Astra globular is one of the most common flowering plants on the site. It helps to transform nondescript, empty places in the garden, adds bright colors, pleases the eye with beautiful large flowers for a long period. It is in demand both among experienced gardeners and among beginners because of its spectacular appearance and non-capricious nature.
Description
Aster spherical is a perennial plant, which is a shrub of the correct rounded shape. Its height usually does not exceed 70 cm. The stems are straight, strong, smooth or covered with a light light pile, have strong branching. Leaves lanceolate, dark green.
Inflorescences – baskets, reaching about 4 cm in diameter. The color of the flowers is most often pink, but there are varieties with other shades of baskets. The central part is light yellow. The small sizes of flowers are compensated by their quantity.
During the flowering period, the bush is completely covered with baskets so that shoots and foliage are not even visible. The plant looks at this time like a blooming bright ball. This variety of asters begins to bloom in late August – early September. The duration of flowering is 2 months.
Varieties
In ornamental gardening, spherical-needle varieties of asters are in demand, the description of which is given below.
“Unicum” is a medium-sized plant about 50 cm high. It has large rich pink baskets with a strong pleasant aroma. It begins to bloom in the last days of summer.
“Comme il faut” is a perennial undersized spherical aster, which is a bush 40 cm high, consisting of straight branching shoots. Large snow-white baskets with a diameter of 15 cm develop on their top. The petals are narrow, pointed, can be bent in different directions, due to which the flower takes on a shaggy appearance. This is one of the most beautiful varieties of this culture.
“Harz” – a varietal mixture with inflorescences of various colors. The shoots are very strong, have strong branching, endure gusty winds, do not break and do not bend down to the ground. The inflorescences are lush, large, with many needle-shaped petals.
“Pavlova” – a mixture with flowers of different colors. The variety is a dense bush with a height of 80 – 90 cm. Baskets with a diameter of 10 – 13 cm, lilac, purple, pink, white. The petals are collected towards the central part.
Cultivation
The work of breeding aster spherical in the garden cannot be called difficult, since this plant is extremely unpretentious and requires a minimum of actions from the gardener. The main thing is to choose the right area, which must be well lit, open to the sun. With a lack of light, it is difficult to achieve flowering of this culture.
Water procedures do not play a big role in the development and formation of buds, but nevertheless, in extreme heat and prolonged drought, you need to regularly water the plant, its decorativeness, splendor and brightness of foliage and buds will depend on this.
After watering, you need to carefully loosen the ground around the bushes, remove weeds. Since the root system of the aster globular is superficial, it is worth mulching the soil, this will minimize the work of loosening and weeding.
During the cultivation of this crop, one should not forget about top dressing at least 2 times per season. To do this, use mineral compounds, rotted manure, peat. Fertilizers have a beneficial effect on health, and therefore the beauty of the bush, contributing to the active growth of green mass and the abundant formation of buds.
Before the onset of cold weather, the stems must be shortened to 10 cm. Cover the plant with a layer of foliage.
The photo shows how a globular aster looks in the garden, how it looks in flower arrangements:
