The Hapcarp (Eccremocarpus) is an elegant liana from the Bignoniev family. High decorativeness is provided by beautiful fiery red flowers and graceful stems. The scientific name of the plant is ekremocarpus (or ekremocarp). The birthplace of this unusual flower is Chile, as well as neighboring Argentina and Peru. It is there that he can be found in natural conditions. Due to the natural place of growth, another name was stuck for the flower - the Chilean vine.
Despite the general unpretentiousness of this plant, it can still cause trouble for the gardener due to its low frost resistance. Because of this, in horticultural culture, the droop is most often grown as an annual. To prevent the heat-loving flower from freezing, it can be turned into a container plant in mid-latitudes. To preserve the roots, it can be brought into the house for the winter. The method with transfers is also suitable. Before the onset of cold weather, the bush will have to be dug out of the ground, placed in a container and stored so until warm days return.
Description of the fruit tree
Lianas are loved in horticulture for their high decorative properties and fast growth, which allows them to quickly cover selected vertical surfaces and supports. Typically, these plants only take a few weeks to do this.
The modern assortment of garden vines, along with widespread species, includes a number of rather rare, unusual plants. The droplet belongs to them. This is a herbaceous perennial, the length of the shoots of which can reach 3 or even 5 meters. Of the four plant species, three grow only in the wild. In horticulture, only scabbard (Eccremocarpus scaber) is used.
It is a vine with thin stalks, which is able to climb any support with the help of many tendrils. With this green mesh, you can decorate both the fence and any vertical surface. Despite the seeming airiness of the shoots, the droop is able to form a dense green wall that protects from prying eyes and even from the wind.
The rough vine has opposite compound-pinnate leaves, consisting of several (from 3 to 7) lobes. Due to the large number of leaves, they cover the stems with a lush, bright green carpet. The spiral-shaped antennae, with which the plant is attached to the support, grow at the ends of the leaf plates from the base of the petiole.
Not only the foliage of the plant is remarkable, but also its bright flowers. During the flowering period, the vine is covered with racemose inflorescences that form on the upper parts of the shoots. Each inflorescence consists of small, narrow tubular flowers of deep red, yellow, orange or pinkish colors. Small denticles are located along the edges of their petals. There are stamens inside the corolla.Sometimes the inflorescences are variegated, but the general color palette of the droppings does not change and is limited to the main colors. The size of each inflorescence reaches 15 cm. The flowering period lasts from June-July to late autumn and on average lasts at least 2 months.
Since August, in place of flowers, pale green pod-shaped fruits begin to appear, slightly resembling pepper in shape. During the autumn months, a large number of small winged seeds ripen in them. At the same time, the timely removal of such pods will help prolong the flowering period.
Growing a droplet
Hapocarp is a plant with fibrous roots located close to the surface. In the perennial form, the rhizomes of the flower form a tuber. In its homeland, the droppings can grow over impressive distances, and when the upper part dies off during periods of drought, it can recover annually. In those latitudes, the underground part of the plant successfully survives periods of slight cold snaps. But the critical temperature for the tuber is considered to be only zero degrees. Because of this, the plant is used for perennial cultivation without transplants only in warm southern regions.
In areas where the temperatures are below freezing in winter, you will have to grow a droplet as an annual or before the cold to transfer it to a frost-free room. The easiest way is to pre-place the plant in a large portable container. Taking care of a flower in such a container will be a little easier.
Possible options for growing a droplet:
- Like an annual. In this case, the droplet is grown through seedlings in the spring, and after the establishment of warm weather, it is transferred to the open ground.
- Like a biennial. Seeds are sown in an unheated greenhouse at the very end of summer. In the second year in spring, they sprout and over the summer they develop into an adult plant, which, if desired, can be saved for the next year by transplanting it into a container and sending it to the warmth for the winter.
- Like a perennial. Each winter, you will need to transfer the plant to a warm place.
How to plant a crop tree
Landing place
The area on which the droplet will grow must be closed from precipitation. This plant does not like moisture on its leaves and flowers. It is especially important to protect it from heavy rain during flowering. A quiet secret corner will be optimal for growing. In this case, the place should be well lit. Areas close to the southern walls of houses or fences are best suited. With insufficient sunlight, the bushes begin to develop more slowly, the foliage will not be so lush, and flowering will come much later.
