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Mountain fir compacta has several synonyms: subalpine fir, lasiocarp fir. The subalpine culture is found in the highlands of North America in the wild. Due to its compactness and unusual appearance, it is often used in landscape design.
Description of fir subalpine compacta
The compact mountain fir subalpine is one of the best decorative dwarf varieties. According to the description, the decorativeness of the compact mountain fir shown in the photo is as follows:
- compact crown size;
- needles of a blue shade;
- tough short branches that allow you to survive snowfalls without much damage.
The shape of the crown is wide-conical, the height of an adult seedling at the age of about 30 years does not exceed three meters, the diameter is from 2 to 2.5 m. The tree grows slowly, especially at a young age.
Shoots have an ash-gray shade with a slight rusty pubescence. The needles are short, not prickly, silvery-bluish.
Cones have an oblong-cylindrical shape. The color of the cones is violet-blue, the average length is about 10 cm. The cones on the shoots are located vertically upwards.
Subalpine mountain fir Compacta loves fertile lands with moderate moisture. Periodic excess moisture tolerates well. The acidity of the soil (pH) for growing this variety should be in the range from 5 to 7. On loamy soils with high humidity, the crop grows poorly. Carbonate soils can be used for growing compact mountain fir. Can grow in sunny and semi-shaded areas.
Fir Compact in landscape design
Subalpine mountain fir Compact is widely used in the ideas of landscape designers. It is used to decorate alpine hills, and is planted in heather and rocky gardens.
This evergreen tree will decorate the personal plot all year round, the main thing is to follow the rules of caring for it.
Planting options for mountain fir subalpine Compact:
- in the center of the lawn or flower bed;
- along the wall of a building or fence;
- in a row to create a hedge;
- along the alley.
Planting and caring for subalpine fir Compacta
It is best to purchase a subalpine mountain fir seedling Kompakta in a specialized nursery located in the same climatic region where the seedling is planned to be planted. The trees in the nursery are sold with a closed root system in a container where all the necessary nutrients are added, so you don't have to worry about fertilizing at the time of planting.
Seedling and planting plot preparation
The fir planting area for Compact should be well lit. Areas with periodic shading are also suitable. It is better not to plant mountain fir in the shade of other trees, since the tree belongs to light-loving specimens.
If the seedling has an open root system, the tree should be soaked in a solution that accelerates root growth before planting. Experts do not advise purchasing coniferous seedlings with open roots, since they practically do not take root.
If the seedling is purchased in a pot, it is well watered and removed along with an earthen clod.
Landing rules
The best time to plant a seedling is early spring before bud break, or autumn, long before frost.
The landing pit is prepared in advance.At least two weeks before planting, a hole is dug 60x60 cm in size and 70 cm deep. The dimensions are indicated approximately, since it all depends on the dimensions of the earthen coma or the volume of the roots.
A drainage layer is placed at the bottom of the pit, which is used as crushed stone, brick fragments, sand. The drainage layer should be at least 5-7 cm.
The planting hole is covered with a nutritious soil mixture consisting of the following components:
- humus - 3 parts;
- peat - 1 part;
- sand - 1 part;
- sawdust - 1 part;
- nitrophoska - 200 g per landing hole.
The roots of the seedling are covered with soil, tamped and watered. For a group planting, a distance should be observed: 2.5 m for a tight planting and 3.5 m for a loose group. When planting fir along the alley, you can leave between the seedlings from 3.5 to 4 m.
Watering and feeding
After transplanting the subalpine mountain fir compacta to a permanent place, it should be watered regularly. Young seedlings need watering, otherwise they may not take up. Older specimens of trees cost 2-3 waterings per season. If an abnormally dry summer is noted, the number of irrigations can be increased; additionally, the crown is sprinkled in the evening hours.
Saplings purchased from nurseries already have a supply of fertilizers, which is enough for the full development of fir. If the tree is grown independently, the fertilizers applied during planting will provide a supply of nutrients for 2-3 years, after which in the spring complex fertilizers are introduced into the trunk circle, for example, Kemira-wagon.
Mulching and loosening
After planting fir, it is advisable to mulch the subalpine near-trunk circle with improvised materials. It can be sawdust, peat, wood chips. Lay out the mulch in a thick layer (5-9 cm).
They loosen the soil after watering, do it to a depth of 10-12 cm, so as not to damage the root system of the seedling. The loosening procedure is necessary to saturate the rhizomes with oxygen and remove weeds.
Mulching protects the soil from drying out, prevents reproduction and growth weeds, and also protects the roots from freezing in the winter.
Pruning
Fir Compact by nature has a beautiful crown shape, so they resort to pruning only in case of breakage or damage to the branches.
Formative pruning is not performed, but sanitary pruning is performed in spring or late autumn.
Preparing for winter
Young fir trees should be sheltered for the winter. A mulching layer will help protect the roots from freezing, the crown is wrapped with agrofibre and covered with spruce branches. A wooden tripod support can be installed to protect the branches from heavy snowfall.
Adult firs do not need shelter, but it is advisable to renew the layer of mulch around the roots before the onset of frost. During periods of snowfall, the branches of the fir of the mountain Kompakta may suffer, therefore wet snow is gently blown off the crown.
Reproduction
Mountain fir Compact is propagated in two ways:
- seeds;
- cuttings.
The first method takes a lot of time and is not always effective. In autumn, cones are harvested, dried and seeds removed. To harden the planting material, the stratification method is used. Seeds of subalpine fir are placed in wet sawdust and sent to the bottom shelf of the refrigerator for several months. They monitor the moisture content of the soil with seeds - it should not dry out or be too wet. Seeds are planted in spring or autumn. Above, a container with seeds or a bed is covered with a film, after the emergence of seedlings, the film is removed.
Cutting produces a mature tree much faster than the seed method. An annual stalk at least 5 cm long with 1 bud is torn from the top of the tree.The stalk is not cut off with a pruner, but is torn off with a sharp movement from the mother branch in order to get a shoot with the heel. The work on harvesting cuttings is carried out in cloudy weather. For cuttings, shoots located on the north side are chosen. Before planting, the cutting is immersed in a weak solution of manganese for several hours. For planting subalpine fir, a nutrient mixture is prepared, consisting of humus, sand and leafy earth, taken in the same ratio. Cover the stalk with a glass jar. The jar is periodically raised so that the handle is ventilated and gets used to the surrounding conditions.
Diseases and pests
Subalpine mountain firs are distinguished by good immunity to pests and diseases, therefore, adherence to agricultural technology allows you to prevent the risk of damage to trees.
On subalpine mountain firs, spruce-fir hermes parasitizes, which helps to cope with the spraying of trees in early April with the preparations "Antia" and "Rogor-S". For 10 liters of water, 20 g of an insecticidal agent is required. These drugs are used to combat fir moth and pine cone moth.
If the fir of the subalpine mountain Kompakta is affected by rust, the crown is treated with Bordeaux liquid. The fallen needles are removed and burned, the damaged branches are cut off and also burned. To prevent infection and further spread of the disease, the cut sites are treated with garden varnish.
Conclusion
Mountain fir Kompakta is an evergreen coniferous tree with a beautiful broad-conical crown. It is used as a landscaping plant for alleys, household plots, and adjoining territories. Caring for the fir subalpine compacta does not require much effort, so the tree is often planted in summer cottages to decorate the territory.
