Oregano: planting, care, reproduction. Growing oregano from seeds, garden use, varieties

The article describes (Origanum vulgare) on the windowsill. Its regular use in food perfectly helps to cope with anxiety and depression. This spice improves brain function, since one teaspoon of oregano contains more antioxidants than a cup of fresh blueberries. Oregano is one of the record holders for the content of vitamin B6, which improves cerebral circulation and fights high blood pressure.

Tea from oregano leaves normalizes the functioning of the digestive system (especially the intestines), helps well with insomnia, as well as flu, pneumonia, bronchitis and tonsillitis. And the addition of oregano to pickles gives them an excellent taste and aroma, while at the same time increasing the shelf life of the blanks.

Oregano can be used both fresh, as a seasoning for a huge number dishes, and dried. Fresh leaves are added to salads, and dried flowers and young shoots are used to make delicious tea drinks. At the same time, oregano is not difficult to grow, as in personal plot or a flower bed, and in an ordinary apartment.

Room conditions: growing oregano at home

For indoor cultivation oregano can be taken ordinary flower pots and any peat-based soil mixture with almost neutral acidity (pH 6.0-6.5). The plant is a perennial, it can be propagated by dividing the rhizome or seeds. In the latter case, oregano seeds are soaked for a couple of days in warm water (but not more than 35 ° C), which is renewed 3-4 times in 24 hours. At the same time, part of the essential oils is removed from the seeds, which facilitates their swelling and germination.

After pecking seeds, they are sown in 2-3 pieces. in standard cassettes, pots or cups with a volume of 60-100 cm³, filled with ordinary seedling soil. Caring for seedlings of oregano is minimal and consists only in regular watering. The approximate time for growing seedlings is two to three weeks.

After reaching a height of 5-7 cm, the plants are transferred to flower pots with a volume of 2-3 liters (the more, the better, since oregano in favorable conditions grows a lot). Care for adult oregano plants consists of regular pruning and infrequent (1-2 times a week), but abundant watering. With excessive soil moisture, oregano can suffer from root rot. The key to successful cultivation of oregano in greenhouse conditions is regular top dressing. organic fertilizers(names and doses are suitable, as for indoor flowers) once every 2-3 weeks.

Maximum useful leaves oregano are in the flowering period, however, in room conditions this doesn't happen often. Therefore, the crop is harvested already a month after transplantation, when the height of the plants reaches 15-20 cm. The stems of oregano are cut to 1/3 of the height, which leads to further intensive growth of additional shoots. If inflorescences nevertheless appear, they must also be cut off so that the stems of the plants do not begin to stiffen.

Compliance with the conditions of care allows you to grow oregano at home and use spicy herbs at any time of the year..

Is it possible to grow oregano (oregano) on the windowsill

The oregano plant is known as a spicy perennial herb used in cooking, folk medicine, landscape gardening art. We also call it the mother, and in Italy and Greece - oregano. Breeders have created many different varieties. Also, oregano is not difficult to grow, so it enjoys well-deserved popularity.

Where oregano grows, people are calmer and healthier, because tea with this herb calms nervous system, fights inflammation of the respiratory system, helps with digestion, enriches with vitamin C.

It's perennial herbaceous plant grows everywhere in Europe and the Mediterranean, and in Russia, except perhaps on Far North you won't meet her. Oregano prefers open sunny places, therefore it grows in glades, meadows, on hillsides. It has a straight tetrahedral stem with a soft edge, a creeping root, oblong leaves that end in a pointed edge, dark green on the upper side, slightly silvery on the lower side. It grows to a height of 0.5 - 0.7 m. It blooms in mid-summer. The flowers are small, red-lilac, collected in corymbose-paniculate inflorescences, the seeds ripen by the end of August.

The plant has a delicate spicy smell, slightly bitter taste, it is grown for the production of essential oil and as a honey plant. Many summer residents plant it on their plots to add fresh leaves to salads, and then drink fragrant tea all winter or be treated for a cold, if necessary.

Video “Useful properties of oregano”

From the video you will learn about the beneficial properties of this unusual spice.

Landing

People are often interested in how to grow oregano, because even without considering it useful properties This beautiful herb is grown for ornamental purposes. It is often used in borders, mixborders, discounts, on Alpine rollercoaster and in moth gardens, gardeners also plant it to repel harmful insects. It propagates by seeds, cuttings, root division, layering.

