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The high-yielding strawberry variety Elan has been highly appreciated by many gardeners. By its origin, the culture is a hybrid. It is successfully grown in open and closed ground, as well as in vertical beds. A new product from the Dutch selection, the Elan strawberry is distinguished by a long fruiting period, lasting until the onset of frost.
Characteristics of the Dutch hybrid
When reading the description of the Elan strawberry variety, photos, reviews, it is worth noting the origin. The culture is the brainchild of Dutch breeders. For domestic gardeners, the hybrid is new, but has already managed to spread throughout all regions with a warm climate.
Positive characteristics brought popularity to the culture. The Elan F1 strawberry will give birth from early June until late autumn, until night frosts hit. Powerful bushes throw out a large number of tendrils, thanks to which many rosettes with peduncles are formed. The berries are large, with an average weight of 30–60 g. The hybrid is grown openly, closed, and even in flower pots. In the greenhouse remontant strawberry Elan produces a larger harvest than outside. Additionally, the growing season increases.Adaptation to a closed growing method allows Elan to be planted in heated greenhouses in cold regions. The best planting scheme is 5–6 seedlings per 1 m2.
The hybrid does not require special care. Standard procedures used for all strawberries are in demand: weeding, watering, fertilizing, trimming the mustache. With a closed growing method, the yield per bush per season reaches 2 kg. In open ground the figure is less - up to 1.5 kg. The berries grow in a conical shape. Ripe pulp is dense, juicy, acquires a red color and a pronounced strawberry aroma.
Positive and negative qualities of a hybrid
There are rarely bad reviews about the remontant strawberry Elan, which indicates the absence of significant shortcomings. Positive features include:
- stable and high productivity;
- excellent taste and pleasant aroma;
- a long fruiting period, which can last in a heated greenhouse until December;
- Elan bushes develop well in low light;
- the hybrid is resistant to pathogens of fungal and bacterial diseases;
- with the open growing method, the Elan strawberry variety can withstand harsh winters and summer temperature fluctuations;
- remontant strawberries do not require special care, they grow in one place for 3 years, and then they are replanted so that the berries do not become crushed;
- Elan strawberry fruits are universal and suitable for all types of processing, decorating confectionery products, and freezing.
Gardeners consider the disadvantage of the Elan variety to be the mandatory procedures of abundant fertilizing in the fall. Prolonged fruiting depletes the bushes. If strawberries do not replenish lost nutrients, then weak plants will freeze in winter. The remaining bushes in the spring will bring a poor harvest.
Planting seedlings
The Elan variety can be propagated by means of mustaches, purchased seedlings, by dividing the bush or by seed. The first three options are easier. If you only managed to get seeds, you will have to grow remontant strawberry seedlings yourself:
- Sowing strawberry seeds is similar to the process for other garden crops. The boxes are filled with substrate from garden soil and humus. You can buy ready-made soil. Sowing the seeds of the Elan hybrid is carried out in rows. The grains are crushed on top with soil and river sand. Watering is carried out with a sprayer. Boxes with sown hybrid grains are covered with film and sent to a warm room.
- After massive germination of crops, the boxes are opened. After a couple of days the air temperature is lowered to +18OWITH.
- A month later, the grown seedlings of the Elan hybrid are planted in cups, where they will grow until planted in the garden.
Strawberry seedlings of the Elan variety are planted in an open garden bed in early May, when warm weather sets in. With the greenhouse growing method, early planting dates are adhered to. Hybrid Elan, like all strawberries, loves areas well lit by the sun, ventilated, but without drafts. The maximum permissible groundwater level is 80 cm. If the layers are located higher, Elan seedlings may get wet. The acidity of the soil before planting is adjusted to 5.7–6.2.
