The flowers are axillary or apical, collected in several pieces, or solitary. Flowering occurs from May to October. The perianth is brightly colored. The fruit is a multi-seeded, single-locular capsule. The seeds are shiny and rough. Their germination persists for 3 years.

There are approximately 100-200 types of purslane. They grow in subtropical or tropical regions of both hemispheres.

How to grow and use purslane (video)

Purslane varieties

Purslane has many types. They differ in the color of their petals.

Garden purslane

It is distinguished by a highly developed stem. The diameter of the flowers is 7-8 cm, they can be single or collected in several, the color is light yellow. Flowering occurs from June to August. The plant reaches a height of 30 centimeters. Landing occurs between the slabs garden paths and on the southern slopes alpine slides.

Photo gallery

Purslane (video)

Large-flowered

An annual plant with lodging stems. Flower color can vary from white to red. The diameter of the flowers is up to 4 centimeters.

Planting is carried out on the southern slopes in alpine hills, which you can create yourself, adhering to certain rules.

Scarlet Low plant. The stem is highly branched. The flowers are 5-centimeter scarlet double. Flowering occurs from July to October.

The plant reaches a height of 12 cm. Planting takes place on southern slopes.

Cherry Low plant. The stem is highly branched. The flowers are 5-centimeter scarlet double. A low plant with a highly branched stem. The color of the flowers is cherry, diameter is up to 5 centimeters.

The cherry blossom reaches 12 centimeters in height. The plant is used for planting on the southern slopes of the site.

Orange The stem is highly branched. The color of the petals is orange. Flowering occurs from July to October.

The height of this variety of purslane reaches 12 centimeters. You can place it between the slabs of garden paths or use it as an hanging plant.

Beneficial features

Organic acids found in purslane provoke metabolic processes in the body. The use of purslane provides the body with potassium, calcium, and magnesium salts. The leaves contain flavonoids, vitamin C and carotene. Purslane is distinguished by a high content of resinous and mucous elements.

Purslane, the cultivation of which requires compliance with some nuances, requires a sunny and dry place. In the first few days, it is thoroughly watered. Sowing occurs in any soil, but it is better to give preference to a soil mixture of 70% nutrient soil and 30% gravel and sand. It should be added not a large number of charcoal.

If you grow terry purslane from seeds, some plants will have simple flowers. Grass is often used to create ridges and flower beds. It is suitable for creating a flower carpet on slopes and flat terrain. Purslane looks good in rocky areas.

The plant looks great in containers. It is placed in containers on the window, vases on the street, on the balcony, in pots. In the garden, the plant is also used everywhere: on dry slopes, in ridges, stone walls, between slabs, in rock gardens. On dry soils it can be used as a lawn.

Purslane grown from seeds goes well with all types of plants, especially low-growing ones. But he needs good care.

The presented plant makes good flower beds and flower carpets. The flowers are very bright - orange, white, yellow, pink and red. In the evening the buds close, but open again in the morning. Purslane requires care, sun and warmth. His homeland is Brazil and Argentina. The plant was brought to Europe at the beginning of the 19th century. In our country it is grown only as a summer plant.

Features of care

Purslane requires careful care. The lighting should be bright, this is the only way to achieve good flowering. When growing a plant from seeds at home, it is worth giving it a southern window sill. Great option– window and balcony boxes.

The temperature should be 20-26 degrees.

Frequent watering is not required. But if the purslane is in boxes, it will have to be watered periodically. No feeding is needed.

Features of sowing

• The plant is grown from seeds in March.
• The temperature should reach 20 to 25 degrees. The lighting should be bright.
• Mini-greenhouses are suitable for growing from seeds. If the temperature is above 30, grass growth will noticeably accelerate.
• Instead of a greenhouse, you can use an aquarium made of plexiglass. The top is covered with film.
• At home, care involves supplementary illumination with a fluorescent lamp. Additional light is required in the evening and morning periods, and if the weather is cloudy, then all day long.
• Seeds should be sown in small pots. A layer of sand and gravel is placed at the bottom, followed by soil.

