Daphne planting and care in open ground. Wolfberry is an ornamental shrub. features of seed propagation

Wolfberry - ornamental shrub, which, regardless of the variety, has a seductive floral aroma. The plant blooms its delicate fragrant flowers in early spring. This shrub is also called “wolf’s bast” or “wolf’s bast”.

All these names should not be confused with the commonly known “wolf berries”, which are used to name a number of shrubs (including the wolfberry itself) with inedible and poisonous fruits. Wolfberry is a compact shrub; its height, depending on the variety, does not exceed 90 - 120 cm.

Some species of this plant are evergreen, others are deciduous. Due to its compact appearance, the wolfberry is perfect for single decorative plantings. You can use it to decorate your front garden, alpine slide or a terrace, planted in a large container.

Wolfberry fits well into compositions with plants (shrubs, bulbs) that bloom in early spring. To enjoy the sweet aroma of wolfberry more often, it can be planted along paths in the garden.

Growing

“Wolf Bast” is planted in early spring or autumn in sunny areas that are not blown by winds; some varieties can grow in partial shade. The soil for planting should be permeable and rich in humus.

Shrubs are planted as young seedlings, as mature plants take root less easily.

You need to wear gloves when working with wolfberry when planting and caring for it, as the plant is poisonous and can cause skin irritation.

To plant wolfberry, you need to choose places inaccessible to children, because the fruits of the plant are poisonous. Just a few berries ingested can be fatal.

Care

The plant does not require special care, it is enough to mulch the soil with compost or humus in spring and autumn. The plant is propagated by cuttings. They take root well in a mixture made up of sand and peat. The second way is to sow berries directly into the ground in late autumn, however, in this case the germination rate is very low.

In hot and dry weather, wolfberry can infect spider mite, which is easy to detect on leaves and shoots. This pest sucks moisture from the leaves, causing them to fall off. Therefore, during dry periods, the bush must be watered in a timely manner.

Types, varieties

17 species of wolfberry grow in Russia out of 50 that are found in Eurasia. Some species of these plants have leathery leaves that resemble laurel leaves. This is where another name for the wolfberry comes from - daphne, which in Greek means laurel.

Below are the most common types.

• fragrant wolfberry. This shrub, native to China, is shaped like a dome. In Russia, it rarely grows above 30 cm. In early spring, red fragrant flowers with a cherry tint appear on its branches. The plant blooms earlier than other species. The most famous evergreen variety- "Variegata". In winter, these plants middle lane needs to be covered.
• Deadly wolfberry, second name “Wolf Bast”. The height of the plant is about 1 m. This species is also distinguished by its early flowering, but blooms after the previous species. Flowering duration is 2-3 weeks, and begins to bloom before the leaves appear. If you cut the branches of a bush in winter and place it in a vase with water, the bush will bloom with fragrant flowers. Famous varieties "Rubra Select" ("Ruby Glow") with large flowers dark pink with red berries and "Alba" with creamy white flowers.
• Birkwood's wolfberry. This plant blooms pink in May. The color of the flowers gradually turns white. This species belongs to the group of hybrid varieties that do not form berries. Some varieties have decorative leaves with a light border around the edges. The famous variety "Somerset" has evergreen lanceolate leaves and blooms in light pink tones.
• Yulia's wolfberry. Short dwarf shrub no more than 30 cm high. It is a relict plant and is listed in the Russian Red Book. The plant blooms from April to May with small fragrant pink flowers. At the end of the summer season it may bloom a second time. The plant has very deep roots (up to 1.5 m deep) and tolerates frost well under snow.

Medicinal properties

Wolfberry, like most poisonous plants, has medicinal properties. The bark, berries, leaves, and shoots are used in medicine. Medicines are prepared from the bark and are used to treat joint pain, as well as eye and skin diseases. The flowers of the plant are used as effective remedy from worms.

Alcohol tinctures of wolfberry are used to treat radiculitis, gout, rheumatism, as well as various tumors and abscesses. All wolfberry preparations, with rare exceptions, are used as an external remedy and according to the recommendations of a doctor.

