Features of planting and caring for honeysuckle in the Urals

Despite the hardiness of honeysuckle, not all varieties of this crop are suitable for growing in the harsh climate of the Urals. There are also some features of the preparation of the site, the choice of seedlings and the timing of their planting. In this article we will tell you about all the nuances of the cultivation of honeysuckle in the open field in the Urals.

Features of the climate and cultivation of honeysuckle in the Urals

The Urals are located in the depths of Eurasia and far from the oceans. In the north, it borders on the polar seas, and in the south on the Kazakh steppes. The climate of this region is characterized as typical mountainous, on the plains - continental. In the west of the Urals, due to the greater amount of precipitation, moderate humidity is observed, in the east, the climate is dry continental.

The average air temperature in the southern part of the Urals ranges from + 20 ° C in summer and -16 ° C in winter, in the north - + 8 ° C and -22 ° C, respectively. The polar part is characterized by long (about 8 months), cold winters and short (maximum 1.5 months) summers.

For cultivation honeysuckle varieties are suitable in the Uralsresistant to drought, low air temperatures, return frosts down to -5 ... -8 ° C, winter thaws and fungal diseases.

What varieties of honeysuckle are suitable for growing in the Urals

Let's consider several varieties of honeysuckle that are suitable for cultivation in the climatic conditions of the Urals.

Cinderella

Bush 0.5-0.7 m high, leaves are light green. Dark blue berries 2 cm long and weighing 0.7-1.7 g ripen in early June. The taste is sweet with a strawberry aftertaste. Productivity - up to 5 kg per bush.

Amphora

The bush grows up to 1.5 m in height, the leaves are emerald, pubescent. Productivity - 2 kg per bush. The fruits ripen in the second half of June, weigh 1.5 g, reach a length of 2 cm. Sweet, with a slight sourness.

Bakchar's pride

Berries up to 5 cm long and 3 g in weight ripen at the end of July. Productivity - up to 4 kg per bush. The taste is sweet and sour, with bitterness. Bushes tall 1.6 m.

Strawberry

Bushes reach a height of 2 m, the leaves are elongated or oval. The berries are pitcher-shaped, weigh about 2 g, dark purple, with a juicy sweet pulp and a strawberry flavor. Ripen in the second decade of June. Productivity - 2-3 kg per bush.

Amazon

The harvest ripens in the 20th of June, the berries are jug-shaped, weigh about 1 g, sweet with a slight bitterness. Productivity - up to 1.5 kg per bush.

Bazhovskaya

The bushes reach a height of 2 m, the leaves are large, dark green. Berries weighing about 1 g, barrel-shaped, elongated, with a sweet taste without bitterness, ripen at the end of June. Productivity - 1.5-2.5 kg per bush.

Viola

The bushes reach a height of 2 m, the beginning of fruiting occurs in mid-June. The berries are oval-elongated, dark blue in color, weighing 1.1 g. The taste is sweet and sour, with a slight bitterness. Productivity - up to 4 kg per bush.

Planting and caring for honeysuckle in the Urals

Despite the unpretentiousness of the culture, growing honeysuckle in the Urals has its own characteristics regarding the choice of seedlings, site preparation and planting dates.

Choosing a place in the garden and preparing holes

For planting honeysuckle, choose a place protected from cold winds and drafts, located on a plain or hill in order to avoid stagnation of water after the snow melts.The groundwater level is at least 2 m from the soil surface.

This is a light-loving culture, so the place should be well lit. In partial shade, honeysuckle is planted only in the South Urals, where in summer the soil warms up to + 50 ° C.

Preparing for landing

Taking into account the climatic conditions of the Urals, when buying planting material, preference is given to 3- or 4-year-old specimens - they adapt faster to new conditions and begin to bear fruit earlier. Healthy seedlings have well-developed, well-branched roots, 3-4 elastic shoots 40 cm long and many well-developed buds.

Plants are sold with closed (in containers) or open root systems. In the first case, the soil should be clean, without deposits around the roots. If they are open, before planting, they are treated with fungicides (Fitosporin-M, Baktofit) or for 15 minutes. soaked in 1% potassium permanganate solution to prevent root rot and other diseases.

2 weeks before planting, the site is dug onto a shovel bayonet and cleaned of weeds and plant debris.

Ground requirements

Honeysuckle grows well in nutritious soil with good aeration, moisture permeability and neutral acidity. The best option is loamy and clayey soil.

Due to the fact that the soil in the Urals is predominantly heavy loamy, when preparing the planting holes, 8 kg of coarse sand and humus are added to each hole.

Timing, scheme and landing rules

Due to the early and long winter, the optimal time for planting honeysuckle in the Urals is late spring and early summer, when it comes to seedlings with an open root system, or a month before frost when planting plants in containers.

How to plant honeysuckle in the Urals in the fall:

1. In the prepared area, dig out planting holes 1 m wide and 1 m deep.
2. At the bottom of each layer, lay a drainage layer of small pebbles or broken brick 15-20 cm thick.
3. Add 50 g of potassium salt and superphosphate to the wells.
4. Form a hill in the center of the planting recess, put a seedling on it, straighten the roots.
5. Cover the plants with soil so that the root collar is 3 cm deep.
6. Tamp the earth, water the planting at the rate of 10 liters of water for each seedling.
7. Mulch the near-trunk circle with sawdust, spruce branches, peat, grass or sphagnum moss.