Important! There should not be any in the soil organic fertilizers or peat. Charcoal is added to heavy soil.

Care involves proper watering. The pots are placed in trays filled with soft water. Watering with hard water reduces germination.

Read more about growing purslane below.

Purslane flowers - description

Purslane flowers are grown as annuals because they do not tolerate our winters even under cover. Their height does not exceed 30 cm. Purslane has a branched, spindle-shaped root, succulent, branched stems Brown, hollow inside, fleshy leaves, cylindrical in shape or resembling a flattened egg. Flowers of white, yellow, dark red colors bloom from June to September, and although each flower lives only one day, fading in the evening, the flowering of purslane is so abundant that it seems continuous. The fruit of purslane is a polyspermous spherical capsule. In addition to garden purslane, grown in flowerbeds, in pots, hanging baskets and containers, the herb garden purslane, or vegetable purslane, grows in our gardens, which is on the one hand a weed, and on the other a salad and medicinal plant.

Growing purslane from seeds

Sowing purslane.

Many gardeners consider growing purslane as seedlings as the most convenient method of propagation, so we will tell you how to sow purslane for seedlings. Despite the fact that many flower growers, when discussing when it is better to plant purslane seeds, believe that this should be done at the end of February or early March, it seems to me that it is better to sow purslane for seedlings in April, so that the germinated seedlings can grow and there was enough development daylight hours, while more early sowing it has to be artificially illuminated. Before sowing purslane, you should prepare a soil mixture, since any purchased soil contains peat, which slows down the process of germination of purslane seeds. To prepare the mixture, you can take garden soil, add about 20% sand to it, mix thoroughly and bake the mixture in the oven. Place a layer of fine gravel or expanded clay in a shallow container with drainage holes, place disinfected soil on top, water it with settled or, preferably, melt water and place the seeds on the surface a centimeter apart from each other - the easiest way to do this is using a damp toothpick - then press lightly seeds into the soil and, having built a frame over the container, stretch transparent polyethylene over it to form a greenhouse. You need to keep the greenhouse with sowing in a bright, warm place, where the temperature will not fall below 22 ºC, and it is better if it is approximately 30 ºC.

Purslane seedlings.

At favorable conditions purslane shoots will begin to appear in a week or two, and as soon as this happens, the film can be removed from the container. Now you should know how to grow purslane seedlings. Growing purslane seedlings involves periodically moistening the soil with settled water, using the method of bottom watering, and, if necessary, organizing additional lighting. In what cases might this need arise? If you see that the seedlings are stretching too much, it means they do not have enough light, therefore, they will have to be illuminated with fluorescent lamps or regular table lamp a couple of hours in the morning and several hours in the evening, thus lengthening the daylight hours for seedlings. In cloudy weather, the lamps should remain on all day. But if you sow purslane for seedlings in April and keep the seedlings on the southern windowsill, then all this trouble will artificial lighting won't be needed.

Purslane picking.

When and how to pick purslane? As soon as the seedlings have a pair of true leaves, they need to be planted three at a time in cups with a diameter of 7-8 cm, trying not to shake the earthen lump from the roots, and a week after picking, when they have taken root, the first fertilizing with complex mineral fertilizer should be applied. Then fertilizing should be done weekly or once every ten days until planting in the ground.

Planting purslane in open ground

When to plant purslane.

Planting purslane flowers is carried out no earlier than the beginning of June, since you must be sure that there will be no more frosts, otherwise at temperatures below 10 ºC the purslane leaves will fall off. Prepare a place for the plant in the sunniest and most elevated area, because even in partial shade it may not bloom, and if the roots of the purslane are located near groundwater or in a lowland where water stagnates, putrefactive processes in the root system of the plant may occur. The best soil for purslane is poor, sandy soil, since in rich soil purslane only grows green mass and does not bloom.

How to plant purslane.

