Content
Felt cherry came to us from Southeast Asia. Through selection, varieties of this crop were created that are capable of existing and producing crops where ordinary cherries simply cannot grow. Among them is the Skazka variety.
History of selection
The Far Eastern Experimental Station VNIIR is famous for its varieties of felt cherries. About 20 of them were bred thanks to the efforts of breeders Vera Petrovna Tsarenko and Natalya Albertovna Tsarenko. One of them is felt cherry Fairy Tale. The variety used for selection was Summer, the flowers of which were pollinated by a mixture of pollen from seedlings of the Pink and Krasnaya varieties.
The Skazka variety entered the State Register at the same time as many other varieties of Tsarenko’s selection - in 1999. The authors believe that it is capable of growing throughout Russia, especially since in different regions reviews of the Skazka felt cherry are positive.
Description of culture
Felt cherry Skazka grows in the form of a low bush - no more than 1.3 m. The shape of the crown is oval, it is not very thick. Young cherry shoots of this variety are brown and pubescent, while older shoots are gray with flaky bark. There are a lot of light colored lentils visible on them. In each axil of the cherry leaf, three small pointed buds are formed, and only the middle one is vegetative; the rest will work for the harvest.
Sheet
The leaves of this cherry variety have the shape of an elongated oval, they are corrugated, dark green in color, the top and base are pointed. The edge of the leaf is doubly crenate. If its lower side is covered with a small number of hairs, then on the front side the pubescence looks like felt. It is this feature that gives the name to this type of cherry. The leaf petiole of this cherry variety has 2 linear stipules and is very short.
Flower
Skazka's flower is medium in size and saucer-shaped. The corolla is composed of five petals, they touch. Their color is pink. Each flower, except the pistil, has 25 stamens, which are shorter than it. The cylindrical calyx of this cherry variety has a strong anthocyanin color and pubescence.
Fetus
The berries of the Skazka felt cherry are rather large in size, can reach a weight of 3.5 g. The berries are elongated-oval, have a rounded base and the same tip. The stalk has a deep funnel. The color of the cherry berries of this variety is rich burgundy, and the cartilaginous pulp, saturated with juice, is red. The stone is very small and cannot be separated from the pulp.
Cherries are sweet with a pleasant sourness, contain less than 1% acids and just over 7% sugars, for which they received a tasting score of 3.8 points.They have a high content of ascorbic acid for cherries - 24 mg for every 100 g of pulp.
Characteristics
Every gardener, when planning to plant a tree, first of all pays attention to the characteristics of the variety. Based on it, he determines whether it can exist in his garden. In accordance with it, optimal conditions for growing are selected. Characteristics of felt cherries of the Skazka variety will help answer all the questions that arise.
Drought resistance, winter hardiness
The Fairy Tale cherry has both of these qualities at its best. It survives well in conditions of lack of water and is perfectly adapted not only to winter frosts, but also to wind drying and sudden thaws.
Pollination, flowering period and ripening time
This variety is not capable of pollinating on its own. It is not pollinated by sweet cherries and common cherries. Pollinators of felt cherry Fairy Tale - Alice, Eastern, Yubileiny. They bloom at the same time - in the third ten days of May. The Skazka cherry berries ripen simultaneously, starting in mid-July. The originator of the variety does not recommend keeping them on the tree so that they remain gristly.
Productivity, fruiting
Although the bush of this cherry variety is small, it produces a generous harvest. 10 kg per plant for such a baby is very good. Like all trees of this species, the Skazka variety is very precocious. Grafted onto a rootstock, it produces berries already in the second year, and self-rooted plants in the fourth.
Area of application of berries
Tasty and beautiful dark berries are good not only as a dessert, but also in any preparation. The wine also turns out great.
Resistance to diseases and pests
The hard, pubescent leaves of this cherry variety are too tough for most pests. The only thing that bothers her is rodents. But it’s easy to protect yourself from them. Diseases are more difficult: Skazka does not suffer from coccomycosis, is quite resistant to klyasterosporiosis, but can suffer from moniliosis.
Advantages and disadvantages
The main advantage of any garden crop is its fruits. They are very tasty from Skazka cherries. The berries are able to hang on the bush for a long time and not fall off. Her productivity is also beyond praise. Excellent winter hardiness and the ability to tolerate dry periods without problems make this variety very popular.
The Fairy Tale cherry has few disadvantages:
- when overloaded with harvest, the fruits may become smaller;
- it is necessary to carry out preventive treatments against moniliosis.
Landing Features
Proper planting and care of the felt cherry A fairy tale determines the entire future life of the plant, so this event must be approached thoughtfully.
