Growing perennial flax in the garden

Flax perennial - an ornamental plant cultivated in regions with an abundance of sunlight. Its cultivation does not require much effort. In response to care, the plant will decorate the area with its lush flowering.

Botanical description of the species

The herb is cultivated in mid-latitudes as a decorative element for the design of borders, flower walls, rockeries.

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Flax perennial widely used in the design of suburban areas

Among the varieties and subspecies of many years of flax, you will learn by the following distinctive features:

  • bush height - 50 cm, stems are thin, upright;
  • leaves - elongated;
  • flowers are blue or white, reaching 2 cm in diameter.

The flower consists of 5 petals, falling every day and growing overnight again. Flowers bloom only on sunny days before lunch.

Continuous flowering lasts from May to July. Thanks to breeding, varieties with red and yellow inflorescences are bred.

Planting and care culture

The plant does not require much effort for cultivation, but it strongly depends on the illuminance of the plot. Sun-loving plant can not grow with a lack of light. Choose for his landing a place that does not fall the shadow of buildings or trees. Planting technology perennial is:

  • select an open area with light, water- and air-permeable soil;
  • sow the seeds in spring or autumn - the main thing is that the temperature should not fall below + 20 ° С;
  • flax is sown randomly, without thickening the crops, as it grows very amicably;
  • do not throw seeds with soil, leave them on the surface, moisten.

For the culture to flourish on time and abundantly, provide it with minimal care. It consists in regular but moderate watering 1-2 times a week, timely weeding, feeding several times per season. The first time fertilize the crop when planting: in the hole a few days before sowing, add organic matter, potash fertilizer. In the summer make liquid dressing.

Blue flax is not subject to disease and frequent attack of pests. His only enemy is the flaxseed flea, which is easily infested by insecticides. Remember that flax is an aggressive culture, prone to quickly seize new territories. Allocate for him a separate flower bed or platform.

If you give the perennial a lot of light and protect it from bogging the soil, it will respond to you with a long flowering, which will culminate in self-sowing. You will admire the delicate flowers for three months.

With the onset of June, summer flowers come, often more fun and brighter than their spring counterparts. One of them, a bright golden flax, or coreopsis, a member of the sunflower family, and one of the easiest to breed flowers.

The name Coreopsis is derived from the Greek "opsis", which means "remind", and "koris", translated as "bug". Indeed, its seeds resemble bedbugs or ticks. In the West, the plant is called: tickseed, which means "seed-tick".

Another great feature of the plant is that it is a natural dye. To make a yellow and orange dye, use flowers. Using alum, they give a bright and lasting orange color.

Description

  • Family:  Complicated.
  • Botanical name:  Coreopsis.
  • Other common names: coreopsis, lenok, Parisian beauty, calliopsis with one or two "n".
  • Life cycle:  perennials.
  • Flowers:  yellow-gold, yellow with a red center, red-maroon, single, with jagged edges.
  • Flowering time:  the end of spring and throughout the summer.
  • Leaves:  dark green, oval.
  • Height:  from 45 to 120cm.
  • Footprint:  average 45 cm

The flower is suitable for almost any kind of garden and it is difficult to find a more enduring and beautiful flower.

It is a drought-resistant plant that can adapt to poor soil, and it can be planted quietly in full sun, although it blooms well on just bright areas. Lenok is very easy to grow and bloom in the first year, if planted very early.

Remember, in the first year you may not get a bloom or the flowering will not be abundant. It depends on the timing of planting and conditions. But in the coming years, the Parisian beauty will bloom magnificently and brightly.

Seed propagation

Sow the seeds at the end of winter / late spring or late summer / autumn.

For early sowing, fill the pots or containers with drainage and good compost and put the containers in water to moisten the soil. Carefully scatter the seeds on the surface and gently press them into the soil. Do not cover them and do not put in a dark place, as they need light to germinate. Keep the compost wet. The seed will germinate from 20 to 25 days. Crops are maintained at a temperature of from 16 to 21 ° C.