Wolfberry - ornamental shrub with aroma delicate flowers It will decorate your garden in the spring before other plants.
Video: Wolfberry - ornamental shrub

Genus Daphne, or Wolfman, botanists are more often called Daphne, using the Latin name (Daphne), so that there is no confusion with other shrubs that also have poisonous fruits and to which the name “wolf berry” is popularly assigned, such as common honeysuckle, etc.

Volcheyagodniki belong to the Wolf family (Thymelaeaceae). More than 90 representatives of this genus are known, living in Europe, Asia and North Africa. More than 10 species grow in Russia, which are classified as rare endangered plants, many are listed in the Red Book. They are united by similar structural features.

Wolfberry bushes are deciduous and evergreen shrubs. Small flowers, often pink or light cream in color, practically devoid of peduncles and have a scent. The fruits are bright single-seeded drupes. Usually the shrub blooms on leafless shoots, sometimes again in the fall, but weaker and no longer produces fruit.

A powerful root system goes deep into the soil, keeping plants from gusty winds and also saving them from dehydration. These shrubs are very decorative, but because they are poisonous, plantings are placed away from places where children often visit. They don't like to be transplanted and require little pruning.

The most common is the common wolfberry, deadly wolfberry, or "wolf's bast" (Daphne mezereum). This species grows in the forests of the European part of Russia and Siberia, and rises to the Caucasus mountains. A low shrub about 1 m high with straight gray shoots in May is covered with lilac-pink flowers with 4 petals and 8 stamens. The flowers sit tightly on the shoots and emit a pleasant aroma reminiscent of vanilla. Bees, bumblebees, butterflies and flies flock to the flowers. When the bush fades, oblong leaves appear, concentrated closer to the tops of the shoots.

In August, scarlet oval drupes ripen. Usually you can see a few, less than 10 bright, shiny fruits on each plant. The clearly visible color of the fruit attracts birds that feed on the fruit and carry the seeds. Interestingly, the highly poisonous fruits do not harm birds. The fruits contain the glycosides daphnin and coccognin, the poisonous resin meserine, essential oils etc. In case of fruit poisoning, vomiting and increased bleeding occurs. Not only the fruits of the wolf's bast are highly poisonous, but also other parts of the plant - the bark and leaves. IN folk medicine they are used as an antipyretic, emetic and anthelmintic, externally for neuralgia, polyarthritis, radiculitis and joint pain.

Wolf's bast is a winter-hardy shrub that can be grown in gardens, following precautions. Interesting varieties Plena (Plena) with double flowers, Alba (Alba) with creamy white and Grandiflora (Grandiflora) with large flowers. The landing site can be in the sun or in the shade. The bush grows well in humus-rich soils without stagnant moisture. The soil needs to be mulched without allowing it to become too dry. Pruning and replanting are undesirable for it. Propagated by seeds and cuttings.

Altai wolfberry grows in Siberia (Daphne altaica), outwardly similar to a wolf's bast, with a height of 0.5 to 1 m. The difference is that it has white flowers, collected in groups of 3-5 pieces, and almost black ovoid drupes. The bush blooms in May, at the same time as the leaves appear. The first flowering occurs in the 6th year of life; fruits rarely ripen. It can be propagated by cuttings, root suckers and seeds. Seedlings bloom in the 6th year.

(Daphne alpina) comes from the Alps, where it lives in the alpine belt. A low (about 0.5 m high) deciduous shrub blooms in May. The shoots are pubescent. The flowers are white. Red, oblong-ovoid drupes ripen in late summer. Suitable for rock gardens, but due to poor winter hardiness it requires shelter for the winter. Doesn't take cuttings well.

Wolfberry olive-like (Daphne oleiodes)- a plant of the Mediterranean (Southern Europe and North Africa), Central and Asia Minor. An evergreen, slow-growing shrub with pubescent shoots up to 1 m tall (in the middle zone - up to 0.3 m) and medium-sized obovate, hairy leaves. It blooms from late May to early June with white flowers with narrow pointed lobes, collected in 3-8-flowered capitate inflorescences. Red drupes ripen from mid-July. Due to its low growth, it is winter-hardy in the middle zone. It propagates poorly by cuttings.

