Content
Some summer residents are faced with the fact that honeysuckle does not grow at all on the site, or the bush gives small growth, blooms sparingly, or the berry harvest is poor. Having analyzed developmental delays, gardeners correct the shortcomings by appropriate care or replanting of shrubs.
Experienced gardeners have noticed that for a good harvest it is better if honeysuckle grows not in one row, but in a group
Why honeysuckle grows poorly
An unpretentious and cold-resistant crop is popular in the middle zone as an early fruit and berry bush. Now many varieties of garden honeysuckle have been bred with different characteristics, which significantly expands its distribution area. At the same time, the species is considered a fairly new crop; all diseases and pests that can significantly slow down the development of the bush and reduce productivity have not yet been studied.
If edible honeysuckle does not grow well, several factors may be the cause:
- incorrectly selected landing site;
- unsuitable soil composition and structure;
- planting a single bush or a group of plants of the same variety;
- lack of proper crop care;
- attempts to grow a cold-resistant crop originating from the Far East in the southern regions with a warm winter period;
- damage to the plant by birds, diseases or insects.
Popular problems, why the honeysuckle bush grows poorly
A hardy fruit and berry bush that finds itself in unsuitable conditions grows with a noticeable lag. Gardeners analyze how well they fulfill agrotechnical requirements and identify new care tasks.
Purchasing productive varieties
The yield, size, consistency and taste of honeysuckle berries depend on the specific variety. Their numbers have increased significantly in recent years. A feature of the new cultivars developed for the middle zone and other regions is the lack of berry shedding. Fruits of varied taste - dessert, sweet and sour or with bitterness.
Varietal diversity
Honeysuckle is a cross-pollinated crop and gives a good harvest if 4-7 bushes of different varieties grow nearby on the site. An important condition for fruit set is the presence of pollinating insects, most often bumblebees and bees. At the beginning of flowering, berry plants are sprayed with a sweet solution: 2 tbsp. l. sugar or honey is diluted in 10 liters of water and sprayed on the bushes, attracting insects.
Site selection
Honeysuckle development depends on location. The shrub grows well and bears fruit in an area open to sunlight and protected from constant harsh winds.Even partial shade affects yield reduction in areas with short and cool summers, since reproductive buds are laid in fewer numbers.
The berries of the famous varieties Blue Bird and Blue Spindle, which have been growing in gardens for a long time, often fall off
An unpretentious shrub grows on several types of soil. The following characteristics are required for soil:
- slightly acidic;
- well structured – loose and light;
- fertile.
Honeysuckle can tolerate short-term stagnation of water, but does not grow in a wetland.
Care
The trunk circle of honeysuckle is mulched, protecting the bush from weeds and retaining moisture. In hot May and June, if it is noticeable that the honeysuckle does not grow upward, water 4-6 times with 20 liters of water under the bushes.
Feeding is necessary, which is done for honeysuckle once every 3-4 years in the spring - organic matter and nitrogen fertilizers. And in August, phosphorus-potassium preparations are introduced.
Timely pruning
On fertile soil at the beginning of summer, honeysuckle very quickly and rapidly forms shoots and thickens. Every year, an old bush over 5 years old is thinned out, completely removing the oldest trunks. Young shoots are left and fruit buds are created on them for the next season. After planting, only sanitary pruning is carried out.
Planting zoned plants
Gardeners have noticed that honeysuckle grows poorly in the south. Many varieties bred for regions with long frosty winters soon die in the southern regions.During the thaw, honeysuckle quickly responds to an increase in temperature, the buds wake up, which die after the return of frost or cold rains turning into ice. In the southern regions, zoned species of honeysuckle with a long dormant period are grown.
In the central and northwestern regions, productive varieties created by scientists at the institute in Michurinsk, as well as those bred in the Leningrad region, grow well. In the Volga region, zoned honeysuckle from a nursery in the Nizhny Novgorod region is distributed, which bears large berries. The varieties of the Chelyabinsk fruit and vegetable station are popular among Ural summer residents. Siberian gardeners grow seedlings from nurseries in the Krasnoyarsk Territory and the Far East.
Protection from pests and diseases
Among the crop pests, the false scale insect and the borer are often mentioned. Overwintered pseudoscale larvae feed on young leaves and shoot tips and leave behind honeydew. Spores of various fungi, especially sooty fungi, settle on sticky leaf blades. Damaged leaves have nutritional disturbances, which negatively affects the plant. The branches become brittle, the bushes do not grow, and gradually dry out.
For the winter, false scale insects remain on the bark of plants.
Another pest of shrubs is the borer. The insect lays eggs in young stems, the larvae feed and grow inside the shoot. Because of this, the leaves wilt, followed by the drying out of all apical shoots. There are no effective methods against the insect. The peak of their development occurs during the fruiting period of the crop, when it is undesirable to spray the plants. Damaged shoots are removed, including most of the trunk.
The worst pest of honeysuckle is the golden brown borer beetle.
What to do if honeysuckle does not grow
Having determined the reason for the poor development of the plant, solutions to the problem are selected:
- several carefully selected new varieties are planted to a single bush;
- if the bush grows poorly in the wrong area, replanting is easy, because the roots of the crop are fibrous, superficial, and quickly take root;
- care includes regular watering and fertilizing when honeysuckle grows poorly in the spring;
- trunk circles are mulched if the bush grows in a sunny place;
- By removing fallen leaves and spraying branches and trunks with fungicides, they prevent the development of diseases and insects.
To prevent birds that peck not only berries, but also buds in winter or spring, causing the shoots to grow poorly, install fine mesh nets
Conclusion
There are several reasons why honeysuckle does not grow on the site. An incorrectly planted bush is moved, new productive varieties are added, and pollination is ensured. A well-groomed plant will delight you with early berries.
