MIRABILIS: BEAUTY IN THE NIGHT
Mirabilis opens in July, flowering which lasts until October. This is an unusual plant: its buds open at night and begin to emit a special fragrance (vanilla blend, citrus, jasmine). Hence the second name of the flower - night beauty.
In the middle lane, mirabilis can be grown as a perennial (if it is possible to store tubers in the basement) either as an annual.
Its large seeds have excellent germination. I grow a night beauty through seedlings - I sow seeds in April in containers. Seedlings are unpretentious and grow quickly, forming a solid bush by the time of planting on a flower bed.
I begin to form plants, while they still grow on the windowsill, pinching the ends of the main shoots. Numerous lateral shoots with peduncles appear immediately. In early July, already in the garden, I pinch the tops of the side shoots of the second order. As a result, new stepchildren give flower brushes, and bloom lasts until the frost.
BRIGHT COLORS
In July, mirabilis is a solid bush up to a meter high and wide (sometimes more) with juicy beautiful foliage and hundreds of "gramophone" flowers up to 6 cm. White, yellow, red, burgundy, pink,salmon,lilac and even variegated (marble varieties) the flowers are fragrant all night, and in the morning
close in buds. But if a gloomy day is ahead, then the flowers do not hide. Mirabilis feels best along stone walls, gazebos, solid wooden fences - there, where it is warm and there is no draft.
SUPPORT AND PLEASE
In the middle of summer I feed the night beauty with complex mineral fertilizer, as she spends a lot of energy on flowering and lush foliage. But you need to water the bushes even in the very heat in moderation., as they cannot stand stagnant water.
The plant does not like acidic soil, therefore, all summer I regularly sprinkle ash and crushed eggshells on the flower bed (by the handful) and slightly loosen the ground. This noble flower also does not tolerate fresh manure and humus..
OWN MIRABILIS SEEDS
In July, the first black seed-beads appear on the flowering bush, surrounded by green five-pointed sepals. I collect them from the faded specimens I like, dry and put in paper bags.
SOWING YOUR MIRABILIS SEEDS FOR SEEDLING: VIDEO
© Author: Svetlana RYZHKINA, Sverdlovsk region.
