Amaranth: cultivation, planting and care in open ground

Improving their site, many gardeners are looking for a plant that can serve as an interesting and unusual decor. One of these plants is amaranth, which not only can be eaten, but also grown exclusively for decoration. About his varieties, methods of planting and care talk in this article.

Amaranth - a culture that has about eight thousand years of life. It was first discovered in South America, where it was grown like corn. From amaranth even prepared a special decoction, which, according to the Indians, gave strength, strengthened health, ensured many years of life.

Amaranth is planted annually, since the life of the plant is quite small due to the inability of the culture to tolerate frosts. On the territory of European countries and Russia there are about sixteen types of plants, although in their homeland their number rises to seventy.

It is rather difficult to speak about the exact height of amaranth, since it depends not only on the variety, but also on the growing conditions. On average, the height of the plant ranges from fifteen to eighty centimeters, although there are also unique specimens that can reach two to three meters in height. Amaranth has a strong root that penetrates deep into the ground.

Foliage at culture dense, rigid, big sizes. The colors can be both green and reddish. To the touch the sheet plate is rough, there are many branches and veins on it. The leaves also differ in shape, mostly oval or diamond-shaped specimens.

The period of flowering culture starts in early June. This is characterized by the appearance of beautiful ears: green, red, lilac. As the spikes grow, they unite into bundles, which retain their viability up to the first cold weather. When the life of the plant comes to an end, all the seeds fall off and can be collected. Amazingly, each sapling can give to its owner up to five hundred thousand seeds.

Selecting a plant for your site, you must immediately identify the purpose of the culture, since the culture is of different types.

As the name suggests, these varieties are edible. They contain many vitamins and minerals that are necessary for the human body to increase immunity and healthy life. Vegetable varieties are characterized by a large number of foliage. But it is not only her food that is taken in food, roots and stems are also edible.

The following popular vegetable amaranth varieties can be distinguished: "Valentine", "Fortified", "White Leaf", "Vietnamese Red", "Oscar Blanco".

Amaranth grain varieties also benefit the person. It consists in substances that prevent the formation of cancer cells and inhibit the growth of existing ones. In addition, these varieties fight against fungi and viruses. It is good to use them as food for animals, also make high-quality oil from grain types.

These are varieties such as "Kharkov-1", "Orange Giant", "Helios".

These varieties of amaranth can be used both by humans and animals. You can eat the whole plant, including the roots. In feed amaranth are useful elements that strengthen the immune system and support the body. The most popular subspecies are "Aztec" and "Giant", characterized by a large number of red deciduous mass.

Annual herbaceous plants can be grown for the purpose of an interesting decor plot.

• "Tricolor" has a unique foliage, which includes three shades: purple, greenish and bright yellow. It has the shape of a pyramid, can reach one and a half meters in height.

• "Illuminations" - variety, which also affects multicolor. Interestingly, over time, the foliage can change its shades, smoothly flowing from one color to another.

• "Prefect" like a plant from the Garden of Eden. The dark green leaves below miraculously harmonize with the juicy yellow-red top.

• "Airlie Splendor" - a species with an unusual color. At the bottom of the plant is dark purple, the upper inflorescences have a deep crimson color.

• "Caudate" Amaranth is green or red. It has long ears that hang down to the ground.

Usually landing amaranth is not associated with special difficulties. You can perform it both at home and in the country, most importantly, to observe the landing dates. The best way to propagate is seeds, which is why gardeners first grow seedlings at home, and then later transplant them into open ground.

In those regions of Russia where a temperate climate is observed without sudden changes in temperature, seed planting is started in early March. To do this, take small containers of medium depth and fill them with fertile soil. The ideal solution would be to buy ready-made soil in the store, but if there is no such possibility, you will have to prepare the ground yourself. Heavy, acidic soil will not work - amaranth is able to grow only on light, oxygen-rich earth. In its composition you should definitely include compost and peat.

Before sowing seeds, the soil must first be decontaminated. This is done so that the seeds do not have the opportunity to pick up an occasional fungus or viral disease.

Disinfection can be performed by several methods:

• heating under high temperature;
• freezing;
• treatment with fungicides, manganese.

When all the preparatory measures are completed, it's time to start sowing. The soil is placed in containers, watered, and the seeds are placed on top, which must also be covered with a thin layer of earth, about half a centimeter. The layer is necessarily sprinkled with water from a spray bottle, then the container is tightened with polyethylene or food wrap.

Growing up, the seedlings gain strength, and soon the time will come when each sprout will need to dive and place in a separate container, for example, a glass. Further agrotechnology is not difficult: water seedlings in a timely manner, if necessary, light it with a lamp. One and a half weeks before disembarking, it would be good to perform a hardening procedure. To do this, containers are carried out for a short while outside or placed near the open window.