It is advisable to plant purslane in open ground when the seedlings grow 10-15 leaves and several buds appear. Purslane is planted in the following order: the bushes should be located no closer than 15-20 cm from each other. For the first 2-3 days after planting, the purslane in the flowerbed should be watered daily, especially if the weather is dry. Purslane blooms from seeds 6-7 weeks after germination.

Purslane - care

How to grow purslane.

Caring for purslane flowers consists of periodic watering - despite the fact that its leaves retain moisture well, the plant needs water for normal flowering. The plant does not need fertilizing, pruning, weeding, or loosening the soil. All purslane care involves infrequent but regular watering.

Pests and diseases of purslane.

As you can see, planting and caring for purslane can be done by both an incompetent and a lazy flower lover. Even growing terry purslane from seeds does not present any difficulty, because it does not differ from the rules for growing large-flowered or garden purslane, which were described above. As for pests and diseases, purslane is very resistant to them, and you are unlikely to have any difficulties with this. However, sometimes there is a massive attack on flower beds, gardens and vegetable gardens by aphids, and then the purslane also gets it. The best way to combat aphids is by spraying with Actellik, and if you were unable to eliminate the problem the first time, then after a week the treatment with the insecticide can be repeated. Sometimes purslane infects the fungus Albugo portulaceae, which results in deformation of the shoots and the appearance of spots on the leaves. Damaged parts will have to be removed and the plants sprayed with a fungicide containing copper.

Properties of purslane.

Purslane after flowering

How and when to collect purslane seeds.

As soon as the flowers begin to fade, remove them without regret while they are easily removed from the ovary, otherwise they will dry out and you will not see the fruit underneath, which, when ripe, will open and spill the seeds onto the ground. In dry weather, the seeds ripen two weeks after pollination; in cold summer and autumn, the ripening process can take a month. In addition, you should know that freshly harvested seeds become viable only next spring and keep it for three years.

Purslane in winter.

In our climate, garden purslane does not overwinter, so in the fall you need to clear the area of ​​it and dig up the soil. Purslane propagates by self-sowing, so you don’t have to worry about how and when to plant it next spring.

Types and varieties of purslane

Large-flowered purslane (Portulaca grandiflora).

As already mentioned, in garden culture Purslane grandiflora, a native of South America, is a perennial plant cultivated in our climate as an annual plant. The height of the large-flowered purslane bushes reaches no more than 30 cm, since its stems are lodging. The leaves are fleshy, small, cylindrical in shape. Single cup-shaped flowers with a diameter of 3-4 cm, single or double, similar to tea roses in white, cream, beige, yellow, red or purple, there are varieties that have a two-color color. The original form has red flowers. Large-flowered purslane blooms from June to the end of October. The best varieties:

• – Double Mix– double purslane, usually sold as a mixture of purslane seeds;
• – The plant reaches a height of 12 cm. Planting takes place on southern slopes.- Same terry variety, low-growing - only 10-12 cm in height, with a strong stem and large cherry-colored flowers up to 5 cm in diameter;
• – hybrid Cream– double flowers up to 5 cm in diameter, cream-colored with a darker center;
• – Sunglo- a variety with the largest flowers that do not close even on a cloudy day, just like the flowers of the Sundance and Cloudbeater varieties.

Purslane or vegetable purslane (Portulaca oleracea)

– annual plant up to 30 cm high, easily propagated by self-sowing. The stem is highly branched, the leaves are oblong-spatulate, the flowers are light yellow with a diameter of 7-8 mm. Grows in groups. Blooms from June to late summer. Valued by the good taste qualities and healing properties.

Purslane is an annual plant of the Portulaceae family. Translated from Latin, its name means “collar”, which is associated with the peculiarities of opening the boxes. Also known as Dandur and "rugs". The latter was achieved due to the fact that many types of plants spread on the ground, forming beautiful grass carpets. Purslane grows in open ground in the North Caucasus, Altai, Asia and Belarus. The homeland of this annual is India.

The range of uses of the plant is very wide; it is used in medical purposes, cosmetology, cooking and landscape design. Purslane looks great in group plantings and in combination with other plants. Growing and caring for them will require regular weeding, watering and thinning.

