Phlox fade? Time to change your care to be even prettier next year. 3 steps -1 top dressing
Do you want your phloxes to be the most beautiful in the village next year? Then a fiery salute, comrade ambitious florist. Today on the agenda - caring for a fragrant flower after flowering, which, to my tears, will be completed very soon. Well, it was just as beautiful ...
Why waste time on leaving if phloxes are already "that"
It is very reckless to throw phloxes after they have diligently opened all their buds for us. Leaving the plants to their fate, the lazy gardener will condemn them to weakness. And ahead is winter.
A weakened plant will never survive the cold with dignity, taking revenge on the owner next year with a pitiful look. A well-groomed and kindly phlox will rest over the winter (and not hardly survive it - feel the difference, comrade!) And generously reward for 4 actions.
Step # 1. Flowers that dry into panicles. There is no place for them in the flowerbed of a decent gardener!
If the bushes are not picked to the thread, cut off all faded inflorescences. Although I myself generously collect bouquets for the house, mother-in-law and mistress; and phloxes at the fence are ripped off by passers-by, flowers always remain - the plant, with proper care, is too generous.
Cut off each peduncle - a wilted cap, for convenience of work, grabbing a little stem. Not only does deadwood look disgusting. Having decided to set seeds, phlox will spend food on them, weakening itself. Let's leave this option to the breeders!
Step # 2. Everything to the front of the fight against powdery mildew
Powdery mildew is a disgusting fungal disease that is easily recognizable by the white bloom on the leaves. Looks like they were doused with a whitewash solution. But I will not exaggerate: I personally am not familiar with more than one phlox, which died after such a disease. But its powdery mildew will tremble notably!
Therefore:
- Don't let your phlox get bogged down in the weeds. Stagnant air and high humidity - open doors. And not only for powdery mildew.
- As soon as you notice an alarming white bloom on at least one leaf - treat the plant with a fungicide. In recent years, I have not used anything except Topaz - it does it with a bang. Particularly responsible citizens act proactively and do preventive treatment.
Comrade, keep your ears on top of your head. Now precipitation will become more frequent, and the nights will be darker and colder. Ideal conditions for fungi to live, so August is a time of high alert.
Step number 3: Correction of phlox care at the end of summer - we will polish the achieved result
You can happily go to rest in the gazebo instead of watering phlox, if the weather has shown mercy in the region and the stifling heat has receded. If during flowering the soil should always be a little wet on top, now you can forget about this rule.
Friendly Tip: When the nights get colder, start watering in the morning.
Grab the watering can if the drought persists or comes back. If not, then watering phlox can be halved. And the closer autumn approaches, the less you need to water: the coolness of the night, combined with humidity, will invite, again, powdery mildew.
When feeding is important and necessary
Phlox grew and bloomed for a reason. They were wasting the resources of the land. The time has come to replenish it so that the plants do not weaken before the important event - wintering.
Comrades! I could write these Internet "take 10 g of nitrogen, 20 - phosphorus, 30 - potassium". But I won't. It is much easier to buy ready-made fertilizer. Fortunately, the store shelves are full of them. In addition, they are also seasoned with trace elements, which, to my sadness, most gardeners undeservedly forget about which, and, as a result, a couple of beautiful inflorescences are missing.
- Any "Autumn" fertilizer.
- Any complex mineral fertilizer "For blooming", where phosphorus and potassium confidently dominate over nitrogen in the composition. In any incomprehensible situation - read the composition!
Oddly enough, you also need to use any top dressing according to the instructions on the label. So read it to the end!
Do you like phlox and was this article helpful? Press, comrade, "Thumbs up"!
Sincerely yours, florist Fyodor Tyapkin-Sklyankin, whose phloxes are always cut off by romantic gentlemen podshofe, hurrying under cover of the July night to the Lady of the Heart.