A discreet flower with petals of heavenly blue - the Latin forget-me-not is called Myosotis, which means "mouse ear".
Many legends and popular beliefs are associated with it in most countries of the world. They are united by a common meaning - a plant from antiquity is considered a symbol of fidelity, good memory.
Forget-me-not Alpine and other species
The people often call the flower also "prigozhitsa", "minnow". It looks discreet: bushes from 10 to 40 cm tall with highly branched stems and many sessile leaves crowned with small inflorescences-shields. Flowers of garden varieties are small (but much larger than wild ones), usually 5-7 mm in diameter, blue, pink or white with a bright yellow core like the sun.
Flowering begins in the first third of summer, ends in July. Uncultured species continue to open buds to the cold.
A representative of the Burachnikov family is grown as a one-, two- or perennial. But by the end of the third season, the stems of the plant are excessively stretched, the number of flowers decreases. Planting is rejuvenated by removing old ones, sowing a new generation.
Scientists have more than 50 types of forget-me-nots that grow in all corners of the Earth, where there is a lot of moisture, sometimes in swamps. The most common among flower growers are:
- Alpine, living in the middle mountains of the Caucasus, in the Carpathians, the Alps, Altai, and the south of the Urals. The height of the plant is about 15 cm, the petals are saturated dark blue in color, the leaves are light green. In bright light, the duration of flowering is about 2 months. In gardens of the lowlands of Russia, a specially bred garden variety is grown. Gardeners are popular with tall dark blue Music, 15-cm Indigo, dwarf pink Rosilva, soft blue lush babies Victoria.
- Swamp, in the wild, grows along the edges of swamps and ponds. The species is distinguished by large flowers - up to 12 mm in diameter, very long stems. The corolla is blue or pink. Thuringen is valued for its dark blue, almost blue flowers.
- Field growing in almost all open places where the soil retains moisture for a long time. Stems of medium height, small petals, blue.
- Forest, a lover of shady thickets. Tall plant blooming profusely with pink, blue or blue flowers. The varieties Miro, Roggli, Magnum series are popular.
- Arranged flowering, originally from Switzerland. Large corollas bloom profusely on 30-centimeter sprawling stems. Among domestic flower growers, the Blau Grasmuk variety is common.
In the gardens there are also cultivated forms of forget-me-nots of fragrant, Sakhalin, Lazistan, pleasant and some other types.
Hybrid varieties are the results of the work of breeders. The color of the petals, depending on the variety, is from gentle to deep blue.
Planting forget-me-nots
Most varieties of ladies prefer slightly shaded places, some prefer a complete shadow. The exception is field and alpine varieties, which actively bloom only in well-lit areas.
Flowers do not have serious requirements for soil: moderately fertile soil with good aeration, water stagnation is undesirable. Forget-me-nots are planted in the garden in one of two ways, directly by seeds on a flower bed or seedlings.
Spring sowing seeds in open ground
When the soil warms up well, it is loosened, peat or humus is added. After 2-3 weeks, dig again, level.
Small holes are prepared for sowing at a distance of 10 cm from each other. Sown seeds are covered with a thin layer of earth, covered with polyethylene from above. Shoots appear after 2 weeks. Seedlings are thinned out to provide them with comfortable growth conditions.
Autumn sowing for seedlings
Spend at the very beginning of winter. Seedling boxes are filled with a substrate of one-third of washed river sand and two-thirds of disinfected turf land. Seeds are scattered on the surface of the soil, slightly pressed, slightly sprinkled with earth.
Then the crops are moistened through a spray bottle. The first sprouts appear by the end of the first week. When the first 2-3 real leaves are formed, the seedlings are transplanted into separate cups and placed until spring in an unheated greenhouse. When the snow melts, the cups with seedlings are transferred to a moderately warm room. Seedlings are planted on flower beds in April. Most plants have already formed buds by this time.
Forget-me-not growing conditions
The minnow is unpretentious, it does not require special conditions. A sufficient amount of light and shadow, moderate watering, rare top dressing, and measures to protect against pests and diseases do not take much time and are available to beginner growers.
Watering
Irrigation is required 2 times a week for flowers growing in open sunny areas, alpine slides. Inhabitants of shady corners are watered once a week, provided there is no natural rainfall.
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To reduce chores, forget-me-nots are usually planted in the company of garden plants that reliably obscure the soil.
