Currants can be called not only traditional, but also a favorite fruit shrub of most gardeners. Today, dozens of all kinds of varieties of this plant have been created, but not every one of them can fit perfectly into the landscape of the beds and give a really high-quality crop. The article examined in detail what the currant of the Shalunya variety can surprise the gardener with, and also provides a detailed description of all the requirements of the bush.
Grade Geography
The specified agricultural plant was bred by VNIIS named after Michurin in the early 2000s of the XX century. The main goal of the scientists was the selection of highly productive varieties of currants suitable for active fruiting in a temperate climate.
That is why today this variety is zoned for cultivation in the Central Black Earth Economic Region, which includes the Voronezh, Belgorod, Kursk, Lipetsk and Tambov regions of Russia.
Also, minx can be successfully grown in other geographical areas, as close as possible to the climatic features recommended.
Botanical Description
To distinguish the Minx from other varieties of currants, just look carefully at the structure of the plant. This variety is a stunted bush with a medium-spreading crown. The structure of the crown is of medium density, it consists almost perfectly straight branches. Young shoots have a rich green color, matured is characterized by a grayish-beige hue. Each of the branches is covered with buds of an elongated ovoid form of a reddish hue, located individually on the area of the branches.
Shoots are covered with medium or small leaves of a five-lobed structure. The leaf blade is bare, quite tender, but wrinkled, saturated green. The leaves in the crown are directed downward, the edge is also bent in this direction. The lateral side of each leaf is covered with small dusty-toothed teeth, crowned with an almost imperceptible white tip.
During flowering, the bush forms small goblet-shaped flowers with pale sepals covered with purple stripes along the edge. Flower brushes are up to 6 cm long, they are straight, without a petiole.
Characteristic
This hybrid has incorporated only the best characteristics of maternal varieties, which made it possible for breeders to create a truly unique combination of all kinds of qualities, thanks to which the plant became popular. These include not only yield parameters and quality of berries, but also resistance to adverse weather factors.
Did you know? On the territory of Ancient Russia, currants bore the name "monastery berry". This is due to the fact that its fruits began to be cultivated for the first time on the territory of the monastery gardens, as mentioned in various chronicles from the 11th century.
Drought resistance, frost resistance
Within the recommended growing zone, Minx can tolerate drought, as well as winter cold. This feature allows you to grow a culture without much work, even novice growers.
However, it is worth noting the fact that in the event of prolonged drought, the quality of berries is sharply worsened in Naughty. They become small, lose their juiciness and taste, therefore, during the summer heat, the beds necessarily need increased watering. In addition, it is also recommended to shelter plants from winter cold, which will avoid frostbite of young shoots.
Productivity and fruiting
Minx is a shrub super early ripening. This allows you to harvest about 20 days before the appearance of the main (in mid-season hybrids). The average yield of an adult bush is 3-4 kg, which makes it possible to successfully collect up to 12 tons of berries / ha.
Berry size, taste
The berries of the average representative of the Naughty variety are large, rounded, black in color, with a light waxy coating. The fruit pulp is dense, but juicy, with an average number of seeds. The average weight of the berry is in the range of 1.5–2 g. The taste of ripe currants is saturated, with a characteristic sweet and sour flavor, which allows the fruits to be used for fresh consumption and processing. Taste assessment of the crop is 5 points out of 5 possible.
Advantages and disadvantages
- The main advantages of the variety:
- self-fertility;
- early maturity;
- increased cold and drought resistance;
- good resistance to fungi;
- early harvest;
- good productivity and excellent quality of berries.
- The main disadvantages of Minx:
- the size of the berries is inferior to mid-season and late varieties;
- low resistance to spider mites;
- if the care regime is not followed, the bushes are instantly affected by specific infections.
