Perennial flowers veronica: features of cultivation in the open field. Veronica - perennial cultivation, planting and care, types and varieties, Veronica in landscape design Veronica large herbaceous plants for open ground

Planting and growing Veronica longifolia

Veronica longifolia - representative big family plantain. It is grown as an ornamental garden flower, attracting flower growers with its unpretentiousness. In its natural habitat, the long-leaved wild veronica is found in wetlands, as well as among shrubs. In the steppes, it chooses the banks of streams and canals.

Planting and propagation of Veronica longifolia

When planting a flower, you need to remember that it is not demanding on the composition of the soil. But it is desirable that it be light, with a slightly acidic or neutral reaction. The main condition for the successful cultivation of Veronica is a lot of light: there should not be a strong dimming on the site.

Source: Depositphotos

Veronica longifolia - unpretentious care garden flower

When propagating Veronica longifolia, three methods are used:

• • Reproduction by seeds. They are sown in autumn without deepening. You just need to spread them on the surface of the soil and cover the planting container with polyethylene. Then it is put in the refrigerator for 21 days. Then rearranged in heat. Seedling loops appear after two weeks.

• • Division of the mother bush. From the rhizome of an adult plant, it is necessary to separate the shoots and plant them in a permanent place.

• • Cuttings. Considered the most efficient. At the beginning of summer, young shoots with two internodes should be cut and placed in water for rooting. After about 10 days, they will take root, and they can be transferred to a permanent place.

All methods of flower propagation are working, and the choice depends on the preferences of the grower.

Veronica Care

long-leaved

The flower does not tolerate a decrease in temperature. On its foliage, signs of the development of powdery mildew immediately appear.

When growing Veronica longifolia, you need to remember the following:

• • if the summer is too hot, then the plantings need regular abundant watering;

• • the plant feels good when grown in light partial shade;

• • after the buds wither, the shoots must be cut off - this will help rejuvenate the flower due to active growth.

Veronica will bloom and develop under almost any conditions of maintenance and care. But when choosing a landing site, you also need to remember that the flower has a strong aroma. And for the bees, it will become very attractive.

The plant is loved by designers not only for its unpretentiousness, but also for its attractive appearance. In the photo of Veronica longifolia, the decorative effect of the inflorescence is clearly visible. That is why it is often used in the design of sites. The flower fits perfectly into flower beds, rockeries, alpine slides and can be used to strengthen slopes. Veronica goes well with roses and phlox, and white chamomile favorably emphasizes its bright blue hue of inflorescences.

Veronica is an unpretentious plant that does not require much physical effort for its cultivation. Flower growers grow it as a decoration flower beds, as well as in medicinal purposes. There are more than 500 species for decorative floriculture. This plant can be an annual, perennial, and even shrub species. Under favorable weather conditions and proper care, it blooms from early to late summer. At the same time, the plant is not at all afraid of trampling, and if this happens, the stems and leaves quickly straighten.

Veronika belongs to the Podorozhnikov class, but is completely unlike her representative. But it has signs of nettle and bluebell.

There are three main ways to grow a flower. This is seeds, we divide the bush or prepare cuttings.

Seeds are prepared and sown if it is necessary to grow a healthy varietal bush. Sowing is carried out in the fall directly into the ground or in the spring we prepare seedlings for planting in the ground. If the seedlings have sprouted too densely, it is necessary to thin out, leaving a distance of 20-50 cm between the bushes. For tall species, we create more large gaps 50-80 cm.

Before planting the plants, the seedlings are hardened by spending a long time on the street or on the balcony.

The fastest and most convenient way of reproduction can be considered the division of the bush. To do this, cut off a few sprouts with a knife or a shovel and plant them in a new place. The distance between plants of high varieties is 50 cm, lower ones 40 cm and 30 cm for small ones. Better do it in early spring and then the flower will please with its flowering in the same year. You can do everything in the fall, but after the flowering of Veronica.

When propagated by cuttings, shoots up to 10 cm are cut and placed in water for germination. Greenhouse conditions are also created by covering the cuttings with jars or cut plastic bottles with the hole up. After the roots appear, they are planted in the ground. It is better to do this in August, so that the stalk is strengthened in the ground and can already bloom next season.

Of course, both cuttings and ready-made sprouts separated from the bush, as well as seedlings, all require watering after planting.

Varieties of planting material and popular varieties

Veronica's huge variety of species has made it popular in landscape design. These are Allioni, Alpine, Armenian, Austrian. It is ground cover, tall, evergreen. Flowers can be white, blue, purple. To choose the right plant for your flower garden, you need to determine the conditions of the site.

If Veronica is purchased for a rock garden or rockery, then a short variety is well suited, and tall species are perfect for mixborders. One of the popular varieties is Veronica Bolshaya. It grows 50-70 cm in height. It blooms in mid-summer with fluffy inflorescences. Veronica spikelet flowers are shaped like candles. Their height does not exceed 30 cm. It is also worth noting such varieties as:

• medicinal,
• branched,
• dubravnaya,
• Small.

By color scheme almost all of them are blue. New hybrid varieties are available with white and bright purple buds.

