White Derain (Cornus alba) is an evergreen shrub from the Cornelian family. In botany, it is also known as svidina, svida, white telikrania. The popular name is red. The plant is found in the Far Eastern region of Europe, central Russia, makes up the natural flora of Korea, Mongolia, China. The natural habitat of the White Deer is a swampy dark coniferous forest.
The bright summer greens of the breeding varieties give way to mysterious dark red flowers in autumn. For the beauty and ease of care, white turf is appreciated by gardeners and landscape designers, decorating city parks and squares with them. In the United States, it is called the "dog tree" because the deren fruit is similar to wolf berries.
Description of the plant
Derain white looks like a small tree. The shrub reaches 3 m in height. Branches of light and dark shades of red bend in arcs. The color range of glossy branches - from lemon to olive, from scarlet to burgundy, which persist all year round. Therefore, a garden decorated with a tree will preserve its beauty against the backdrop of a winter landscape.
The leaves are dark green above, gray on the back, oval pubescent with an even edge. The size of the leaves in length and width is from a minimum of 2x1 cm to 10x7 cm. The leaves are separated by 3-5 veins and are attached to the branch with petioles. Flowers are small, white, with 4 petals per bud, collected in bunches up to 7 cm in diameter. Fruits are juicy berries with a stone. Unripe fruits are blue, ripe fruits are blue-white.
The shrub is resistant to frost, heat, shade. Unpretentious sod can withstand temperatures of -50 degrees. It does not need to be covered for the winter. The plant accepts favorably any soil except acidic. In the second year, the svidina blooms and bears fruit.
Planting white deren in the ground
Autumn and early spring are suitable for planting white turf outdoors. With the first warming, young seedlings are actively accepted. The plant grows 60 cm per year. When planting white turf, it is important not to damage the roots and retain moisture in them, so you do not need to shake off the ground when removing seedlings from the box.
Variegated varieties of white deren are planted in sunny places so that their leaves do not fade. For ordinary species, partial shade is suitable next to the walls of buildings, fences.
The soil doesn't matter. The shrub adapts to sandy, rocky and loamy soil. But the acidity should be neutral. You should also avoid lowlands, where melt, rainwater accumulates.
For planting white turf, choose seedlings up to 4 years old. Strong plants with branched roots will sprout many shoots after pruning. For better adaptation, shoots with open roots are immersed in water before laying in the soil.
The planting hole is dug 1/4 larger than the size of the roots. In soil with high humidity, drainage must be installed: a mixture of sand and fragments of bricks, crushed stone is laid out on the bottom of the hole. Drainage is placed in a layer of 15 cm. It is enough to pour a little sand into dry soil.
The hole is covered with a layer of soil, mixed with humus and compost, and tamped. The root section of the plant is left on the surface.The seedling needs to be watered abundantly and wait for the ground to absorb the water. Then cover the root circle with organic mulch.
White derain care
Caring for white turf includes standard procedures: watering, loosening, weeding, feeding, pruning.
Young shoots need watering every week. Mature shrubs withstand drought, receiving 2 buckets of water every 14 days. After watering, the soil must be loosened. Ornamental varieties of white deren will survive with a lack of moisture. But their leaves will fade and become small. Watering should be done in the morning or evening.
In the enriched soil, the plant receives enough nutrients. You need to feed shrubs planted in depleted soil. 150 g of universal fertilizer will provide nourishment for seedlings in spring. Mature shrubs will receive nutrients from the compost in the summer.
Pruning is carried out in the third year in July and August. Leave strong shoots, remove the third or fourth process. The shape of the ornamental bushes is corrected in the spring before the buds appear. They leave 20 cm from the plant.In the following years, the bush will be updated and will release more new shoots.
Derain white lends itself easily to curly pruning. Professional gardeners give the bushes the shape of a column, arc, cube, ball, hemisphere. The plant looks good as a standard tree and in its natural form. Compact sod will fit into compositions of any size.
Diseases and pests
Derain white is of little interest to garden pests. But young seedlings are susceptible to aphid attacks. Powdery mildew develops due to high humidity. The fungus covers the lower leaves and branches with a white coating. Diseases are susceptible to brightly colored bushes after complete pruning. Therefore, the sod should not be flooded with water, and drainage is required when planting.
At the first signs of fungal plaque, you need to cut off the damaged branches of the bush, treat the trunk with a foundation solution. The fungicide is toxic to humans, but stops the spread of the fungus. The solution is safe for plants when applied to branches, but inhibits growth when in soil.
Against powdery mildew, you need to process the plant 3 times. The effect will be visible within 3 days. If the pesticide does not help, then the fungus is resistant to its action. To prepare a solution, you need to dilute 10 g of powder in 10 liters of water. 1.5 liters of solution are consumed per 10 sq. m. The insecticide is toxic by inhalation and in contact with skin. During work, you need to wear a respirator and gloves.
The comma-shaped scale insect is a pest that lives on apple trees, poplars and forest bushes growing nearby. Without antennae, legs and eyes, the body of the female is a yellow-white shield tapering from the head. The bend resembles a comma. The male is distinguished by antennae and moves with the help of wings and three pairs of legs.
