Shrub cinquefoil (Kuril tea): care, cultivation, reproduction

Inhabitants of the garden can sometimes please not only with decorativeness, but also with useful properties. This category can be safely attributed to the undemanding care "Kuril tea", or cinquefoil, for the cultivation of which special skills are not needed. This beautiful plant can become the center of a flower garden and serve for the preparation of medicinal raw materials. We will tell you how to properly plant cinquefoil on the site and take care of it, what varieties are able to decorate the dacha with bright flowers.

Description of the plant

Shrub cinquefoil got its name from the shape of the leaves, which resemble a tiny foot. Previously, these plants from the Pink family were ranked among different genera, but now they are allocated to the genus Pentaphylloides.

Cinquefoil has a shrub habit. Bush 10-150 cm high consists of straight shoots that branch intensively. The branches are covered with red-brown flaking bark. Young shoots are densely covered with fine hairs; pubescence is absent on adult branches. Each leaf blade of Potentilla consists of two or three pairs of leaves with a triple apex. The surface of the tiny oval lobes is densely covered with appressed hairs. The length of a small leaf is no more than 3 cm, width is about 10 mm.

The flowering period of Potentilla falls at the beginning of summer. Depending on the varietal accessory, numerous flowers are single or collected in apical inflorescences in the form of an umbrella, shield, brush. Wild relatives of Potentilla have yellow flowers. The structure of the corolla is simple, it consists of 5 petals and a fluffy center with stamens. Varieties of hybrid origin can boast of a different bush shape, a wide palette of petal colors.

Beneficial features

If a classic variety of "Kuril tea" grows on your site, it can be used to prepare medicinal raw materials. To do this, during the entire growing season, shoots, flowers and leaves are collected from the shrub. They can be used for fresh brewing (2 tablespoons per 300 ml of water) or dried for the winter. The infusion is used as a tea brew.

Kuril tea tastes little different from the classic drink, but has a delicious aroma and unique chemical composition. In terms of the amount of vitamin C, raw materials exceed lemons by 5 times. The plant contains trace elements and antioxidants, essential oils.

Due to its rich chemical composition, the drink has an anti-inflammatory, diuretic, antimicrobial, tonic effect.

Monitor your blood pressure carefully: smoking tea helps to reduce this indicator. Pregnant women and allergy sufferers should refrain from taking the drink.

Popular varieties

If you chose cinquefoil as a decoration for your summer cottage, feel free to buy hybrid varieties. Their winter hardiness is lower than that of the botanical species, but their spectacular appearance is worth the hassle of growing and care.

The following varieties of shrub Potentilla are popular.

• Goldfinger - forms dense cushions with dark green foliage. Plant height - 120-150 cm. Flowers of a deep yellow hue have a corolla with a diameter of 50 mm. It is considered one of the most beautiful varieties.
• Kobold - undersized cultivar 50-60 cm high. The culture forms a neat lush crown with a diameter of up to 120 cm, requires formative pruning. The color of the petals is light yellow. Decorative from mid-summer until frost.The Kobold Potentilla variety is suitable for hedges.
• Abbotswood reaches a height of 80-100 cm, the girth of the crown is 130 cm. The diameter of the flowers is 2.5 cm, the color of the corolla is white. Flowering lasts from early summer to the end of the season.
• Flash royale - undersized cultivar 50-70 cm high. Retains decorative effect throughout the season. In summer it attracts with large red flowers. As they age, the petals turn dark pink. In autumn, the dark green crown casts a silvery color.
• Red Ice has beautiful light green foliage. The height of the bush is 60-65 cm, the girth is twice as large. At the beginning of summer, red-orange corollas open up, changing the color to yellow-orange. The Red Ice variety is decorative all season.

These are only the most popular hybrids of Potentilla shrub. Although a lot of varieties of this plant have been obtained, our compatriots prefer the classic "Kuril tea".

Landing on the site

You can only enjoy a healthy drink from Potentilla or arrange a spectacular flower garden if the plant is properly planted.

You can plant a shrub in spring or autumn. The superficial root system of Shrub Potentilla takes root more easily in early spring after the snow melts and the soil warms up. Autumn planting is carried out a month before the cold snap, it is best to start work in mid-September. Before falling into the dormant period, the cinquefoil will have time to take root.

Many gardeners prefer to plant shrubs in the fall, since a large assortment of healthy planting material appears in nurseries.