If it is possible to take part of the plant in nature or from friends, then this does not have to be done only in the spring. The transplanted part of the root (necessarily with several buds), rooted cuttings or cuttings are accepted even in the middle of summer, they only need to be planted in light, non-acidic soil, and then watered well until new shoots begin to grow.

Seeds are usually dealt with in early spring. If you sow them on the site, and this will not happen until May (they will then still need to be transplanted once or twice), new plants will bloom only next year. If you need to get flowering in the current year, then you must first grow seedlings, and then plant them in the planned place.

Seeds for seedlings are sown in March. They take dishes with drainage holes, fill in light nutrient soil (you can just take garden soil and add sand), moisten it, make grooves or holes up to 1.5 cm deep, place the seeds, sprinkle with a thin layer of earth, moisten again with a spray gun. Then the crops are covered with glass or film until germination. It is recommended to ventilate and moisten them periodically.

cultivation

After the appearance of a pair of true leaves, the plants dive into separate cups, watered, turned, hardened until May, when a real warm spring comes to the garden. Seedlings grow without any extra trouble, they need to be watered regularly, preventing the soil from drying out, you can water it once or twice with a solution of mineral fertilizers so that it gains strength, but you should not be zealous with this - plants can grow too rapidly.

Planted oregano on a light open space with a distance of 30 cm between plants and 50 cm between rows. It is undemanding to the soil, but it grows best on light fertile neutral soils, well-drained sandy loam is suitable. The main thing is not to plant this plant in a wetland, she will not like heavy clay soil, but she will still grow, the bushes will be smaller, there will be less decorative and useful substances in the grass. In oregano, cultivation can take place not only in a flower bed or garden, it grows well in a pot that can be attached to a windowsill or balcony, there are even varieties for ampel cultivation. Some owners plant individual plants in the garden among vegetables to protect them from pests; many harmful insects do not like the aroma of oregano.

Care

In oregano, cultivation is possible even for beginners; maintenance is minimal. It must be watered moderately, since overfilling, as well as underfilling, will necessarily affect the amount of essential oil. The first two to three years, you often have to weed the site and loosen the ground around each plant. And after three years they will grow so much that there will be no place left for weeds, so weeding will become very rare.

This perennial grass can grow up to 25 years in one place, but it is advisable to replant it, dividing the bushes every 5 years, so the decorative effect will remain.

If grass is cut for drying or oil production several times a season, then after each time it is advisable to fertilize with a solution of infusion of chicken manure (mullein can be used) or complex mineral fertilizers. When fragrant herbs are grown for themselves or in flower beds, it is better to do without dressings so as not to provoke too rapid growth.

Storage

When to collect oregano is a simple matter, it is harvested almost all summer, as soon as all the buds are fully opened. When all the branches with leaves and flowers are collected (they are cut 20-30 cm long), they need to be dried for fresh air under a canopy or in a ventilated room. In properly dried grass, the leaves crumble and the stems break.

Store oregano in paper or linen bags separately from other herbs. Sprigs can be used for a year and a half, when the ground grass is stored in a hermetically sealed container, the period of use increases to three years.

Video “Cultivation of oregano”

From the video you will learn how to grow oregano.

Oregano is an unpretentious resident of many summer cottages, which can be used both for medical and culinary purposes. In this post, I will not touch on the long list and applications of this essential oil crop, as this will be the subject of discussion in one of the following posts.

Now I would like to dwell in detail on the agricultural technology of growing oregano. To date, I have studied the “character” of this culture well - oregano bushes have been decorating my garden with their presence for many years.
For oregano, it is desirable to take a sunny place with fertile, loose soil, since it will be on it for three to four years. Oregano perfectly tolerates winter cold and freezes a little only in extremely severe winters. I have not yet had a case where at least one bush died from low temperatures in the cold season, because every autumn I warm the plantings of oregano with brushwood and humus (about a bucket per plant is enough).

How Oregano Reproduces

There are three ways to get oregano to your site: by sowing its seeds, dividing the rhizome and green cuttings.

The seeds of this crop are sown immediately in open ground in early May, but it is more reliable to grow oregano through seedlings. Seeds are sown in late March-early April in a medium-sized container. When the seedlings become crowded, they should be taken in separate cups, and at the age of 60 days it is already possible to relocate them to open ground. Seedling plants are placed on the bed in rows with half-meter aisles and 20-30 centimeters apart.