Dandur: varieties and photos

Purslane has about 200 varieties. Some of them have taken root well in our country. It has needle-shaped fleshy leaves; there are double and non-double types. The flowers resemble roses in appearance.

Purslane- the most common type middle zone Russia. It grows up to 30 cm in height. The leaves and stems are bright green and are eaten.

Purslane

Purslane grandiflora- a plant with succulent leaves. Flowers come in various colors: snow-white, red, orange, etc. Flowering, as a rule, begins in mid-June and continues until the cold weather. The species is considered decorative. Popular varieties- “Double Mix”, “Cream”, “Cherry” and “Sunglo”.

Purslane grandiflora

Terry purslane– annual, decorative look, serves as a decoration for terraces and flower beds. The flowers have double caps of white, yellow, orange and red. For active growth and massive flowering, the plant needs bright lighting. Its varieties are white-flowered purslane and Splendence.

Terry purslane

• White-flowered purslane is a plant with incredibly beautiful double flowers;
• Purslane "Splendence" - unusual plant with bright purple flowers.

Purslane: planting and care

It is best to grow purslane through seeds. In March, it is necessary to plant the seeds in special soil, it is taken from the garden plot, loosened and spilled with water.

Purslane seeds

Stages of planting:

1. Sowing seeds in a pot. This is done with gentle pressing movements.
2. The pot must be covered with film and wait for the first shoots. Purslane loves good lighting, so it should be placed in a sunny place.
3. After emergence of shoots, the film must be removed. Purslane sprouts are very weak, you should not water them, but you can and should spray them.
4. After one month, dandur seedlings are planted in separate containers, placed in a warm place and watered with settled water.

Purslane shoots

You can plant seedlings in open ground when the weather settles and warm days arrive. It is preferable to do this in the morning or evening. The distance between plantings should be at least 15 cm. This will make caring easier annual plant, and will give the opportunity to grow a beautiful carpet.

Attention! Frail sprouts may die when temperatures fluctuate.

Many argue that dandur is completely unpretentious plant, which does not require self-care. This is not entirely true. Purslane requires regular watering; the plant should not be allowed to dry out. Watering should be done once every 5-7 days, more often in hot weather. Weeding from weeds is a must.

Attention! Purslane is undemanding to soil composition; even the most sparse areas are suitable for it. Blooms actively only in sunny places.

In general, growing annuals is not burdensome, but requires periodic interventions.

Purslane: reproduction

Plant propagation occurs through seeds; self-seeding is common. It can also propagate by dividing bushes and cuttings.

Purslane sprout

1. Planting seeds. It is better to purchase seeds in stores at the end of winter or in early spring. The seedlings are prepared in advance.
2. Self-seeding It is produced by self-ejection of seeds from a ripe plant capsule. As a rule, this happens involuntarily. Thus, in a few years you can grow a real grass carpet on your own. The only thing is, if not properly cared for, it will go wild and become overgrown with weeds.
3. Propagation by cuttings. This process occurs by rooting the shoot in sandy soil composition. Requires infrequent watering. The cuttings take root very quickly and can be kept in a pot until planted in open ground.

Dandur: diseases and pests

Purslane is not particularly susceptible to disease. At times it can be affected by a fungus, and the leaves become spotted in appearance. In this case, the affected leaves should be removed and the plant treated with a fungicide containing copper.

Advice. If the dandur has been attacked by aphids, then a solution of laundry soap will help you in the fight against it.

Silvery spots on the plant indicate the appearance of thrips. Only insecticides can deal with them.

Purslane is eaten

Purslane: areas of application

Dandur is truly a versatile plant. Growing it as food is common in the Caucasus. The stems of the plant are used to prepare salads, soups, side dishes and additives for meat and spicy dishes. Characterized by a tart and spicy aftertaste. Those who have tried it say it tastes like a mixture of spinach and sorrel.