Landing and care

This flower belongs to the unpretentious type, but moderate watering will not harm it. Especially in dry spring before flowering. Watering is recommended to be done with warm settled water. Excess moisture can lead to the death of the plant.

Herbaceous sprawling species do not tolerate drought, stop blooming and may die. Tall varieties tolerate heat easily. Veronica gray-haired survives if it loses most of the moisture. The most resistant to drought is small-fruited. Filamentous, gentian, prostrate speedwells love damp soil, but they also tolerate dry times. Any beginner florist can easily cope with the care of this plant.

Absolutely any soil is suitable, but loamy soils are better. The flower feels great in open sunny areas, but it also copes well with shading. It should be said that the shadow and penumbra will not allow everyone to open up decorative properties plants.

When the flower fades, it is pruned to make the flower beds attractive. Pruning also gives impetus to the growth of fresh foliage.

Veronica requires almost no fertilizer or top dressing. If the soil is very poor, this can be done once every two to three years.

You need to feed organic fertilizers in the form of peat, manure.

Wintering

Veronica tolerates frost well and does not need shelter. Peat or humus can be added to the roots, which will only improve the quality of the soil, and the ground part is cut off completely.

Branched and woody species require protection from extreme cold.

Neighborhood with other colors

A flower looks beautiful with different plants in a flower bed: roses, lilies, daisies. Looks good and elegant in full finished flower garden, fit into it. It is also good in the design of the banks of reservoirs and small ponds. Veronica brook grows on water and floats on the surface. A small disadvantage of tall flowers is that they must be tied up so that the bush looks aesthetically pleasing and beautiful. Undersized ones are updated by removing faded inflorescences and the appearance of fresh ones, which give the flower an attractive look all season.

Diseases and pests

Veronica is a disease and pest resistant plant. The threat to the flower will be downy mildew, which appears during prolonged rains and high temperature air. If this happens, the shoots are removed completely.

Veronica arable is subject to a viral disease of raspberries, ring spot. Occasionally, caterpillars of scoops and moths can attack. Caterpillars are especially fond of young shoots and foliage.

An increase in soil temperature, cessation of watering and regular care(weeding) help control pests. This flower loves aphids and nematodes. The plant is treated with insecticides according to the instructions. Dried inflorescences are removed from decay, which prevents the disease.

Veronica filiform, or filamentous, is the most delicate herbaceous plant. This is a perennial with airy white or bluish flowers. Many gardeners simply struggle with such a plant, expelling it from their site. It is extremely difficult to care for these flowers, all the more so to keep them in a certain growing area - the perennial is actively growing, turning into almost a real problem. Such energy in the growth and vitality of the plant can be directed in the right direction and used to good effect.

Veronica filamentous: plant features

Veronica filiform belongs to the Norichnikov family. This is a herbaceous plant with creeping shoots that almost instantly take root in the ground.

The plant is soil-rooted, low; creeps along the ground. The leaves are small, rounded, the flowers are white or blue-blue. The plant easily tolerates heat, grows in open sunny areas, but feels comfortable in partial shade or in a completely shaded area.

This amazing species of plant is rightly labeled a "terrible aggressor." Growing such a plant on the site, be prepared for the fact that it will spread throughout the yard in huge flowering spots, hide the unevenness of the landscape, and grow between the tiles on the paths. So, to which group should this natural “decorator” be attributed: weeds or cultivated flower plants?

As in wild nature, veronica filiform (photo can be seen in the article) prefers areas where trees (forest, fruit), berry bushes grow. She loves shade. This plant, actively growing, is ready to fill the entire yard, garden and beds, but if you properly care for it and do not give freedom to the reproduction of flowers, then this process is quite realistic to control.

Agricultural technology is simple, because it is fast growing plant so tenacious that it does not require the creation of special conditions for growing. But it’s still worth getting acquainted with the system of planting and caring for Veronica filiform.

The plant feels great in areas with moderately moist soil, but it tolerates drought well. That is why there is no need to create special conditions for the care of flowers. Veronica filamentata is a plant that takes care of itself, and it is able to compete quite competitively in the fight against its neighbors. Even dandelions cannot stand the onslaught of an aggressive herbaceous plant.

Agricultural technology

The plant is unpretentious, because special skills in growing these flowers are not required. Veronica filiform (or creeping) is able to adapt to growing in any conditions. Grass is unpretentious to soils. Most types of veronica - moisture-loving plants, but they treat a short drought calmly and easily endure it.

In Russia, the plant survives easily, being frost-resistant and easily enduring the harsh Russian frosts. Although some of the species are more delicate, for example, the Veronica is branched. There is a need to cover them for the winter with spruce branches.

Important! The shoots are pruned and removed only at the end of the flowering of the plant.

After planting the plants, periodically weed the flowers, otherwise they will become wild. Veronica is fertilized twice a season.

Reproduction of Veronica filamentous

There are several ways of plant propagation.

seeds

Sowing material is done in late autumn. Flowering occurs 24 months after planting Veronica filiformis. Seeds in the case of spring sowing are amenable to stratification - a procedure that consists in creating an artificial temperature difference necessary for normal seed germination.

