- Type: Aizov
- Flowering Period: June, July, August, September
- Height: 10-15cm
- Color: Red, White, Purple, Pink, Orange
- Perennial
- Sun loving
- Drought resistant
Mesembryantheum is a rather rare flower in our country. Its seeds are sold far from everywhere; reference books for gardeners are also rarely mentioned. But those who chose this plant to decorate their garden site will forever remain its fans. In mesembryanthemum, both leaves and flowers have excellent decorative properties. In the shade, the plant can be grown as a groundcover - there will be no luxurious flowering, but the carpet will cover the earth from amazing dense leaves with growths in the form of dew drops.
The leaves of the mesembryantheum are succulent - fleshy, dense, thickened. When they grow, they strongly branch and creep along the ground, so that the plant can be used as a groundcover. People call it glass (ice, crystal) grass - and not without reason. Dense leaflets are covered with growths that look like drops of water, ice crystals or tiny pieces of glass. The complex name of the plant in translation means midday flower - beautiful bright inflorescences of many types of mesembryanthemum open only on a sunny day. On a gloomy day and in the evening the buds close.
Dorotheantus - the name of one of the varieties of a flower, translates as "a flower bestowed by God." Perhaps this is what he was called for his exceptional beauty and unusualness. It is dorotheantus that is most often used in landscape design. Dorotheanthus bellidiformis daisy-shaped is universal - elegant, bright flowers accentuate the curb line of the garden path, using monoplanting you can create a beautiful flowerbed, colored spots of dorotheanthus on carpet planting will delight you, starting in July. Dorotheantus is also good in combination with other, taller flowers, for example, bells, roses.
Glass daisy in rock garden and rocky garden
The alpine hill where this flower prevails may well become the central composition on the site. Flowers of fantastically bright color against the background of stones of any shape and size (large pebbles, boulders, granite blocks) simply attract the eye. Not only the rock garden, any rocky garden where dorotheantus grows, will be in the spotlight. You can use only dorotheantus of various colors on an alpine hill, you can create combinations with other plants.
If you put gravel, crushed stone or small pebbles under the leaves of the plant, it will feel better, because a layer of stones will protect the leaves from wet ground. Leaves with droplets, bright flowers on a stone background already form a spectacular composition. Dorotheanthus blooms from mid-July to cold weather, but even when there are no flowers, the leaves perform a decorative function. If you like unusual plant shoots, it can be used as a groundcover in shaded plantings.
A guest from Africa in flowerpots and flowerpots
Glass grass is also suitable for planting in pots and flowerpots. In order for the composition in a flowerpot or pot to be luxurious, lush, you need to plant several plants in one container.
The flowers of the dorotheantus are quite large - up to 4 cm in diameter, their color can be different - orange, purple, white, burgundy, red, pink. Two-tone flowers and flowers with stamens of a different color are especially interesting. This is a real miracle of nature, a flower granted by God, which I want to consider endlessly. The pots and flowerpots with dorotheantus can be hung or put on the veranda, terrace, at the entrance to the gazebo.
The most popular varieties:
- Lunette - lemon-yellow flowers and flowers with a red center;
- Lemon soda - an interesting variety, the flowers of Lemonade can be multi-colored - all shades of yellow to orange;
- ApricotTutu - pink dorotheanthus;
- Magic Carpet Mixed, Sparkles - plants with colorful flowers, forming beautiful carpet plantings.
Varieties bred by modern breeders have an undeniable advantage - their flowers do not close even on a gloomy day.
Dorotheantus is a plant from South Africa, so he loves the sun and does not like plentiful watering. From shaded plantings, do not expect beautiful flowering. Flowers with thin, graceful petals, resembling daisies, decorate the southern slopes, dry retaining walls. Excessive moisture is harmful for an African guest, you do not need to worry about frequent watering. At home, the most beautiful, exotic varieties of mesembryanthemum grow and bloom in dry sandy soil.
Mesembryantemum in carpet plantings
Dorotheantus forms magnificent carpet plantings - the shoots of plants growing next to each other intertwine, forming a carpet decorated with numerous colorful flowers. If bulbs and corms bloomed on your site, a mesembryanthemum blooming to the cold will decorate it. You can choose any flowers for carpet planting - a flower bed of multi-colored and one-color plants is equally good.
Since a glass daisy feels good in sandy soil in the sun, you can create conditions close to natural for it - in a sunny sandy place this flower will be the brightest and most spectacular annual.
Dorotheantus by the pond, border, hedge
The versatility of the plant allows you to use it as a decorative element in any garden area. With its brilliance and grace, the mesembryantemum will adorn the shore of an artificial reservoir, an unsightly fence made of chain-link will become invisible against the background of its rich shades, and if you plant this flower by the path, a walk along it will be very pleasant.
Some types of mesembryanthemum, as well as other flowers from warm countries, are grown here as annuals and as perennials. Dorotheantus is an annual, unpretentious in leaving, well growing, not afraid of cooling.
A beautiful crystal daisy can become an exotic decoration of your garden if you opt for this guest from Africa.
You can combine flowers of various shades, make mono-planting, combinations with other flowers, decorate the garden with flowerpots and flowerpots. Flowers with their positive energy always cheer you up, and the mesembryantemum, unusual for us, will delight you with its beauty, even when all the usual summer flowers bloom or suffer from frosts.