Viola flower: description of annual and perennial varieties.

Tricolor violet, moths. There is probably no person who would not at least once admire this bright, sensual flower. If you are looking for something beautiful for your garden, but at the same time unpretentious plant, then the choice is obvious - viola.

Planting and caring for viola do not require special knowledge and skills, any gardener can cope with this task. This flower can be grown in open ground, both in flowerpots and in pots. The ease of propagation will allow you to admire this plant for many years. So it’s worth looking at the photo of the viola, choosing the varieties you like and starting planting.

Viola: varieties and varieties

The genus of violas has up to 500 varieties, but only a few of them are chosen for growing in gardens. We will dwell on these types and varieties in more detail.

• Swiss giants;
• rococo;
• bambini.

Planting a viola

Viola feels good both in sunny areas and in the shade. But you should still avoid the sun and complete shade. Try to choose a place where your flowers will be shaded for several hours a day, and the rest of the time they will bask in the sun.

Viola can be planted using both seedlings and seeds. Seeds are sown in open ground in May. 2-3 seeds are placed in the holes, and 50-60 seeds per meter in the furrows. Gardeners do not recommend deep-burying the seeds; 0.5–0.7 cm is enough. Sprinkle on top thin layer soil and water. The first shoots will not take long to appear. After just a week, it is recommended to cover the young shoots with a dark film so that they do not burn in the sun. After two weeks the film can be removed.

Viola is very easily propagated by seeds

Planting seeds for seedlings is done in the same way. In February, seeds are sown in pots or boxes. Young violets dive twice. The first time as soon as the first shoots appear, the second time after 2-3 weeks. Seedlings can be planted in open ground after two months. There is no need to leave large gaps between the beds with viola; 25 cm is enough for free growth of viola.

Advice. If you decide to grow seedlings, then it is best to use a special ready-made substrate for violets, which can be purchased at any hardware store.

Plant care

Root system The viola plant is located quite shallow, so watering this flower should be regular. But you should not allow water to stagnate. In addition, the viola responds gratefully to loosening. It is best to cover the viola for the winter. For this, a small layer of spruce branches, peat or leaves will be enough.

Loosen the soil around the viola carefully so as not to damage the root system

Advice. To prolong the flowering of viola, remove faded flowers and seed pods.

Fertilizer and feeding of viola

You can start fertilizing this perennial plant by preparing the bed. In autumn, when digging, it is recommended to add humus or mineral fertilizer. Seedlings must be fertilized once every two weeks with complex mineral fertilizers.

Should not be used organic fertilizers for feeding viola

Adult flowers will be grateful for superphosphate fertilizing, which must be applied once a month, but manure should be avoided.

Viola propagation

To preserve varietal qualities, viola can be propagated by cuttings, since when cross-pollinated, the resulting seeds can produce offspring that have lost their maternal characteristics. In addition, cuttings allow you to rejuvenate plants that, after three years, grow too much and lose their flowering splendor.

Viola: how the plant works

Viola can be cut at any time of the year; even during flowering, it easily tolerates transplants. It is best to choose green shoots that have already formed 2-3 buds. Carefully trimmed cuttings are planted in a garden bed, which is best done in a shaded place. There is no need to bury the cuttings; 0.5–1 cm will be enough. Don’t forget to periodically water your seedlings, and within a month you will have ready-made planting material.

Advice. When planting cuttings, you can cover them with a damp cloth or paper to avoid drying out and wilting.

Diseases and pests

Viola, which is very easy to plant and care for in open ground, will delight you with colors all summer long. And to avoid difficulties associated with diseases and pests, follow simple rules agricultural technology. The most frequent illness among violets - powdery mildew. It occurs when improper feeding- from excess nitrogen. In this case, it is necessary to treat the plant with soda mixed with soap.

Powdery mildew

Except powdery mildew, if there is excess humidity, you may encounter problems such as black leg or gray mold. If these diseases are detected, immediately remove the diseased bushes before the fungus spreads throughout the entire garden bed.

Occasionally, the viola becomes more spotty, with the leaves drying out, and the plant itself weakens and dies. Such plants must be uprooted and burned, and the remaining perennials must be sprayed with Bordeaux mixture.

Caterpillar

The most dangerous pests for viola are caterpillars that eat the leaves of the plant. To combat them, specialized means are used.

Viola in landscape design

Viola is very friendly and gets along well with other perennial plants. Pairs well with and.

Small-flowered violets are most expressive when they grow in large numbers. A kind of carpet of green leaves and small flowers of fragrant violet can be made even more spectacular if you add other early flowering crops to it. Scilla, doronicum and tiarella are ideal.

