Asters - an overview of all varieties (annual and perennial). Instructions for growing, planting and care at home +140 photos

Almost everyone knows such a beautiful, unusually beautiful and unpretentious flower care, like an aster. There are both annual and perennial varieties of these plants. To date, in the world, the Astrov family has about 500 different species, most of which are grown in North and Central America.

Asters are used to a greater extent as a decorative decoration of a site or flowerbed, flower inflorescences are quite unusual, unique and original.

They are cold-resistant, they begin to bloom much earlier than many garden flowers, around the beginning of June, while the bright, colorful petals of asters will delight the gardener until the end of August.

Summary of the article:

Short description

Astra is a complex herbaceous plant with a sufficiently developed root system. Its stems reach 30-160 cm in length, they are slender and even, the flowering leaves on the stems are small and linear, while the stems are long, have an oblong shape, slightly curved along the edges.

Inflorescences of plants from the Astrov family have the shape of baskets, their sizes: up to 8-9 cm in diameter. Flower petals can be of various shades: white, red, burgundy, violet, yellow, bright blue, pale blue, etc. Their color palette is very diverse, you can find beautiful flowers of aster and all the iridescent shades, and other unusual colors.

The plant begins to give seeds after one and a half to two months from the beginning of flowering. You need to collect aster flower seeds by the end of summer or the beginning of autumn, otherwise there is a risk that the flowers will die or decay in the conditions of the onset of cold weather and high humidity.

Astra prefers nutritious and moist soil, but care must be taken that the soil is not too moist.

The penumbra plant will prefer bright sunlight, therefore it is advisable to break flower beds of this species in well-lit areas.

Varieties and varieties

Let's try to deal with the most common and popular types of asters in Russia, which are planted and bred by both professional florists and amateur gardeners. To understand what this or that variety looks like, study numerous photos of asters that are in the public domain.

Alpine astra is a perennial plant that begins to bloom in late May, reaching a length of 30 cm. Inflorescences of a flower of this species usually do not exceed 5 cm in diameter.

Visually, the plant resembles a daisy. This species is represented by two main varieties: Glory and Wargrave. The first variety is characterized by a stem length of up to 25-30 cm, a small inflorescence size of up to 4 cm, is a blue or blue daisy with a bright yellow core.

The second grade is up to 30 cm long, the diameter of the flower itself is identical to the first, the color of the petals is mainly pink, the middle is also yellow.

Italian aster - in a different way, chamomile, begins to bloom in mid-June or early July. It has inflorescences with a diameter of up to 5 cm, a flower basket is represented by a corymbose inflorescence, bushes reach a length of up to 70 cm. The main varieties of this species: Rosea and Rudolf Goeth.

The first option has reed petals of pink shades, and tubular petals of light brownish tones, its flowering period is approximately three months. The second grade has purple reed flowers and yellowish tubular, has quite fluffy and large inflorescences.

Bessarabian aster is characterized by a bush height of up to 75 cm and numerous purple inflorescences with a brown core.

The listed species belong to the previously flowering perennial asters, as there are later species that bloom in the fall, and for quite a long time. Autumn flowering plants, which are also perennials, are represented by the following species:

Shrub aster. This species is the earliest of the assortment of autumn crops. The bushes reach a height of 35 to 60 cm. Their stems have many leaves, so even a flower that has not yet blossomed will adorn any flower bed with its rich greenery.

Its most popular varieties: Niobium, which has snow-white inflorescences, and Blue Bird, are dwarf plants no higher than 25 cm in length, with blue petals.

New Belgian aster. The species most common in the gardens of Russians, the bushes of the plant are powerful, they have tiny inflorescences and multi-colored, variegated colors. The main varieties are dwarf, with a size not exceeding 45 cm in length, medium-tall - up to 70 cm high, and tall, represented by stems growing up to one meter.

The New England Astra stands out from the other Asters in its size, the height of its bushes reaches 1 m. 60 cm. In appearance, it resembles a Belgian one: the flower is also represented by a large number of small, bright, colorful inflorescences.

In addition to perennial species, quite often there is an annual flower - garden aster. Annual plants are often not at all like asters, but more like peonies, dahlias, or chrysanthemums. Garden aster is represented by a huge variety of varieties that have different flowering periods, trunk height, flower structure, shades, etc.

Cultivation and care

Planting asters with the help of harvested or purchased seeds can be carried out in seedlings and seedlings. The earliest varieties can be planted in the soil at the end of March, this will allow in mid-June to admire the charming, colorful flower gardens on their site.

The latest varieties can be planted when the average daily air temperature is at least 10 ºC.

Keep in mind that asters planted immediately in the open ground, that is, using the seedling method, can begin to bloom later than the flowers that were previously grown in the greenhouse.

In order to plant the seed of the future flower in the soil, it is necessary to make furrows in it, up to 4 cm deep, put the seed, water the recess with enough water and fill it with soil. If planting occurs in March or April, the planted flower bed must be covered with covering material before the first shoots appear.

Reinforced seedlings that emerged from the ground must be thinned out, it is advisable to leave a distance between seedlings of 10-15 cm, and transplant the remaining seedlings to another place. This will allow the plant to fully grow and develop.

If planting is planned using the seedling method, then 6-7 days before sowing, wrap the flower seeds in a cloth moistened with water. After 10 hours, squeeze the fabric material, put the bundle in a plastic bag, and put it in a warm place, this will allow the seeds to germinate.

Germinated seeds are planted in special containers filled with light, moist, fertile soil. Landing in the open ground is done when the seedlings are strong enough, 3-4 leaves will bloom on their trunks.

As for the subsequent care of asters, it is quite simple. This type of plant is completely unpretentious, therefore it is not difficult to take care of them, it is enough to periodically loosen the soil in the flower garden, weed the weeds and irrigate.

To get the most out of flowering plants, you can periodically feed them with special mineral formulations.

A bouquet of aster flowers will please anyone, and a flower bed made up of these flowers will look great, perfectly decorate both a summer cottage and a house adjoining territory.

Breeding and growing asters is an easy task that even an amateur can handle, but the result of the process, expressed in incredibly beautiful, colorful and elegant flowers, will amaze everyone.