When sowing oregano directly into the garden per square meter of beds, you will need about 0.05 grams of seeds.

The soil must be pre-moistened and without the presence of large soil clods. Seeds are planted to a depth of no more than 3-5 millimeters, and seedlings should be expected no earlier than in two to three weeks. I advise you to sow in 2-3 thick (that is, the seeds should be placed at a distance of 3-5 centimeters from each other) in case of poor seed germination.

way division of rhizomes, oregano is usually propagated in the spring, after the appearance of shoots. mother bush carefully removed from the ground along with the soil clod and separated into several parts, especially carefully handling the root system. Delenki are seated according to the scheme recommended above (20-30 x 50).

Cuttings of oregano can be practiced from the end of May to August. Cut branches are added dropwise to pre-moistened sand in an inclined position to a depth of 2-3 centimeters so that the leaves and internodes of future plants are above the soil surface.

For the fastest rooting, plantings should be provided with constant humidity, for which they should be protected from excessive evaporation with a film or non-woven fabric and sprayed with water from a fine spray bottle several times a day (highly desirable).

After rooting in the fall or next spring, the cuttings are transplanted to a permanent place.

Caring for oregano in the garden

Oregano is an excellent honey plant

Oregano is very drought-resistant, so there is no particular need for watering it. For example, I never watered it (water is in short supply on my site), and without my help it survived all the summer dry periods.

This crop needs top dressing both after wintering and after harvesting the leaves. In the spring months, emphasis should be placed on nitrogen fertilizers (preferably of organic origin), and in the second half of summer it is better to resort to the application of phosphorus-potassium fertilizers.

I am glad that this crop will need weeding only in the first year of its cultivation, because already in the second year of life, oregano bushes reach such sizes that they leave no chance for weeds growing under them.

The main enemy of oregano from a huge army garden pests is an aphid, which sucks the juice from the leaves of the plant, which leads to its weakening.

You can fight this scourge using a variety of biological methods, which, unlike various chemicals, will not make the tender leaves of the plant unfit for consumption.

So, shoots can be treated with soapy water, dusted with a mixture of tobacco dust and ash (1: 1), sprayed with infusion of tomato leaves, garlic, and so on. Perhaps every more or less experienced vegetable grower has his own reliable, experience-tested recipe for the fight against this ubiquitous pest.

Sprigs of oregano are harvested in the flowering phase, while pruning is carried out at a height of 6-8 centimeters. In the first year of planting, pruning is done only once, and in the second and subsequent years it can be done up to four times. Just remember to feed your plants and stop harvesting from mid-August to allow them to build up strength before wintering.

The collected raw materials are dried in a dry, shaded place at a temperature not higher than +35 degrees. Dried shoots retain their fragrance well in a tightly closed jar for three years.

In my opinion, the most important condition The key to successful cultivation of oregano is careful care of its plantings in the first year of their life, while in the second and subsequent years this unpretentious plant will require minimal attention. And one more thing: for an average family, it is enough to have 1-2 bushes of this crop, so that it is enough for seasonal consumption and for drying.

I also suggest watching a short video about oregano.

Oregano (or oregano) looks very modest in garden plots. Her nondescript bushes do not amaze with splendor and splendor, but they allow you to brew fragrant and healing tea or add to the dish an exquisite aroma inherent in many dishes of Mediterranean cuisine, because oregano comes from the south of Europe.

A relative of mint, sage, thyme, and lavender, this spice is perfect for a country-style garden. It is very easy to propagate vegetatively, and you can easily bring a cutting or part of a bush to your site from a friend. Oregano will take root in a new place without any problems. But it is also very easy to grow this grass from seeds if you know a few secrets.

landing conditions

Perennial oregano is very unpretentious. It is tolerant of severe frosts and summer heat, soil poor in humus and high acidity of the soil.

If you want to get a full-fledged and healthy plant, then choose a place higher, as the spice does not tolerate stagnant water. It will be comfortable for a bush of oregano on light sandy soils with neutral acidity.

Like any spicy herb of Mediterranean origin, oregano loves the sun very much, and specimens grown in the shade are less decorative and useful. The more heat and light the plant receives, the brighter its aroma will be and the higher the concentration of essential oils, vitamins and microelements.

How to grow oregano from seeds

More often than other methods, they practice growing spices from seeds. If you want to get flowering in the current season, grow oregano through seedlings. But it is quite possible to get fragrant bushes by sowing the seeds immediately in the garden. You can do this in the spring, already at the end of April.