The process of growing a plant from seeds is as follows:

1. Prepare a garden pot with a drainage substrate.
2. Spread the seeds on the surface, sprinkling a small amount of earth on top.
3. Crops are sprayed with water. Cover with a film with small holes on top, allowing the seeds to access oxygen.
4. The pot with planting material is placed in a cooler place in order to create special conditions for seed germination (for example, in a refrigerator), where it is kept for the next 3 weeks.
5. After this period, the container is moved to a well-lit warm place and waiting for the first shoots, which begin to hatch 2 weeks after the change. temperature regime. Take care of seedlings according to the standard method.

Veronica filiform seeds are freely available, and they can be purchased at any specialized store.

division

Shoots with a healthy and well-developed root system are divided and seated as separate units. The procedure is usually carried out in early spring.

cuttings

For propagation in this way, planting material is used in the form of young shoots. Cut cuttings are placed in a container with water until the root outgrowths germinate, or simply placed in the ground, where they take root on their own, which usually occurs 10-14 days after transplantation. After that, the plant from the container is transplanted to an open area of ​​\u200b\u200bground.

Of all the above methods, gardeners note the latter as one of the most convenient and effective ways to propagate veronica filiform, planting and caring for which are not difficult.

The place of the plant in landscape design compositions

Sometimes the plant is sown on its own in the territory and does not have to be planted. Grass grows quickly. The most delicate plant of amazing beauty is veronica filiform. Herbaceous plants for open ground can not be bought from hands, you can not look for seeds in garden stores, but you can bring them from the usual habitat of flowers: forests or meadows. Often it is used as a design element, especially in cases where it is necessary to decorate the site in a relaxed natural style.

These can easily be planted under berry bushes, fruit trees. There is no reason to worry that the grass will draw out all the beneficial substances from the soil and the cultivated plants. Such an improvised carpet in the garden will help keep the fruits falling from the trees safe and sound. In hot summers, the plant retains moisture in the soil longer, protecting it from overheating, therefore trees and bushes growing around receive more nutrients and moisture.

The herbaceous plant creates a living carpet under your feet, which is pleasant to walk barefoot on. Such a lawn covering is not only practical, but also beautiful. A small herbaceous plant is easily cut with a lawn mower, trimmer. It should be noted that this plant is able to suppress the growth of weed species.

Important! The plot, abundantly overgrown with Veronica filamentata, looks impressive not only during the flowering period of the plant, but also after it ends. Light green leaves give the site a fresh look, create coziness and additional comfort.

The bunches of veronica filamentous growing between the stones of the retaining walls of rock gardens look spectacular. But such compositions already need to be controlled, otherwise the grass will grow over the entire hill and simply spoil the landscape composition.

Features of caring for a site where filamentous grass grows

Veronica is easy to remove by hand if the plant grows too large or is simply unnecessary. There should be no problems with cleaning the lawn, except that Veronica has been growing there for more than one year and its roots are too intertwined. Then you have to use garden tools, removing the flowers along with the top layer of soil. Carrying out such work, it is necessary to ensure that not a single shoot of Veronica filiform or creeping remains in the ground, the photo of which can be seen in the article, otherwise the extremely fast-growing flowers will again flood the entire area.

The use of such a plant as landscape decoration will give the site tenderness and ease. Such a lawn or garden will look spectacular, and some landscape compositions- completed. By caring for and monitoring the growth of grass, you can control it by creating amazing beauty compositions.

When the beginning of the day started with positive feelings, then the whole working day is transferred faster and more positively. Keeping plants is a desirable hobby for many, which gives positive feelings not only to relatives but also to many neighbors. A flower garden is a worthy decoration for every design. Walking next to the flower garden, it is impossible not to look at some amazing bush. And many people have a thought, or maybe they should think and buy a garden?

Veronica spikelet (Veronica spicata) Herbaceous perennial with long and dense apical racemes of bright blue, pink, purple, white flowers, in green foliage. Max. height up to 40 cm. Flowering period: mid-June-July (blooms 2-3 weeks). After flowering, the shoots are pruned, the bush is updated due to new growth of leaves. It is unpretentious, drought-resistant, photophilous, prefers any loose, garden soil with the addition of crushed stone, does not tolerate waterlogging, decorative until frost, frost-resistant, hibernates without shelter. Propagated by seeds (autumn), dividing the bush (spring), stem cuttings (tops of young shoots). It can be used on rocky slides, in mixborders, in single plantings. Veronica spikelet, or spikelet (St. Andrew's cross, St. Andrew's grass). There are many garden varieties. Veronica spikelet "Dwarf rose" (Veronica spicata "Rosa Zwerg") is more moisture-loving. Found on forest clearings, forests of the steppe regions.

Veronica longifolia (Veronica longifolia) Belongs to one of the most high species veronica. The specific name is derived from the Latin words longus ("long") and folium ("leaf"). Tall perennial plant, rising up to 50-120 cm (sometimes higher), with a narrow, long, straight raceme of blue (lilac) flowers up to 25 cm long. Stem (one or more) erect, usually branched under inflorescences. Varieties with large inflorescences, white or blue flowers of various shades have been bred. Blooms from late June to September. Especially good in a flower garden - in combination with other flowers of white and yellow colors. Moisture-loving. General natural area: Europe, Caucasus, Siberia, Far East, Mongolia, China, Korea, Japan, Central Asia. Grows on rich soils of wet, swampy meadows, coastal areas; comes to damp forest edges, bushes. As a rule, this type of Veronica occurs singly. Its rhizome is creeping, long.