Landing Features
The safe growth and fruiting of currants in the plot depends not only on the skillful selection of the variety, but also on compliance with the specific agricultural techniques of planting this fruit bush. This allows you to create the necessary optimum seedling, thanks to which it will quickly grow and bloom. To do this, you will need to choose both special planting dates and the best place for this.
Video: How to properly care and plant currants
The timing
Fruit bushes can be rooted throughout the growing season, however, in the case of currants, there are some limitations. The most favorable period for this is the first half of October. Before the onset of winter colds, planting material will have time to take young roots, which already in early spring will make it possible to obtain an active and rapidly growing plant.
Did you know? Currant is considered one of the most common plants on the planet. Its diverse forms and varieties are found on almost all continents and in geographical areas, with the exception of Australia and Antarctica.
Conditions
To plant the crop correctly, the following conditions must be met:
- only quality seedlings are suitable for the procedure, without traces of damage by pests and specific infections;
- it is necessary to carry out preliminary preparation of the site and plants;
- choose suitable weather conditions for planting - first of all, it is early morning or late evening, dry and calm day;
- the average daily temperature during planting should be about + 15 ° C;
- in about 14–20 days, the site should be carefully plowed to a depth of 30 cm, cleaned of residual weeds and debris, and fertilized. For top dressing, the soil is enriched with rotted manure or humus (5 kg / m²), as well as superphosphate (100 g / m²).
Choosing the right place
In most cases, currants are able to root well and bear fruit in almost any conditions. However you should pay attention to the geography of the site - the bushes are best rooted in the plain or a small hill. In the lowland there is increased humidity, which creates the conditions for the appearance of fungi on the bush.
You should also pay attention to the fact that this culture needs an abundance of light and space. For this reason it is planted in open and well-lit areas, no closer than 3-5 meters from other tree-like vegetation or shrubs. It is best if along the perimeter of the beds there will be a small living or artificial fence that protects the plants from drafts that are harmful to them.
Currant is not demanding on the soil, but most gardeners claim that the crop bears fruit better and grows shoots on well-fertilized loamy soils with a slightly alkaline pH (7.5–8.5)
Selection and preparation of seedlings
Choosing high-quality seedlings for planting is quite simple - you need to carefully look at the external condition of the planting material. A good seedling should:
- be no more than 2 years old;
- not have traces of mechanical damage and damage by fungi and insects;
- differ in elastic and juicy fabrics, without signs of wilting;
- have at least 3 skeletal processes of the rhizome and 4-6 viable kidneys.
Immediately before planting, currant seedlings should be prepared if possible. The procedure provides disinfection of planting material that best protects young plants from pathogenic fungi. For this, plants are carefully sprayed with a solution of Fitosporin or 2% copper sulfate, after which they need to be dried naturally.
Landing algorithm
After choosing the right place and time for planting, you can proceed directly to the procedure:
- First of all, it is necessary to mark the territory of the beds. This fruit crop is planted in an ordinary or arbitrary way - so that there is a distance of at least 1.5 m between adjacent plants: appropriate marks should be created on the ground.
- Further, at each landing site, it is necessary to make a landing pit with a depth of about 40 cm and a diameter of 50 cm.
- After this, the hole should be well watered, and then a seedling should be placed in it.
- Planting material is set at an angle of 45 °, and then carefully covered with soil. Such an arrangement will make it possible to form an additional number of roots, which is important for the proper development of a young bush.
- At the end of the bed procedure, you need to water it well.
The next day, the near-stem circle of each plant should be mulched with humus or peat, while the layer should be at least 15 cm. This will create the necessary conditions in the soil for the active growth of the root mass, and also in the spring will help provide young bushes with the necessary nutrients
What can be planted nearby
It is no secret that due to some biological features, the combination of certain types of plants on a site leads to inhibition of the growth of one or several fruit crops. In most cases, this is due to the competition of plants for living conditions, or it becomes a consequence of creating better conditions for the appearance of infections and pests on the site.
Important! Before planting, the currant precursors should also be considered: it is not recommended to plant Minx after other varieties of currant, raspberry and gooseberry.
