Geldreich pine is a coniferous tree of decorative value for gardeners. This species of lush and tall trees includes many varieties used in landscape design and arrangement of parks. Learn more about their vibrant representative, the Den Ouden variety.
Botanical tree description
Geldreich pine, or in Latin Pinus heldreichii, is also called Bosnian. This is a coniferous plant from the Pine family. In the natural environment, this evergreen tree can grow up to 35 m in height, and the trunk thickness of such giants reaches 2 meters.
It is noteworthy that the cones, until fully ripe, have a purple color, but eventually darken completely. Their length varies between 5–9 cm. The process of tree growth is slow, but this is compensated by high resistance to frost and drought.
Did you know? Geldreich's oldest pine was found in the National Park in Italy. It grew for 1230 years, making this coniferous plant the oldest tree in Europe, whose age has been confirmed.
A specific feature of the Den Den Auden decorative variety is that this plant likes to be in the sun and does not require a lot of moisture. Also in the description it is worth mentioning that the pine is resistant to harmful gases. This makes it possible to grow it in large cities.
Origin of name
This plant was named after a German-born botanist named Theodor von Geldreich, who was born in Dresden in 1822. At 29, he moved to Greece, where he became the head of the capital's botanical garden and curator of the Museum of Natural History at the University of Athens.
The scientist investigated seed plants. In addition to the pine, a genus from the Cabbage family was named in his honor, as well as a species of mantis. The second name, Bosnian, this tree received because of its place of growth. In the mountains of Bosnia, a huge number of Geldreich pines grow, from where, according to scientists, the plant spread to Italy, as well as other countries of the Balkan Peninsula.
Landing
Before planting a tree, it is necessary to purchase a healthy seedling in the nursery without physical damage. Assess the condition of the soil in which the small pine grows: excess moisture can cause rotting of the root system.
Look carefully at the coniferous cover and bark - they are the essential indicator of plant health. Sapling roots should not be damaged.
After that, you can start landing according to the following algorithm:
- Select a site and dig a hole on it. Its dimensions should be at least 60 cm wide and 60 cm in depth.
- Pour crushed stone so that a layer of 15 cm is obtained.
- From above add complex fertilizer with a layer of a couple of centimeters.
- Prepare top dressing in such an amount that it fills 2/3 of the remaining pit. The nutrient mixture should consist of humus, turf and sand in a ratio of 2: 2: 1, respectively.
- Make a depression in the middle of the pit.
- Carefully remove the seedling from the pot and plant it so that the neck is at ground level.
- Fill the remaining volume of the pit with soil and tamp.
After completing the planting process, immediately water the tree. If the seedling is still very young, one bucket of water will be enough. More mature plants will need two to three times more.
Pine care
Although the Geldreich pine of the Den Ouden variety does not require careful personal care, you should not forget about the plant. A decorative tree can live up to 50 years if the gardener makes a lot of effort and spends a lot of time. However, from the point of view of decorating the garden, these costs are justified. So that the pine tree can please its owner for a long time, it is enough to irrigate and loosen the soil in a timely manner.
Watering and feeding
Under normal spring conditions, you need to water the tree every two weeks in the amount of 1-2 buckets of water. In some years, spring is rainy for a crescent, and the air temperature remains quite high. In this case, it is necessary to water with a large amount of liquid: the volume depends on the degree of aridity.
During this season, it is advisable to use a universal complex composition for conifers as a top dressing.
Good fertilizers for pines should contain about 10 trace elements. If the composition does not indicate the composition, it is better not to buy this bait - conifers are finicky to minerals in the soil and react negatively to those that do not suit them. For example, for the Den Ouden variety, nitrogen-based mixtures are absolutely unsuitable. A good natural version of bait is compost from humus or humus. It is noteworthy that pines create fertilizers for themselves: fallen needles do this job well.
Important! Dosages and instructions for making nutritious mixtures are always indicated on the product packaging: it is important to follow them to prevent an excess of minerals in the soil.
Effectively apply potassium phosphate fertilizer to conifers. It does not need much: up to 50 g per bucket of humus per 1 m². After applying the mixture, it is necessary to mulch the soil using ordinary leaves mixed with peat chips. In the summer, water the Geldreich pine in the same way as in the spring.
If the air temperature is too high and reaches + 30 ° C, spray water on the crown - such trees respond well to this and absorb the incoming moisture.