Veronica oak (Veronica chamaedrys) In different regions of Russia, oak veronica was called dubrovka, mironnik, forget-me-not (V. Dal). Herbaceous perennial with opposite, oblong-ovate leaves; pure blue or blue with dark veins (sometimes pink) flowers, 10-15 mm in diameter, collected in axillary racemes. The stem and leaves are covered with dense pubescence. It is short, at best it can reach a height of 30 cm. Its flowers are small, but so bright blue, as if they had absorbed the piercing blue of the sky. Blooms profusely from late May to early July. Quite resistant to trampling. Can be an ornament to a variegated natural lawn that is not regularly mowed. Homeland - Europe, Asia (Turkey, Greece, China, Iran), North America. It occurs in light forests, on the edges, glades, as well as in parks and gardens, usually grows in large clumps. Propagated by shoots from rhizomes and ground rooting shoots.

Veronica Steller (Veronica stelleri.) Found in the mountains of the Far East, China, Japan. A low graceful plant 5-25 cm tall, with a stem crowned at the top with a short, almost capitate inflorescence, elongating during fruiting. The leaves are serrated along the edge. The flowers are blue-violet, about 8 mm in diameter. Suitable for rock gardens, mixborders, flower beds.

Veronica Schmidt (Veronica schmidtiana)Grows on Far East, Japan. Perennial low plant 10-15 cm tall, with blue flowers about 15 mm in diameter, usually collected in apical inflorescences (may be axillary). Blooms in late May for 3-4 weeks. Suitable for growing in rock gardens. Varieties and forms are known: purple flowers with white stripes; white flowers with purple stripes; narrow linear form with purple leaves.

Veronica Armenian (Veronica armena Boiss. et Huet.) Originally from Asia Minor. Woody-rhizomatous perennial, forming a thickened turf, 5-10 cm high with filiform leaves, blue, purple or pink flowers 0.5 cm in diameter. Stems 5 to 10 cm long, ascending or procumbent, numerous, thin, woody from the base, rough from short pubescence. The most unpretentious species, deservedly in demand among gardeners. Decorative in numerous plantings in areas where there are corners of wildlife, where the natural landscape is preserved. Suitable for lawns, alpine slides, terraces, for covering free surfaces in areas. Fragrant, very drought-resistant, original, even with its heavily dissected leaves, blooms only once. The substrates are exceptionally alkaline, rocky, with a small amount of well-fertilized clay or river silt. Propagated well by division of rhizomes, seeds. Blooms in early to mid-summer. AT middle lane seeds ripen late.

Veronica broad-leaved, or large (Veronica teucrium L. = Veronica austriaca) wildly grows in the European part of our country, in the Caucasus, Western Siberia, Central Asia, Western Europe, the Mediterranean. Perennial plant with erect or ascending stems, with bright blue, pinkish or white flowers, collected in dense racemose inflorescences up to 7 cm long. Blooms from the end of May 40-45 days. Mature plants form dense spherical bushes up to 25 cm tall. During flowering, plant height is up to 60 cm. Good for planting mixborders, for cutting. Winters without shelter, moisture-loving, but drought-resistant. Exist garden varieties and forms.

Veronica bushy, or branched (Veronica fruticans Jacq.) Under natural conditions, it lives on rocky, rocky places, especially on limestone slopes in the mountains of Europe (except Eastern Europe and the Balkans). Slow-growing species of Veronica, with bright blue flowers, a reddish band at the base of the calyx on long pedicels collected in racemose inflorescences. Plants with pink flowers are less common. Flowering in early summer. Suitable for planting on rocky terraces, grows in partial shade. Forms low, sometimes high (5-10 cm) cushion thickets. Develops on non-acidic sandy soil, preferably in partial shade, does not tolerate overheating. It is winter-hardy, but preventive cover with spruce branches is still desirable.

Gentian Veronica (Veronica gentianoides Vahl.) Under natural conditions grows in the middle, southern regions of the European part of Russia, the Crimea, the Caucasus, Asia Minor. Low, herbaceous plants forming cushion bushes up to 45 cm tall; with pale blue or whitish flowers with dark blue veins up to 1 cm in diameter in racemose inflorescences. Blooms in late May - early June (2-3 weeks). Suitable for planting on the terraces of large rockeries, in the foreground of mixborders, for creating curtains. Frost decorative. Moisture-loving, but drought-resistant, winter-hardy without shelter, grows on any soil. Most rosette leaves overwinter, young leaves appear in May. Propagated vegetatively by rhizomes. The variety “Nana” was bred - a dwarf version of Veronica gentian, not more than 10 cm high, with a peduncle of 20-30 cm. And from it the variety “Variegata”. The leaves are white-edged, very bright, in spring even with a pink border. Sod height 10-15 cm...