The evergreen wolfberry or Julia's wolfberry is very elegant (Daphne cneorum), living in the mountains of Central and Southern Europe. It is a creeping shrub, about 20 cm high, occupying an area of ​​1.0-1.5 square meters. m. It blooms after the leaves appear (in May) with fragrant pink-raspberry flowers that cover the foliage like a carpet. Leathery fruits - yellow-brown drupes - appear closer to autumn, but in Central Russia the seeds do not ripen. This species grows on well-calmed soils and winters safely in central Russia, remaining under snow cover.

European breeders are proud of the popular Major varieties with purple flowers and Eximia (Eximia) with bright pink flowers. The variegated varieties with white-edged or green-edged milky-green leaves are very unusual and elegant. The species is propagated by cuttings, which take root well.

Burkwood's Wolfberry (Daphne x burkwoodii)- This hybrid species, obtained from boron and Caucasian wolfberries. A small shrub about 1 m high, blooming luxuriantly on the tops of the shoots with pink-purple flowers. Particularly elegant are varieties with lanceolate, semi-evergreen or deciduous leaves.

Varieties Albert Burkwood (Albert Burkwood) is a fast-growing semi-evergreen shrub with pink flowers. The Somerset variety is similar to the previous one, with semi-evergreen leaves and fragrant white-pinkish flowers. The Astrid variety has large bright pink flowers, concentrated on the tips of the shoots. The Alba-Variegata variety has pale pink flowers and light cream edges on the leaves. All varieties are capricious, heat-loving and do not like direct sun. From exposure to scorching sun rays the bush may lose all its leaves.

Grows in the undergrowth of the mountain forests of Ciscaucasia Pontic wolfberry (Daphne pontica) – an evergreen shrub about 1 m high with glossy pointed leaves and fragrant creamy-yellow flowers, in which the corolla tube is narrow and elongated. It is relatively stable in central Russia, but grows too slowly in cultivation, does not bloom every year and does not set fruit.

Subspecies Daphne pontica subsp. haematocarpa – according to outdated classification - Albov's wolfberry (Daphne albowiana) found in the subalpine zone of the Western and Central Caucasus mountains and in Asia Minor. This is a low shrub up to 0.5 m high, with shoots creeping along the ground, covered with ash-brown bark. Leaves are lanceolate. The flowers are yellow-green. The fruits are round, bright red drupes, poisonous.

Wolfberry crowded(Daphne glomerata) also comes from the Caucasus. On an evergreen shrub about 50 cm high, the leaves and flowers are crowded closer to the top of the shoots. Fragrant flowers are collected in milky white “bouquets”. The corolla tube varies in color from pure white to pink and scarlet, which looks very elegant. The drupes are bright red. Overwinters under snow, winter hardiness is low.

or Hokkaido (Daphne jezoensis), synonym of Kamchatka wolfberry - rare view, living in Japan, Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands, grows in dark coniferous and larch forests. A shrub up to 60 cm high with thick light brown-gray shoots, at the tops of which elongated obovate leaves with a wedge-shaped base are crowded together. Flowering occurs in the leafy state. Brown-yellow flowers bloom in May. The fruits are dark red spherical drupes, ripen in September, and are poisonous.

The shrub is relatively winter-hardy and can winter in Russia under snow cover.

(Daphne giraldii) lives on forested mountain slopes in China. It is a lush, leafy shrub about 1 m high with turquoise-green lanceolate leaves. Yellow-golden flowers appear from pinkish buds and have a delicate vanilla-lemon aroma. The fruits are red drupes.

This species grows on loamy soil, preferring open sunny areas. Received by breeders hybrid variety In Paradise, translated as “in paradise”, with an unusual aroma. Flavonoids and esters have been isolated from the bark and have various uses.

(Daphne papyracea) found wild in the Himalayas, India and Nepal. Previously it was classified as a member of the Edgeworthia genus (Edgeworthia), because, unlike other wolfberries, it has a dry drupe. It is an evergreen shrub up to 1 m high with brown shoots and lanceolate leaves. White or greenish-white flowers are collected at the tops of shoots in groups of 3-10 pieces and have no aroma. The fruits are red drupes, ovoid-pear-shaped. In its homeland, the shrub blooms from November to January and bears fruit in April-May.

The fruits are poisonous, have a bitter taste, and can be used as a laxative and antipyretic. In Nepal, the bark of the paperweed is used to produce excellent quality paper used for paper banknotes with watermarks. Bast is also used to make fabrics, ropes and strong ropes.

