Content
Black currant Oryol Serenade was included in the State Register in 2000. It was bred in the Oryol region, the originator of the variety is the Federal State Budgetary Institution “VNII Selection of Fruit Crops”.
Description of black currant Oryol Serenade
The bush is medium-sized, the shoots grow compactly, forming a neat crown. The green leaf blades are five-lobed, wrinkled, of medium size, the flowers are brightly colored, the fruit racemes are short. Flowering begins in May. The average ripening period for berries is July or early August. The variety is self-fertile; there are male and female flowers on the bush.
The berries are medium-sized, up to 1.9 g, with black, shiny skin, oblong-rounded in shape. The pulp is dense, sweet and sour, with a strong aroma. It contains 8% sugar and 3% acids. The taste of the berries is excellent, tasting score 4.5 points.
The Oryol Serenade currant variety is recommended for cultivation in several regions of Russia:
- Central;
- Volgo-Vyatka;
- Central Chernozem;
- Srednevolzhsky.
Oryol Serenade currant is resistant to fungal diseases.
Characteristics
The characteristics of the variety include:
- drought resistance;
- frost resistance;
- productivity;
- application area;
- advantages and disadvantages.
Drought resistance, frost resistance
The currant variety Orlovskaya Serenade is winter-hardy. Tolerates frosts down to -30°C. Since the roots are superficial, in the fall it is necessary to mulch the tree trunk circle and water-replenishing watering.
Productivity of the variety
The yield of the Orlovskaya Serenada currant variety is average. From one bush you can get 1.1 kg or from one hundred square meters - 100 kg. Thanks to the dry separation of the berries from the branch and dense pulp, they tolerate transportation well.
When the berries ripen, it is important to timely water and fertilize with complex fertilizers so that the crop does not become smaller and does not fall off the bush. If the currant berries begin to dry out and bake in the sun, the shoots may be damaged by glass. This can be easily checked by cutting off a drying shoot; if it has a black core, it means that a glass larva lived inside. The branch is cut back to healthy tissue.
Application area
Oryol Serenade blackcurrant berries have a universal purpose. They can be eaten fresh, made into jams and preserves, and frozen.
Black currant Oryol Serenade contains a lot of vitamins and mineral salts; it is sometimes called not a berry, but a medicinal crop. Vitamin C content - 217.1 mg/100 g.
Pros and cons of the variety
The advantages of the Oryol Serenade variety include:
- productivity;
- excellent berry taste;
- disease resistance;
- frost resistance.
It is suitable for cultivation in most regions of Russia.
The disadvantages include an extended fruiting period.
Reproduction methods
The Oryol Serenade variety is propagated by cuttings that remain after pruning the bush, or by layering. Description of rooting cuttings in school:
- For propagation, take shoots 15-20 cm long and no less than a pencil thick. Thin, green tops are not suitable; they will freeze in the winter before they have time to take root.
- Cuttings are harvested during autumn pruning. Five one-year-old, two-year-old and three-year-old shoots are left to grow on the bush.
- Good cuttings are obtained from strong annual and biennial shoots. The lower cut is made obliquely at a distance of 1 cm from the kidney. 2 cm are removed from the upper bud, and a cut is made at a right angle. Remove all leaves.
- The direction of the row in the school should be from north to south, then the seedlings will be evenly illuminated by the sun throughout the day. For planting, dig a small ditch 25-30 cm deep, and add 1 bucket of humus, 50 g of nitroammophoska and 1 tbsp. ash per linear meter.
- Half an hour before planting, water the school to a depth of 25 cm. Prepared currant cuttings are stuck into the moist soil at an angle of 45°. The distance between seedlings is left at 10-15 cm in a row, the row spacing is about 20 cm.
- After planting, carry out abundant watering. When the moisture is absorbed and the soil settles a little, add a little earth on top.
- For the winter, the schoolchild must be covered with straw, a layer of 3-5 cm.
It is also easy to propagate currants by layering. They begin to lay shoots for the formation of layering in early spring, as soon as the buds awaken. To do this, use a hoe to make a small groove next to the bush. The outermost branch is placed in the groove, pinned, covered with 1 cm of soil. The end of the branch is pinched so that the side shoots awaken and new seedlings form. In the fall, young bushes can be dug up and planted in a new place.
Planting and care
The Oryol Serenade blackcurrant variety grows well in fertile, light soil; it does not like clayey, heavy, acidic soil. The bushes are undemanding when it comes to lighting, but in an open, sunny area the harvest will be greater.
The further development of the bush and the amount of harvest depend on the correct planting of black currants. One of the keys to success is a correctly chosen planting scheme:
- The row spacing is at least 1.8 m, and about 1.5 m is left between seedlings in a row.
- Oryol Serenade currants can be planted in October or April-May. In October, it is advisable to plant currants after the leaves fall, before frosts begin, and in the spring - before the leaves bloom.
- If the soil is fertile, the planting hole is made of medium size, about 40 cm deep and the same diameter. Add to it: a bucket of well-rotted manure, 100 g of nitroammophoska, 1 tbsp. wood ash.
- It is advisable to plant the Oryol Serenade currant with the root collar deepened by 5-10 cm. The first buds at the base of the shoots should be covered with earth; branches will grow from them, take root, and allow the bush to grow quickly.
To ensure that the planted currants overwinter well, they are mulched with humus. When frost sets in, you can additionally cover the tree trunk circle with hay.
Aftercare
In spring, it is necessary to remove all weeds around the bush and loosen the soil. Currant Oryol Serenade loves moisture. On dry and hot days, you will need to pour 3-4 buckets of water under one adult bush.
After watering, the bushes are mulched with humus, nutrient soil or peat. The following components are added to each bucket of mulch:
- 2 tbsp. l. nitrophoska or superphosphate with potassium sulfate - for feeding;
- 1 tbsp. wood ash or 2 tbsp. l. chalk - for alkalizing the soil;
- 1 tbsp. l. dry mustard with top – for pest prevention.
For a large Orlovskaya Serenade currant bush you need 3 buckets of mulch. To make the berries larger, during flowering it can be fed with potato peelings. To do this, the peelings are laid out around the bush in a root circle and sprinkled with a layer of mulch.
By cutting off everything unnecessary, they form a crown so that it is not very
thickened, weak and broken shoots are removed in the spring. Summer pruning of currants is carried out after harvesting. During it, 2-3-year-old branches are cut out, leaving only strong, young shoots. This procedure speeds up fruiting next year. Strong young shoots will give a good harvest in the spring. The cut is made above a strong bud that looks outward.
In the fall, it is advisable to carry out moisture-recharging watering so that the bushes can withstand the winter well, and the tree trunk circle is covered with mulch. The Oryol Serenade currant has fibrous roots located close to the surface of the earth; a layer of mulch will help the plant to withstand frost well.
Pests and diseases
With good care, currants grow in one place for 15-17 years. In spring and autumn after leaf fall, it is advisable to prevent the most common diseases:
- anthracnose or brown spot;
- septoria, white spot;
- powdery mildew.
For prevention in the spring before flowering, treatment with copper-containing fungicides (Amigo Peak, Bordeaux mixture) is used. Subsequently, spraying is repeated 3-4 times, using modern preparations: “Skor”, “Ridomil Gold”, “Fitosporin”, “Previkur”.
Fungicides are used to prevent and control pests. The safest are biologically based drugs, for example, Fitoverm.
Conclusion
Black currant Oryol Serenade is suitable for growing in small garden plots and industrial plantations. Thanks to the good quality of the berries, it is in demand on the market and quickly pays for itself. The variety is easily propagated by cuttings and is resistant to diseases and frost.