Veronica woody, or shoot (Veronica surculosa Boiss. et bal.) It is found in the alpine meadows of Asia Minor. Perennial creeping plant, covered with gray pubescence, with pink flowers, 4 to 5 cm high. Creeping, strongly leafy stems form a beautiful grey-green carpet. Flowering - May-July. Suitable for rockeries, rocky slides. Drought-resistant. Winter-hardy with good drainage and mulching, in snowless winters it can freeze, preferably shelter with coniferous spruce branches. It thrives in dry sunny places. Requires loose sandy soils.

Veronica Crimean (Veronica taurica) In the wild, Veronica grows in the Crimea, on the rocky slopes of the mountains. The plant is endemic, rare, low (10-30 cm high). The leaves are bright green, linear-lanceolate, almost entire. Flowers in axillary multiflorous racemes, corolla light blue or blue. Suitable for growing in rock gardens. Prefers open sunny places. Blooms in the first half of summer, from May to July. Reproduces vegetatively and by seeds. Variety ""Crater Lake Blue" differs from the species with blue flowers.

Veronica medicinal (Veronica officinalis L.) A perennial herbaceous creeping plant with pale purple flowers up to 6-7 mm in diameter in short, more or less dense racemes located in the axils of the upper stem leaves. The stems are quite numerous, reaching up to 20 cm per season, recumbent, creeping, forming a dense low rug up to 7-10 cm in height. Blooms from June to September. Seeds ripen in July-September. can be sown before winter or spring, blooms for 2 years. It is grown in rock gardens, as a decorative leaf among ground cover plants. Drought tolerant and weed resistant. When planting among ground covers, one should take into account the ability for rapid growth and its high competitiveness. Can be planted on relatively poor, better sandy soils, on completely open places or in partial shade. The species name of this species indicates the presence of medicinal properties. Distributed in Europe, the Caucasus, Asia Minor. Grows in forests, forest clearings. Belongs to the number of pioneer plants in fresh clearings. It occurs quite often in the form of small thickets. Thin creeping rhizome; the ground part clings to the ground.

Veronica serpyllifolia (Veronica serpyllifolia) has a wide range, grows almost throughout Russia. Perennial, 10-25 cm high, with creeping stems rooting at the bottom. The leaves are small (5-10 mm long), opposite, ovate or almost rounded, obtuse at the apex, entire or serrated. The upper leaves gradually turn into bracts, so the apical loose brush is not sharply limited from the leafy part of the stem. Corolla 3-4 mm in diameter, whitish with dark veins or bluish, wheel-shaped.

Veronica filiformis (Veronica filiformis) is widely distributed in the mountain meadows of Europe. Perennial low plant, only 3-5 cm, with single blue flowers with dark veins, rising on long stalks from axillary leaves. There are forms with pale blue and white flowers. Blooms in April-June. Thin long creeping stems in contact with the ground take root, resulting in large light green carpets, especially on wet places. Suitable for growing on lawns, alpine hills, as well as for terraced rockeries and fixing slopes. Absolutely unpretentious, sometimes aggressive, often becomes a weed on lawns. Good for creating carpet arrays. Moisture-loving, but drought-resistant. It is winter-hardy, but in snowless winters it partially freezes out, after which it quickly recovers. Most effective on poor dry soils in partial shade.

Siberian Veronica (Veronica sibirica) In the wild, Veronica is found only in Eastern Siberia, in the Far East, grow in forests, meadows. Tall slender plant (40-150 cm tall) with strong unbranched stems. Oblong-lanceolate, rather large leaves are arranged in 3-9 floors in a whorl. Small blue flowers are collected in long apical spicate inflorescences (up to 30 cm long), solitary (sometimes there may be several). The calyx is five-parted. Corolla with a long tube and a limb, the petals are blue, may be pink or white. Grown in gardens and parks, in open areas. During flowering, the curtain of Veronica Siberian has a healthy and strong appearance, the plants "stand like a wall", attracting many bees and bumblebees. Requires almost no care, propagated by dividing the bush.

Veronica alpine (Veronica alpina) In the mountains almost throughout Eurasia, in alpine, subalpine meadows, damp banks of rivers, streams, rocks, pebbles, alpine veronica grows. perennial plant with purple flowers in apical few-flowered capitate racemes. Plant height - up to 25 cm, shoots are thin, creeping, covered with soft hairs. The upper leaves are alternate, the rest are opposite, ovate.

Spring Veronica (Veronica verna) Grow on slopes, roadsides, dry slopes. Annual, biennial plants with pinkish-blue or pale blue flowers with blue stripes, in elongated apical and lateral multi-flowered dense spiky racemes, later elongating and more loose.

Veronica Sayan (Veronica sajanensis) It grows in the highlands in subalpine and alpine meadows, less often in the tundra. Krasnoyarsk region. Tuva. Endemic. Stems erect, 40-70 cm tall, with pale blue flowers collected in a dense cylindrical apical raceme.