When the sprouts have the first pairs of true leaves, and they will be large enough and strong, transplant them into 7.5 cm plastic containers.

For autumn seedlings, place the pots with sprouts in a cool place at home, in a greenhouse or a protected part of the garden. Sprouts are planted in a permanent place in the spring, when the risk of frost has passed. Plant them 38-40 cm apart, in a sunny place, on well-drained soil.

Care

Lenok does not require fertile soil. If the flowers feed too much, it makes them too tall and prostrate, which makes them look careless and sloppy. Half a handful of slow-acting, general-purpose granular fertilizers is enough for the entire season. Scatter the fertilizer on the soil around each plant in the spring.

Watering special is not required. When watering plants nearby, take a little water and coreopsis. If over the summer never watered, do not worry - the flower is hardy.

It is much more important to regularly tear off faded heads, otherwise the flowering will end quickly. Cut flowers should be regularly to encourage continuous flowering. Otherwise, only bare flower stalks will remain above the foliage, which does not look very attractive.

When the flowering is completely over, cut the plant down hard and it will grow strong and healthy again. You can leave faded heads on the stems for the birds, so that they can feed. But in winter, cut the branches almost to ground level and cover the roots well with mulch.

  • in difficult flower beds and flower beds;
  • mixborders;
  • gravel bed;
  • in country houses to create a rural landscape.

When it comes to full bloom, the Parisian beauty solo in a flower bed and it is difficult to overshadow it. Therefore, combine high varieties with other summer flowers, giving large inflorescences of a different color. These types of calliopsis look good with knipophia, crocosmia, cannes and dahlias. But dwarf varieties and types, use for borders or in the foreground of flower beds and flower beds.

Butterflies love flax and for gardeners who want to attract butterflies, it would be nice to include coreopsis in their planting plans.

Flax is an annual plant of the Flax family, which has been growing on our territory for thousands of years. But his homeland is India. It was there that linen fabric was first created. Now more than 200 species are known, in our region about 40. Flax is grown by large farms as a technical crop. Fabric from it remains popular until now, it is grown in flowerbeds, and the seeds are used in medicine.

Flax seed has several names: slate, dolgun or cultural. The stem of flax is erect, thin, about 50 cm tall, branched at the top. Leaves narrow, lanceolate, about 5 cm long, alternately arranged. The stem and leaves are covered with a waxy coating. The flowers are small 2-3 cm in diameter, gathered in inflorescences umbrellas.

The color of the five petals is usually blue, but may be pink or white.

Petals often smooth, there are corrugated. Flax flower self-pollinated. After flowering, a box with 10 seeds is formed. It is round, slightly elongated at the top. The seeds are flat, round, shiny, yellow, brown or brown.

All varieties of flax can be divided according to the growing season at the earliest with a growing period of up to 80 days and late, up to 110 days. Early grown in the northern zone of flax, late - in the central and western.

Flax grows best on moist, loamy soils of medium density. They should be loose and well water flowing. On sandy soils grows worse. Heavy clay and acidic soils are not suitable for growing flax. The site should be protected from strong winds.

Features of growing plants:

  • Flax is quite unpretentious, needs dry and warm weather during ripening. But for the friendly emergence of seedlings he needs a sufficient amount of moisture.
  • Sow it in April. The soil temperature at a depth of 10 cm should rise to 7 ° C. Early sowing is preferable. The seeds in this case have time to use the maximum amount of moisture in the soil. Plants are less affected by disease. Sowing depth up to 3 cm. Lowering the temperature of the seeds is not scary. They can germinate at a temperature of 2 ° C.
  • The site is prepared in advance, contribute organic matter (humus). You can use in the process of growing EM drugs. They improve soil structure.
  • For growth and active budding temperature is required not higher than 17 ° C. Flax flowers in June and July. Seed ripening occurs the next two months.
  • Feed flax nitrogen, phosphate and potash fertilizers.