Himalayan wolfberry(Daphne bholua) lives in the Himalayas and southwest China. He looks a bit like paper daphne. The bush has pink and white flowers with a sweet scent and lanceolate leaves that fall off in winter. The species is extremely valuable for gardeners due to its decorative and early flowering. Breeders received an early flowering variety Darjeeling (Darjeeling) with pale lilac flowers, Alba (Alba) - with pure white flowers, Jacqueline Postill(Jacqueline Postil) - with pink-purple buds and fragrant white flowers. The species and its varieties are heat-loving, so they are poorly preserved in culture.

Orange wolfberry (Daphne aurantiaca syn. D. calcicola) comes from China. An evergreen shrub less than 1 m high has dark green elongated ovate leaves. The flowers are fragrant, golden yellow. The fruits are orange-red. The shrub lives on gravelly calcareous soil.

Known varieties are Gang-ho-ba (Gan-ho-ba) and Sichuan Gold (Sichuan Gold) with large golden-yellow flowers. The Little Snow Mountain variety has white flowers and small sizes bush. In Central Russia, the varieties were little tested. Low bushes can overwinter under snow, but are unlikely to be durable.

Also growing in China fragrant wolfberry, or odorous(Daphne odora)- an evergreen shrub 0.8 m high, but in Russia its height is much less - 0.3 m. In early spring, very fragrant flowers, having a tubular white corolla with a dark pink tint. The Aureomarginata variety is most often found in cultivation and is distinguished by an uneven golden border along the edge of an elongated leaf.

Planting in rock gardens requires calcareous soil, an open or slightly shaded place, protected from cold winds.

Photo: Alla Kuklina, Vladimir Shatko, Elena Malankina, Rita Brilliantova

Daphne – deciduous, semi-deciduous and evergreen shrub belonging to the Timeleaceae family. Wolfberry or wolfberry, as it is also popularly called, is a very poisonous plant.

Previously, ropes and ropes were made from Daphne bark because its bark is very strong and tough. There are about fifty species of these shrubs. All its types are considered decorative.

Daphne dates back to early flowering bushes. Daphne begins to bloom even before the leaves appear, around the beginning of April. The flowers of this plant are very fragrant, white, purple, pink, cream and even crimson. Double-leafed flowers have up to four petals and are star-shaped. The berries are very brightly colored and very poisonous, ripening in the fall. Europe is considered the birthplace of Daphne, North America and Asia.

Daphne - care:

Lighting:

Daphne prefers to grow in partial shade in a partially sheltered location. Some types of such plants can grow well both in full shade and in open areas. Such plants will not be very happy about overheating of their roots, so you need to keep an eye on this.

Temperature:

Daphne is unpretentious plant and is considered quite frost-resistant. Particularly great discomfort when sudden change does not experience fever.

Watering:

Daphne will be very happy with watering on very hot days. On other days, he is more tolerant of watering.

Humidity:

Daphnes do not like prolonged drying out, so the soil should be kept sufficiently moist. You can mulch the roots of the bush, this will help prevent them from damage and retain moisture in the soil. However, it is also advisable to avoid stagnation of water.

Feeding:

Daphne should be fed with comprehensive mineral fertilizers, it is advisable to do this in the spring. In the fall, it is recommended to add nutritious compost under the bush; these basic fertilizers will be quite enough for such a plant.

Transfer:

Daphne grows very slowly and practically does not need pruning. This plant really doesn’t like having its roots disturbed, so it is recommended to replant it, the less often the better. It will be more effective to transplant a young bush already with soil to its permanent place of growth. The soil for planting them should be soft, moist, well saturated with humus. You can also add more sand and loam to the soil. But more old bush It is better not to replant at all, the plant will not benefit from this.

Reproduction:

Daphne propagates by cuttings, seeds, grafting and root suckers. It is best to propagate by cuttings in summer, this is the most favorable time for this. In cooler seasons, you can use all other methods of propagation, including seeds.

Seeds should be planted in the year of collection and stored for a long time Not recommended. A more mature Daphne plant throws shoots from its roots; they can also be carefully transplanted, trying not to damage the roots of the mother bush.