The distance between the bushes should be about 2 m.

Growing features

Honeysuckle is watered as the soil dries out, spending 20-30 liters of settled water for each bush. Watering is especially important during flowering and fruit formation - a lack of moisture at this time leads to a decrease in yield.

Reference. To reduce moisture evaporation, the soil in the trunk circle is mulched with peat, moss or sawdust.

After watering, the soil is loosened to improve the access of moisture, oxygen and nutrients to the roots. At the same time, weeding is carried out and weeds are removed, which takes moisture, useful micro- and macroelements from the soil and creates a favorable environment for development diseases and pests.

Every spring, sanitary pruning is carried out, removing all dry and damaged shoots, and in the fall - forming: the branches growing inside the crown are cut out, and the weak ones are shortened to 20 cm or cut to the base so that the crown consists of strong and well-fruiting shoots.

When the bushes reach 10 years of age, they perform anti-aging pruning. All old and weakly fruiting branches are cut on a stump, leaving 10-15 young shoots on the bush.

They begin to feed the bushes 2 years after planting. To do this, a furrow is dug in the near-trunk circle for applying liquid fertilizers:

• spring (before the kidneys swell) - urea solution (20 g per 10 l of water);
• during flowering - a solution of wood ash (200 g per 10 l);
• fruiting period - potassium-phosphorus solution (50 g of superphosphate and potassium salt per 10 liters of water).

Lack of nutrients negatively affects the quality and quantity of the crop.

Pollinators

Due to the long and cold winters in the Urals, pollinating varieties are selected based on the timing of the flowering of honeysuckle.

So, the best pollinators for Cinderella are Azure, Gerda and Fire Opal; for Amphora - Viola, Nymph, Violet and Malvina; for the Pride of Bakchar - Silginka, Blue Spindle, Blue Bird, Giant's Daughter and Bakchar Giant; for Strawberry - Delight and Success.

Reference. It is better to plant at least 4 different varieties nearby.

Disease and pest control

The culture is characterized by good immunity. Diseases develop only as a result of a violation of planting or care rules, for example, with excessive watering, excessive fertilization or heavy pruning.

Honeysuckle is affected by various types of spotting caused by fungi, or root rot, which has developed due to waterlogging of the soil.

To combat fungal diseases, the bushes are treated with fungicides ("Agat", "Albit", "Alirin-B", "Trichodermin", "Fitosporin-M", "Planzir"). For prevention, plants are sprayed with a solution of Bordeaux liquid. In the Urals, this is done in early spring, before the beginning of the growing season.

Among pests, aphids are dangerous. Due to the attack of these insects, the shoots lack nutrients, the leaves wither and fall off. To get rid of aphids, the bushes are treated with infusions of garlic or tansy and insecticides ("Akarin", "Aktara", "Decis", "Tanrek").

Important! Spraying is carried out only after harvesting.

Preparing honeysuckle for the Ural winter

Frost-resistant varieties of honeysuckle, suitable for cultivation in the Urals, tolerate a drop in air temperature to -35 ... -50 ° C, so adult bushes do not need winter shelter.

At the end of autumn, all weak or damaged branches are cut off, the lower shoots are healed, the trunk circle is cleaned of plant debris and mulched with spruce branches to protect the bushes from rodents.

Young seedlings are covered with coniferous branches for the winter.

Reproduction

For reproduction of honeysuckle in the Urals, vegetative methods are used: green and lignified cuttings, layering and division of the bush.

Green cuttings are harvested in mid-May, cutting annual shoots into pieces 10-12 cm long so that each has 2-3 buds. The upper cut is made straight, the lower one - at an acute angle 8 cm below the internode. Cuttings treated with a growth stimulator ("Kornevin"), planted at an angle into a container with wet sand and covered with polyethylene. Plants take root after 15-20 days, in the fall they are planted in open ground.

Lignified cuttings 15-18 cm long are obtained in the spring from strong and healthy annual shoots, which are cut from the bushes in the fall, put in a refrigerator or added to the garden for winter storage. Before planting, the cuttings are soaked in a root-forming solution ("Heteroauxin") and planted at an angle in wet sand, deepening so that only 1 bud remains on the surface. Rooting occurs in a month.

For reproduction by layering in early spring, strong lateral shoots are selected on the bush, bend them to the ground and covered with soil 5-6 cm, leaving the top of the shoot. In summer, soil is regularly poured onto the layers, watered and loosened. In the fall, the seedling is separated from the mother plant and planted in a permanent place.

When dividing a bush, plants over 8 years old are dug up and divided with a knife or ax into several parts so that each one has its own shoots with roots.

Growing difficulties

Problems in the cultivation of honeysuckle in the Urals:

• berries are formed small and sour - the plants did not have enough nutrients or light;
• the bushes practically do not develop, the leaves wither and fall off - signs of root rot due to excessive watering, stagnant moisture or the close location of groundwater;
• the appearance of spots on leaf plates is a symptom of fungal diseases.

Conclusion

The Urals are characterized by a harsh climate, but thanks to the work of breeders, there are a number of honeysuckle varieties suitable for cultivation in this region. For the experience to be positive, it is important to pay attention to variety selection, site preparation, and planting dates that differ from other areas.