Purslane is used to treat many ailments. Stems infused with alcohol are suitable for the treatment of psoriasis, arthritis and ulcers, and the seeds are used as lotions for lichen. Also helps against insomnia, scurvy, flatulence, eye diseases, dysentery and diabetes mellitus. Due to its low calorie content, it can be used in dietary nutrition. This miracle plant is also capable of treating gynecological diseases and maintaining potency. The content of a large amount of vitamins and microelements helps fight seasonal vitamin deficiencies.

When used correctly, purslane can be used as a medicinal plant.

Fresh purslane juice is an excellent way to combat warts, helps with peptic ulcers and problems with the digestive organs.

Has a number of contraindications:

1. Individual intolerance.
2. Vegetovascular dystonia.
3. History of seizures.

Combination with other plants and role in landscape design

Due to the fact that the plant takes root in poor soils, purslane - perfect option for use in landscape design. They decorate garden plots, used for the design of alpine slides.

Rockeries shrouded in dandur look neat and at the same time original. Suitable for propagation in mixborders, with purslane should be in the foreground.

Purslane is planted in flower beds, flowerpots and alpine hills

Terraces, balconies, verandas, gazebos and vases are decorated with purslane. The plant goes well in a composition with marigolds, zinnias and nasturtiums.

Purslane is an annual, decorative, treatment plant, used in cooking and everyday life. It can be grown on any soil, as it is practically unpretentious in caring for itself. As the plant grows, it forms a lawn that does not need to be mowed, but summer period it will delight you with flowers of various colors.

Ground cover flowering plant purslane loved by many gardeners. It is especially popular among the British, who in the middle of the last century grew it as garden plant. Intertwined stems of purslane with small leaves cover the soil and form a motley carpet on which pink, scarlet orange, yellow, and white flowers bloom. The plant has several species and varieties, but mainly large-flowered purslane is grown in gardens.

Purslane flowers - description, photo

Even under cover, the purslane plant does not tolerate our winters, so it is grown as an annual. Plant it in flower beds, containers, hanging baskets, pots, decorating not only garden plots, but also balconies.

Purslane flower is different:

• hollow inside branched succulent brown stems up to 30 cm in length;
• spindle-shaped branched root;
• fleshy leaves that may be flattened or cylindrical;
• flowers of dark red, yellow, white, Pink colour, each of which blooms for only one day;
• multi-seeded spherical capsule.

Despite the fact that each purslane bud already fades by evening, its flowering from June to September is so abundant that it seems continuous.

Types, varieties and photos

In the wild, the plant grows in tropical areas, where there are more than a hundred varieties. Like a garden and garden culture Only four types of flowers are grown:

1. Purslane Large-flowered. A very popular decorative garden annual in Russia. It has creeping stems that are densely covered with cone-shaped leaves. The color of its flowers can range from white to purple or burgundy. When blooming, each bud has a diameter of up to 5–7 cm. By the end of September, a basket-like fruit ripens, from which a large number of seeds spill out onto the ground.
2. Purslane ampelous. An artificially bred hybrid species is distinguished by branching stems with cone-shaped fleshy leaves. Its flowers can be simple or double and have lilac, purple, pink, yellow, red, and white tints. They grow ampelous purslane on balconies in outdoor flowerpots and hanging flowerpots. In the garden they decorate ridges and alpine slides.
3. Drug, vegetable purslane. The succulent has fleshy stems covered with thick oval leaves and inconspicuous small yellow inflorescences. The oval-shaped fruit that forms in autumn contains many seeds. The plant easily propagates by self-sowing. Its shoots and leaves contain many useful substances: glycosides, phylloquinone, nicotinic acid, norepinephrine, proteins, iron, copper, sodium, sugars, zinc, potassium, alkaloids, resinous substances, magnesium, potassium, ascorbic acid, organic acids, carotene. Due to its composition, garden purslane is used in medicine and cooking.
4. Purslane terry. Annual garden ground cover plant with large bright flowers. Its buds open in bright sunshine, but remain closed in cloudy weather. Selected varieties Sundance and Sunglo bloom regardless of the sun.

Purslane is a flowering ground plant.

