowering begins in the first summer days, ends with the onset of cold weather.

This culture blooms in waves. However, if faded inflorescences are not cut off in a timely manner, the second wave should not be expected. Flowering is accompanied by a pronounced sweet smell, reminiscent of honey aroma. It is especially strong in the evening.

The description of the sea alissum is supplemented with a photo that demonstrates the characteristic features of this culture:

Varieties

Below is a description of the best varieties of sea alissum.

“Snow Carpet” – is a heavily overgrown groundcover 25 cm high. During the flowering period, it is densely covered with snow-white small flowers, collected in dense racemose inflorescences. Blooms profusely for several months.

“Tiny Tim” is a creeping plant whose height does not exceed 10 cm. During the flowering period, the bush is completely strewn with snow-white flowers, therefore it resembles sea foam.

‘Purple Princess’ is a shrub with long creeping stems. It is an ampelous variety. It has purple inflorescences that completely cover the plant during flowering. It looks bright and very unusual.

“Note of the Heart” is a compact variety of sea alissum, which is a plant with thin shoots and small lanceolate leaves. The flowers are pink at the beginning of flowering, but over time they acquire a more saturated color with a transition to a red color.

“Mountain Fairy Tale” – a ground cover with creeping stems and pale pink buds.

“Violet Konigin” is a compact shrub with a spreading crown, consisting of numerous branching shoots. Its height is 10 – 15 cm. The flowers are small, with four rounded petals, purple in color.

“Easter Bonnet Deep Rose” is a very interesting variety, which is a lush, wide-spreading carpet strewn with pale pink buds.

“Magic Mix” – a bush 25 – 30 cm high with creeping flexible stems. Flowers of various shades: pink, lilac, cherry, purple, lilac.

“Euphoria” – an early-flowering mixture with flowers of white, lilac, pink color. Buds can combine two shades.

“Transparent Crystals” is one of the most beautiful varieties of sea alissum, which is valued for its numerous purple flowers.

“Easter hat” – refers to early varieties, has a spreading crown, consisting of many creeping shoots. The height of the bush is 20 cm. The flowers are burgundy.

Cultivation

Despite the fact that sea alissum can be propagated in several ways: by dividing the bush, cuttings, seeds, experienced gardeners use the last of them, since only with the help of seeds it is guaranteed to get a healthy plant that has retained all maternal characteristics. Seed material is extracted independently from the boxes formed on the plant after flowering, or purchased in a store.

Sowing seeds of sea alissum is carried out immediately in open ground in the spring after the soil warms up, or in the fall before winter. For planting, they dig up the area allotted for this, eliminate weeds, apply mineral fertilizers or organic matter.

Seeds are evenly scattered over the surface of the ridge, slightly pressing. The soil is moistened with a sprayer. When sown in spring, seedlings will hatch in a couple of weeks. After that, they should be thinned out, leaving a distance between each plant of 10 – 15 cm. After 2 months, the grown bushes will begin to form buds.

Having decided to grow seedlings first, you need to prepare small shallow boxes, fill them with a loose soil mixture, and compact its surface. Evenly distribute the seeds on the soil, lightly press down with the palm of your hand, then moisten with a spray bottle.

Cover the boxes with crops with polyethylene, put them in a bright place with an air temperature of 20 – 25 degrees. Sprouts will appear in 7 days. From this point on, shelter is no longer required. Seedlings should continue to be kept on a well-lit windowsill in a warm room. The picking should be carried out only after the formation of the third sheet plate.

Stronger seedlings can be planted in a permanent place on the site with the establishment of consistently warm weather. It is recommended to lay a drainage layer at the bottom of the holes to prevent root rot. Water the planted plants, sprinkle the soil around with a layer of mulch.

Care

Alyssum or sea lobularia requires minimal care to keep it fresh and decorative. Particular attention should be paid to watering. It is important to consider that this crop does not tolerate waterlogging of the soil, from which there is a high risk of root rot. Water the plant should be moderate, allowing the top layer of the earth to dry out between water procedures.

Top dressing will be required only if the soil on the site is poor and if fertilizers were not applied before planting. At the beginning of flowering and after pruning, it is recommended to introduce a universal mineral composition that will stimulate abundant flowering and restore strength, provoke a new wave of bud formation.

Also, when caring for sea alissum, one should not forget about loosening the soil around the bush and eliminating weeds. After the first wave of flowering, it is necessary to cut the shoots completely under the root, which will soon provoke the formation of new stems and the second wave of flowering.

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