Ranunculus or ranunculus is an annual or perennial herbaceous plant of the family Ranunculaceae.
The name of the flower comes from the Italian word "frog," because he loves water and grows in swampy or humid places.
Buttercup Description
The buttercup has a rhizome or tuberous system and branching stems from 20 cm to 1 m high. The foliage can be either whole or spade-like, palmate, dissected, about 6 cm long. The color of the leaves has all shades of green.
In different varieties, flowering occurs at different times, but by July all flowers bloom. They can be simple and terry, with a diameter of up to 10 cm. The color of the petals is from white to red and even purple. Flowering lasts about a month.
Pollinated by insects. At the end of summer, seeds collected in multi-roots appear.
Most species have poisonous juice, which is dangerous for animals and humans. Some are used for medicinal purposes.
Types and varieties of buttercup: caustic, creeping, poisonous and others
Buttercups, there are about 600 species, 54 are used for decorative purposes. Some, like garden, are often used, others are rare.
| View | Description | Leaves | Flowers Flowering period |
| Caustic (night blindness) | Height up to 1 m, straight stem, slightly pubescent. Differs in winter hardiness and unpretentiousness. | Bottom large, with a long stalk, upper dissected. | Yellow, numerous with 5 petals. June. |
| Golden (yellow) | Perennial, up to 40 cm, straight stem. | At the base of the heart shape, above dissected. | Yellow up to 2 cm, petals up to 10 mm. May June. |
| Creeping | The stem is branched, up to 40 cm, slightly pubescent. | The lower leaves are tripartite, the upper whole, green on the petioles. | Numerous yellow with 5 petals. June. |
| Poisonous | Rising stems up to 50 cm. The plant is poisonous. | They have an elongated ovoid plate, lower long-grained. | 5 yellow petals up to 4 mm. May to September. |
| Water | Used in aquariums, up to 20 cm tall, creeping shoots. | Very carved, resembling asterisks. The color is saturated green. | Small yellow. It blooms only in greenhouses and greenhouses in shallow water. Time depends on the month of planting. |
| Multi-flowered | Medicinal plant. Stems erect, pubescent. | Dissected, having 3 or 5 lobes. | Brilliant chicken color. June July August. |
| Sayan | The stems are slightly curved, covered with villi up to 30 cm. The fruits are small. | Heart-shaped dissected into 2 or 5 parts. | Sunny saturated colors, solitary. From mid-July to mid-August. |
| Kashubsky | Up to 60 cm high, the stem branches only in the upper part. | On long petioles in the lower part, heart-shaped. Upper palmate, dissected. | Yellow with 5 petals. From mid-April to June. |
| Asian or garden | Weakly branching straight shoots up to 50 cm long. The roots are tuberous. | Three-parted, pubescent. | Large up to 6 cm, having all kinds of shades. July. |
| Burning, pimple | Rising stems up to 50 cm. The plant is poisonous. | They have an elongated ovoid plate, lower long-grained. | 5 yellow petals up to 4 mm. May to September. |
Garden buttercup, its varieties
Ranunculus garden is a bred plant by selection from Asian buttercup:
| Varieties | Description | Flowers |
| Masha | A small branchy plant up to 40 cm tall, with cirrus leaves. | Terry of various shades, including white and pink. |
| Terry (peony) | One of the most beautiful among buttercups, is called the "flower of the bride." | Large terry shades of various colors, including purple. |
| French | As the name implies, received by European breeders. | Semi-terry of various shades. |
| Persian | Up to 40 cm high, pinnate leaves. | Half Terry Medium. |
| Freakish | Leaves are slightly dissected. | Large spherical, petals curled inward. |
Planting buttercups in the open ground
To plant buttercups on the beds, they carefully prepare the soil, adding mineral fertilizers to it and digging it.
Seeds
Since ranunculus is thermophilic, its seeds should not be planted immediately in the garden. In February, they are germinated for seedlings. For this, they are first treated with fungicide and scattered on the soil surface into prepared boxes, laying out at a distance of 1-2 cm from each other. Then lightly cover with earth and spray. A transparent film is pulled on top or covered with glass. Containers put on a sunny place. Seeds germinate for about two weeks.
After the appearance of two real leaves, plants dive, leaving 5 cm between them. Transplanted seedlings in open ground only after warm weather and when 3 pairs of leaves appear on the stems.
Tubers
Buttercups are planted in open ground not earlier than May. Before planting tubers, humus and fertilizer are introduced into the soil. The roots themselves are soaked in a pink solution of potassium permanganate or a biostimulator for several hours.