White violets will go perfectly with red ones. Very often in landscape design violets are decorated with gorse and iberis.

Viola looks wonderful in the same flower bed with different plants

Various varieties of viola are used as border plantings, and ground cover is combined with ornamental shrubs and dwarf coniferous trees. In flower beds and mixed flower beds, forget-me-nots, tulips and tulips have become the viola’s constant companions. The unpretentiousness of viola and the ease of growing it in pots allows you to decorate not only flower beds and gardens, but also terraces, balconies and window sills.

Viola, like all violets, is also distinguished by its medicinal abilities. Its decoctions are used for laryngitis, gastritis and many other diseases. And the violet tincture itself is often drunk instead of tea, as it has a very pleasant taste and aroma.

Decorative composition with viola

Viola, as we have seen, is a simple and unpretentious plant, the cultivation of which will not cause you any trouble if you follow the rules of agricultural technology and minimal effort. And bright multi-colored flower beds with violets will delight you with their blooms until frost.

Planting viola with seeds: video

Types and varieties of viola: photo

Violas are two-year-olds, they can be grown by direct sowing in the ground in May-July, without any worries about the seedlings, but then they will bloom only on next year. Therefore, if you, like me, immediately after buying a summer cottage, wanted to admire pansies this spring, then try it! There is nothing complicated about growing viola seedlings.

photo VINALI, yul81-05, NELKA, florist

Varieties

Violas usually look like low-growing bushes, up to 15-20cm high. There are also hanging ones, but so far I have only come across bush seeds.
I tried growing large-flowered pansies of the most different varieties. True, during the process of growing, transporting to the dacha and planting in the ground, they got so mixed up that I didn’t remember who is who. I can only say that all the varieties listed below have a germination rate of 50-70%, and they were all beautiful:

• “English”, “Moscow Evenings”, “Cuties”, “Lambada”, “Extra” and “Carnival of Colors” from Aelita,
• “White Lady”, “Spring Song”, “Ruby Splendor” and “Orange Mood” from Techtrustgroup.

Sowing and caring for seedlings

Short stature will not allow the violas to stretch out in low light conditions, so even if the packet of seeds says to sow from March, you can safely start in early to mid-February if you are suddenly in a “sowing” mood. When sown in February, my violas bloomed even before planting in the ground, continuing to bloom until frost.

If you stick lunar calendar, then sow flowers on the waxing moon, starting from the third day after the new moon and up to a couple of days before the full moon.
Experienced gardeners stratify pansy seeds, that is, after scattering the seeds on the surface of the ground, they cover them with a lid and put them in the refrigerator for a couple of weeks near the vegetable shelf. But for now I am one of the lazy gardeners, so I do without stratification.
The soil should be loose; if it’s “tight” it will be bad for small roots. It is also good to mix vermiculite into the seedling mixture. Distribute the seeds evenly over a slightly damp surface, about 2-4 seeds per area of ​​a five-ruble coin. Sprinkle it on top, as if “salting,” with a thin layer of earth (2-3 millimeters), spray it from a spray bottle (not pour it, but spray it!), cover it with either film, glass, or just a transparent lid. We are not overzealous with the temperature; the seeds will sprout at 18-20 degrees, that is, right next to the glass or even under the window. They sprout quickly. If the seeds are from last year or collected from city flower beds in the fall, that is, definitely fresh, then they can sprout on the third day. But sometimes they “think” for 10 days. All these days, you need to ventilate the seedlings daily, removing the film and carefully wiping the condensation from it. Once they sprout, the film on top is no longer needed. The temperature can be reduced to 8-10 degrees at night. But, of course, so that the wind from the window does not blow directly on the sprouts, they are still very tender. At first, you need to water the violas carefully, without getting on the stem - it can easily break, bend down to the ground with water and not get up.

Rice. 1 You can sow in anything, even in an egg container. These violas were sown in early February, photo from early March

In this picture you can see two elongated sprouts - it’s better to throw them out right away, they won’t make good bushes.

Fig. 2 You can mark the name of the variety with sticky paper on a toothpick

Rice. 3 These violas were sown in mid-February, photo mid-March

You can sow pansies until the beginning of March. In the previous photo, the crops are a bit dense, since these are violets collected from city flower beds, there was no confidence in germination, which is why I sprinkled them so generously. And they took it and almost all of them rose. Then it was more difficult to replant.