• It is better to prepare the bed in the fall by digging up the soil with the introduction of organic matter (manure, humus or compost), as well as phosphorus and potash fertilizers (superphosphate, potassium salt).
• Soils with a low pH value require liming. In this case, add fluffy lime, dolomite flour or wood ash.
• Oregano does not like dense clay soils, so they must be loosened with sand and peat.
• Seeds are sown on a prepared and moistened area, which are sprinkled with a small layer of peat (about 1 cm). For convenience, you can mix the seeds with sand, as they are very small. Then there will be no need to sprinkle them additionally.
• Plantings should be regularly moistened, and then after 14 days young sprouts will appear. When the seedlings are somewhat stronger, they need to be thinned out and grown over the summer. In August, the grown bushes should be moved to a permanent place.

When growing oregano with seedlings, proceed as follows:

• Choose a suitable container for planting. It must have holes for drainage. If you took a plastic food container, and not a special pot, then you will have to make holes in the bottom yourself.
• It is better to pour a small drainage layer of peat, expanded clay, bark or other material suitable for the properties at the bottom.
• Then you need to fill the container with the substrate. You can take a ready-made universal soil and slightly dilute it with sand. If desired, prepare the soil mixture yourself from peat, sand, garden soil and humus.
• The soil should be abundantly moistened and lightly crushed. Then make furrows no more than 1 cm deep, evenly place the seeds in them and sprinkle with a layer of sand or peat no more than 0.5 cm. For convenience (the seeds are very small) planting material it is better to mix with sand and sprinkle this mixture over the holes.
• Plantings should be carefully sprayed from a spray bottle and covered with a film or a piece of covering material to create greenhouse conditions. You can use glass for this.
• Place the container in a warm place and do not forget to periodically moisten the substrate and ventilate the crops.
• After two weeks, you will be able to enjoy the first plants. Then you need to remove the shelter, place the container on a bright windowsill and regularly water the seedlings.
• When the first true leaf is formed, pick the seedlings into personal cups and continue to grow. In May, after the soil temperature reaches 12–15 ° C, the seedlings can already be planted on the prepared bed with an interval of 30–50 cm, depending on the varietal characteristics.

How to care for oregano

Unpretentious spice does not require special tricks in the care. Plants need timely loosening of the soil, removal weed grass, watering and fertilizing.

• Watering is extremely important to preserve the aromatic properties of the plant. The correct balance of moisture contributes to the accumulation of essential oils, and excessive dryness or excessive moisture in the soil leads to the fact that their concentration decreases, and the plant itself grows poorly.
• Loosening and weeding are usually required only for young plants. Adult bushes are older three years will grow and will not allow competing weeds to develop.
• Proper feeding of oregano depends on the purposes for which the herb is grown. If you plan to regularly harvest fragrant raw materials for utilitarian purposes, then the bushes need fertilizer after each pruning, that is, from two to four times per season. As organic feeding it is better to choose an infusion of bird droppings, or you can also mullein. Organics can be replaced with complex mineral composition. When oregano is planted solely for decorative purposes, it does not require top dressing.
• A perennial spice can grow in one place for a very long time, but this does not benefit its consumer and decorative qualities. The grass is strongly drawn out, almost ceases to bloom and "goes bald", that is, the leaves on the branches become much smaller. To avoid this, experienced gardeners recommend planting plants in a new place every five years and at the same time updating them by dividing the bushes.
• Don't let the young first-year plant bloom. Cut off all the inflorescences before they bloom, and then the bush will form lush and strong.

Oregano or oregano – perennial herbaceous plant up to 60 cm high, shoots are branched, thin, hairs grow at the base. Oval finely toothed leaves grow in pairs, opposite each other on small cuttings. Small flowers of lilac or white color form shield-like fluffy panicles. Chemical composition oregano includes essential oils, vitamins C and B6, antioxidants and tannins, due to which the plant has a bright aroma and healing properties.

Is it possible to grow oregano on a windowsill

– enough unpretentious plant and grows well open ground garden plot, and in a container on the windowsill in an apartment. Leaves and stems of oregano are often used in cooking and in medicinal purposes. By planting a few bushes of oregano in a pot at home, you will provide your family with fresh seasoning for the first and second courses and medicinal tea, and your home will be filled with a rich pleasant aroma and naturally cleansed of bacteria.