Veronica tubiflora (Veronica tubiflora) Dwells in meadows and among shrubs. General distribution: East Asia. Perennial up to 60 cm tall. Stems simple, furrowed, glabrous. Leaves alternate, rarely opposite, sessile, linear or linear-lanceolate, 3-7 cm long, 2-5 mm wide, cuneate at base, acute at apex. Inflorescence apical, spike-shaped, up to 30 cm long. The flowers are blue, up to 8 mm long, with a tube 3-4 times longer than the limb.

Veronica virgin (Veronica / Veronicastrum virginica / Leptandra virginica) Motherland - East of North America. Plants up to 130 cm tall. The bush is stable. The leaves are lanceolate, juicy green, arranged in whorls. The flowers are white or blue, collected in paniculate inflorescence up to 15 cm long. Blooms from June to August. In culture since 1714.

Veronica Australian (Veronica plebeia) Southeast Australia. Perennial up to 30 cm tall, with blue small flowers collected in apical inflorescences. An open shoot with creeping branches. Heart-shaped leaves with sharply dissected edges.

Veronica Allioni (Veronica allionii) with small purple flowers collected in apical inflorescences.

Veronica Austrian (Veronica austriaca) with bright blue star-shaped flowers in 2-4 lateral, elongated, single or opposite racemes emerging from the sinuses top leaves, 20-50 cm high. Drought-resistant. Suitable for lawns and alpine slides, rockeries terraces.

Veronica biloba (Veronica biloba) with light blue flower tassels, elongated, loose, few-flowered.

Veronica cup (Veronica calycina) with small blue flowers collected in apical inflorescences.

Veronica ciliate (Veronica ciliata) with blue flowers in apical short few-flowered racemes.

Veronica daurica (Veronica daurica) with white flowers in apical racemes, single or several.

Veronica densely flowered (Veronica densiflora) with blue flowers in apical dense rounded racemes, elongating as they fade.

Veronica thread-leaved (Veronica filifolia) with sparse tassels of milky-white flowers with blue veins, cushion-shaped perennial.

Veronica formosa (Veronica formosa) with bluish-purple flowers.

Veronica graceful (Veronica gracilis) with single blue flowers.

Veronica large-flowered (Veronica grandiflora) with bright blue flowers collected in few-flowered inflorescences.

Veronica gray-haired (Veronica incana) is a whitish-felt pubescent plant with narrow dense spike-shaped racemes of flowers. There are garden varieties and forms. Drought-resistant, winter-hardy without shelter. Suitable for lawns and alpine slides.

Linen-leaved Veronica (Veronica linariifolia) with blue flowers in apical, dense and long, single racemes, less often lateral brushes are formed in the axils of the upper leaves.

Veronica macrostemon (Veronica macrostemon) with blue-violet flowers, collected in apical, capitate brushes, significantly elongating by the end of flowering.

Veronica Maksimovicha (Veronica maximowicziana) with whitish flowers with lilac veins, collected in apical brushes.

Veronica snow (Veronica nivea) with pale blue or white small flowers collected in drooping apical inflorescences.

Veronica pinnate (Veronica pinnata) with light blue, sometimes white or pinkish flowers in apical, sparse, long pointed racemes, 5-25 cm long.

Veronica Polozhiy (Veronica polozhiae) with pale pink or whitish flowers on long pedicels, located 1-3 in the axils of one of the opposite leaves.

Veronica Porphyria (Veronica porphyriana) with dark blue almost sessile flowers in apical dense racemes 3-8 cm long and 1.5-2 cm thick, elongating when flowering.

Creeping Veronica (Veronica repens) is an excellent plant for sodding soil under trees with small pale blue flowers (there are forms with white and pink flowers).

Veronica gravel (Veronica schistosa) with pale blue flowers in a long brush. Drought-resistant.

Veronica scutellata with pale blue or pinkish flowers on very thin long pedicels, collected in very loose brushes, are formed one by one in the axil of one of the opposite leaves.

Veronica sessiliflora (Veronica sessiliflora) with light blue almost sessile flowers collected in apical, single dense brushes.

Veronica fake (Veronica spuria) with blue or blue flowers, collected in apical and lateral brushes, forming a paniculate-racemose inflorescence.

garden plants

Veronica. Landing and care

How to grow Veronica in the country, in the garden

Veronica. Cultivation and care

Care. unpretentious, easy care. Terms of planting and flowering: blooms in May. Plant this plant in spring, summer and autumn. Frost resistance: tolerates winter well.

Veronica. general description

Veronica is a perennial herbaceous plant. It is common in European countries, in Siberia and the Far East. Veronica is a rhizomatous plant. It is represented by many species, which differ significantly from each other in height, shape, color and arrangement of leaves, flower color, flowering time.

Veronica creeping blooms from the second half of May. The plant is undersized. It has small light blue, white or pink flowers, forming inflorescences-brushes and green small leaves.

Veronica oakwood blooms from late May to early June. This is a short veronica species. The plant has small bright blue flowers that form inflorescences-brushes. The leaves are diverse - they can be ovate, pinnate, heart-shaped.

Veronica prostrate blooms from May to July. It belongs to low-growing plants. Her leaves are narrow, long, and the flowers form lush inflorescences-brushes of white, light blue, pink, blue color.