Recommended timing
They depend on which cherry seedling of the Skazka variety is selected. If grown in a pot, felt cherry can be planted from spring to fall. There are restrictions on planting bare-rooted cherry bushes. It is possible only before the beginning of the growing season - in the spring and after its end - in the fall.
Choosing a suitable location
The originator of the variety, Professor Vera Petrovna Tsarenko, recommends choosing non-steep slopes oriented to the south or southwest for Skazka cherries.The landing site must meet the following conditions:
- well lit and ventilated;
- protection from northern winds will be required.
You cannot plant felt cherry Skazka in low places and where groundwater is high. It grows best on well-structured loams or sandy loams with a high humus content. This culture prefers a neutral soil reaction. Growing Felt Cherry Fairy Tale in acidic soil is possible only after liming it.
What crops can and cannot be planted next to cherries?
In order for the tree to be well lit, and without this a good harvest cannot be obtained, neighbors should not shade it.
But it gets along well with rowan, grapes, and hawthorn. Cherries or sweet cherries can be good neighbors, but we must always remember about the common diseases of these crops.
Selection and preparation of planting material
In order not to make a mistake and not get a “pig in a poke”, it is better to buy planting material for the Skazka cherry variety in a nursery with a good reputation; it would be useful to ask for a quality certificate. A felt cherry seedling must meet the following conditions:
- in spring - not swollen buds, in autumn - already fallen leaves;
- tree age – from 1 to 2 years;
- the stem is undamaged, the bark is alive and elastic;
- the roots are well developed without signs of rotting.
Landing algorithm
The procedure for planting felt cherries is not difficult. It begins with preparing the site, for each square meter of which the following is added:
- up to 3 buckets of any organic matter, except fresh manure;
- about 800 g of lime if the soil is acidic;
- phosphorus-containing fertilizers - up to 60 g;
- potassium sulfate - up to 30.
Boarding order:
- dig a hole 50x60 cm;
- We prepare fertile soil by pouring it into a hole in the form of a mound. When planting in spring, most of the nutrients should be at the bottom and in the middle part of the hole; the cherry tree will need them immediately after the start of the growing season. In autumn, we concentrate them in the upper layer; the seedling can use them only in the spring; melt water will carry nutrition to the roots.
- we install the tree, straightening its roots well, and cover them with fertile soil, without deepening the root collar;
- lightly compact the trunk circle;
- water - you will need one or two buckets of water, the amount depends on the soil moisture;
- To keep it from drying out longer, you need to mulch with any organic material, but aged peat is preferable.
Subsequent care of the crop
The Skazka cherry variety is quite unpretentious. It only needs regular watering immediately after planting and during prolonged drought. You can feed the tree twice per season:
- after flowering ends, a bucket of humus or compost, 70 g of superphosphate, 20 g of potassium sulfate, 30 g of nitrogen fertilizer are added to the tree trunk circle;
- to prepare for winter in September, you will need potassium and phosphorus fertilizers.
To prevent the soil from becoming sour, it is limed every five years.
For the Skazka variety, timely pruning is very important.Like all felt cherries, it does not live longer than 17 years. Anti-aging pruning will help extend the life of the tree. It is done once every 5 years, lightening the center of the crown and thinning out the skeletal branches located on the periphery.
Annual pruning is carried out until the buds swell, leaving no more than 12 strong shoots. If the summer growth is very large, the branches are shortened, leaving two-thirds of the length.
Diseases and pests, methods of control and prevention
There are few of them, but you still need to fight them. Most often, Skazka is attacked by pathogens of fungal diseases.
Disease | Signs | How to treat | Prevention measures |
Moniliosis | Leaves and flowers begin to fade, branches dry up | Diseased shoots are cut back to healthy tissue, disinfecting the cutting tool each time, and sprayed with a 1% solution of foundationazole | Do not thicken the crown, ensure its ventilation |
Pocket disease | The fruits are seedless and look like elongated sacs | Removal of affected parts of the tree, treatment with systemic fungicides | the right place for planting, timely pruning, spraying with copper-containing preparations |
To prevent rodents (and there are usually no other pests in the Skazka variety) from damaging the tree trunk, its lower part is hidden under a net for the winter. Poison is laid out for mice.
The video will tell you about the features of care and diseases of felt cherries:
Felt cherry propagation
When propagated by seeds, the offspring will be worse than the parents. The vegetative method of propagation of felt cherries Skazka - cuttings is the simplest and most reliable. Cuttings are cut from the top of the shoots when the first berries begin to color.
Conclusion
Felt cherry of the Skazka variety is an excellent choice for those who want to get not only tasty berries, but also a tree that does not require special care. Not only the fruits are valuable, the Fairy Tale can become an effective element of landscape design both during flowering and when the berries ripen.
