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Probably, there is no such grower who would not grow phlox. These flowers grow everywhere, they decorate not only flower beds and borders, phloxes can often be found in parks and gardens, and their true connoisseurs create whole phloxaria. Almost all varieties of this plant are perennials, only Drummond's phlox blooms for only one year. The beauty of phlox lies in its delicate appearance, one cannot fail to note the unpretentiousness of this flower, its long flowering. There are many varieties of phlox: from ground cover and forest to very sophisticated and tall. Each grower will be able to choose his own variety of this flower if he knows about its features.
The varieties of perennial phlox with names and photos will be discussed in this article. Here you can find information on each type of plant, learn how to grow them and how to provide them with care.
Interesting features
Phlox translates to "flame", which is why phloxes are often called fire flowers. The homeland of these plants is North America, but they have taken root in Europe for a long time - since the seventeenth century. Today, more than seventy species and about one and a half thousand varieties of perennial phlox are known - the florist, indeed, has plenty to choose from.
The fire flower is actively used by landscape designers, as it is suitable for decorating a garden and local area in any style. True connoisseurs of ornamental plants love phlox for their variety: there are inflorescences of absolutely any shades, varieties with different flowering periods and different heights of the bush.
Perennial phloxes have taken root in Russia due to their unique winter hardiness - they are one of the few flowers that can withstand severe frosts without shelter.
Varieties of fire colors
Below are the most popular varieties of perennial phlox - in fact, there are dozens and hundreds of them. All types of these plants have common features:
- unpretentiousness;
- winter hardiness;
- ease of reproduction;
- lush inflorescences;
- delicate shades;
- light pleasant aroma.
Taking into account the timing of flowering, the appearance of inflorescences and bushes, plant height, phlox varieties can be classified.
There are four main types of fire colors:
- Subulate phlox.
- Spread out.
- Panicled phlox.
- Drummond's annual.
The given photos of plants will help you navigate in choosing a variety and correctly compose a composition. A brief description and characteristics of each species will be useful to inexperienced gardeners and those who have never grown perennial phlox in their garden.
Subulate group of perennials
This group includes the smallest varieties, which are often called ground cover. It is with such flowers that alpine slides are decorated, they are used in rockeries and other landscape compositions.
Characteristic features of a perennial styloid plant:
- shoot height up to 20 cm;
- narrow needle-shaped leaves;
- the length of the leaves reaches a maximum of two centimeters;
- the bushes are green until the first frost;
- from one to three inflorescences are formed on meek stalks;
- flowering twice a season (from May to early July and from mid-August to the first cold weather).
A rug of subulate phlox can be painted in absolutely any shade, but inflorescences of white, blue, lilac and purple tones predominate.
Anyone who grows subulate varieties should take into account their features:
- Choose a well-drained soil, ideally sandy.
- Plant in well-lit areas.
- Trim the tops of the bushes after the first wave of flowering.
- Rejuvenate the bushes every five years by separating them.
- Feed the plants twice a year: in the spring and in the middle of summer.
- Propagate phlox by lateral shoots and dividing the bush.
But all varieties of subulate phlox perfectly tolerate heat and frost, therefore they do not cause unnecessary trouble to the grower.
Purple Beauty
This perennial phlox is very fond of sunlight - this must be taken into account when choosing a place for flowers. The inflorescences of the ground cover plant are colored in lilac-purple tones. The flowering of the Violet Queen variety falls on the end of May, June. Bushes are compact, only up to 17 cm high.
Petticoat
The flowers of this variety are bifurcated, snow-white, so they are often compared to moths. Perennial phlox should be planted in well-drained soil containing sand or small pebbles. Petticoat grows up to twenty centimeters. The inflorescences of this variety exude a very delicate sweet aroma. In the palette there is not only a white color of flowers, there are also blue, purple and deep pink plants of the Petticoat variety.
Red Wings
It is easy to recognize this variety - its buds are painted in a very rich raspberry color and simply glow in the flower bed. The fire flower tolerates heat and cold very well, therefore it can be grown in regions with a difficult climate. Loves drained soils, has an unpretentious character, blooms twice a season.
Spread out species
Phlox-perennials from the group of splayed ones have the most unpretentious disposition - they do not require practically any care and feel great in any conditions. These plants also have a stronger odor, are able to grow not only in the sun, but also in partial shade.