Loosening and mulching
With the beginning of spring, as soon as the soil warms up in direct sunlight, it is necessary to loosen the soil. This is due to the fact that during the winter the upper layer of the earth has become denser. Also, weeds can make their way in spring; to prevent their development, carry out loosening.
Check out
Depth of processing should not be too large - within 10 cmotherwise, you may damage the root system of the tree.
In the summer, for more active development of the Den Ouden variety, cultivate after each rain. This will help to increase the amount of moisture that goes deeper during the dry season, and get rid of nascent weeds.
If, for some reason, the gardener cannot loosen the soil so often, it is worthwhile to carry out this process at least every summer month.
In the middle lane, Geldreich pine is able to endure winter without human help. However, during more severe frosts in the north of the temperate zone or in the subarctic climate, the plant requires mulching. Most of all, this is true for a young tree: warming increases the chances of survival, as well as the effectiveness of getting used to a new place of growth.
For mulching, it is enough to lay mowed grass, other dead plants or organic materials around the trunk in mid-autumn with the first frosts.
Pruning
In addition to improving the decorative properties and giving the desired shape to the Geldreich pine varieties Den Ouden, pruning is rarely needed. Basically, this is the formation of the plant contour in early October, so that the crown becomes more spherical. Pruning is used in the spring as a prophylaxis against the spread of pests on the tree.
This should be done in March after a thorough inspection of the coniferous plant crown. At the same time, you need to cut off the broken branches and broken shoots. In summer, illnesses can manifest themselves for the first time in a year. If you find an infected area of the crown, remove it. It is important to determine the disease itself in order to prevent its spread and quickly eliminate it.
Possible diseases and pests
It is noteworthy that all varieties of Geldreich pine are resistant to most diseases and pests. However, the tree has a risk of contracting certain ailments of a fungal nature, such as shute.
Due to the action of the fungus, the needles are first covered with yellow spots, after - the needles completely fall out.
Activation of the disease occurs in September, and at the beginning of winter reaches the stage when the crown cover becomes black. At the beginning of next spring, almost all of the diseased needles fall off. Schütte is not one, but a whole group of fungal diseases, so treatment is carried out using universal fungicides. These include Ditan, Amistar and Neotec.
Did you know? In medieval Vietnam, it was customary to plant pine trees at the imperial palaces, as a symbol of longevity and greatness.
Among the most common pests of conifers are silkworms. These insects rarely attack Geldreich's pine, preferring the species of ordinary. However, if the tree was attacked by these pests, the gardener will first find small heaps consisting of small eggs.
Usually they stick to the needles of a plant. Gray hairy caterpillars hatch from the eggs, which devour the crown. If inactive, over time, the insects will completely eat the needles on the top of the plant.
If silkworms were discovered at an early stage of their development, in April it is worth treating the pine with preparations of Decis, Aktara, or other insecticides. In case when it was not possible to detect pests in a timely manner, carry out the processing in September to prevent the appearance of insects in the next year.
Winter hardiness of pine
In the middle zone of the temperate climatic zone, Geldreich pine tolerates winter well. This is due to the natural frost resistance of all conifers in principle. However, harsh winters will require the gardener to mulch in order to insulate the tree.
Variety Den Ouden, unlike, for example, Schmidti, survives well in the cold seasons and can actively grow in the suburbs. Despite resistance to low temperatures, young plants must be mulched before winter. Also, the pine trees love for sunshine is not constant: in early spring, even when it is still cold, you need to protect the shoots from drying out.
The use of wood in landscape design
The variety Den Auden is widely used not only in private gardens, but also in parks. Often these pines plant whole alleys to decorate the park area and its landscaping in the winter season. For gardeners, this tree is also valuable because of its versatility.
Typically, representatives of the Den Ouden variety reach a height of 1.5 m at the age of 10 years.
Such growth allows you to make this pine a central object in the exhibition, if in general it consists of bushes or dwarf trees. And if the garden already has the main representative of conifers in the form of a giant spruce, several Geldreich pines can perfectly emphasize its impressive size.
If you are a beginner gardener, a den Ouden conifer can be a successful start in your hobby. Thanks to its unpretentiousness, sufficient winter hardiness and resistance to drought, anyone can grow a Geldreich pine. In addition, the appearance of the plant will attract the attention of any person, and a pleasant aroma will fill the garden all year round.
