Japanese Kerria - one of a kind

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That is exactly what the nerd would say about Kerria, since in this genus there is one single species - Japanese Kerria (Kerria japonica) It is amazing why Kerry is rare in our gardens. She is quite pretty, thanks to the exquisite graphicness of the shoots and leaves, and the piercing "chicken" yellowness of the flowers. It blooms richly for about a month, starting from the last days of May, and at the end of summer it blooms again, although this time it is not plentiful. And, despite its rather southern origin, it is quite hardy in the middle lane, although the ends of shoots often freeze in winter. About planting kerriya, breeding and wintering, read the article.

Content:

What is it - kerria?
Choose a place to grow Kerry
Reproduction of Japanese Kerria
Kerry landing
Japanese Kerry Care

What is it - kerria?

Kerria (Kerria) - a genus of deciduous shrubs from the family Rosaceae. The name of the genus was given to the plant in honor of William Kerr, the first gardener of the Royal Botanic Gardens in Ceylon and a plant collector. The name "Easter Rose" was given to the bush during flowering and the shape of flowers resembling small roses.

And the birthplace of Japanese kerriya is China and Japan. There her bushes reach almost three meters in height. But we never overcome the meter mark. Moreover, the shoots are almost entirely green, only in the lower part they turn slightly brown, which is why the real bushes give the impression of herbaceous plants. Leaves in kerry with a drawn tip, up to 8-10 cm long, with a clear indented venation. The edge of the leaf is serrated. Thin bright green twigs of shoots resemble cereal straws, and due to the abundant root shoots form a semblance of sparse turf.

In central Russia, Kerria often freezes to the level of snow, but then grows well and blooms profusely.

Choose a place to grow Kerry

Kerria fits nicely in the company of a large mixed flower garden. It is good at the edges of shrubby compositions, naturally combined with low, upward-looking conifers - spruce, arborvitae, juniper. It is quite harmonious in a traditional front garden next to roses, hosts, summer-flowering spireas.

Kerria is used as a hedge during the design of mixborders. It looks good as a tapeworm with many spring primroses (witch hazel, rhododendron, azalea, mahonia).

My acquaintance with Japanese kerry took place ten years ago. I tried to grow it in a variety of conditions: on a rather dry gentle slope, on a flat open place, in a sheltered sunny nook. It turned out that most of all kerriya, a place covered from cold winds with moist fertile loam in full sunlight is suitable. In winter, a lot of snow accumulates there, which Kerry is only good.

Reproduction of Japanese Kerria

Kerry is easiest to propagate by dividing the old bush. By bending and pinning flexible shoots to the ground, it is easy to obtain horizontal layering.

And you can separate from the bush overgrowth and then grow it in a shaded place with frequent watering. But most efficiently propagates keriya cuttings - lignified and green (although the color they are all green).

Kerry has a basic (natural) and terry form. The main corolla of the flower is simple, of 5 bright yellow petals with a diameter of up to 4.5 cm. Terry-shaped flowers (f. Plena) resemble miniature yellow roses. Flowers appear both in the upper part of the old branches - at the ends of the lateral shoots and in the axils of the leaves, and on the shoots of the current year.

I cut lignified Kerria cuttings in April, and green ones in the middle of June. Cuttings with one internode (that is, with two vertically adjacent leaves, a slice from the bottom - oblique) are planted in a cold greenhouse in light partial shade. They take root quite well, but not quickly. I leave wintering in place. And only in May of the next year I sit down for growing. The most developed of the cuttings can be distributed across containers. And by April next year, all the Kerry cuttings are turning into small bushes, ready for planting in a permanent place.

Kerry landing

I dig a hole under Kerry 60 × 60 cm in size and about 40 cm deep. I fill it with a mixture of turf soil, humus and fertile garden soil in a ratio of 3: 3: 2, add 60-80 g of full mineral fertilizer to this mixture. The mixture is poured with a slide, taking into account shrinkage, after planting, I carefully water the bush.

Kerria tolerates a transplant with an earthen lump, with a certain accuracy it can be done at any time, but it is better to transplant in spring and autumn, when there are no leaves.

Two more weeks after the plants move to a permanent place of residence, I regularly water them, thoroughly soaking the root zone. And since this shrub is quite hygroscopic, watering is useful in the future, with drought lasting more than a week.

Japanese Kerry Care

After the first flowering, in July, I cut the Kerria and at the same time feed it with the mullein infusion. I cut high branches at the same height (about 1/3), and I pinch the young root shoot only slightly to stimulate branching. Usually I limit myself to one feeding, but sometimes after two weeks I repeat it.

A haircut, coupled with feeding, contributes to the active growth of the crown, the formation of a larger number of young shoots. He was convinced: if everything was left to chance, Kerria “will lose its gloss”, and with good care it will always be attractive and will bloom all summer without sharp recessions.

Kerria also has a number of variegated forms. The most famous of them is Variegata, or Picta (Variegata, Picta), lower than the natural look, with non-double flowers and light green leaves covered with white spots.

Although I do not hide my kerry for the winter, because I have successfully chosen a place for them on the site, I advise nevertheless in an open place with the onset of stable night frosts and average daily temperature transitions through 0 ° C (usually this happens in the first ten days of November) to bend the branches of the bush hooks to the ground, then overlay the plant with spruce spruce branches.

Even if your flower garden is bursting with all sorts of rarities, I advise you to find a place for Kerry. After all, she is one of a kind, there are none like her.

Author: A. Smirnov, Vladimir.