Tubers are planted in the ground in a bright place, but closed from direct rays. The distance between plantings is 20 cm. Then they are watered. Shoots will appear in 2 weeks.
Care for the buttercup in the open ground
Although buttercups are unpretentious, but like any other garden flowers, they require care. Ranunculus grows on moist soils, therefore, loves water. But with excessive watering, it can die, or mold will appear on its roots. Also, do not bring the soil to dry. After flowering, watering should be reduced.
In order for oxygen to reach the roots, periodically loosen the earth around them and remove the wilted parts so that nutrients can be sent to fresh flowers.
While the leaves gain a green mass, buttercups are fed every 2 weeks with nitrogen fertilizers. And during flowering with the same periodicity of phosphorus and potassium.
If the plant has grown greatly, remove the extra shoots.
Pruning
Cutting buttercups is carried out in the fall after the complete death of the aerial parts of the plant. Cut the peduncles completely, leaving them slightly above the ground.
Tuber storage
At the end of summer, when the stems and leaves of the ranunculus wilted, they were dug out of the ground, the remaining soil was removed from the tubers, cultivated against diseases and rot and put into storage.
One way: rhizomes are laid out in cardboard boxes or paper bags, then sent for the winter to a cool room where the temperature does not drop below +4 ° C.
Another way: storage in the sand. The sand is dried, poured into boxes or boxes and put onions there.
Growing buttercup at home
Ranunculus is used as an indoor flower. Ranunculus or Asian buttercup grows beautifully indoors. It is most decorative.
Seed cultivation
If the flower is grown from seeds, they are pre-soaked in water. Expanded clay or drainage is placed at the bottom of the pot or box. Then the seeds are placed in the ground at 3 cm, moisten the soil. Pots are closed with glass or film to create a greenhouse effect.
After the appearance of real leaves, seedlings are dived, leaving 5 cm between them.
Rhizome Division
Growing ranunculus from seeds is quite difficult, therefore, for propagation, they use the method of dividing the rhizome or planting tubers, which are buried by 5 cm, leaving only the top of the root on the surface.
At first, while the flower sprouts, it should be kept in a room with a temperature of no higher than +15 ° C. For further development choose a sunny place.
Caring for buttercups practically does not differ from caring for those planted in open ground. An additional parameter is that the plant is periodically sprayed. In warm weather, flowers are carried outdoors.
After the flower stalks and leaves wither, the plant is provided with a dormant period, which lasts about a month. At this time, the pots are put in a cool place, with a temperature of + 6 ... + 10 ° C, watering is reduced. After a month, it is already possible to distill the plants.
Diseases and pests of buttercups
Ranunculus is one of the few flowers that are almost not susceptible to disease and pests pay little attention to them.
With improper watering or after a rainy summer, powdery mildew may appear on the leaves, and rot on the roots. Various fungicidal solutions and aerosols will help. Buttercup roots are sometimes affected by nematodes, and leaves attract cabbage butterflies. A spider mite also attacks plants. To control pests, the plant is treated with insecticidal drugs. Nematodes are disposed of by digging up a bush and washing the roots in warm water with potassium permanganate.
Mr. Dachnik recommends: medicinal properties of buttercup
The juice of some types of buttercups is poisonous, so it is practically not used in official medicine. But since ranunculus is a medicinal plant, traditional healers use it. It is part of decoctions, lotions, infusions. The plant contains vitamin P and C, carotene, amino acids.
Ranunculus is used in such cases:
- Anesthesia.
- Disinfection and wound healing.
- Stop bleeding.
- Treatment of skin diseases.
- Muscle and joint pain.
- Rheumatic pains.
- Increased hemoglobin levels.
- Calming the nervous system.
- Increased immunity. Decrease in temperature, removal of sputum from the lungs. It has an antiseptic and antimicrobial effect.
- Decreased blood clots.
- Normalization of the activity of the cardiovascular and circulatory system. Narrowing of the walls of blood vessels.
- Pressure reduction.
- Improving the digestive tract.
- Obstruction of the destruction of hyaluronic acid.
- Help in removing heavy metals, free radicals from the body.
- Recovery of metabolic processes.
- Cancer protection.
It is not recommended to use even in small quantities without a doctor's prescription.
Contraindications:
- Pregnancy and lactation.
- Childhood.
- Allergy to substances that make up the juice.
Buttercup on the farm:
- Destruction of bugs, flies, moths
- Protection of the garden.
Ranunculus is a beautiful ornamental plant, able to quickly close unsightly places in the garden, charmingly looking among other flowers.