When the seeds are in a state close to readiness, the plants are watered with EM preparations. Pruned stems of Fokine's plank-cut after half or two-thirds of the boxes turned brown. Lay on drying.

After a week, when the boxes rustle the seeds when shaking, they can be threshed.

A small amount of raw materials can be processed by hand, kneading the boxes over a wide bowl. If there is a lot of it, they wrap it in a tarpaulin and thresh it with a tapping stick. Then the seeds are harvested, transferred to the wind.

After threshing, the seeds are still quite wet. They need to be dried in places where direct sunlight does not fall on them, and the air does not stagnate. It can be a shed or attic with open windows.

Flax has many useful properties. Valuable linen fabric, which is used to sew summer clothes, is still made from its fibers. Flax is a good predecessor for many crops. Growing this plant improves soil structure. The roots and the stem contain a large number of beneficial trace elements that pass into the soil. Therefore, flax partially performs the function of siderat.

As an ornamental plant, flax is planted in rock gardens, in flower beds, in separate groups.

Flax seeds are used in the baking industry. They are sprinkled with buns, crushed add to some varieties of bread. Linseed seeds are made of linseed oil, paint and varnish products, and oilcloth. From them you can get the oil that is used to prepare cosmetic creams. It smoothes facial wrinkles. Flaxseed oil is produced by cold pressing. The cake remaining from seed processing is used for livestock feed.

After squeezing out the oil, there remains the cake and meal, which are used as animal feed. They are considered one of the best feeds. Pre-cake filled with warm water and wait until there is mucus with pectin. There is information that the smell of tannin in the leaves of flax and linseed oil, which is in the seeds, does not like the Colorado potato beetle. Therefore, he is advised to plant near crops that are most damaged by this pest. He drives away the carrot fly.

The healing properties of flax were noticed long ago, in ancient Greece. With the help of its seeds, the body was improved. Flax seeds cleanse the body, they are used as softening and solvent preparations.

The composition of flax seeds is a lot of nutrients:

  • Proteins and carbohydrates.
  • Calcium, magnesium, manganese, iron, zinc.
  • Mucus
  • Organic acids, including linolenic.
  • Trace elements

Features of use:

  1. Flax seed preparations are used by women suffering from hormonal disorders.
  2. Seed oil is used to prevent coronary heart disease. It helps to treat vascular diseases, such as thrombosis and impaired blood flow. It contributes to the normalization of blood pressure. They use flax oil together with other drugs in the treatment of cancer, after chemotherapy. It removes radionuclides. Flax oil preparations reduce the risk of malignant tumors. Helps reduce allergic reactions.
  3. Broths of seeds help to get rid of cough, bronchitis, are involved in the treatment of cystitis, nephritis and gynecological diseases. They relieve pain, help restore the body after food poisoning. Have anthelmintic effect. Used for enemas.
  4. Created homeopathic remedies on the basis of flax seeds, which have anti-inflammatory, expectorant, laxative and analgesic effect.
  5. Flaxseed oil is used to prepare an emulsion for the treatment of dermatitis and boils.
  6. Use flax slime, which is prepared, pouring half a teaspoon of seeds 100 g of boiling water. Then for 15 minutes the dishes are shaken. Filter through cotton fabric. Mucus is used as an enveloping agent in food poisoning and diarrhea of ​​various origins.
  7. Tincture of flax seeds is prepared by pouring seeds with boiling water. Insist 10 minutes. Is ingested after filtering. Also used to treat burns. Every day they prepare a new tincture, on the second day it loses its properties.
  8. You can get rid of the pain by applying a compress with flax seeds to the sore spot. They are immersed in a gauze bag in boiling water, then applied hot. Hot compresses should not be applied in places where pus may collect, or to tumors.