Some features:

Since Daphne bushes grow up to one meter in height, they can be perfectly used as a hedge or border in the garden. If you purchased Daphne in a pot, then after it has finished flowering, you must replant the bush in open ground. The pungent smell of flowers can cause headache. Plants such as magnolias, camellias, rhododendrons, as well as bulbous plants that bloom in spring will look good next to the Daphne bush.

Daphne - diseases and pests:

Daphne is very rarely affected by pests, and is a fairly resistant plant. Occasionally they can be affected by aphids and gray rot. Throughout the season, you should occasionally inspect the bushes to prevent the appearance of pests.

Family: wolfberry (Thymelaeáceae).

Motherland

Wolfberry grows in the Northern Hemisphere, Europe, Asia and North Africa. The genus includes about 50 species, some of which are found in Russia.

Form: deciduous or evergreen shrub.

Description

Wolfberry, or daphne, is deciduous or evergreen up to 1.5 m tall with a wide cup-shaped or spreading crown. The leaves of the plants are alternate, short-petiolate, entire, lanceolate or elliptic, hard, smooth. The flowers of the wolfberry are numerous, fragrant, sessile, with a very strong pleasant aroma, densely arranged, developing on the shoots of the previous year. Daphne blooms for a long time, sometimes up to a month. The fruits are decorative, yellow, red or black, and remain on the plants for a long time. The fruits of the daphne plant are very poisonous! All parts of the plant are also poisonous - bark, leaves, flowers. Root system wolfberry deep. Wolfberry is a good honey plant.

Deadly wolfberry , or wolf's face(D. mezereum). A small, strictly vertically growing shrub up to 1.2 m tall. The leaves of the deadly wolfberry are alternate, oblong or oblanceolate, dark green, lighter below, pale yellow in autumn. Wolf's bast flowers are numerous, very fragrant, lilac-pink or pink-lilac, occasionally creamy-white, bloom in April, even before the leaves bloom. The fruits of the deadly wolfberry are round, pea-sized, yellow or red. Wolf's bast - poisonous plant; all its parts are poisonous. Deadly wolfberry grows very slowly. In nature, wolf's bast grows in the European part of Russia, in Western Siberia, in the Caucasus and Western Europe.

Yulia's wolfberry , or wolfberry(D. julia or D. cneorum). Subshrub up to 30 cm tall, grows up to 2 m wide. The bark of the plants is dark brown. The leaves of the wolfberry are leathery, obovate. Plants bloom after the leaves bloom, in May-June, sometimes they bloom again. The flowers of the boron wolfberry are pink or cherry, occasionally white. A rather capricious plant, it does not always take root. In nature, Julia's wolfberry is found in Central and Southern Europe; in Russia it is listed in the Red Book.

odorous wolfberry , or fragrant wolfberry(D. odorata). An evergreen, wide, dome-shaped shrub up to 0.9 m tall; in cultivation it rarely exceeds 30 cm in height. The fragrant wolfberry blooms in early spring with cherry-red flowers that have a very strong pleasant aroma. Plants are not winter-hardy. The homeland of fragrant wolfberry is China.

Altai wolfberry , or Crimean wolfberry, or Sofia's wolfberry(D. altaica or D. taurica, or D. sophia). Ornamental deciduous shrub from 0.5 to 1.4 m tall with red-brown bark. The leaves of Altai wolfberry are oblong-lanceolate, gray-green, pubescent below. White flowers of plants are collected in inflorescences. Crimean wolfberry blooms profusely in May-June, during or after the leaves bloom. The fruits are bright red or black. In September-October, Sofia's wolfberry blooms again, not so profusely. In nature, plants are common in Western Altai and Crimea.

Caucasian wolfberry (D. caucasica). Deciduous shrub up to 1-1.5 m tall. Caucasian wolfberry is a species with white fragrant flowers and black fruits. The plant blooms in May. In nature, Caucasian wolfberry grows in the Caucasus and Asia Minor.

Growing conditions

Wolfberry is shade-tolerant, develops better in shaded, cool places with high humidity air. Plants prefer fertile, moist substrates, from to , and grow well on humus-rich loams.