The soil for planting should be sandy loam or clay-sandy. Loam is also good. The land should be loose, light and fertile. Before planting, you can additionally add the necessary organic and mineral additives there. For container growing, a universal soil is suitable.
Landing features
Carrying out containers with a droppings on the street or planting them in the ground should be in the spring, but only after all possible frosts have passed. The tubers of the plant are small in size, but they should be planted in increments of at least 30 cm, but not more than 50 cm.
The bushes are moved into the prepared pits, transferring them along with the earthen lump. Good drainage is recommended at the bottom of the holes. After planting is complete, the bushes are watered, and to preserve moisture, they are covered with a layer of mulch - decorative or plant - on top. Mulch helps inhibit the growth of weeds and keeps the soil looser. In this way, it is possible to close up not only soil, but also container plantings.
Rules for caring for a crop
Watering mode
The land in which the vine grows must constantly remain slightly moist. This applies to both plantings in the open field and in containers. Watering of soil plants can be carried out irregularly, guided by the level of drying out of the earth, but it should not be overdried either.You can practice daily watering in small doses. The soil in the container, which dries out faster, is permanently moisturized. During periods of extreme heat, you can do this twice a day.
Top dressing
Due to the rapid growth rate of its shoots, the droplet needs a lot of nutrients. A flower growing in a container should be fed weekly. For this, you can use any mineral composition for flowering. The fertilization period lasts from the transfer of the flower to the street until the beginning of September.
Ground lianas are fed much less often. For healthy development and abundant flowering, 2-3 times during the summer period will be enough. The first feeding is carried out a month after transplanting, the second - when the plant sets buds, and the third - directly during flowering. More frequent feeding is also acceptable, about 2 times a month. In this case, universal fertilizers are also suitable for the vine.
Support and garter
The support of the future creeper should be thought out even before planting it. The best will be a lattice wall or mesh, which will be convenient for the antennae to cling to.
As the vine grows and spreads on the support, you can slightly change the configuration of its shoots, redirecting its antennae in the right direction. Additional garters will help to strengthen the vine on the selected surface. Thanks to these procedures, the decorative effect of the droppings is enhanced. In addition, with the help of garters, you can form an impenetrable green wall from the stems and leaves of the plant.
Pruning
In order for the flowering of the droplet to last longer, the withered inflorescences and the fruits that have begun to form should be removed regularly.
In order to increase the green mass faster and bloom more abundantly, in the spring, all unnecessarily long stems can be shortened before placing the container in the garden. Pruning and removing dried shoots is also done in the fall, before removing the container with the plant for storage.
Wintering period
The littoral is so thermophilic that even the most reliable shelter cannot protect it from frost. You can save the plant in winter only by transplanting it into a container, which is moved to a warm room. The bush should be removed from the ground along with a lump of earth. Before transferring the plant, you need to prune its dried shoots.
The optimum temperature in the room where the droplet spends the winter should be from +5 to +10 degrees. A house that is too warm, where it keeps above +15 degrees, is not suitable for storing a bush. Another important requirement is good lighting. In such conditions, the bush can be preserved until spring. By mid-February, you can move the container to a warmer, but no less bright place. There, he will begin to release fresh shoots within a couple of weeks after moving.
In the southern regions, where the temperature does not drop below zero in winter, the branches of the plants that have dried up after a cold snap are cut off. The tuber remaining in the ground must be carefully covered. In the spring, the droplet will grow again and fresh shoots will appear.
Pests and diseases
Despite the relative exactingness to external conditions, the vine is very resistant to fungal diseases and is almost not susceptible to pest attacks. Sometimes aphids settle on a liana, but most often this happens due to the proximity to an already affected plant. In this case, a special insecticide should be used. Small lesions can be cleaned with soapy water. In order to timely notice the moment of appearance of harmful insects, it is necessary to periodically inspect the leaves of the plant on both sides.
Hibcarp reproduction
Growing from seeds
This breeding method is considered the most common. Usually, growing a crop from seeds does not require much work.