Not everyone can use flax seeds and preparations from them. In no case can not use them to people suffering from hepatitis, cholecystitis. Do not use for acute bowel disease and a tendency to diarrhea. Long-term use of drugs from flax seeds can bring not benefit, but harm. There comes a general intoxication of the body.

Flax seeds, intended for use in medicine, are stored in packs for three years. It is impossible to use flax grass inside because it is poisonous.

More information can be found in the video:

Linen. Variety “Heavenly Azure”

Linen  - perennial plant with small sky-blue flowers. In the decorative gardening is most popular large-flowered flax. This plant is 35 - 50 cm tall with strong thin stalks, the leaves are narrow, the flowers are five-petal with a diameter of 3 - 3.5 cm of sky-blue color. Petals quickly fall off, but more and more new bloom, so that flowering continues from July to late September.

Flowers blooming during the day fade and fall off in the evening, but new flower buds are always on the way. A very beautiful group of these plants in full bloom. Such a spectacle can be compared only with the blue sky. Flax photophilous, cold-resistant, unpretentious. It tolerates light frosts. Location prefers sunny, soil - any garden, rather poor, without stagnant water.

Growing and care for flax.

Before planting flax, they dig up the soil, and then add 1 to 2 to 3–4 kg of compost or humus and 1 tbsp. a spoonful of potassium sulfate, superphosphate, and Agricola for flowering plants. All raked fertilizers are buried in the ground and shed, then they start planting or sowing.

The soil should always be moderately wet. To the bushes do not bend to the side, it is necessary to plant flax group more tightly or among other flowering plants. Flax looks very elegant among the blooming white daisies. Plant bury makes transplant. Flax is used to create groups in the collective flower beds. It is very pleasant in bouquets. He is pulled from the root in the phase of buds, cut off the roots and quickly put into the water, where he stands for several days.

Flax is propagated by seeds. Sown in the ground during the summer period, the next year flax blooms from the first days of June and blooms until the end of September.

Flax varieties.

Azure blue   - abundant bloom, the flowers of heavenly blue open only in sunny weather. The plant is cold-resistant. At one place grows 4 - 5 years. Used for flowerbeds and stony hills. The height of the bush is up to 60 cm. Seeds sown at a temperature of 18 - 20 ° C, germinate in 13-18 days.


Even our distant ancestors began to grow flax for various purposes. It was used to obtain yarn, from which the fabric was woven, used in traditional medicine. The seeds were used to make flour and butter. A packet of flax was insulated at home. It was the main crop. Lyon has long been revered as a symbol of loyalty and purity.

In our time, we are unlikely to conduct the cultivation of homemade flax in order to subsequently obtain yarn, but it is quite possible to take advantage of its medicinal properties and the softest look. And, most importantly, its bloom lasts all summer.

Types of plants. Their description

More than 200 plant species are known, only about 40 of its species grow here. The most common is flax ordinary, which is divided into:

  • flax-dolgun;
  • flax curls;
  • flax mezheumok;
  • creeping flax.

For flax flax, a stem elongated about a meter with a little branching tip is characteristic. It produces up to three boxes filled with seeds. Foliage elongated. Flowering occurs in delicate blue inflorescences in the form of an umbrella-shaped brush. The boll is divided into five sections in which seeds are placed. In one box there is up to 10 seeds of an ovoid oblate shape. They are brown in color. This subspecies is used to produce fiber.

To get a larger number of seeds, flax curls are grown. It has a dense branching of the stems, each of which houses up to 80 seed pods. In them are located the seeds larger, when compared with flax. In height grows to 70 centimeters. This subspecies is used for the production of oil, as it contains up to 47% fat.

Flax mezheumok is also grown to produce oil. Outwardly, he has a lot in common with curly flax.