The endurance of Potentilla will be the envy of any garden dweller. She is not afraid of a strong cold wind, so you can plant bushes even in an open space. When choosing a planting site, it is important to take into account that petals can fade under the scorching sun, especially in colored varieties like Red Ice or Flash Royal. This will shorten the flowering period and worsen the decorative effect. Cinquefoil prefers openwork partial shade; it will not be possible to achieve flowering and lush growth in full shade.

Shrub cinquefoil is demanding on the structure of the substrate - heavy clay soils are not suitable for it. It is important to take care of good drainage so as not to provoke rotting of the root system. Light soil with a pH of 5.5-7.5 is suitable for shrubs.

Landing pit preparation rules:

• a hole for planting shrubs is prepared 10-14 days before planting Potentilla, so that the soil has time to compact;
• the optimal hole size is 50 by 50 cm;
• a drainage layer of rubble or brick chips 15-20 cm high is laid on the bottom of the hole;
• half of the hole is filled with a nutritious soil mixture of equal parts of leafy earth and humus, a little sand and 150 g of a complete mineral complex are added;
• the upper part of the hole during planting is filled with soil removed during digging (fertile layer).

Shrub cinquefoil can be planted not only in holes, but also in trenches, which is important when creating a hedge. They are prepared in the same way.

Kuril tea is planted using the following technology.

1. At the seedling, before planting, the roots are trimmed, forming a branched lobe.
2. Spread a nutritious pillow on the drainage layer, filling half of the planting pit.
3. The roots of the seedling are carefully distributed in the hole, gradually covered with fertile soil, and compacted. The root collar should remain at ground level.
4. Pour a bucket of warm water under each Potentilla bush in portions, mulch the surface with peat.

Observe a step between the bushes of at least 1 m, when planting a hedge, plant individuals in 40 cm increments.

Care rules

It is very easy to care for shrub cinquefoil. Proper care includes watering, feeding, pruning, and winterizing.

Adult cinquefoil perfectly tolerates dry conditions; it should be watered only in the absence of rain for a long time. Young seedlings are irrigated once a week. The next morning, it is helpful to loosen the soil, remove weeds, and mulch. Watering rate - 10 liters per bush.

Evening spraying with warm water will have a positive effect on the health of the seedlings. Make sure that the sun has already disappeared behind the horizon, otherwise burns will appear on the delicate leaves.

The supply of nutrients in the cinquefoil planting pit is enough for a year. Every spring you need to feed the culture with long-acting potassium-phosphorus fertilizers (granular). The application rate is 150 g per square meter.

Pruning Potentilla

Pruning Potentilla shrub is divided into two types.

• Sanitation is carried out throughout the season. Broken and weak twigs, shoots affected by pests and fungi are subject to removal.
• Formative is performed in early spring or early autumn. Formation is done every 3 years, removing a third of each shoot.

By means of formative pruning, a semblance of the standard form of Potentilla shrub can be grown. To do this, select the most powerful branches, remove the entire growth in the lower third of the shoot. The twigs are intertwined at the bottom, forming a small tree. Each year, the lower part of the shoots is cleared of lateral growth.

Diseases and pests

The health hazards of shrub Potentilla are:

• leaf spot;
• powdery mildew;
• rust.

Having found signs of the disease, treat with copper-containing preparations (HOM, copper sulfate) or fungicides ("Fufanon", "Fundazol"). Pests do not like the dense pubescence of the bush, they bypass the plant.

Preparing for winter

Shrub Potentilla varieties have different winter hardiness thresholds. Plants with white and yellow flowers are not afraid of frost. Before wintering, clean the space near the trunk of foliage, sprinkle the root collar with a layer of peat to a height of 15 cm.

If the color of the cinquefoil petals is pink or red, it is better to build an air-dry shelter over the bush.

Reproduction methods

Shrub Potentilla can be propagated in the following ways.

• Seeds. The method is rarely used, since the cultivation of seedlings takes 4 years, while varietal characteristics are not preserved. Seeds are sown in greenhouses or boxes, seedlings are covered with peat for the winter.
• Layers. Pin the developed shoot into a small groove, and next spring separate it from the mother liquor and plant it in a permanent place. The plant will bloom in a year.
• By dividing the bush. Dig up a 5-6 year old bush in early spring and cut it into several parts, so that each one has renewal buds and a developed bunch of roots. Already this year, young specimens will delight with flowering.
• Cuttings. Root lignified cuttings 10 cm long in a mixture of peat and sand. They need to be deepened so that only the top of the 2 cm long remains. In a year, plant the seedlings in a flower bed, they will bloom next season.

Nature gave gardeners a valuable and beautiful plant - shrub cinquefoil. Breeders have turned it into a real garden decoration. Whichever variety of Potentilla you choose, adhere to the growing rules described above.