Planted seedlings on the site begin in late spring, when frost is not exactly foreseen. Choose a plot with enough sunlight, only then amaranth can develop properly. but work on landing in the sun is not recommended. Pick up the day when the weather will be gloomy or plant amaranth in the early morning or in the evening. In addition, if the weather is too hot, young seedlings need to provide artificial shade for several days.

Plant the plant in rows, keeping between them a distance of twelve centimeters. The distance between the rows should be at least half a meter. When amaranth begins to gain deciduous mass, the rows will have to be thinned out so that the plants receive enough oxygen.

Amaranth is a rather undemanding plant, but in the first month it will be necessary to provide all the necessary conditions for its growth. The fact is that the plant slowly adapts, forms a powerful root for a long time. At this time, the cottager should closely monitor each bush, weeding the area around each of them. It is necessary to immediately remove all weeds, as the young seedling still lacks the strength to do so.

Growing amaranth also includes proper watering. In the first 30 days, seedlings are watered as soon as the earth dries, this contributes to the proper formation of the bush.Adult amaranths do not need constant watering - their roots are so strong that they can independently provide the plant with water from the soil. Formed specimens need watering only in arid and excessively hot weather.

It is worth noting that after the first month, amaranth shows unprecedented growth time - every day before entering adulthood, he will show a gain of as much as six centimeters. The flower also does not require weeding from the gardener, he is quite capable of dealing with weeds himself. However, proper care implies a mandatory thinning of plantations, otherwise the bushes will form a dense plantation where the fungus will begin to develop.

The first feeding is carried out at the stage of planting seedlings in open ground. To do this, use nitroammofosku, which contribute to the amount of 20 grams per square meter. Then amaranth needs regular fertilizers, but not more than 4 times during the growth period. The ideal feeding will be a mullein, which must be diluted in water in the amount of 1: 5.

Another amaranth responds well to wood ash fertilizer. Two hundred grams of the substance is diluted in a bucket of water, then poured the mixture under the bushes. And you can also use ready-made mineral fertilizers.

All dressings, as well as planting, are recommended to be carried out in cool weather. Plants should not be exposed to direct sunlight. Choose for work early morning or evening, and fertilizer is applied only after careful watering.

Amaranth is an incredibly resistant plant that resists pest invasions perfectly, because it is itself, in fact, weedy. Nevertheless, sometimes weevils and aphids appear in the garden, and here the gardener needs to take all measures to save the culture.

Weevil - almost imperceptible eye bug, but the harm from it will be visible immediately. The parasite is absolutely omnivorous, it will like both leaves and plant stems. With large quantities such insects are able to destroy most of the crop. In addition, the larvae can fall into amaranth seed pods, spoiling the fresh seeds and making them unsuitable for planting. The plant affected by the beetle, immediately slows down in growth, becomes weak, loses a bright color.

Weevil can fight with different methods:

• spray plants with herbs that have a pronounced aroma: wormwood, bitter pepper;
• process amaranth with a mixture of one hundred grams of mustard powder diluted in three liters of water;
• use powerful insecticides, for example, karbofos or nemabakt.

Since the weevil is able to cause the most severe damage only at the early stage of plant life, preventive measures against insect include:

• careful loosening and weeding of young bushes;
• timely thinning;
• top dressing by mineral complexes.

Another amaranth pest is aphid. This insect usually appears where there are a lot of ants, so you need to fight against them. The plant on which the aphids have settled, weakens, shiny silver traces appear on the lower part of the leaf.

The main ways to combat and prevent:

• attraction of ladybirds to the garden;
• search and destruction of anthills;
• processing bushes "Fufanon", "Aktellik."

In addition to pests, amaranth can pick up all sorts of diseases. Viral - almost never, which can not be said about fungal. For example, the plant affects powdery mildew, various types of rot. This happens solely through the fault of the gardener, who could have overlooked something.

Causes of disease:

• dense stands;
• lack of dressings;
• improper watering, so that the earth begins to rot and rot.

To prevent further breeding, gardeners recommend using the following tips:

• during the first month of the seedling's life, take all necessary care measures, do not forget to weed and loosen the ground, water the bushes;
• as soon as the plant goes into active growth, remember about weeding, which will not allow the bushes to intertwine and will give all the conditions for air to reach the roots and shoots;
• Do not overdo it with watering - the abundance of water will certainly create the excess moisture that the fungus loves so much;
• for preventive purposes, treat the plants with Bordeaux liquid or copper sulphate;
• if amaranth is ill, it should also be treated with the above substances, as well as colloidal sulfur.

See how to grow amaranth in the next video.