Description and cultivation of Potentilla shrub variety Red Ice, planting and care
It is difficult to imagine a complete view of a garden plot without flowering shrubs, which are not only a decorative element, but also have many properties. All this can be attributed to the plant Potentilla shrub Red Ice. A feature of culture is its simplicity. But in order for the plant to bloom profusely and delight gardeners with its appearance, it must be properly planted and looked after in a timely manner.
General information about the plant
Red Ace Cinquefoil (Ice) is a shrub plant with light green leaves that look like small paws. Its characteristic feature is abundant branching.
Shrub Potentilla Red Ice of English origin. This plant is small in size. Its crown is no more than one meter in diameter. As for the height of the shrub, it varies from forty to seventy centimeters.
The flowers themselves have a bright red tint. But over time, they change color to an orange-yellow tone. And their color changes with temperature. The colder it gets, the more the red tint appears. The flowering period of such a shrub begins in June and lasts until mid-autumn. This plant loves humidified air.
It is important that Red Ice Potentilla is resistant to smoke emissions and air pollution. Therefore, if the site is located near roads, you should not worry. Another distinctive feature of the shrub is its frost resistance.
Advantages and disadvantages of Red Ice Potentilla
A shrub plant called Potentilla fruticosa Red Ace has advantages over other garden crops. Its advantages include:
- unpretentiousness of the plant to the condition of the soil;
- it easily tolerates a lack of moisture when it comes to the short term;
- Potentilla is resistant to frost.
The disadvantages of this shrub include a poor perception of dry air. Therefore, if the summer is hot and dry, this has a detrimental effect on the condition of Red Ice Potentilla.
Features of growing varieties
Red Ice cinquefoil should be grown in accordance with the basic requirements. You need to plant the plant so that it is not under the scorching rays of the sun. Otherwise, the petals will subsequently burn out. But you also cannot choose full shading. Otherwise, the shrub will not become lush and bloom poorly.
Site selection and soil preparation
When choosing a suitable place for Red Ice Potentilla, they rely on a well-lit area. In this case, a small partial shade is allowed. Avoid places where the soil is capable of retaining moisture. You should not plant a shrub where the snow melts for a long time. It is better to choose elevated areas.
As for the soil, its structure should be soft. Potentilla Red Ice perceives clayey heavy soils poorly. The landing pit is prepared ten days before the landing process. In this case, the soil will have time to compact.
How and when to plant?
You can plant this crop in the spring and autumn. The root system of Red Ice Potentilla takes root much easier in early spring, as soon as the snow melts and the soil warms up. If planting is carried out in the fall, then this should be done a month before the onset of cold weather. The most suitable period is mid-September.
The depth of the shrub pits should be fifty centimeters. At their bottom, a special drainage is laid out, consisting of broken bricks and pebbles. Such a layer should not be more than twenty centimeters. The root system is located at the level of the ground itself.
If the planting is a group, then the bushes should be planted in a trench, at a distance of at least sixty and no more than eighty centimeters from each other. This will allow the crowns to close together, creating the effect of a luxurious hedge.
Care advice
Taking care of Red Ice Potentilla is quite simple. All care consists of the following steps:
- implementation of competent watering;
- timely feeding;
- shrub pruning;
- preparing it for winter.
And if such conditions are observed, the plant will delight with its beautiful flowering and lush crown.
Watering and feeding
Before the shrub blooms, it needs to be fed. To do this, ten grams of potassium sulfate and thirty grams of superphosphate are introduced into the soil, which are previously dissolved in ten liters of warm water. Then feeding is carried out every spring. Potassium-phosphorus fertilizers should be chosen.
Considering that an adult plant can withstand dry weather, it should be watered only in the absence of rain for a long time. You need to take about ten liters of liquid per bush. But young seedlings are recommended to be irrigated once every seven days.
Spraying with warm water has a positive effect on the condition of Red Ice Potentilla. But such manipulations should be carried out in the evening.
Loosening, weeding and mulching
Loosening the soil is especially important when it comes to young shrubs. After that, all existing weeds are removed, and the soil is mulched with peat.
Pruning Potentilla
It is recommended to trim Red Ice cinquefoil once every three years. Pruning is done in the spring and fall. If this process is carried out in September, then those shoots that have not yet become lignified are shortened by one third of their length.
If the pruning takes place in April, then the shoots need to be shortened by ten centimeters. This will contribute to their active growth and abundant branching. At the same time, weak and broken branches, as well as shoots that have been affected by pests, should be removed throughout the season.
Preparing for winter
Such a shrub is resistant to cold temperatures, but does not tolerate severe frosts. Therefore, before wintering over the Red Ice cinquefoil, you need to build a kind of dry, high shelter.
Also, before the onset of cold weather, the lower part of the trunk is cleaned of foliage. Then the bush is sprinkled with a peat layer, the height of which is fifteen centimeters.
Diseases and pests
The following diseases pose the greatest danger to Potentilla Red Ice:
- powdery mildew;
- leaf spot;
- rust damage.
As soon as the gardener detects the first signs, appropriate measures must be taken immediately. You can treat the shrub with copper sulfate or a solution of the fungicide Fundazol.
Sometimes cinquefoil is affected by aphids. This happens in the spring, when leaves begin to form. In hot weather, the plant attacks a spider mite. The damaged areas must be removed, and the remaining shoots must be treated with a special solution.
Plant breeding methods
There are several ways to propagate Red Ice shrub cinquefoil. It:
- With the help of seeds. This method is rarely used by gardeners and gardeners, since the growing process itself is long. In this case, the seeds are first ripened in a greenhouse or in special containers.
- Through layering. A developed shoot needs to be pinned into a dug groove, and next year in the spring, separate it from the mother liquor and plant it in a new permanent place. Then the plant will begin to bloom in another year.
- By dividing the bush. If the Red Ice cinquefoil has reached the age of five years, then it should be dug up in early spring. Divide the shrub into several parts, but only so that each of the parts has developed roots and buds are present.
- Cuttings. If the cuttings have become lignified and have already reached ten centimeters in length, they are placed in a sandy-peat composition. They need to be deepened so that only the top of the head, two centimeters high, remains on top. A year later, such seedlings are planted.
Each gardener chooses an acceptable way to propagate this shrub.
Red Ice cinquefoil in landscape design
Red Ice cinquefoil brings zest to the landscape design thanks to the bright color of the flowers. It can be used to decorate alpine slides or curbs.
Planted as a single plant and in group mixes, allows for interesting variations.
