Chic rhododendron Katevbinsky - description, features landing and care

Rhododendrons have long conquered many hearts, have become an excellent decoration of gardens and parks in many countries.

In the wild in Russia, these beautiful shrubs can be found in the Caucasus and the Far East.

They are very diverse in size, shape and color, but, nevertheless, absolutely everything is unusually beautiful and attractive.

What is this plant?

Rhododendron Katevbinsky is among the top ten most beautiful species of heather family. This evergreen shrub can reach 4 meters in height, lives a very long time, with proper care, will live more than 100 years.

Detailed description

This is one of the most hardy and tall varieties. She feels wonderful in partial shade, blooms very gorgeous, covers with foliage flowers, the real “Rosewood”.

• The crown is dense, usually in the form of a semicircle, its diameter can reach 2 m.
• Leaves - shiny leathery leaves with a dark green color, elongated ellipsoid shape (can reach 15 cm in length).
• Bark - on the stem and branches may be dark gray or brown.
• Flowers Rhododendron of Katevbinsky is similar in shape to wide bells of soft lilac color with yellow patterns, hybrid varieties have a very wide variety of colors, it is found: white, pink, red, raspberry and others. The inflorescence turns out to be very lush, it consists of 20 pieces of flowers, and each flower has a size of about 5 - 6 cm in diameter.
• Roots - are shallow, not lower than 40 cm from the surface.

History of occurrence

Rhododendron Katevbinsky was brought to Europe in 1809 from North America, he was one of the first imported species. It spread very quickly (including in Russia) due to its beauty and endurance to adverse environmental conditions.

What is the difference from the rest of the species?

Rhododendron Katevbinsky, unlike many other types of evergreen Rhododendrons, inflorescences have a wonderful delicate aroma. It is also worth noting that during flowering, he blossoms so magnificent that he was awarded the name "Rosewood".

Subcort

• Hybrid variety Katevbins Burso - it is one of the most winter-hardy species, withstands up to 30 degrees of frost; likes to grow wide. Lilac-purple flowers are collected in large lush inflorescences.
• Purpureum Hybrid - spherical shrub with beautiful lilac inflorescences (the color is very juicy), large inflorescences - 15 flowers, odorless.
• Album (Catawbiense album) - this species has a slightly different shape - it is stretched upwards, reaches a height of 3 m, large flowers are white with a yellow core.

Bloom

• When and how - the flowering of Rhododendron Katevbinsky occurs in May - June, lasts about one month. Flowering is very intense, inflorescences consist of 15 to 20 large flowers of various shades.
• Care before and after flowering - water well and do not forget about feeding, thanks to them the bush will not be depleted.
• What to do if it does not bloom - it is better to transplant it to a better place and water it well.

Use in landscape design

Rhododendron will certainly become an adornment of any corner of your garden, It will look great at the gazebo, at the bench, at the entrance to your house. You can also plant an entire alley from it along the track, Rhododendron goes well with ferns, hosts, any conifers.

Step-by-step care instructions

Choosing a place for the plant

A place for it must be chosen taking into account the need, first of all, for lighting. It is best to place it in the partial shade of large trees, but not fruit trees. It would be ideal not far from a pine tree - it has light partial shade and root systems will not interfere with each other. It is very important to consider that the plant does not like drafts.

What should be the soil?

Need loose fertile soil, preferably slightly acidic (maybe acidic), moist, but without stagnant water.

Landing

Planting can be different: seeds and seedlings. When buying seedlings, it is better to choose self-root, you can plant in spring and summer, it is better to immediately to a permanent place in the garden, at partial shade.

1. Seeds can be sown from January to March in nutrient soil (necessarily loose), do not deepen them deeply, you just need to gently squeeze. Water very carefully, it is best to spray water.
2. The seed tank must be covered with glass before seedling emergence and lighting should be provided 12 hours a day using a phytolamp.
3. After the emergence of shoots, remove the glass, continue to maintain humidity and lighting, and when 3 leaves grow, then seedlings shoot in separate containers.
4. In the spring or early summer of these "kids" can be planted in the garden in a suitable place protected from the winds (or a year later in the spring).

They will begin to bloom in 2 or 3 years, with this method of planting, you can get a plant with improved properties.

Temperature

The lowest temperature that this shrub can withstand is 30 degrees below zero, and the highest is 30 degrees Celsius, while the optimum is from minus 10 to plus 25 degrees.

Watering

Rhododendron is very hygrophilous; in extreme heat, you definitely need to water deeply about 2-3 times a week. It will also be useful in hot weather to sprinkle a bush from a hose only on leaves. Water should be soft, better acidified.

Top dressing

It is necessary to feed the shrub, to fertilize from early spring to the end of August.

1. Twice a season, you need to make organic dressings in this form - on one bush in a bucket of cow manure and rotted compost.
2. The rest of the time it is fertilized with water infusion of organics, it is also good to add double superphosphate during budding, the flowering will be even more magnificent.

Pruning

Remove only faded buds.

Transfer

It is best to transplant the plant in spring.

1. In advance, you need to decide on the place and prepare the landing pit, it should be quite wide and deep - about 2 times the root system of the bush.
2. Add nutrient substrate from peat, humus and well-rotted manure to it, mix everything and add drainage.
3. We place the shrub in the center of the pit, carefully pour the nutrient mixture on all sides, ram and water.
4. On top you need to pour a layer of mulch - you can needles, sawdust or expanded clay.
5. Before planting, the roots should be well fed with water.

How to prepare for winter?

For the winter, you must:

1. Mulch the near-stem circle of the shrub, before this it is good to spill it with water (before frost).
2. You also need to build a reliable support from wooden stakes in the form of a hut, you can still use covering material.

Propagation Features

This type of Rhododendron can be propagated by seeds, cuttings and layering. The most successful and easiest way is layering.

• Layering - a strip of bark is removed from the lower branch (notched) and this place is pressed to the ground, fixed with a bracket. The soil in this place must necessarily be loose, so that rooting can easily take place. A year later, the young seedling is ready for self-planting.
• Seeds - sowing seedlings in winter, and planting in open ground is better after a year.
• Cuttings - cut them in the spring from the apical parts, the soil requires light and loose, greenhouse conditions. This process is quite lengthy, almost six months rooting takes place.

Diseases and Pests

Diseases that may appear in Rhododendron of Katevbinsky mainly occur due to improper soil (too dense) and stagnation of water. Because of this fungal diseases may appear - chlorosis, rust or spotting. An urgent need to adjust the irrigation and if necessary, transplant the bush, also treat it with iron chelate.

“Favorite” insects are pests:

• aphid;
• spider mite;
• scale shield;
• bed bugs.

For processing, you need to use any fungicide - "Diazin" or "Tiram."

Prevention

The most reliable prevention is good caring care. It is also useful during the spring - summer season to spray once a month with Bordeaux fluid.

Conclusion

Absolutely all types of Rhododendrons are distinguished by some unique feature. In addition to their beauty, many still bring utilitarian benefits, are able to treat, quench their thirst with tea from their wonderful flowers. Unfortunately, some for some reason are afraid to plant this miracle of nature on their site and completely in vain. You just need to follow the advice and everything will work out.