Top dressing
On excessively fertile soil, the prigozhitsa begins to fatten - to increase only the leaf mass. Therefore, fertilizers must be handled with extreme caution. During the season, it is enough to add peat or humus twice - in spring and autumn, and immediately after flowering, pour liquid mineral complexes.
Other care activities
Experienced growers recommend regularly, at least every 10-15 days, loosen the soil so that nutrients and oxygen flow freely to the roots.
Weeds do not need weeding - a powerful root system drowns out weeds trying to get out of the ground.
There is no need to prepare flowers for the winter. The roots tolerate severe frosts even without snow cover. Sometimes summer residents simply mulch planting with a thin layer of dry leaves.
Forget-me-not breeding
All traditional methods are suitable for propagation: the use of seeds, cuttings, dividing the bush.
Seeds
Harvested as they mature. After drying, they are poured into a tissue bag and stored until sowing, but not more than 3 years. You can immediately sow fresh seeds on flower beds and flower beds. However, it should be remembered that the hybrid forms of forget-me-not varietal characters do not transmit, if they are propagated in this way.
Sometimes summer residents do not even bother with collecting seeds - a beautiful woman grows self-seeding perfectly. In the spring, young bushes are carefully dug up and planted in the right place.
Bush division
The best way to increase the number of hybrid forms. The procedure is permissible to carry out in any warm season, the hardy root system tolerates division without damage and easily takes root in a new place.
The bushes are dug up, carefully divided into several parts. Each dividend is planted in a prepared hole.
Cuttings
Also used for the propagation of hybrid and varietal highly decorative forget-me-nots. At the end of flowering, apical shoots are cut with a sharp disinfected knife. They are planted immediately, covered with polyethylene or glass transparent containers. Watering is carried out very carefully: cuttings are extremely harmful water on the leaves. To make the bushes branch, pinch them 1-2 cm.
With this method of propagation, the minnels bloom in the same year. But for the winter they need to be covered with spruce branches or agrofibre.
Pests and forget-me-not diseases
Flowers are highly resistant to disease. Excessive watering may be the only cause of the lesion.
Waterlogged soil is a favorable environment for the development of fungal infections - powdery mildew, root rot, gray rot. If signs of the disease appear on the leaves and stems, they are treated with any fungicide (vitriol, HOM, Skor, Fitosporin and others).
To prevent an outbreak of infection, monitor the density of planting, timely thin out plants. Drying of the soil or prolonged stagnation of moisture under the flowers is also avoided.
Pests also do not actively attack forget-me-nots, which greatly facilitates the care of them. Insecticides are used only when parasites are detected or in the event of a massive invasion of the area.
Mr. Summer resident informs: forget-me-not - a doctor of the respiratory tract
In addition to unpretentious decorativeness, the prigogitsu is appreciated for the healing properties known since ancient times. Traditional medicine uses the plant as a hemostatic, anti-inflammatory and expectorant. Treatment of bronchitis, some forms of tuberculosis and pulmonary lesions effectively complements the modest flower.
Raw materials for the preparation of medicinal compounds are prepared during flowering. Use the entire aerial part - stems, leaves, inflorescences. Drying is carried out in the shade in a ventilated room or under a canopy, where there is no draft. Then the raw materials are crushed, stored for up to a year in containers made of glass, ceramics or paper bags.
Preparing forget-me-not flowers for medicinal purposes, take into account that varietal and hybrid forms are not suitable for these purposes.
Field and forest species are considered the best raw materials, ideally wild-growing. Some folk recipes using forget-me-not herbs:
- For bronchitis, residual cough, fever, 3 tablespoons of dried raw materials are poured with a glass of boiling water. Insist hour, then filter. Drink a tablespoon three times a day after meals.
- Tea brewed with forget-me-nots (1: 1) helps with asthma, upset stomach or intestines, and kidney disease.
- A decoction of two teaspoons of dried grass in a glass of water helps with impotence.
- Fresh juice of leaves and stems is used as an aid in the treatment of malignant lesions of the oral cavity.
- Green parts chopped into slurry are an excellent hemostatic and wound healing agent. The mass is applied to open wounds, burns, frostbitten areas.
Scientists did not reveal contraindications to the use of medicinal decoctions and infusions of forget-me-not. But pregnant or lactating women, as well as people suffering from allergies, must first consult a doctor.
Some housewives use delicate flowers for culinary purposes. For example, they bake sugar and decorate ceremonial pastries - cakes or pastries. Or frozen in water for cocktails.