Somewhere in mid-March, when the seedlings have two true leaves (in addition to two cotyledons), we transplant them into individual cells. Or you can plant 2 bushes in one container. You can add more vermiculite to help the roots breathe better.

Rice. 4 These cells are, in principle, convenient for growing viola seedlings. The seedlings here are exactly a month old

10-15 days after transplantation, you need to feed the viol mineral fertilizer for flowers. I like to use “Fertika”, the former “Kemira” - it is convenient to propagate for small batches of flower seedlings, it does not smell and has a pleasant color, it is conveniently stored when opened (I secure the cut edge with a clothespin and put the packaging in a bag so that cats do not find and not claimed). After a month, you can feed Fertika again. You can harden the viola on the loggia when night temperatures do not fall below +5 degrees. But there is no need to expose the seedlings immediately to direct sunlight.

Landing in the ground

Viola tolerates transplantation well even in in bloom, and after the threat of night frosts has passed, you can take it to the dacha. It will grow in both sunny and semi-shaded areas of the garden, both in open ground and in boxes and flowerpots.
I planted the violas at a distance of about 20cm from each other, but I think it’s possible to plant them less often so that by mid-July a thicker head will form.

Rice. 6 Viola does not yet form a carpet in mid-June

Rice. 7 This is also the middle of June. But these are violas planted last year. They bloom more amicably and bush well

Rice. 8 Only by the beginning of July do violas begin to grow in breadth

Rice. 9 At the end of July, the flower carpet of pansies begins to close in

Rice. 10 And only by the beginning of August the bushes grow into a continuous covering

Viola Wittrock - quite old and famous plant, this flower belongs to the violet family. This flower is mainly cultivated as an annual or biennial plant, but if divided regularly, it can be perennial.

Today we will tell you what varieties of Wittrock viola exist, what are the features of growing and planting viola from seeds, as well as caring for this flower. In the material you will see photos of some varieties of viola.

Key features of the Wittrock viola

This flower includes a large number of varieties and variety groups. This type viols is one of the most popular. It was obtained by crossing the following types of varieties:

• Altai;
• yellow;
• tricolor, etc.

The flower is a dense bush about 30 cm high. Its flowers are large and have a diameter of about 11 cm, they have irregular shape and can have different shades. It is very rare to find viola petals of the same tone.

Varieties of Wittrock viola are combined into the following series:

• Rococo;
• Bambini;
• Swiss giants.

Viola varieties, their descriptions and photos

Below are descriptive characteristics of some varieties of viola:

Growing Wittrock's Viola

When planting a viola, you need to know its main characteristics:

• cold resistance;
• tolerates shade well;
• neutral regarding the length of daylight hours.

Mostly flowers are good develop in both partial shade and sun. It is worth remembering that in very hot weather in the sun the plant stretches and the flowers appear too small. Optimal temperature for growing viola is about 15 degrees. When grown in partial shade, flowering will be longer, but not abundant.

Viola is planted in the following soils:

• fertile;
• loamy and sandy loam;
• well drained.

Viola will not bloom on dry soil, but the flower needs heat good watering. It also needs to be protected from drafts. Viola is good at replanting during flowering. It is not recommended to plant in lowlands where there is stagnation melt water . Also, the flower does not really like fresh organic fertilizers.

Despite all that has been said, viola is not too demanding in terms of care and gives good self-seeding.

Viola of this species is capable of reproducing in the following ways:

• dividing the bush;
• seeds;
• cuttings

It is best to grow biennial plants through seedlings. We'll talk about this below.

Planting flower seeds for seedlings

Planting seeds for seedlings gives the plant the opportunity to bloom in the middle of summer. But if you sow the seeds directly into open ground in June, you will see flowers only at the beginning of the next season.

Growing viola from seeds can begin in February. To begin with, the seed is needed for a day soak in a solution with a biostimulator, For example:

• "Epinom";
• "Zircon";
• "Heteroauxin".

Dilution of liquids must strictly comply with the instructions for a particular product.

• mark the furrows;
• sow the prepared seeds;
• pour settled water;
• sprinkle the seed with soil;
• cover the containers with glass or transparent film;
• place them in a room where the air temperature is about 15 degrees.

First shoots and picking

In about a couple of weeks the first shoots appear. When germination begins, the film or glass must be removed, and the containers themselves must be placed in a cool and well-lit place with an average temperature of about 10 degrees. Plant care at this time is as follows:

If the seedlings of viola seeds grow quite intensively, they need to be planted again, but, as a rule, one transplant is enough.

When should a plant be transplanted into open ground?