Veronica Steller blooms at the end of May. The plant is undersized. Leaves with a jagged edge, and blue and purple flowers are collected in inflorescences-brushes resembling heads.

Veronica Schmidt blooms from late May to late June. This type of undersized veronica has small leaves. The flowers are varied in color (white with purple strokes, purple with white strokes) and form dense inflorescences-brushes.

Veronica broadleaf blooms in late May and continues to bloom throughout June. It belongs to the middle class. Its leaves are ovate or heart-shaped with a serrated edge. Bright blue, pink and white flowers form opposite racemes.

Veronica gentian begins to bloom in late May and continues until early June. It belongs to tall plants. Her leaves are oval, often with a white border. The flowers are light blue, pale blue with blue veins, form inflorescences-brushes.

Veronica. Varieties

Various types of veronica have many varieties. The most popular hybrid varieties of this plant are presented in Table.

Table. Types and varieties of Veronica

Veronica

Many of us in the forest or in the meadow more than once met speedwells - cute plants with blue or blue inflorescences. Probably because some types of veronica are widespread in nature, they are not often seen in gardens. However, on the basis of wild plants, many wonderful varieties of veronica have been created, as well as their hybrids, which are just asking for our mixborders and alpine slides. There are also many rare types of Veronica that can decorate the collections of many sophisticated flower growers. In this article, I will not be able to talk about all Veronicas, since there are about three hundred species of them, but I would like to draw your attention to those that, in my opinion, are worthy of wider recognition by flower growers. There are several versions why the plant was called Veronica. One of the legends says that it got its name in honor of Saint Veronica. Saint Veronica is a woman who gave Jesus, who was walking to Golgotha, a cloth to wipe sweat from his face. The face of the Savior remained on the fabric. After the invention of photography, by papal decree, Saint Veronica was declared the patroness of photography and photographers.

Veronica is considered one of the most beautiful among the flowers of Veronica. This is a long-lived perennial with thick shoots up to fifty, and sometimes up to seventy centimeters in height, on which are oppositely located ovoid toothed leaflets, pubescent below. In varietal veronica, large, with a rare planting, shoots form a beautiful dense, almost domed dark green bush. From the end of May until almost mid-July, the dome-bush becomes dazzling blue from above due to the numerous blooming flowers, approximately from seventy millimeters to one and a half centimeters, collected in dense racemose inflorescences up to fifteen centimeters long. Due to the beauty of the inflorescences, the large veronica is often called the royal veronica.

Growing Veronica:

King Veronica can be grown in almost any well-drained garden soil, but it prefers loamy soil. The plant is photophilous, but tolerably grows and develops in partial shade. It likes abundant watering, but it can tolerate short droughts and absolutely does not tolerate soil getting wet in the cold season. Winters without shelter, withstands frosts up to forty degrees below zero.

Veronica is most often propagated by seeds - it is not difficult to grow it from seeds. If there are not many seeds, it is advisable to sow them for seedlings. Having grown even one large bush of Veronica, you will be able to collect and sow your seeds in the future - their plant ties well, they ripen in September. Seeds can be sown directly into the ground in autumn or spring. Veronica large is also often propagated by dividing the bush: they do it either in spring, as soon as the plant starts to grow, or autumn periods, September-early October. Experienced flower growers royal veronica is propagated by green cuttings, which are cut from the tops of young spring shoots before flowering.

Usually Veronica is planted in a mixborder, where it perfectly sets off plants with large and bright flowers. However, I believe that the beauty of the royal veronica is more expressive if it grows solo, for example on a lawn. Veronica large inflorescences can also be used for cutting.

Another rather large and not very widely known species is gentian veronica or veronica Kemularia. This plant has leathery, thick, round-lanceolate leaves up to fifteen centimeters long, collected in basal rosettes. Particularly good is the variegated form of Veronica gentian - Variegata. Over time, whole curtains are formed from such sockets that are not interconnected. Most of the leaves from the rosettes hibernate, and in the period of April-May, new ones begin to grow. A little later, flower stalks from thirty to eighty centimeters high appear above the rosettes, rarely covered with small leaves. At the end of May, graceful brushes of rather large, as for speedwells, about a centimeter in diameter, white-blue flowers with blue veins bloom on peduncles. Veronica gentian blooms for two to three weeks until mid-June.

Veronica gentian is a long rhizome plant. When, after flowering, young daughter rosettes form at the ends of the stolons, the mother plant dies. Therefore, in the winter, several independent outlets go away.

Veronica Kemularia is unpretentious: it is photophilous, but it will grow without problems in partial shade. Grows well in almost any well-drained soil, including limestone. Since this veronica grows wild in wet mountain meadows, do not forget to water it in the garden.

Veronica gentian seeds are also propagated vegetatively. They can be sown before winter or in spring directly in open ground or sown in spring for seedlings. And you can also cut off a piece of rhizome with roots in spring or autumn and plant it in a new place.

Gentian Veronica is planted in the foreground of mixborders, separate curtains are created from plants, large rockeries are decorated with it, especially those located near water bodies.