A bed for strawberry seedlings of the Elan variety is prepared in the fall or a month before planting. The area is cleared of weeds. The soil is dug up using a shovel at the same time as organic and mineral fertilizers are applied. Rows are marked on the garden bed with a row spacing of 50 cm. A hole is dug every 30 cm. The seedling is removed from the cup and, together with a lump of earth, is lowered into the hole. After backfilling, the soil around the bush is pressed with your hand and then watered with warm water.
Features of cultivation and care
Unpretentiousness in care does not mean that the Elan variety will grow and bear fruit well on its own. To get a good harvest you need to follow simple steps:
- maintain moist, but not swampy soil in the garden bed to ensure good growth of the bush and the filling of berries;
- In the spring, mulch the soil, which helps retain moisture and prevents flowers from touching the ground;
- all the first flowers on newly planted seedlings are plucked;
- a maximum of 5 mustaches are left on each bush, and all the rest are cut off;
- do not allow the bed to become overgrown, otherwise the yield will decrease and the berries will grow small;
- cutting off excess foliage allows you to direct nutrients to the development of berries;
- autumn transplantation of seedlings is carried out before the onset of frost, so that the strawberries take root and survive the winter;
- fertilizing is applied in spring and summer, but the most necessary is in autumn, when the plant needs to regain strength after long fruiting;
- organics and mineral complexes are used for feeding, but you cannot overdo it with the dosage, otherwise juicy foliage will grow instead of tasty berries;
- For the winter, the bed with Elan strawberries is covered with mulch, spruce branches or agrofibre.
If Elan strawberries are grown indoors, do not forget to ventilate the greenhouse, maintain the temperature and provide artificial lighting.
Pest control and preventive measures
According to reviews and descriptions, the Elan strawberry is resistant to diseases, but the crop is not immune from epidemics. Mass infection of the fungus is observed in rainy summers. The entire plant is affected: foliage, berries, stems, roots. During an epidemic, there is a threat of brown spot and fusarium wilt. Powdery mildew poses a great danger. Additional damage to the crop is caused by ants, mites, weevils and other harmful insects.
Strawberry diseases can be avoided if preventive measures are taken in a timely manner:
- After wintering, change the top layer of soil in the garden bed. In the fall, harmful insects hide in the soil, and with the onset of warmth, young strawberry shoots begin to wake up and eat.
- The soil around the bushes is loosened after each watering. Weeding helps get rid of weed and increases oxygen access to roots.
- Damaged leaves, peduncles and berries are cut off. Remove excess mustache.
- Watering is done regularly, but the beds are not allowed to become waterlogged. From oversaturation with moisture, the berries and root system of strawberries will rot.
- Strawberry plantations are sprayed with preventive medications. The ash is used to combat parasites.
Prevention helps to avoid contamination of strawberries even if an epidemic occurs.
Tiered growing method
In small areas, you can grow a lot of strawberries in high beds. The most popular are tiered structures in the form of a pyramid. Boxes of different sizes are filled with soil and placed on top of each other. With such success, you can use flower pots or build a pyramid from boards.
The Elan hybrid grows on a high pyramid no worse than in a garden bed. It makes harvesting easier for the gardener. The berries are always clean, since there is no possibility of contact with the ground. To organize irrigation, gardeners install a drip system. It is inconvenient to water the upper tiers with a watering can. For the winter, the pyramid is wrapped in two layers of dense agrofibre. Bushes with soil on top are covered with mulch. A good result is obtained if, when making a pyramid, the side walls are insulated with foam plastic. Thermal insulation in winter will prevent the soil from freezing, and in summer it will protect against excessive heating by the sun.
A tiered bed with strawberries can replace a beautiful flower garden and decorate the yard. The pyramid looks impressive all summer, hung with red berries. You can plant marigolds between the bushes. Flowers will decorate the garden bed and protect the strawberries from nematodes. A couple of low-growing sage bushes are planted near the pyramid. On the top tier of the pyramid you can plant a marshmallow bush to shade the strawberries from the scorching rays of the sun.
Reviews
Gardeners leave a lot of reviews about Elan strawberries, and now we’ll look at the most interesting of them.