Creeping flax is much less common. It is a largely wild-growing subspecies that grows in steppes and valleys, separate populations can be found in valleys and hilly areas. This subspecies is characterized by foliage of stems and small blue inflorescences. Seeds of smaller sizes, brown color. They contain up to 32% oil. Due to the different time of maturation of seed pods, its collection is difficult, therefore creeping flax is not so popular. Its main value will be frost resistance. This quality is used when it is crossed with other subspecies.

On summer cottages, decorative flax with large flowers is especially popular. Its color range is very rich. Decorative flax is low, up to 60 centimeters in height. Flowering occurs from the beginning of summer to mid-autumn. Flower buds are large, do not fade within 2-3 days. This species can grow up to five years in the same place. At the same time its decoration will not be lost. After a time, with noticeable changes in appearance, it is transplanted to another place.

Cultivation technology

Flax belongs to valuable agricultural crops, especially the oilseed subspecies (curly, mezheumok), widely used in production. It is a source of vegetable protein, which is used in animal husbandry, as well as technical oils, as raw materials in various types of industry (paint and varnish, leather and footwear, soap and others).

Nowadays, the use of seeds that have medicinal properties has become particularly popular. They contain a large amount of linolenic acid. If you regularly take flaxseed oil, it will remove cholesterol from the body, improve metabolic processes and normalize blood pressure. With its use, the risk of thrombosis and oncology, as well as cardiovascular and allergic diseases is reduced.

After the production of flaxseed oil in the production conditions, the meal remains (cake), which is a concentrated valuable feed. It is used in animal husbandry. When combined with water, it increases in volume, forming mucus, becoming a valuable dietary product.

The flaxseed itself as a whole is used in various nations as an additive to bread and cereal mixtures. Possessing a gelling property, it has been used in cooking.

Freshly prepared infusion of seeds, filled with boiling water, is used in the treatment of gastritis, enterocolitis, dyspepsia and burns.

The flax stalk contains up to 18% fiber, therefore it is used in the manufacture of coarse fabrics, as well as heat-insulating and packaging materials. Flax fire by pressing serves for the production of building boards.

Seed germination

Flax refers to cereals that are eaten germinated. It is a source of health, rich in amino acids and trace elements, vitamins. With his help cope with many diseases. How to sprout flax at home? To do this, you need a regular tray or plate, as well as gauze and a sieve.

Seeds spill out onto a tray and cover slightly with water per millimeter. After 8-10 hours, they are washed from the mucus using a sieve. Then wet gauze spreads onto the tray. Spread seeds on it. They are kept in a well-lit place, but without hitting the direct rays of the sun. Periodically moisturize gauze, make sure that does not dry out. When in a few days the sprouts appear up to two centimeters, they are eaten. The finished product can be stored in the refrigerator for about five days. Then you need to sprout a new batch.

People who consume germinated seed improve their skin condition. It becomes elastic and elastic. Various dermatitis, eczema and even psoriasis will worry you less. In addition, nails are strengthened, and hair becomes thick and shiny. The gastrointestinal tract improves its work, from here comes a mild weight loss for those who have an excess of it.

Care for flax on the plot

We are pleased when the lawns around the houses are full of various shades. Particularly pleased when the flowering of delicate buds last a long time, and care of plants is minimal. The inhabitants of the flowerbeds are increasingly becoming field and forest flowers. Planted in large numbers, they perfectly decorate the space around them. Thin flax looks good in the flower garden. He gives a special charm delicate buds.

Lyon is sown in the spring period around. After that, it is harrowed, in order to seal the seeds up to two centimeters in depth. You can land them in rows with an interval of 20 centimeters. The plant is resistant to cold and can withstand frost down to -3 degrees. In this connection, the landing can be carried out in April. After a month and a half, flax will begin to bloom. Seed ripening will begin in July and will last through September.

The plot is selected with well-drained and enriched soil. When the first flowers appear, the garden plant is provided with regular watering, since at this time it needs moisture. Care for flax during the growing season will include getting rid of plant weeds and loosening the soil.