To avoid adverse conditions for the growth and fruiting of currants, do not plant this crop next to raspberries, cherries, plums, cherries, sea buckthorn, pine and birch. At the same time, the best neighbors of this fruit bush are considered to be onions, hops, honeysuckle and gooseberries.
In addition, when planting several varieties of plants on one bed, you must adhere to the following rules:
- thickening plantings is strictly prohibited, otherwise competition for nutrients will be impossible to avoid;
- tall and short plants should not be combined, otherwise this will lead to shading of smaller bushes;
- during planting, the depth of the root system should be estimated - it should be at the same level.
Care
Proper care of currants involves timely watering, top dressing and loosening of beds, as well as high-quality pruning of shrubs.
The culture in question is considered a moisture-loving species, therefore, currants are watered regularly. Do this about 1 time in 7-10 days: from 5 to 12 liters of water are poured under each bush. The next day after irrigation, loosening is carefully carried out to a depth of not more than 7 cm, since the bulk of the roots of the Minx is in the upper horizon of the substrate.
If possible, loosening of the bushes should be performed at least 2-3 times a week, which will only improve gas exchange in the root layer of the soil, and with this the activity of the growth of the bushes.
Up to 4 years after planting, only mulch used for warming young bushes is used as top dressing for currants. Then beds make mandatory top dressing with mineral nitrogen mixtures. To do this, use carbamide or ammonium nitrate at the rate of 25–40 g / plant - they are introduced in early spring, before buds open. Once every two years, the bushes are fertilized with organic mixtures.: do such feeding before wintering, using a solution of manure (1:10) or chicken droppings (1:15).
The next year after planting, currants must be pruned - they carry out such a procedure in early spring or autumn:
- For the first time, all skeletal branches are cut to the same length on the bush, leaving 2–4 most developed buds on each shoot.
- In the second year, the shrub is cleaned of small shoots, as well as dry and unproductive branches, leaving no more than 4 of the most developed shoots on the bush.
- Then pruning is done so that by 5-6 year after planting, about 20 skeletal branches will form on the bush, on which fruiting shoots will grow.
- In the future, the bush is only sanitized from old and damaged fruit branches.
Fig. 1. Currant pruning: a - annual seedling; b - a biennial bush; c, d - shortening of shoots. Fig. 2. Currant bush before anti-aging pruning (a), after it (b) and pruning of a neglected bush (c)
Winter preparations
Preparation for wintering shrubs begin in early October. At this time, the beds need to be well weeded and cleaned of any weeds. After this, the soil should be carefully watered, and mature bushes (over 4 years old) should be fed with a solution of chicken droppings or manure.
After the average daily temperature drops to about + 10 ° C, it is recommended to insulate the shrub. To do this, each bush is mulched with peat or humus with a layer of at least 15 cm. If possible, young plants are also covered with shoots: for this, the crown is wrapped in spanbond or any other similar material.
Breeding methods
There are two ways to reproduce currants - sexual and asexual. The most effective and beneficial for the gardener is considered to be the asexual (vegetative) method, which provides for the rooting of certain parts of the mother plant.
Important! Before propagating the shrub, the cuttings must be sterilized: for this use solutions of 2% copper sulfate or the drug "Fitosporin".
Do this in the following ways:
- layering - on the periphery, two-year-old shoots are selected, the edge of which needs to be dug to a depth of about 10 cm. With regular watering after about a year, the root formations are formed, after which they are cut to a length of about 20 cm, and then transplanted;
- lignified cuttings - in spring or autumn, young lignified shoots are cut into individual cuttings about 15–20 cm long. The resulting planting material is planted in the soil and fertilized well throughout the growing season. For the next season, rooted cuttings need to be transplanted to a permanent place;
- green cuttings - In spring, cuttings up to 10 cm long with 2-3 full leaves are created from young leafy shoots. Such planting material is planted in garden containers, and then germinated in room conditions at a temperature of +18 ... + 25 ° C, providing plants with abundant watering. By about the middle of May, such cuttings will root perfectly, after which they can be dived into the garden.