The insect damages the bark, feeds on fruits. Therefore, white turf is not planted near fruit trees, preferring the neighborhood with needles. In winter, females store eggs under shields, hiding under the bark of trees. But eggs die from frost below 30 degrees. Scabbards awaken from hibernation at the end of April.
Insecticides are used against the pest, when there are 5 scale insects or 5 larvae per 1 cm per 10 cm of the branch.
Aphids gnaw the leaves of shrubs, suck the juice of the shoots, live on the roots. Small black and brown insects cover branches and petioles, leaves curl and dry out.
To get rid of aphids, you need to cut off damaged branches in the fall or early spring. If clutches of eggs are found on the bush before the cold weather, they are sprayed with hot water of 80 degrees. Re-spraying should be done in the spring before the buds appear. Water can be replaced with nitrophene: dilute 300 g in 10 liters of water.
Reproduction of white deren
Breeding methods for white turf: seed, layering and cuttings.
Seeds germinate in the second year. In this way, it will be possible to grow a shrub in 5-8 years. Seeds collected in the fall can be sown immediately. Their germination capacity lasts 5 years. But for two winter months they need to be stored at a temperature of 5 degrees.Density of sowing seeds of white deren is from 5 to 15 pieces per square meter. The depth of the bookmark is 4 cm.
To grow breeding varieties of white turf, it is better to use the cuttings method. In early June, cuttings with buds covered with dense bark should be cut off. Pour soil into the box and plant the shoots. During the summer, keep them in a greenhouse, water and feed them. In the fall, the cuttings will take root.
The second quickest way to reproduce white turf is by layering. In early spring, the lower branch of the bush is chosen. Dig a groove under it and lower it completely into the recess. Leave the top on the surface. The branch is covered with soil, watered, fed during the summer. For wintering, they are covered with spruce branches, leaves. You can transplant the shoot after the roots appear - the next year.
Deren white varieties
In urban landscape design and decoration of summer cottages, selective varieties of white deren are used:
- Argenteo-marginata - an elegant plant with red bark and green leaves with white edging. In the fall, the shrub becomes completely crimson. The type of Elegantissim grows up to 3 m. Wide leaves with cream stripes look contrasting on the carmine branches.
- Siberica - the leaves of the bush are distinguished by a light green tint, which turns brown with the arrival of autumn. Variety Sibirika Variegata reaches 2 m in height and retains the characteristic creamy blotches in the deciduous pattern. Summer green turns to autumn purple. Variegata grows more slowly and shorter than Elegantissima. For small gardens, choose the type of Aurea, which combines delicate colors: light yellow leaves, scarlet branches, cream flowers and white fruits with a blue tint.
- Kerna - a low shrub from a distance looks surrounded by a lemon halo thanks to the yellow edging of the leaves. Loves sunny places and moisture. In autumn it turns into a brownish-red bush.
- Shpet - the variety has been known for over 100 years. Leaves with a wide golden edging turn purple-red in autumn.
- Kesselrings - a dark variety of deren. The brown-green color of the leaves in summer changes to dark red in the fall. The color of the shoots is black and red. White berries stand out brightly.
- Astrosanguinea - the height of the shrub is 1.5 m. The undersized species retains the traditional crimson shade of the branches and the emerald green of the leaves.
- Allmans Compact - young shoots are colored red, bright green foliage.
- Aurea Elegantissima - grows up to 2 m. Leaves with a green center and an uneven yellow edging.
- Blood Good - high grade reaches 3 m, is distinguished by blood-red leaves and branches.
- Gochaulti - green leaves are covered with spots of white, coral, pink shades, look slightly drooping on red shoots.
- Ivory Hallow - red shoots and leaves with a creamy white edge form a crown ball.
- Siberica Ruby - height - 1.5 m. Coral shade of the shoots. The dark green leaves turn reddish-purple in autumn.
- Derain Canadian - a variety of shrub 15 cm high, with bright white flowers in spring. Red berries appear in autumn.
Derain white in landscape design
Derain white lends itself well to pruning and keeps its shape. Bright green varieties in summer and dark purple in autumn are planted singly or create a hedge, an accent in the composition. Derain white is used in plantings in which the plants are densely located next to each other.
Having given the plant a tree-like shape, annuals, roses, lilies are placed under it. A lawn garden will showcase the beauty of the changing seasons with snowdrops, crocuses in spring and daisies, poppies, forget-me-nots in summer.
Chrysanthemums are planted next to the white turf hedge for a bright autumn composition. To delimit the zones of the site, they also use a technique with hedges from low-growing varieties. Planted near water bodies, the moisture-loving shrub strengthens the shore.
Derain gets along with perennials, suitable for creating multi-level relief.Resistance to light and shade allows you to plant shrubs in open areas and under tall trees. In the urban landscape, the neighborhood with barberry and fern is advantageous.
Bright shades of leaves and branches are combined with conifers. Dark cypresses, junipers, blue spruce will serve as a contrasting background. On garden plots, the lawns are framed with creeping perennials and large-leaved grasses, used to decorate a garden bench.
A green lawn is chosen as the background for single trees. Simple decor creates mulch. The tree looks unusual in thickets of ivy, periwinkle, creepers. The ability of shrub leaves to change color transforms the garden as the seasons change.
