Strawberry First-grader: description of the variety, photos, reviews

Content

1 Biological characteristics of a first-grader
2 How to raise a First-grader
3 Reviews

Often, when planting strawberries, a gardener does not think about what region the variety was bred for and whether it will grow well in these conditions. Therefore, sometimes failures occur when planting seemingly good planting material. It is no secret that in different parts of our large country the climate can differ radically. Therefore, those strawberry varieties that were bred, for example, for the Krasnodar Territory, will be very uncomfortable in the harsh conditions of Siberia.

Advice! Plant only strawberry varieties that are zoned in your region; they will give the highest possible yield, develop well and suffer less disease.

In Russia there is a special State Register of Breeding Achievements, which, among other characteristics of plants, also includes the region where they should be grown. There are many varieties of strawberries, or more correctly garden strawberries, of Russian and foreign selection. Most of them easily adapt to any growing conditions. But there are varieties intended for one specific region. These include strawberries of the Pervoklassnitsa variety. It is best grown in the West Siberian region, which is where it is zoned.

The parents of the First-grader strawberry are Fairy and Torpedo varieties. The authors of this variety are N.P. Stolnikova and A.D.Zabelina, employees of the Research Institute of Siberian Horticulture, located in Barnaul. The variety was recommended for cultivation 15 years ago.

Next, the article will discuss the description of the Pervoklassnitsa strawberry variety presented in the photograph and reviews about it. According to reviews from gardeners, strawberries of this variety have a dessert taste with a slight sourness and are easy to grow and have good yields.

Biological characteristics of a first-grader

The variety is not remontant.
In terms of ripening, it is classified as medium-late. At the variety testing site, the first strawberries of the Pervoklassnitsa variety ripened on June 25.
The berries reach a maximum weight of 30 g, the average weight is 10-17 g. Up to 4-5 harvests they retain their initial size, then they become smaller without losing their taste. Strawberries of the Pervoklassnitsa variety have a tasting score of 4.5 points on a 5-point scale - a good result. The yield is 3 times higher than that of one of the parents - the Fairy variety.
The shape of the berries is round with clearly visible darker grooves.
The fruiting period is extended, the number of harvests can reach 7.
Strawberries of the Pervoklassnitsa variety tolerate winter and drought well. In the area where the variety was tested in the winter of 1997, at an air temperature of -33 degrees and a snow depth of only 7 cm, there was only slight freezing of the leaves, which easily recovered in the spring, while the horns were completely preserved.
The bush is strong, very beautiful with wavy edges of the leaves, on which a waxy coating is clearly visible. It has powerful thick, highly pubescent petioles.
The height of the bush is up to 30 cm, and the width can reach 40 cm.
The flowers of this variety are not pure white, they have a pink-beige hue with a characteristic darker vein in the center of the petal.They are bisexual, therefore self-pollination is possible.
Flowering occurs in early June.
First-grader loves to grow in the sun, but will give a good harvest in partial shade. Few varieties of garden strawberries have this feature.
The first-grader is resistant to diseases. In cold and damp summers it can be affected by powdery mildew and white spot, but the extent of damage by these diseases is small. For powdery mildew it is only 1 point; for comparison, this figure is for strawberries Festival varieties is 3 points. For white spotting, the indicators are even lower - only 0.2 points.
The purpose of this variety is universal.
The transportability of strawberries of the Pervoklassnitsa variety is good.

How to raise a First-grader

Proper planting and care are very important for obtaining a good harvest of garden strawberries. Each strawberry variety has its own characteristics that need to be taken into account when growing. For a First-Grader, it is very important to choose the right planting location - in the sun or in light partial shade. To prevent berries from being damaged by gray rot, damp air should not stagnate at the planting site, which contributes to the development of this disease.

Advice! Plant First-Grader in well-ventilated places.

This variety of strawberry responds gratefully to proper care and can provide a noticeable increase in yield.

Reproduction

In order to get a strawberry plantation, you need to propagate it. The most common way of propagating this berry is through daughter rosettes, which gardeners call mustaches. Strawberries of the Pervoklassnitsa variety are prone to forming a sufficient number of well-rooted tendrils, so there are no problems with its propagation.

Warning! Large-fruited garden strawberries are propagated by seeds only during breeding work, since when sowing seeds, the plants obtained from them do not retain varietal characteristics.

In the overwhelming majority, they will be worse in terms of their performance than the parent variety.

Only small-fruited remontant strawberries are propagated by sowing seeds. It does not have such a pattern during seed propagation - all young plants will repeat their parents.

Planting strawberries

Planting strawberries of the Pervoklassnitsa variety can be done in the spring or in the second half of summer.

Advice! Planting should be completed no later than a month before the onset of frost.