Application

Wolfberry plants (wolf bast) have found application in group, mixed plantings. Also used as, suitable for planting in rock gardens and rockeries, in. Planting wolfberry is limited by the fact that all parts of the plants are poisonous; several berries are a lethal dose for humans. This must be taken into account if there are small children at the dacha.

Care

Daphne is a moisture-loving plant, so it needs to be watered. The tree trunk area is better for creating more favorable conditions growth of plants. It is extremely undesirable to dig up the wolfberry plant; damage to the roots leads to rot and the death of the plant. In late autumn, weak, diseased and old branches are removed from the wolfberry, but the wolfberry is never pruned heavily, since the plants almost do not form new shoots. In the first years of life, a correct, symmetrical crown of the wolfberry is formed, shortening the shoots (also for better tillering).

Reproduction

Wolfberry is propagated by seeds and vegetatively (by offspring, by dividing the bush). Plant seeds quickly lose their viability. wolfberry is rooted in the first half of summer. Plants do not tolerate transplantation very well.

Diseases and pests

Wolfberry is stable; with proper agricultural technology, plants are not affected by diseases and pests. When the roots of the plant are damaged, rot strikes, which is very dangerous and can lead to the death of the plant.

Popular varieties

Shapes of a wolf's bast:

white(f. alba) - form with fragrant white flowers and yellow fruits;

grandiflora(f. grandiflora) - form with large, bright purple flowers;

terry(f. plena) - form with white double flowers.

Varieties of wolf bast

'Rubra Select'. Wide, dense, vertically growing shrub up to 1-1.5 m tall with more numerous shoots than the species. The leaves are lanceolate, pale green, and do not change color in the fall. The flowers of the wolfberry ‘Rubra Select’ are more numerous and larger than those of the species, with a rich dark carmine color, and bloom in late March-April. The aroma of flowers spreads over very long distances. The variety does not set fruit.

‘Variegata’- a variety with white-edged leaves, ‘Bowles Variety’ is a tall shrub with pure white flowers and yellow fruits.

Varieties of wolfberry or Yulia wolfberry

'Eximia'- a variety with a spreading crown and large leaves and flowers, 'Major'- variety with purple flowers, 'Ruby Glow'- a variety with very bright flowers, ‘Variegata’- a variety with cream-edged leaves.

Altai region, Eastern Kazakhstan

Habitat:

on mountain slopes overgrown with shrubs, in forests and oak groves, in thickets of bushes, on limestone

Sizes and growth forms:

life form:

deciduous

40-80 cm (in culture - up to 1.5 m)

crown shape:

shrub with a few stems branched at the top

Lifespan:

durable, lives more than 25 years

Growth rate:

The soil:

pH:

neutral to alkaline

mechanical composition of the soil:

specific need for micro and macro elements:

calcephil

Planting and propagation:

methods of reproduction:

Features of seed propagation:

• seeds are sown before winter;
• in spring they germinate in the dark at a temperature of +18+22°C, preferably after cold stratification;
• seed germination is low

vegetative propagation:

easily propagated by root suckers

Care:

Watering:

non-drought-resistant, needs watering

Trimming:

does not tolerate pruning well

Winter hardiness:

main view:

Shelter for the winter:

mulching the root system

Decorative:

Decoration season:

Peak decorativeness:

during the flowering and fruiting period

Decorative properties:

Branches (bark color, shape):

the bark of young branches is reddish-brown, old ones are dark gray, with light transverse lentils

Leaves:

narrowly elliptical or almost lanceolate, 2.5-7 cm long and 0.7-1.5 cm wide, curved-pointed, with a short spine at the apex, sometimes obtuse, with a solid, slightly uneven edge, long wedge-shaped narrowed towards the base, descending to a short petiole

Summer color of leaves (needles):

bluish-dark green above, grayish-green below, much lighter

Autumn color of leaves (needles):

Flowering time:

in May-June, sometimes again - at the end of August-beginning of September

Color spectrum:

Flowers:

white, fragrant, sessile, bloom after the leaves develop, have a sparsely hairy tube 8-10 mm long and up to 2 mm wide, the limb blades are elliptical, obtuse or briefly pointed, 1.5-2 times shorter than the tube, with the stamens of the upper one protruding from the tube row

Inflorescences:

flowers sit in groups of 3-7 at the ends of leafy shoots