Veronica plant: types, varieties, care

Veronica belongs to the most ancient medicinal plants, the beauty of which gardeners did not immediately appreciate. It has been grown as a remedy for diseases of the stomach, kidneys and lungs since the Middle Ages, but they began to use it as a decoration for flower beds much later. But on the other hand, breeders have fully made up for lost centuries, bringing out many varieties that flaunt interesting shapes and offer a wide selection of different plant sizes. Veronica is so firmly entrenched today in the flower garden as a companion plant that it is almost impossible to imagine colorful ensembles filled with halftones and openwork without her. Along with such unpretentious crops as catnip and sage. veronika allows you to simplify the care of the garden as much as possible and, accordingly, save the time of the owners, allowing you to fully enjoy your vacation. But Veronica has one advantage over herbaceous perennials of similar structure: it flaunts slender, elegant lines and creates a more openwork texture of the background, which allows you to present soloists on flower beds in a more elegant frame.

Veronica, whose beauty was rightfully appreciated and loved, today is a vast genus of plants of various heights and color intensity. Veronica is considered one of the main unpretentious herbaceous perennials with a blue color that brings depth, intimacy, coolness and tranquility to flower beds. The species diversity of Veronica is quite large. Among plants with this name, there are compact, low-growing species, such as Veronica broadleaf or Veronica gentian, and tall perennials that reach 1 meter in height (for example, Veronica long-leaved). On sale today there is also a plant with the name "Veronica virginian", which in fact is a completely different species, albeit similar to Veronica in the structure of thin small-colored inflorescences-candles and narrow leaves - Veronicastrum virginian. This plant is suitable only for creating a high background of a flower garden, because it often reaches more than 1.5 meters in height. This perennial is also unpretentious and hardy, like all speedwells, but is a much larger plant.

Veronica long-leaved belongs to the best types of Veronica, which decorates flower beds in July with graceful fluffy inflorescences of a conical shape (the plant reaches a height of 80 cm); Veronica spikelet with larger and denser inflorescences in the form of openwork flowering candles that bloom in early summer (all varieties of spikelet Veronica do not exceed 30 cm in height and can be used as ground covers); the same height Veronica broad-leaved with bright thin inflorescences and more large leaves which looks very good in borders.

According to the color palette, the vast majority of veronicas are blue-flowered, but among the many new hybrid varieties, if desired, you can find very original plants with white inflorescences or representing a more noble and bright purple gamut. By color, Veronica can be either pale, muted, or the brightest. Intense blue is found in Veronica broadleaf, which has slightly larger inflorescences. The brightest, in particular, belongs to the variety "Knallblau" with a bright ultramarine color. With ease in impressiveness and variegation, the pink-colored variety of Veronica spikelet "Baby Doll" (Baby Doll) or the purple variety "Rotfuchs", which flaunts with delicate shortened-rounded inflorescences, the variety of Veronica long-leaved "Pink Damask" will compete with it with ease.

Regardless of the species, variety and growth, Veronica is always a companion plant that will demonstrate itself as an accompanying crop as an irreplaceable and unpretentious perennial. Veronicas have a unique ability to gracefully and unobtrusively fit even into an already formed flower garden, on which they are designed to fill the voids. Thanks to slender silhouettes and graceful lines, Veronica not only complements any garden ensemble, but makes it even more interesting in shape, texture, and colors. Creating the effect of an inner glow in a duet with plants blooming in warm colors, veronica is great for creating optical effects.

Veronica is widely used in landscape design. If you plant several varieties with different dates side by side, then the flowering of Veronica can be stretched from May to the end of September. Low-growing species and varieties are appropriate not only in the foreground of the flower garden, but also in borders, on alpine slides and in rockeries. But high, in addition to the traditional role of accompaniment, will also feel great in mixborder ribbons. Veronica, despite the status of a classic flowerbed herbaceous perennial, unexpectedly gracefully looks in the design of reservoirs, in particular, ponds. It goes well with lilies, daylily, yarrow, meadowsweet, loosestrife and nivyanik. Like catnip, veronica can be used as an accompanying partner for roses, both bed and larger. Modest candle-shaped inflorescences surprisingly elegantly emphasize the luxury of roses, as if shading the queen of the garden with an openwork coverlet with beautiful details: pointed leaves, thin inflorescences. Veronica is one of the favorite plants of bees and bumblebees. It can be grown in pots, both solo and in compositions. Veronica spikelet manifests itself best in the role of a pot. This type of veronica, like long-leaved, is suitable for cutting.

Veronica is very easy to care for. This plant grows well in sunny areas, but for the rest of the requirements different types differ. So, broad-leaved veronica prefers dry soil and does not like waterlogging, while long-leaved, on the contrary, grows well even in conditions of excessive watering. Top dressing is applied for speedwells growing on insufficiently nutritious soils only once every few years. Watering Veronica in the flower garden is not necessary. All speedwells are perennials, resistant to lodging, rarely sick and not susceptible to diseases and pests. The only threat to plant health is downy mildew, which can appear in varieties that do not like waterlogging during prolonged rains and elevated air temperatures. If the disease manifests itself, the shoots should be completely removed and, if possible, sprayed with insecticides. Veronica is very easy to propagate: it is enough to dig a bush and divide it into several parts with a shovel. Division is best done in early spring or August.