How to create conditions for growing oregano

Interested in the spicy taste of oregano in cooked dishes and its healing effects, many are wondering how to grow oregano at home. The growing process is not complicated, the main thing is to prepare a container for planting oregano and a place on the windowsill, and growing and caring for the plant will not be difficult if you follow all the recommendations.

Important! When preserving vegetables for the winter, add a little oregano to the marinade, this will add a piquant flavor and increase the shelf life.

What should be the temperature for growing

– cold-resistant plant, tolerates cool ambient temperatures well. The most favorable temperature for the germination of oregano seeds is + 18 + 20 ° C, just such temperature regime must be maintained until germination. After the shoots grow to 3-4 cm, the planting container can be moved to a permanent place, the grown oregano does not need to maintain a certain temperature level.

Choice of Lighting for Herbs

Oregano is very photophilous, a pot with plants of this spicy herb is placed on the sunniest window, preferably on the south side. In the autumn-winter season, it is recommended to turn on the light more often in the room where oregano grows, for the favorable development of the plant.

How to plant oregano seeds at home

Planting oregano for growing from seeds at home is best done in March and April. Oregano seeds are sold in many specialized outlets, it is not difficult to purchase them. When sowing oregano for seedlings, seed consumption is approximately 0.1 g per 10 square meters. m. All appeared inflorescences must be removed, otherwise the stems of oregano will become stiff, and they can no longer be eaten.

Seed preparation

In order to easily grow oregano from seeds, it is recommended to hold the seeds in warm water for two days before planting. When soaking seeds, you need to update the water at least four times in one day, this will help remove essential oils from the seed, which will accelerate their further germination.

Small oregano seeds are difficult to sow, so it is possible to mix them with sand and sow prepared beds with this mixture. This method will give a relatively uniform sowing of the soil. When sowing seeds in individual pots, 2-3 seeds should be planted in each of the containers to a depth of 5 mm.

Soil preparation

Having decided to breed oregano indoors, you need to properly organize the planting at home. The bottom of the tank is covered with a drainage layer of 3 cm - it can be vermiculite or perlite, then a universal soil mixture or a peat substrate of neutral acidity is poured, it is possible to use sandy loamy soils.

Did you know? Oregano tea increases appetite.

Planting tank selection

Oregano has a long root system, therefore, containers for planting this spice must be much deeper than for other plants. Be sure to use a container for planting oregano with drainage holes and a drainage layer of 1-2 cm of expanded clay or crushed stone to avoid stagnation of moisture in the soil and rotting of the roots.

Seeding rules

The prepared soil for growing oregano (filled into a container with drainage) is moistened with a spray bottle, then seeds are sown in grooves 10-15 mm deep, which should be sprinkled with a layer of earth no more than 10 mm. After planting, the soil is again moistened with a spray gun, and the container is covered with a film to create a semblance of a greenhouse.

Several times a week, plantings of fragrant grass should be ventilated, removing the film for several hours in the morning or evening. Seedlings appear 14-20 days after sowing, after which the film is finally removed from the container with oregano.

Oregano Care

Caring for oregano is not difficult, it needs no more attention than ordinary seedlings of vegetables or indoor flower. Watering, weeding, top dressing - a guarantee of good growth of fragrant grass. Watering should be moderate, from excess moisture, the roots of oregano begin to rot, which leads to the death of the entire plant. Loosening the soil will favorably affect the general condition of the plant, it will grow better.

Important!The smell of oregano will help get rid of moths, cockroaches and mice.

Seedling care rules

Periodically, seedlings need to be ventilated and carefully watered, it is better to irrigate with a spray bottle. After the appearance of the first leaves, the film is finally removed, and the oregano beds are thinned out, while leaving strong healthy plants. Watering should be sufficient and regular. After the oregano grows to 60-70 mm, the bushes are seated in spacious deep flower pots with a volume of about 3 liters for a place of permanent growth.

How to care for an adult plant

As you can see, planting oregano at home is not that difficult. Next, it is important to pay attention to the care of an adult plant. Oregano is abundantly watered 1-2 times a week, the soil is loosened and the crown of the bush is trimmed to an acceptable shape. When watering, the main thing is to avoid excessive moisture in order to avoid root rot. For the favorable development of the plant in the apartment, it is advisable to feed the oregano with organic fertilizers for indoor flowers twice a month.