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Bird cherry Late Joy is a relatively young, highly decorative hybrid of domestic selection. The variety is one of the mid-late flowering varieties and is highly valued for its immunity to low temperatures, which allows the tree to be grown throughout most of the country. The hybrid’s consistently high yields and its undemanding nature in terms of growing conditions also received positive feedback from gardeners.
History of selection
The originators of the hybrid Late Joy are specialists from the Central Siberian Botanical Garden of the SB RAS - V. S. Simagin, O. V. Simagina and V. P. Belousova. Bird cherry Kistevaya and Virginskaya were used as parent varieties during breeding work.
Bird cherry Late Joy was included in the State Register of the Russian Federation in 2002 and recommended for cultivation in the West Siberian region. Plants of this variety are adapted for cultivation in all regions of Russia, with the exception of the Nenets, Yamalo-Nenets, Khanty-Mansiysk and Chukotka Autonomous Okrugs.
Description of bird cherry Late joy
In the most favorable conditions, the hybrid grows up to 8 m in height. The crown of the tree is dense, narrow-pyramidal. The bark of the bird cherry variety Late Joy is grayish-brown and rough to the touch. The branches of the tree grow upward.
The leaf blade of the tree is ovoid in shape with a sharp tip. Its length is about 7 cm, width - 4 cm. The leaves are slightly jagged along the edge.
The shoots form dense racemose inflorescences up to 15 cm long. Each of them has from 20 to 40 small white flowers. Flowering occurs on annual shoots. The fruits of the variety change color as they ripen from light brown to black. The photo above shows ripe bird cherry berries of the Late Joy variety.
The average weight of the berries is 0.5-0.7 g. The shape of the fruit is round and smooth. The pulp is colored yellowish-green. The advantages of bird cherry variety Late Joy include the pleasant sweet and sour taste of ripened berries. On the tasting scale it was rated 4.8 out of 5.
Characteristics of the variety
Bird cherry Late Joy compares favorably with many other varieties due to its unpretentiousness. In particular, the hybrid is undemanding to the composition of the soil and its level of fertility. The tree bears fruit well both on neutral and moderately acidic soils, and tolerates short-term stagnation of moisture in the soil and drought. The tree of the Late Joy variety shows the best yield indicators when grown in loamy, well-lit areas, however, it can also be grown in the shade in the same way - the hybrid is shade-tolerant.
Drought resistance, frost resistance
The frost resistance of the bird cherry variety Late Joy is at a level from -30°C to -40°C. The tree safely tolerates long-term frosts, however, the flowers of the hybrid can be damaged by return frosts in the spring, as a result of which there is no fruiting this season.
The variety's resistance to drought and heat is average. Bird cherry Late Joy can withstand short-term moisture deficits well, however, long dry periods have a negative impact on the development of the tree.
Productivity and fruiting
Bird cherry Late joy is a variety of medium-late fruit ripening. Flowering and fruiting are very abundant. The harvest is usually harvested in early August.
The average lifespan of a tree is 25-30 years, during which it maintains its productivity. The hybrid is weakly self-fertile, so it is recommended to plant other mid-late varieties bred in the TsSBS near it.
The yield of the Late Joy variety averages 20-25 kg per tree.
Area of application of fruits
Hybrid Late Joy is classified as a universal variety. Its fruits are used both for fresh consumption and for drying for the winter. In addition, part of the harvest is used for the production of juices and compotes.
The Late Joy variety has high resistance to fruit cracking, which makes it suitable for transportation.
Resistance to diseases and pests
Bird cherry variety Late Joy practically does not attract pests. Occasionally, the plant can be attacked by the following insects:
- aphid;
- slimy sawfly;
- hawthorn;
- cherry elephant;
- bird cherry elephant.
Bird cherry Late Joy rarely gets sick, however, the variety is vulnerable to leaf spot.
Advantages and disadvantages of the variety
The advantages of bird cherry variety Late Joy include the following characteristics:
- immunity to low temperatures;
- pleasant taste of berries;
- consistently high yields;
- resistance to cracking of berries;
- shade tolerance;
- unpretentiousness;
- versatility of fruit use;
- undemanding to the composition of the soil.
Disadvantages of the variety include:
- light weight of berries;
- tall tree, which complicates harvesting;
- tendency to thicken the crown;
- average drought resistance.
Landing rules
Bird cherry variety Late Joy can be planted in open ground both in spring and autumn. The survival rate of planting material is very high. When planting in the autumn months, seedlings do not need to be covered for the winter, since even young plants are resistant to low temperatures.