Do the bush need pollinators
Minx is the brightest representative of self-fertile fruit crops. This means that pollination of flowers can take place within the same plant during the transfer of pollen from an adjacent flower. Due to this, the variety can be pollinated not only without the participation of other fruit hybrids, but also in the absence of insects. However the most high-quality and fragrant berries grow only in the case of cross-pollination of bushes. To do this, it’s enough to plant any sort of currant nearby with similar periods of flowering and fruiting.
Diseases and Pests
All kinds of diseases and pests among the naughty plantings of the Minx are not uncommon, especially acute for beginner summer residents who do not always strictly follow the agricultural technology of growing crops. Therefore, every gardener must possess the necessary knowledge to eliminate them, otherwise the plantings may die.
Among dangerous infections, bushes are most often affected:
- powdery mildew;
- anthracnosis;
- Septoria
- rust;
- terry.
To overcome powdery mildew You can use a solution of soda ash and soap (50 g / l of water) or vitriol (30 g / l of water). Do such spraying with a gap of 10 days. WITH anthracnose, septoria and rust a solution of Bordeaux liquid will help to cope: apply it 2 times, with an interval of 14 days. Terry cannot be treated - diseased bushes are dug up and disposed of. To prevent the occurrence of infection will help in a timely struggle with vector pathogens - aphids and kidney mites.
The most common pests of culture and methods for their elimination are given in the table:
Title | Repair methods |
Kidney tick | Affected plants need to be sprayed 1-2 times with a solution of colloidal sulfur (5g / l of water) or “Karbofos” |
Spider mite | Treatment of affected parts of the bush with onion or tobacco infusion. To prepare it, 1 part of tobacco or husks insist in 10 parts of water for about a day. Filter the solution and add laundry soap (5 g / 10 L of liquid) to the liquid before use. |
Aphid | Spraying with the drug "Karbofos" |
Narrow-bodied | The solution of the drug "Chlorophos" |
Currant shoot gall midge | Double treatment of the plant "Chlorophos" |
To prevent the occurrence of diseases and pests in the bush plantings, you can use the following measures:
- for planting, you need to select only healthy planting material;
- at the end of the season, the beds should be carefully cleaned, and the remains of the crop and leaf litter must be burned;
- in the spring, before the buds open, the bushes need to have a hot shower (water temperature - about + 80 ° C) at the rate of 3 liters per bush;
- about 1 time per month, plants need to be sprayed with a solution of "Karbofos" and "Nitrofen";
- in spring or autumn, carry out sanitary pruning of shoots.
Harvesting and storage
The currant harvest ripens unevenly; therefore, it is harvested in several stages, with an interval of 10–20 days. The berries are picked manually, in small plastic or metal containers, after which they should be moved to common boxes or other large containers. Lay the berries neatly in containers in several layers, avoiding any damage. Harvesting is carried out in dry weather, morning or evening.
Important! The berries must be dry during the collection. — otherwise, favorable conditions will arise for the defeat of the fruits by fungi.
The berries are stored in the refrigerator, cellar or basement at a temperature not exceeding +10 ... + 15 ° С. In such conditions, they are able to maintain freshness and presentation up to 2 weeks after collection. However for this it is forbidden to wash the berries before laying - otherwise, their shelf life will be no more than a week. For longer storage of currants, deep freezing is used at a temperature not lower than –20 ° С or high-temperature preservation.
Currant Shalunya is an excellent option for cultivation both in the conditions of a small summer cottage plot and on a large farm. This plant is unpretentious to the living conditions, and is also able to be one of the first in the garden to delight with aromatic fruits. However, in order to obtain high and high-quality crops, bushes of this variety should be provided with proper care.