If this is done at a later date, the young bushes of the First-Class strawberry will not have time to take root and may not survive the harsh Siberian winter.

Into the soil prepared at least two months before planting with the addition of a bucket of humus and 50-70 g of complex fertilizer per square meter. meter, well-rooted rosettes of strawberries no older than one year of life are planted. The forerunners of the First-Class strawberry can be onions, garlic, beets, dill, and parsley. Most other garden crops are not suitable for this, as they have common diseases with it.

For First-Glasser strawberries, the best arrangement of bushes is 30x50 cm, where 30 cm is the distance between plants, and 50 is between the rows. If the groundwater level is high, it is better to plant berries on the Pervoklassnitsa variety in high beds, and if the area is dry and rains are rare, then the beds should not be raised above ground level.

Advice! In the latter case, mulching the beds with straw, hay or dry pine needles will be especially effective.

This will reduce the amount of watering, make the soil looser and more fertile, and prevent the berries from touching the ground, which will prevent them from getting sick.

Black non-woven material is also suitable for mulching. Strawberries are planted directly into the holes made in the holes. The only drawback of this method of planting strawberries is that the daughter rosettes have nowhere to take root.

Planting holes need to be filled with a handful of humus, a teaspoon of complex fertilizer and a tablespoon of ash. When planting, you need to make sure that the central bud is not covered with soil, and that the roots are completely in the soil.

Feeding

Further care for strawberries First-grader also has its own characteristics. Extended fruiting requires a special regime of fertilizing and watering. Strawberries need nutrition most of all at the following stages: at the time of leaf growth in the spring, during the formation of buds and during the formation of ovaries. Since strawberries of the Pervoklassnitsa variety bear fruit for a long time, fertilizing alone during the fruiting period is not enough. In order not to overfeed the plants with mineral fertilizers, it is better to additionally fertilize them with organic matter. It is best to use fermented infusion of mullein or bird droppings.

Attention! During fermentation, all harmful bacteria contained in cow manure die, so this fertilizer is safe for plants.

The technology for preparing mullein infusion is quite simple. A large container is half filled with fresh cow dung and topped up with water. The fermentation process lasts 1-2 weeks. Every 3 days the contents of the container are mixed.

Advice! This fertilizer is a source of nitrogen and, to a slightly lesser extent, potassium; it contains little phosphorus.

To make it balanced, you can add ash and superphosphate to the container.For a plastic barrel with a capacity of 50 liters of fermented infusion - a liter jar of ash and 300 g of superphosphate.

When feeding, add 1 liter of infusion for every 7 liters of water. Application rates -10 liters per square meter. meter. When preparing chicken manure, the infusion is diluted more.

Attention! Chicken manure is not only a more concentrated organic fertilizer than mullein. It is richer in composition and healthier for plants.

Fresh litter should be diluted with water in a ratio of 1 to 10, and dry litter 1 to 20. For feeding, add 1 liter of mixture for every 10 liters of water. This solution does not require fermentation. It is better to add it immediately after preparation.

Warning! The concentration of the solution prepared from organic components must not be exceeded.

A solution that is too concentrated can burn the strawberry roots.

Each organic feeding of strawberries must be combined with watering with clean water.

Watering

Strawberries are very sensitive to both excess moisture and its lack. Most of all, plants need water during the initial growing season and when filling berries. If there is little rain at this time, the strawberries need to be watered, thoroughly soaking the soil to a depth of 20 cm. It is in this layer that the main roots of this plant are located.

Loosening

This is a necessary agrotechnical technique when caring for Pervoklassnitsa strawberries. Thanks to loosening, the soil is saturated with air, and conditions for plant growth are improved. Destroyed weeds, which take away nutrition from strawberries.

Attention! Loosening should not be carried out during the period of flowering and filling of berries, so as not to damage the peduncles and not to stain the strawberries with soil.

If you follow all the rules of agricultural technology, Strawberry First-Class Girl will give you a rich harvest of delicious berries. And its frost resistance allows you to grow this healthy berry even in the harsh climate of Western Siberia.

Reviews

Anna, 46 years old, Kulunda village

Our climate is harsh. Winters are cold and there is little snow, but summers are hot and there is little rain. In order for strawberries to grow, we need special varieties that can withstand such difficult conditions. I am very grateful to the breeders for the Pervoklassnitsa variety. It tolerates our frosty winters with little snow. And in the summer I make sure to mulch it with straw so I can water it less often.

Maxim, 36 years old, Omsk

Our whole family, which is quite a big one, loves strawberries. Previously, there weren’t enough berries even to eat as much as you wanted, let alone make jam. Three years ago we bought several varieties specifically for our climate. The first-grader pleased everyone the most. And the berries are not small and the harvest is good. Everyone liked the taste. I multiplied it and now we not only eat it in the summer, but also make jam and put compotes.