Grandiflora purslane - varieties, photos

The most popular and the best varieties this type of succulent are considered:

• « Splendence» – a plant with double large flowers of a purple-pink hue;
• « Princely"- buds with corrugated petals can be scarlet, orange or white;
• « White-flowered"- a bush with pure white double inflorescences;
• « Air marshmallow p" - on shoots up to 10 cm long there are double inflorescences of various shades;
• « Royal"- large simple flowers differ in a varied range of colors.

Purslane - growing from seeds

When growing a plant seedling method its flowering will decorate the garden from June until frost. Therefore, many sow seeds at the end of February, beginning of March.

However experienced gardeners advise planting purslane in April, explaining this by the fact that when early boarding seedlings do not have enough daylight and require artificial lighting.

Sowing seeds

It is recommended to sow the succulent in your own prepared soil mixture. The soil from the store contains peat, which will slow down seed germination. A mixture of garden soil and sand is prepared in a ratio of 4:1. The prepared soil must be calcined in the oven and distributed among seedling containers, at the bottom of which drainage is preliminarily laid.

Before sowing, the soil is moistened with settled water. room temperature. To prevent the soil from being washed away, it is better to do this with a spray bottle.

Since purslane seeds are small, you can use a toothpick to spread them over the surface of the soil. The seeds should be spread about a centimeter apart from each other, pressing a little into the soil.

The top of the container is covered with glass or polyethylene and placed in a warm place. The air temperature must be at least +22C. Under favorable conditions, the first shoots will appear within 7–14 days.

Seedling care

When growing seedlings, it is necessary to monitor soil moisture and lighting. If the seedlings begin to stretch out, this means that they do not have enough light. In this case, additional lighting will be needed. It will be enough to place plants planted in April on a south-facing windowsill. The soil should be moistened with settled water.

When two true leaves appear, the seedlings dive. To do this, three sprouts are planted in cups with a diameter of 7–8 cm. Replanting young plant it is necessary to ensure that a lump of earth remains on its roots.

The sprouts will take about a week to take root in the new container. As soon as this happens, it is recommended to apply the first fertilizing. For this purpose, complex mineral fertilizers. Such fertilizing will need to be done once every 7-10 days before planting the seedlings in the flower beds.

Planting in open ground

In early June, as soon as above-zero temperatures are established, young plants can be planted in the garden. By this time, each seedling should have 10–15 leaves and several buds.

The place for them should be well lit, since even in partial shade, purslane will not bloom. In addition, it is better to make a flower bed on a hill. Succulents do not like stagnant water in the soil. Their fleshy roots can quickly begin to rot.

There is no need to fertilize the soil before planting. She must be poor. In soil rich in fertilizers, purslane will only grow green mass, and buds will not form. When planting, the bushes are spaced 15–20 cm apart from each other.

Features of care

Growing purslane in open ground is very simple. Succulents are drought-tolerant plants and therefore require minimal humidity. In dry, hot weather, they should be watered no more than once a week. This can be done from above or below the root.

Since purslane forms mats, there is no need to loosen and mulch the soil around them. IN additional feeding the plant does not need.

Diseases and pests

Purslane is resistant to many diseases. But succulents are afraid of dampness, which promotes the growth of fungi. If the plant stopped blooming, the stems began to deform, and the leaves appeared dark spots rot, then most likely the flower has become infected with a fungal disease.

In this case, the affected shoots are cut out, and the bush and soil are treated with fungicides.

Of the pests that can attack purslane:

1. Aphid. Insects feed on the succulent parts of the plant. Aphids are not difficult to spot. If it is detected, treatment with insecticides is necessary, which include Iskra, Aktara, Aktelik, Decis.
2. Thrips. Insects are difficult to spot. Their appearance is signaled by silvery specks and stripes appearing on different parts of the plant. In this case, the bushes are treated with Fitoverm, Karbafos, Agravertin or Intavir.

Heat-loving purslane cannot overwinter in open ground. Therefore, in the fall, seeds are collected from it, which can be sown next spring.