Attention butterfly lovers: If you like watching butterflies, you should plant a summer lilac in your garden. The fast-growing and lush flowering shrub not only brings color to the green, but also attracts numerous butterflies. If you don't have a garden, simply plant the shrub with the long panicles of flowers in a bucket.
Small varieties also thrive in tubs
The most beautiful mini summer lilacs for the bucket
However, not all varieties are suitable for keeping in buckets. Both Buddleja davidii and Buddleja alternifolia, the two most commonly cultivated species of summer lilac, grow up to an average of three meters high and two meters wide - much too large for a classic container, and the shrubs also grow very quickly. However, there are a number of specially bred dwarf summer lilacs that only grow up to 150 centimeters high and are therefore just right for a planter:
- 'Purple Emperor': purple-violet flowers
- 'Buzz ® Violet': light violet flowers, slightly overhanging shoots
- 'Summer Lounge': flowers in white, pink or violet, only up to 60 centimeters high
There are also non-hardy and smaller species that can only be kept in buckets anyway. These promise to be a real eye-catcher on balconies and terraces: keep an eye out for the globe summer lilac (Buddleja globosa) and the yellow summer lilac (Buddleja x weyeriana) in the garden center.
Planting and caring for summer lilacs
In order for the summer lilac to feel comfortable as a container plant, it needs a suitable location. A bright, sunny and warm place is ideal. If necessary, you can also place the plant in the light shade, but there it will not bloom as luxuriantly and for as long as in full sun.
Choosing the right planter
Even a mini summer lilac needs space, so the planter should be at least 40 centimeters in diameter and depth. If possible, choose clay, ceramics or similar as the material so that the roots do not heat up in the hot summer sun - clay pots in particular cool down. Plastic pots, on the other hand, are rather unsuitable.
substrate
Classic, pre-fertilized potting or potting soil is too rich for summer lilac. However, if you mix them with expanded clay (€19.73) and/or gravel in a ratio of 1:1, the substrate should be lean and permeable enough. A drainage layer a few centimeters thick at the bottom of the pot is also important to prevent waterlogging.
Pot summer lilac
If you bought the buddleia as a container plant, you can basically pot it all year round. The best way to do this is as follows:
- Clean the planter carefully.
- Place a potsherd over the drain hole on the floor.
- This prevents clogging with substrate.
- Now fill in a few centimeters of expanded clay.
- This is followed by the mixed substrate, about halfway up the pot.
- Carefully remove the plant from the container.
- Gently shake off the old, clinging soil.
- Check the plant, especially the roots, for injuries.
- Plant the summer lilac in its new container.
- Fill in the additional substrate, press it down well.
- Tap the bottom of the pot on a hard surface, such as a wooden table, a few times. B. on the table.
- This is how the gaps are filled.
- Water the buddleia well.
Properly care for summer lilac as a container plant
When it comes to care, follow these instructions:
- Water regularly but avoid wet conditions.
- Supply with liquid container plant fertilizer every two weeks.
- Remove spent flowers regularly.
- Pack the pot for winter protection before the first frost.
- Place the plant against a heat-radiating house wall for the winter.
- Optionally, a cool but bright winter in the house is possible.
tips
In late winter - around the end of March / beginning of April - Buddleja davidii is cut back heavily, as this species only flowers on the new shoots.