Peony Felix Krauss (Paeonia Felix Crousse)
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The luxurious perennial peony Felix Krauss has been familiar to gardeners for a long time. This unpretentious variety is suitable for growing in the garden, and its lush, richly colored baskets can turn any area into a fabulous corner.
Peony Felix Krauss (Paeonia Felix Crousse): description and characteristics
Felix Krause, a hybrid variety of milk-flowered peonies, was bred by French breeders in 1881. The bush grows up to 90 cm in height. Its leaves and stems are colored dark green. Hemispherical densely double flowers reach 17 cm in diameter. Their color is very bright, red with a carmine-violet tint. The aroma is sweet, but light and unobtrusive.
Felix Krause's bright flowers attract attention
How to properly plant and grow a flower in the open field
The seeds of this hybrid peony do not retain their varietal characteristics after ripening. It is much easier to propagate a bush by dividing the rhizome into several parts and planting them separately.
Planting by root cuttings
The procedure is quite simple and consists in detaching several sections with their own roots and viable buds from the root system of the mother plant. It is recommended to separate adult bushes at least 3-5 years old.
What time is the boarding
The breeding procedure is usually carried out at the very end of summer or early September. It is not worth dividing the bush later, since the plant will not have time to take root in a new place and may die from the first frosts.
Seat selection
The heat-loving Felix Krause will feel good in a sunny area, protected from drafts and gusts of wind. The soil at the planting site must be well drained and have a neutral acid reaction.
Mature shrubs of Felix Krauss can grow considerably in width. Therefore, when planting several divisions at the same time, it should be borne in mind that the distance between them should be at least 1.5 m.Otherwise, the root system of plants will interfere with each other, depriving normal nutrition and air circulation, which will lead to decay and disease.
It is better to place bushes at a distance from other plants.
How to prepare the soil and flower for planting
To give lightness and looseness to the soil at the planting site, it is dug up in advance with the addition of river sand. To enrich the soil with nutrients, you can dig in peat or humus. Leaves and stems should be completely cut off from each of the divisions, and the root sections should be sprinkled with crushed activated carbon.
Planting procedure step by step
Planting Felix Krause is carried out in accordance with the rules according to which all herbaceous peonies should be planted. The sequence of actions is as follows:
- Dig a hole 2 shovel bayonets deep and at least 50 cm wide.
- Pour a drainage layer of fine gravel at the bottom.
- Fill the hole with a fertile soil mixture composed of equal parts of peat, humus, turf soil and sand.
- In the center of the soil-filled hole, form a small hole with your hands.
- Place the cut in the hole and gently straighten the roots.
- Sprinkle soil over the roots and compact with your hands.
- A trunk circle is formed around the bush
Seed planting
Sowing peony seeds by Felix Krause will most likely not give the expected result. If it is decided to grow the variety in this way for breeding purposes, then unripe seeds should be taken. They are planted immediately, before they have time to dry out. The seed is placed in a container with nutrient soil to a depth of 5 cm and subjected to preliminary stratification. It will be possible to transplant seedlings into open ground only after 2 years.
Plant care
Caring for peonies of the Felix Krause variety is no more difficult than any other varieties. Their bushes must be regularly watered, fertilized, loosened the soil in the near-trunk circle.
With proper care, Felix Krauss blooms profusely every year
Watering and feeding
Watering peonies by Felix Krause is carried out as the soil dries out. At the end of May, when the flowering stage is approaching, and at the end of summer, when new flower buds are laid, the plant needs more water. It is recommended to pour 15-20 liters under each bush once a week.
With the onset of spring heat, peony bushes should be fed with urea or ammonium nitrate so that they gain green mass. In the autumn, mineral fertilizers are applied under the bush, which do not contain nitrogen.
Mulching and loosening
1-2 days after watering or rain, the ground in the near-stem circle of the peony bush should be loosened to a depth of 5-10 cm. If weeds begin to grow next to the plant, then they must be removed.
In the spring, the soil next to the bush can be sprinkled with a small amount of dry horse manure. Using sawdust or straw can cause the roots to rot and rot.
Preventive treatment
The honey smell of Felix Croouse flowers and the nectar that covers the petals attract many pests to the peony. To protect the bush in spring, its leaves are sprayed with fungicidal preparations (phytosporin-M or a weak solution of potassium permanganate).
Peony Blossom Felix Krause
The flowering of this variety is abundant and rather long. It falls on the first half of the summer.
A period of activity and rest
Felix Krauss buds begin to bloom in the 20th of June. Active flowering lasts 3-4 weeks.
Care during and after flowering
To extend the flowering period of a peony bush, wilted flowers should be removed from it in a timely manner. It also serves as additional protection against the development of disease.
The condition of peony leaves is an indicator of its health
What to do if it does not bloom
Felix Krauss bushes may not bloom for several reasons. Most often, you can find such violations:
- excessive shading;
- increased acidity of the soil;
- violation of the rules for pruning;
- lack of dressing;
- plant infection with diseases or pest attacks.
Most often, you can cope with the lack of flowering by transplanting the bush to a more suitable place. It is also important to adjust the care of the flower.
Peonies after flowering
When the flowering period ends, the Felix Krauss bush begins to recuperate and prepare for winter. At this time, the plant forms regeneration buds, from which new stems will sprout next year.
Transfer
The procedure is recommended in August or September. Transplantation at other times is possible, but not desirable. In any case, the plant should not bloom at this moment. Dig a bush, observing some rules:
- the transplant is carried out only in dry and warm weather;
- leaves from a bush are cut to a height of 15-20 cm;
- the bush is removed from the ground very carefully along with a root ball.
In the new place, the peony Felix Crousse will take root within 2-3 years. Only then will it begin to bloom again in full force, showing its best varietal characteristics.
Pruning
Peony bushes are pruned in late autumn, when the first frost approaches. If the procedure is carried out later, then the root system can rot and the plant will die.
Preparing for winter
The Felix Krause variety is considered frost-resistant and can winter without shelter. However, it is recommended to additionally spud young plants, mulch with humus to a height of 20 cm and even cover them with non-woven material.
Diseases, pests and ways to control them
Peony Felix Kruss is most often attacked by bronzes, aphids, ants and thrips. You can protect the bush from them by spraying it with appropriate insecticidal preparations or by resorting to folk remedies.
The plant has good immunity to many diseases. But sometimes the flower can undergo the following ailments:
- gray rot;
- rust;
- ring mosaic.
You can fight them with fungicides.
It is impossible to take your eyes off the lush flowers of Felix Krause
Knowing the rules for growing these classic peonies, you can decorate your own garden with them. The bright flowers of Felix Krause, painted in rich raspberry-purple with a silky tint, will become the real pride of a florist.