Planting material can be purchased or collected from an existing bush. If the seeds are harvested with your own hands, you should pay attention to the weather.Under the condition of a long and warm autumn, they can have time to ripen on a bush on their own: the first harvest from early inflorescences can be obtained even in the middle lane. But in the northern regions, in most cases, cold days come faster than the pods have time to finally ripen. To keep the fruits from frost, unripe pods are cut in advance along with the petiole and hung in a bright and always ventilated room. It usually takes up to one and a half months to fully ripen the seeds, but after that they are considered suitable for sowing. When the boxes are completely dry, they are opened and the contents are poured into a paper bag, storing after additional drying. The germination capacity of such planting material lasts for 2 years.
A beautiful liana is grown from seeds in two ways: by sowing in the ground and through seedlings. Sowing directly into the garden can be carried out after the ground is thoroughly warmed up - in May. In another case, the seeds are sown in a cold greenhouse in mid-autumn, covering them with foliage or spruce branches for the winter. Winter droppings will begin to sprout in spring, when daylight hours increase sufficiently. After removing the shelter, the seedlings are periodically watered, and after the establishment of warm weather, they are planted in a permanent place. The advantages of such an autumn sowing are in greater strength and even faster growth rates of the plants obtained in this way. But in middle latitudes, such sowing is still rarely resorted to, preferring the more reliable seedling.
To obtain seedlings in late February or early March, the planting container is filled with a light and fertile soil mixture. For even distribution, the small seeds of the vine are mixed with earth or sand and poured onto moistened soil. Top them can be sprinkled with a thin layer of earth. After spraying the crops from a sprayer, so that the seeds do not erode, they are covered with glass or tightened with a film, not forgetting to periodically ventilate.
The first shoots appear within two weeks. After that, the film should be removed. As soon as the sprouts form a third true leaf, they are dived into separate seedling glasses. Due to its fast growth rate, this happens a little over a week after germination. To less traumatize the root system during transplantation, you can use peat pots. During transplanting, you can immediately equip new containers with supports. Every 2-3 weeks, seedlings can be fed with liquid mineral fertilizers. Until about mid-May, seedlings of droppings are kept on a well-lit windowsill. Shortly before this, the seedlings can be hardened, but they are planted in the ground only after the warm weather has finally established.
Cuttings
Another way of propagation of a cropped crop is cuttings. It works well for biennial or perennial container grown specimens. In early autumn, several root cuttings are separated from the plant, planted in containers with loose soil and covered with polyethylene or a transparent jar. As soon as the cuttings take root, they are tidied up for winter storage in a bright place without freezing temperatures. In the spring, the grown vine is taken out into the street or transplanted into the ground.
Types of droppings
For garden cultivation in mid-latitudes, only one type of droplet is suitable - rough. On its basis, breeders have bred many spectacular varieties that differ from each other in shades of inflorescences. Among them:
- Liana with spectacular golden inflorescences.
- Pink Lemonade. Pink flowers with a light yellow throat.
- Pink Trumpets. Light red flowers with a golden border.
- Sashiko. Variety with dark green foliage and large red or orange inflorescences.
- Tresco Gold. Blooming liana with glossy golden and yellow flowers.
- Tresco Rose. A variety with variegated inflorescences: pinkish-cherry flowers complemented by a bright orange throat area.
- Tresco Scarlet.A two-color variety, the flowers of which are bright red at the base and orange-yellow around the throat.
- A ready-made mixture of varieties with different colors.
Hedgehog in landscape design
Due to its high decorative qualities, the droop can decorate almost any corner of the garden. It can be used to create a green screen, decorate resting places, as well as vertical gardening of fences and walls of garden buildings. As a support, you can use nets, lattices, arches or walls of arbors. The fast growth rate allows the plant to quickly spread over the supports and beautify them with its beautiful leaves and flowers. The Hedgehog looks good both in solo plantings and in the vicinity of flowering shrubs: roses, lilacs. Sometimes antennae begin to cling to their branches as a support. Such compositions look very original and elegant.
A bright vine can grow both in the garden and on the veranda or on the terrace, as well as in the greenhouse or conservatory. The main thing is that the chosen place meets the requirements of the plant: it is warm, illuminated and protected from heavy precipitation. You can try to grow a flower on the balcony. If positive temperatures remain there in winter, the plant will be able to successfully overwinter and in the spring again delight everyone with its fresh greens.