The appearance of splayed phlox is characterized by the following features:
- the stem is extended by 20-40 cm (depending on the planting site: sun or partial shade);
- inflorescences are loose;
- the shape of the flowers is characteristic - the petals are wide at the edges, but taper towards the center;
- the shape of the leaves is elongated, the surface is hard, up to five centimeters in length;
- flowering occurs in late May - early June;
- flowers are painted in white and blue shades.
In this group, unlike the previous one, there are many domestic varieties - they are easy to recognize by the Russian name on the package. This explains the unpretentiousness of the spreading varieties - they are better adapted to the local climate.
A flower grower who has bought spread-out phloxes for his site should know that:
- Flowers smell pretty strong, so you need to choose the right place to plant them.
- A thick shade is not suitable for planting perennial phloxes, they need at least diffused sun.
- The soil can be mixed in composition, but must have good drainage.
- Frosts are not terrible for spreading varieties.
- Flowers reproduce only by lateral processes.
- Every 5-6 years, the bushes need to be rejuvenated or planted.
Blue dreams
The beauty of this perennial phlox variety is the ability to grow flowers under trees and shrubs. A thick carpet of flowers exuding a wonderful aroma can decorate any gardens and parks, looks great on flower beds. Inflorescences are painted in lilac-blue shades. The variety is very winter-hardy. It is necessary to propagate phlox using lateral processes.
White Perfume
Phlox perennials of snow-white color exude a very strong spicy aroma that will fill the entire garden. The height of the bushes can reach thirty centimeters. These flowers can also be grown in partial shade of trees and shrubs.
Paniculate fire flowers
This group is the most numerous - in almost any domestic garden there are paniculate phloxes. There are hundreds of varieties and types of such flowers.
The main distinguishing features of perennial paniculate forms:
- separation of varieties by the height of the bush (low - up to 60 cm, medium - up to 100 cm, high - up to 120 cm);
- leaves are lanceolate, elongated, about 8-14 cm long;
- stems are smooth, even, woody by winter;
- inflorescences can have any shape and size (globular inflorescences prevail);
- in terms of fullness, the flowers are compact, but loose;
- according to the flowering time, the varieties are also divided into three groups;
- the color palette is very wide.
White flowers
Snow-white flowers look great against the background of spring greenery, so such phloxes are quite common. There are many varieties of white phlox perennials, the most popular of which are named:
- late Foerster;
- blooming 50 days cultivar Heaven;
- Sea foam blooming in the middle of summer;
- domestic variety with medium flowering Lebedushka.
Multicolored flowers
From July to September, multi-colored varieties of perennial phlox bloom. The shades of these colors are so diverse that it is very difficult to choose one.
Popular varieties:
- bright pink phlox perennial Larisa;
- sky blue Blue Paradise;
- Margarita with raspberry inflorescences;
- pale lilac Lavender variety.
Spotted paniculate flower
Breeders place particular emphasis on breeding these multi-colored phloxes. After all, variegated plants with the most intricate combinations of patterns and shades are in the greatest demand.
Today such varieties are known:
- Ivan blooming in the middle of summer;
- Europe blooming from July to September;
- very gentle Miss Pepper;
- Bright Eyes with adorable salmon flower balls.
Filings
Dutch and English varieties of phlox perennials are distinguished into a separate group called filling. A characteristic feature of such species is non-blooming flowers that look like buds.
How to care for fiery flowers
Phlox perennials, the photos and names of which are presented above, are not difficult to grow. Despite the stunning beauty, these flowers are absolutely unpretentious and need the simplest, but competent, care:
- The soil under the bushes should be loosened regularly or organic mulch should be used.
- Perennial phlox should be watered exclusively around the bush - water should not flow either under the root or along the leaf.
- It is recommended to feed perennial phloxes with organic matter (in autumn) and potassium-phosphorus complexes (spring, summer).
- It is better to propagate and plant new plants in the fall.
- After flowering, the tops of the bushes must be pruned so that the young inflorescences are large and abundant.
Conclusion
Perennial phloxes are a great option for decorating a garden or yard.These flowers need to be planted only once every five to six years, they do not need complex care and constant attention of the grower.
In gratitude for the nutritious loose soil and the sun's rays, phlox will delight the owner with a lush and very long flowering. There are a lot of names and varieties of a fire flower, even the most fastidious florist will be able to choose a phlox perennial to his liking.