Immediately before planting, it is necessary to carefully inspect the planting material. The leaves and bark of seedlings should not have white coating, spotty stains, or mechanical damage. If the plant's root system is too developed, long roots should be trimmed. Weak and broken roots are also removed.In addition, moderate pruning has a beneficial effect on the development of seedlings - it is recommended to cut off all weak shoots, leaving only 2-3 of the strongest ones.
Bird cherry variety Late Joy is planted according to the following scheme:
- In the selected area, dig a hole 50 cm deep and 50-60 cm wide. In this case, you should also focus on the size of the root system of the seedling - the roots should be freely placed inside the planting hole.
- For group plantings, the pits are located at a distance of 5 m from each other to avoid thickening the crowns of mature trees.
- It is not necessary to place fertile soil mixture at the bottom of the planting hole - the planting material takes root well in open ground and without additional fertilizing. If desired, you can sprinkle the bottom with a mixture of dry leaves, peat and humus, however, it is not recommended to overuse organic fertilizers. Excess nitrogen in the soil negatively affects the condition of bird cherry bark.
- The soil mixture is sprinkled with a thin layer of soil from the surface of the site, after which the seedling is placed on it. The root system is evenly distributed along the bottom of the hole.
- The hole is gradually filled with earth, compacted periodically. This is necessary in order to remove possible voids and layers of air.
- Then the planting material is watered abundantly. When the water goes into the ground, the tree trunk circle is mulched. Sawdust, peat or dry grass are suitable for these purposes. The optimal thickness of the mulch layer is 8-10 cm, no more.
Aftercare
The hybrid Late Joy is considered one of the most unpretentious varieties of bird cherry. This is an undemanding tree that even a beginner in gardening can grow.
Young trees are sensitive to soil moisture, so they are often watered, preventing the top layer of soil from drying out. Adult bird cherry does not need a lot of moisture. The tree is watered abundantly no more than 2 times a month. If the weather is hot and there is little rain, the frequency of watering can be increased to 3-4 times a month. In case of prolonged rains, watering is stopped.
Bird cherry seedlings respond well to sprinkling, however, it is better not to do such watering during flowering.
In order to improve the supply of oxygen to the roots of the tree, it is necessary to periodically loosen the tree trunk circle, but no more than a shovel length. This procedure can be combined with sanitary weeding of the soil near the bird cherry tree. If, when planting bird cherry, the tree trunk circle was sprinkled with mulch, there is no need for weeding - the presence of a mulch layer inhibits the growth of weeds.
As the soil depletes, the plantings are fed. You can use both root and foliar fertilizers, while organic fertilizers must be alternated with mineral ones. Every spring it is recommended to feed the bird cherry variety Late Joy with ammonium nitrate - 30 g per tree. After flowering, Kemira Universal fertilizer is added to the soil - about 20 g for each plant.
In addition, adult bird cherry needs sanitary and formative pruning. Every year it is necessary to remove all broken or diseased branches, as well as trim root suckers and shoots. It is recommended to treat the cuts with garden varnish for preventive purposes.
Diseases and pests
Diseases practically do not affect bird cherry, however, the Late Joy variety is vulnerable to leaf spot. These include:
- polystigmosis (also rubella, red spot);
- cercospora;
- koniotiriosis.
Polystigmosis in bird cherry is diagnosed by the presence of small spots of rich red color that rapidly spread across the leaf plate. At the first signs of the disease, before flowering, it is necessary to spray the area around the tree trunk and the plant itself with a Nitrafen solution. If necessary, you can replace this drug with a solution of copper sulfate, a concentration of no more than 3%.
After flowering, bird cherry is sprayed with a 1% solution of Bordeaux mixture.
Cercospora blight is a disease in which bird cherry leaves become covered with small necrosis, white on the upper side and brown underneath. Sick trees are treated by spraying with Topaz.
Coniothyriosis affects not only the leaves, but also the bark and berries of bird cherry trees. The first signs of the disease are yellow-brown necrosis with orange edges. The fight against infection is carried out using any fungicide.
Of the pests, the greatest danger to the bird cherry variety Late Joy is aphids. Any insecticide can be used against it. The drugs Iskra, Fitoverm and Decis have proven themselves well.
For pest prevention purposes, you can treat the plantings with Karbofos solution twice a season. Solution proportions: 50 g of substance per 10 liters of water. No more than 2 liters of solution are used per tree.
Conclusion
Bird cherry Late Joy is not only a high-yielding fruit tree, but also a highly decorative garden crop that can decorate any garden. Caring for the hybrid is easy, so even a novice gardener can plant it. The most important thing is to adhere to the rules of agricultural technology and carry out preventive measures in a timely manner.
You can learn more about how to plant bird cherry variety Late Joy from the video below:
