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Raspberries have been grown in Russia for a long time; it is known from chronicles that Yuri Dolgoruky planted the first raspberry fields during the founding of the future capital, Moscow. In what directions has raspberry selection developed since those ancient times? Gardeners learned about yellow and black raspberry fruits, about berries almost the size of plums, and about varieties that can produce up to 5-6 kg of berries from one bush. In recent decades, it has become fashionable to grow berry bushes in the form of trees - standard black, red and golden currants, joshta and even gooseberries have appeared. This fashion trend could not bypass raspberries.
More than 20 years ago, the first so-called standard raspberry varieties appeared, one of the classic representatives of which is raspberries Sturdy.
Standard varieties or raspberry trees
A trunk is usually called a tree trunk without leaves from the roots to the beginning of crown growth. In principle, from almost any raspberry variety, especially remontant ones, you can create a standard form - the so-called raspberry tree. But at the end of the last century, scientific breeders managed to develop special varieties of raspberries, distinguished by especially strong and thick shoots that grow exclusively straight.
Of course, this raspberry is still far from being a tree; it grows as an ordinary upright bush. But the main feature of these varieties is that upon reaching a certain height, the shoots begin to actively branch and a large number of fruit branches are formed on them, imitating the crown of a tree.
The Krepysh raspberry can also grow in the form of a raspberry tree, as can be clearly seen in the following video.
Description of the variety
Raspberry Krepysh was obtained at the turn of the 20th-21st centuries by breeders under the leadership of the famous professor V. Kichina in the VSTISP nurseries, at the Kokinsky stronghold, located in the Bryansk region. For unknown reasons, the variety was not included in the State Register of Russia.
The bushes are of the standard type, reaching a height of 1.5 -1.8 meters. The variety fully lives up to its name, since not only the central trunk, but also the other shoots are very strong and thick. They are characterized by dense wood and, as a rule, should not bend either from strong winds or from the weight of crops, therefore they do not need supports, trellises or garters.
But, judging by the reviews of gardeners who planted Krepysh raspberries on their plots, if the plot is not protected from the winds, then untied raspberry bushes may even break from strong winds.
Therefore, each gardener must decide individually about supports and garter for his or her plot.
The big advantage of the Krepysh raspberry is the complete absence of thorns, which greatly simplifies the task of picking berries. And for pruning and other care, thornless raspberries are very easy to handle.
Annual shoots have a lush green tint; in the second year of life their color changes to yellowish. Leaves on the shoots begin to grow at approximately 30-40 cm from the soil surface. They have a highly corrugated leaf plate and are dark green in color. At the top of the bush, the leaves are often arranged in a crowded bunch.
Raspberry Krepysh is capable of forming a standard, primarily due to short internodes, especially in the upper part of the shoots. In general, fruit branches are formed exclusively in the upper part of the bush. They are compact, short, and quite a lot of them are formed. Moreover, with the help of proper pruning, you can further increase their number, thereby contributing to a 1.5-2 times increase in yield.
Krepysh raspberry bushes produce very little root growth, especially in the first years after planting. Therefore, propagation of the bush using root suckers is quite difficult. But you won’t have to spend a lot of time fighting uncontrolled growth, which often clogs the area when growing other raspberry varieties.
The berries are formed in the form of inflorescences, but ripen very unevenly. One cluster of 6-9 berries can contain only one ripe one - the rest can ripen within one to two weeks. Such extended fruiting is good for a gardener who grows raspberries for his own needs. For commercial cultivation, unfriendly ripening of berries will be unprofitable.
Krepysh raspberries can be called mid-season - the berries of this variety ripen in the second half of June - July. According to the method of fruiting, it belongs to the usual non-repairing raspberry varieties, that is, the berries ripen only on the shoots of the previous year.
As for yield, the Krepysh raspberry is superior in this regard to some other varieties of standard raspberries, for example Tarus. With a competent approach to business, you can get up to 4-4.5 kg of berries from one bush.
The frost resistance of the bushes is quite decent; Krepysh is able to withstand winters with little snow down to -30°C. But in many regions of Russia, where winter temperatures easily exceed this mark, the variety will require shelter for the winter. And to do this, the bushes must first be bent to the ground, which, given their thickness and strength, is not an easy task. Therefore, there is an opinion among gardeners that standard raspberry varieties, including Krepysh, are more suitable for regions with not very severe winters.
Good resistance to most viral and fungal diseases is an undoubted advantage of the Krepysh raspberry variety. In general, it is quite unpretentious to growing conditions and will delight you with good harvests if you provide it with proper and suitable pruning.
Characteristics of berries
Raspberry berries of the Krepysh variety are distinguished by the following characteristics:
- Their shape is beautiful, elongated, slightly blunt-conical, in the form of a cap.
- The pulp is dense, the fruits are easily separated from the stalks, but if picked roughly they can crumble into their constituent elements.
- The berries are removed dry, and the raspberries do not wrinkle or flow during transportation.
- The color of the berries is bright red, the surface is not shiny.
- Krepysh raspberries are quite large in size, reaching a weight of 7-10 grams.
- The berries retain their presentation for quite a long time.
- After ripening, they can hang on the branches for a relatively long time, without falling off, but gradually drying out.
- The taste is sweet with a slight sourness.The taste and commercial qualities of Krepysh raspberries largely depend on the composition of the soil and their fertility.
- The use of Krepysh raspberries is universal - they are well suited for making jam, confiture, jelly, compotes and other culinary preparations.
Care features: pruning
Perhaps the most important thing in which caring for standard raspberries differs from ordinary varieties is the peculiarities of pruning the bushes. In principle, if annual or freshly planted shoots are left completely without pruning, then by autumn their length will reach from 1.5 to 2 meters, after which their growth will slow down. And in the upper part of the stems, 3-4 small side shoots are formed, on which fruit branches will form next year. You can harvest the harvest in any case, and the shape of the small raspberry tree near the bush will remain, but proper pruning can help increase both the raspberry yield and make the shape more pronounced.
Traditionally, it is advised to trim or pinch the top of annual shoots of standard raspberries when their height reaches 1.5 meters. But shoots often reach such a height at the end of summer, when all growth processes have already slowed down and, as a result, few side shoots are formed and they do not have time to ripen well by winter.
The following approach to pruning standard raspberries should be considered more reasonable. Around the end of May - beginning of June, when the shoots reach a height of 60-100 cm (depending on the growing region), the tops are shortened by 10-15 cm. During this period of active growth of green mass, side shoots begin to form from all the buds and grow well grow and take shape before the onset of winter. The number of shoots formed can grow to 10-15 or even more.In the second half of summer, the tips of the shoots can be pinched again for additional branching. In the autumn, when all the foliage has fallen, the bushes will look almost like real trees - on a fairly high trunk - from 7 to 12 flowing branched shoots. And next year all these side shoots will be strewn with raspberries.
You can learn more about pruning Krepysh standard raspberries from the following video.
After fruiting, all two-year-old shoots should be completely cut out so as not to deprive the young annual branches of their energy for formation.
Reviews from gardeners
Gardeners leave mixed reviews about standard raspberry varieties in general, and about the Krepysh variety in particular. This may be due to improper pruning of the bushes, the variety's capriciousness to soil conditions, or simply the unsuitability of a particular region for growing this raspberry variety.
Conclusion
Despite some inconsistencies in the description of the variety with reality, the Krepysh raspberry is worthy of decorating a small area where there is little free space. It will not require intensive care from you, but will bring variety to your garden life.