Planting viola seedlings in open ground should be considered depending on the climate of your region. As a rule, transplantation is carried out at the end of April or May. The most important thing is to plant the flower after the end of the period when there are night frosts. Frail flowers do not always tolerate such sudden temperature changes.

Transplantation into the ground carried out like this:

• Place the seedlings in the holes at a distance of 15 cm from each other;
• sprinkle the roots with soil;
• compact the soil around the flower;
• Water well.

Perennial plant varieties tend to grow and lose their attractiveness over time. They can be propagated by cuttings.

Features of caring for viola in open ground

After you have transplanted the flower into open ground, you need to follow fairly simple rules for caring for it:

The flowering of viola will be simply magnificent if once a month you fertilize it with ammonium nitrate or superphosphate at the rate of 30 grams per square meter soil.

Compliance with all planting and growing rules is the key beautiful flowering in future.

Collecting seeds

Viola seeds left on peduncles ripen in mid-August or early September. After the flowers fade, small boxes appear containing small brown seeds. It is important not to miss the moment when they begin to ripen, because the boxes may open and scatter the seeds. When the seed pods are turned up, this means that the seeds are ready to be collected. They should be cut, the seed removed and spread out to dry. Then they are taken to the basement or refrigerator for subsequent stratification.

If the boxes filled with seeds are not specifically removed, the seeds will sift themselves, and over time you will see spontaneous shoots throughout the area. In such cases, seedlings need to be planted in prepared areas without preliminary seedlings.

Caring for viola in winter

Despite the fact that viola is resistant to cold, in very severe frosts it must be covered with tree leaves or spruce branches. As a rule, this applies to regions where the average winter temperature drops below 30 degrees below zero.

Dangerous diseases and pests for flowers

The most common diseases that violas are exposed to are:

• root rot;
• gray rot;
• powdery mildew;
• rust;
• spotting;
• blackleg;
• variegation;
• ring necrotic spotting.

Plants affected by the disease must be removed immediately to deprive the planting of a source of infection. Then the soil needs to be dug up well.

As for pests, but The danger in this case is represented by:

• clover cutworm caterpillar;
• violet mother of pearl.

Both pests very quickly eat plant leaves. To eliminate them, insecticides are used, a solution of chlorvos, tobacco infusion or karbofos is sprayed.

Viola Wittrock in landscaping

Viola has so many varieties that it can be easily used to create flower beds of different styles. Early flowering allows these plants to be widely used for spring decoration of gardens, parks, ridges, partners, borders or flower beds. Violas are often used in leading positions in mixborders, next to stones in rockeries, on hills, in group plantings on the lawn.

Very often they are used to decorate trunk circles next to trees, container compositions that are installed on windows, loggias and balconies.

We can conclude that Wittrock's viola is incredible beautiful flower, unpretentious in care and easy to plant, capable of decorating any interior of a park or garden. And the long duration of flowering of this plant will certainly not leave any lover of green pets indifferent.

Tricolor violet (Víola tricolor), otherwise known as pansy, viola, is a popular herbaceous annual or perennial plant. It is most widespread in Europe and temperate regions of Asia. Viola belongs to the genus Violet from the Violet family.

Botanical features

The tricolor violet has a thin, tap-like, slightly branched, brownish root, which is buried almost vertically into the soil.

The stem part is branched, triangular, glabrous or pubescent. The stem is hollow, no more than 0.45 m high. The leaves are of an alternate type, petiolate, glabrous or with scattered hairs and large crenates. The flowers are presented in a frontal form with a simple brush, zygomorphic, located on peduncles that emerge from the leaf axils. Flowering is abundant and very attractive.

Known subspecies

Currently, violets are quite often used in urban landscape design and become a real decoration for flower beds or flower beds in country houses and personal plots. Most Popular the following types:

• Viola curtisii or Curtis subspecies;
• Viola macedonica or Macedonian subspecies;
• Viola matutina or Morning subspecies;
• Viola subalpina or Subalpine subspecies.

Today, there are more than 400 species and varieties of tricolor violet, which allows you to choose a plant to suit every taste and color for growing in the garden.

Viola: growing and care (video)

Tricolor violet is an unpretentious and very decorative flower. The bushes of most varieties are compact. The height of low-growing varieties does not exceed 15 cm. Medium-growing varieties are characterized by a height of 15-25 cm, and tall violets can grow up to 30 cm.

Viola horned or Viola cornuta refers to perennial garden violets, which are grown for several years without losing their decorative qualities. Winter hardiness indicators depend on varietal characteristics. Species feature is the presence of a slightly curved spur 1.0-1.5 cm long, located on back side flower.

Relatively recently received Viola Williams or Viola Williamsii is biennial plant of hybrid origin. Domestic and foreign breeders have developed not only bush varieties, but also very decorative hanging forms. Low growing ornamental plant suitable for indoor floriculture and border edging.

Wittrock's violet or garden pansy is a herbaceous perennial plant of hybrid origin. All varieties and varietal groups were developed by crossing Viola tricolor and Viola altaica with Viola lutea.

Fragrant violet or Viola odorata is a perennial ornamental plants. At the active flowering stage, it has a pleasant and quite pronounced aroma, which allows the use of fragrant violet extract in the creation of cosmetic and perfume products.

Of particular interest to floriculture are the following: unusual varieties and varieties:

• violet “Little Red Riding Hood”, which produces large semi-double and double, slightly notched, coral-red, star-shaped flowers;
• yellow violet (Víola lutea), which is a perennial herbaceous plant;
• pink dense violet called “Your Majesty”, with wavy petals and bright lush green foliage;
• violet “Black Cherry” with very double, not fully opening flowers of a dark cherry color.

At correct placement garden violets in a flower bed, the street flower garden will look like the picture.

Landing technology

Currently, flower growers successfully practice several methods of propagating and growing violets. Enough simple option is sowing indoor crops with seeds. Seeds should be planted in pre-prepared soil, adhering to the following technology:

• Fill the seed containers with nutritious soil mixture, and upper layer sift through a medium-sized sieve;
• generously spill the soil in the planting containers with a fungicide solution;
• gently but thoroughly level the surface and make grooves for sowing;
• sow the seeds in the soil and sprinkle with disinfected fertile soil flower mixture;
• Water the crops generously and leave them under a film cover for germination.

Seedlings should be planted after optimal conditions for growth and development have been established. flower culture air temperature, and the soil will also be sufficiently warmed up. Planting in open ground occurs in August or September. The area where violets are supposed to be planted can be either sunny or shady, depending on the botanical features varieties. The soil on the site should be nutritious, loose, and well-drained. Almost all varieties of violets require neutral or slightly acidic soil.

Many varieties of viola grown in home gardens can be easily propagated by dividing the bush. The procedure is carried out in spring period, before the mass flowering phase. It is allowed to divide adult plants in the second half of summer, immediately after the end of mass flowering (the violet of the second year of life blooms around April, at the same time as crocuses, which are popular in our country).

In indoor floriculture, violets can be grown using two methods. The first planting method is more complex, but quick - immersing the leaves directly in a nutritious soil substrate. Less in a complicated way reproduction is to carry out preliminary rooting of leaves in water with subsequent planting in nutritious soil mixture. This method is most often used by beginning amateur gardeners.

Features of care

Viola rightfully belongs to the non-capricious flowering crops. But still, like any flowering plant, violets should be cared for correctly:

• the standard distance between decorative viola bushes when planting should be approximately 10-15 cm; closer growing may negatively affect the flowering of the plant;
• abundant flowering is possible if there is good lighting, but from too strong sun rays the plant should be shaded, which will protect the crop at the flowering stage from burning out and help maintain its decorative appearance;
• watering should be regular and uniform, therefore it is strictly forbidden to allow either overdrying or excessive waterlogging of the soil around the root system;
• for getting abundant flowering the plant should be fed correctly and in a timely manner: when growing viola in conditions closed ground fertilizers are applied weekly, and for flowering plants, cultivated in open ground, fertilizing with complex fertilizers should be done approximately once every three weeks.

On winter period, especially in regions with soil and climatic conditions that are not favorable enough for flowering crops, it is advisable to cover the plants with spruce branches or dry leaves. It is very important to remove the shelter in a timely manner in the spring, which will insure decorative culture from damping off.

Tricolor violet: beneficial properties (video)

Use in landscape design

Pansies are one of the most popular flowering biennials both among amateur gardeners and among municipal gardeners and experienced breeders. Various varietal forms of violets are widely used in group plantings, as well as mixborders, flower beds and flower beds. IN last years the plant is very actively grown in flowerpots and special containers, and is also popular for decoration alpine slides.

Growing viola ampelous in hanging planters makes it relatively easy to decorate balconies and loggias, as well as gazebos. In rocky compositions in gardens and summer cottages Miniature varieties of violets look very harmonious. Fragrant varietal forms and hybrids are most often used for decoration in the tree trunks of large trees. Volzhanka violet, as well as geranium and Rogersia, complement the violet very effectively.