Flowers from the orchid family can be grown not only on the windowsill, but also in the garden. Venus shoes are best suited for this purpose, and you will learn more about the reproduction features of planting and care.
The structure of the flower of venereal shoes
Garden lady's slipper is primarily characterized by the structure of its amazing flowers, which gave it a name. Its most important feature is the lower petal, which has a swollen bulging shape that resembles a toe of a shoe. All other petals are quite standard: the two main petals rise above the main inflorescence, and they can either just stick out or twist a little into a spiral. Two more petals are hidden under the lip of the flower, while they usually grow together. A very attractive sepal also hangs over the lip itself. 
Did you know? Venus shoes are used in traditional medicine, where they are considered good medicine for very complex disorders of the nervous system and psyche, including epileptic seizures.
Planting material and soil composition
Growing veneer shoes is a rather difficult task, since their rhizomes, suitable as planting material, are very vulnerable and can quickly get damaged and rot. therefore for planting is best to buy plants in pots, and only after they reach the age of five. The fact is that they bloom only at this age, so if you buy cheaper three-year planting material, you will have to wait another two years for the first flowers.
Important! When buying veneer shoes in pots, it should be understood that the soil in which they are planted is exclusively transport, and they should not be kept in it for a long time. It is better to plant flowers on the flowerbed immediately after purchase.
If, however, used for planting rhizomes, they should have a white color and a few healthy buds that are ready for development. If the rhizome is black and rotten - it is better to immediately throw it away, since it will not give a result in growth. A rhizome with weak buds can grow only in a few years, and then with great luck. The soil for orchids "lady's slipper" needs to be chosen very carefully: this plant will not grow on the fertilized black soil of the garden, since this kind of soil is too "fat" for it. At the same time, the soil should also not be sour and overly rammed. It is best to create soil for garden orchids by hand, mixing for this purpose:
- neutral acid peat;
- humus from fallen leaves;
- birch rotters;
- coarse sand.
The choice of location and landing of venereal shoes
"Kukushkin boots," as the flowers described are called, grow well in shaded places, so the flowerbed on the north side of the house will suit them very well. Ideally, they should be planted in the shade of fences, as well as under widened fruit trees. A good guideline of the place where shoes can perfectly settle down is the fern, since these plants have the same requirements for soil and shading.
As for the direct planting of these flowers, it should be carried out either in autumn or in early spring, while the plant has not yet entered active growth. Special pits with a depth of 30-40 cm are prepared for the plant, which are filled with the prepared soil mixture (the width of the pit should correspond to the dimensions of the root system of flowers). It will not be superfluous to make drainage at the bottom of the pit, which is recommended to use pieces of limestone,
Important! Before planting purchased material, it is important to carefully inspect and remove all areas affected by rot from it. If this is not done, the plant may not grow.
Further landing involves the following actions:
- On the prepared place in the pit in the horizontal position laid out the roots of the plant and very carefully straightened to the side. It is necessary to work with them carefully, as in certain periods of time they can be very fragile.
- When planting, the plant must be covered with a layer of soil no more than 1.5 cm thick. If you deepen it more, you will have to wait longer for flowering.
- After falling asleep the plant with a mixture of soil, it also needs to be watered and mulched, for which it is recommended to use moss, pine needles or leaves of garden trees that had time to wear out.
Did you know? If the plant is planted correctly, after 4 years of growth in one place it can spread its roots to an area up to 70 cm in diameter, going deeper by 30 cm.
Good partners for veneer shoes
Garden orchid "lady's slipper" is very demanding in relation to the partners in the flower bed, which must be chosen with special care. Above we have already mentioned the fern, which has growing requirements similar to shoes, and can also act as an excellent partner for these plants.
It is good to give these flowers a neighborhood with hosts and ground cover garden flowers. Especially dangerous for them are fast-growing plants and shrubs, which over time can simply drown out Venus shoes and stop their growth. In this regard, many flower growers organize monoplanting of them.
Care for cuckoo boots in the garden
Already in early spring, the adult plant can be opened from the winter shelter and loosen the soil around it. Throughout the growing season, shoes will require very little attention, but still they will need it.
Watering
Pafiopedilumu requires moderate watering, which, however, should be regular. In particular, it is worthwhile to moisten the beds as the topsoil dries, although the deep layers must always remain sufficiently moist. Remember at the same time that an overabundance of moisture will not benefit the venereal shoes.
Important! AT Care for veneer shoes is also important to keep the soil in perfect cleanliness. It is recommended that weeds not be pulled out, but cut above the surface in order not to accidentally damage the shoe roots located under the ground surface itself.
Top dressing
If a slipper flower is timely fed, it will show very good growth. Therefore, since spring it can be fertilized with the remains of mulch. The second dressing is recommended not earlier than the beginning of May, and then only for varietal flowers. To do this, you can use complex mineral preparations for garden flowers, diluting them with water in half the dose. If we are talking about flowers that you yourself multiply at home, then among them it is worth treating only the yellowed plants.
Repeat feeding can be at the end of June, when the plants are already lost flowers. But it must be remembered that the shoes of Venus are very sensitive to the increased content of nutrients and may die from oversupply.
Important! Already at the end of August - the first days of September, the plant is recommended to be cut at the base, and closer to winter, it is good to mulch.
Frost resistance of shoes
Orchids in the garden, especially when it comes to hybrid varieties, are very high resistance to low temperatures and can easily overwinter in open ground, even if the mercury in the thermometer drops to -37 ° C. But still, to prevent damage to the rhizomes of venereal shoes, in the winter it is important to cover them with a dense layer of snow. If you live in the southern areas where the snow layer usually does not exceed 1-5 cm, then it is recommended to cover the flowers for the winter period with mulch.
Reproduction of venereal shoes
To create a large planting of your favorite flowers in your flower beds, it is important to know how the lady's slipper reproduces. For this purpose, you can use both seeds and apply the vegetative division of an adult bush. Of course, when you first plant this flower in your own beds, you often have to resort to the use of seeds, however this method has a big disadvantage: a young plant can only blossom 5 years after sowing (and sometimes 12), because requires symbiosis with fungus.
For the above reason most often for planting the root of the shoe is used, which is simply divided and planted as separate plants. It is important to bear in mind that at least three live and ready-to-grow buds should remain on each part of a divided bush. Also note that each bud will take at least 3-4 years to develop under the ground, after which it will be born and transformed into a beautiful flowering plant.
Important! For reproduction of venereal shoes by dividing the bush, you can use only adult plants at least 3-4 years old. When dividing, it is very important to disinfect all slices and plant them in prepared wells.
Diseases and pests of shoes
Diseases of venereal shoes often develop due to improper care of the plant, as well as when planting in an inappropriate place or ground. Also Shoe can harm:
- Too frequent and intense watering, which leads to the defeat of the root system of fungal rot.
- The use of infected rhizomes of the flower.
- Work with planting materials with non-disinfected tools, in particular when dividing a bush.
In order to cope with rot and other diseases of venereal shoes, they are recommended to be treated with the use of biofungicides. As such drugs fit "Fitosporin", "Trichodermin", "Alirin-B". they must be used according to the instructions.As for pests, then Venus shoes are attacked by all those insects and worms that spread to other flowers and garden crops:
- mealy worm;
- spider mite;
- aphid;
- shield;
- slug;
- snails.
Caring for veneer shoes is not difficult, although on the whole, growing these flowers requires a lot of effort - after all, a dozen years can pass from planting to the first flowering. But despite this, Venus shoes are considered to be the most beautiful flowers that are worth any effort.
