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Remontant strawberry Alexandria is a sought-after variety with delicious aromatic berries and an extended fruiting period, without whiskers. It is grown as a balcony and garden crop, frost-resistant and little susceptible to diseases. Propagated by seeds or dividing bushes.
Story
Small-fruited strawberries or Alexandria strawberries with a long fruiting period have been known for more than 50 years. The American company Park Seed Company offered its seeds to the world market in 1964.
Description and characteristics
Strawberry plants They bear fruit from early summer until frost. For productive cultivation of the Alexandria variety as a potted crop, you need to take care of fertile soil, preferably black soil with the addition of peat.
The powerful bush of strawberry Alexandria is semi-spreading, densely leafy, grows up to 20-25 cm in height. The leaves are serrated along the edges and folded along the central vein. No mustache is formed. Peduncles are tall, thin, with small white flowers.
The conical berries of Alexandria are the largest for a small-fruited type of alpine strawberry, very fragrant, bright red. The average weight is up to 8 g. The oblong fruits do not have a neck, the apex is sharply pointed. The skin is shiny, glossy, with moderately pronounced red seeds. The sweet pulp has a characteristic strawberry taste.
The Alexandria strawberry bush bears fruit in waves from May or June to October. During the season, up to 400 g of berries are collected from one plant.
The berries of the Alexandria variety are universal in use. They are consumed fresh and homemade for the winter. Having planted strawberry seedlings of the Alexandria variety grown with your own hands, after 1.5-2 months you can already try the signal berries. If all agricultural technology requirements are met, the strawberry bush of the Alexandria variety is capable of producing up to 700-1000 berries. One plant bears fruit up to 3-4 years of age. Then the bushes are replaced with new ones.
The compact size of the Alexandria strawberry bush has made the variety a favorite of balcony and indoor gardens. Peduncles and ovaries are formed throughout the warm season. The berries ripen even on the windowsill. The plant does not take up much space. The hassle of caring for Alexandria strawberries is also small, because the plant is resistant to fungal diseases. Gardeners who bought seeds of the Alexandria variety agree that the suppliers “Aelita” and “Gavrish” are reliable.
Growing from seeds
The most convenient way to obtain new Alexandria strawberry plants is to sow seeds for seedlings.
Seed production technique and stratification
Leaving a few of the ripest Alexandria strawberries for collecting seeds, the top layer with seeds is cut off, dried and ground. Dry seeds spill out.Another method is to mash ripe berries in a glass of water. The pulp rises, the ripened seeds remain at the bottom. The water and pulp are drained, the remainder is filtered, retaining the seeds on the filter. They are dried and stored until stratification.
Gardeners who have a heated greenhouse sow the resulting seeds of the Alexandria variety immediately, in the summer, so that they do not lose their germination. In winter, seedlings are grown in a greenhouse.
- At the end of January, beginning of February, Alexandria strawberry seeds are prepared for sowing through cooling, bringing the conditions closer to natural ones;
- For the substrate, take equal parts 3 parts of garden soil and leaf humus, add 1 part sand and ½ part ash. The soil is watered with Fundazol or Fitosporin according to the instructions;
- Place the Alexandria strawberry seeds on a wet napkin, then fold it and place it in an unclosed plastic bag in the refrigerator for 2 weeks. Afterwards, the napkin with the seeds is laid out on the substrate. Cover the container and keep it moderately warm – 18-22 °C.
Seeds of the Alexandria variety are sown on the site before winter, lightly covering with soil. Natural stratification occurs under the snow.
Obtaining seedlings and planting
Seeds of the Alexandria variety germinate after 3-4 weeks. They are carefully looked after.
- Thin sprouts need to be illuminated for up to 14 hours a day using fluorescent or phytolamps;
- To make the bushes more stable, they are sprinkled with the same substrate up to the height of the cotyledon leaves;
- Watering is regular, moderate, with warm water;
- When the seedlings grow 2-3 true leaves, they are planted in pots or in compartments of a seedling cassette.
- 2 weeks after picking, Alexandria strawberry seedlings are fed with complex fertilizers, such as Gumi-20M Bogaty, which contains Fitosporin-M, which protects plants from fungal diseases.
- In the phase of 5-6 leaves, the bushes are transplanted a second time: into large containers on the balcony or on the plot.
- Before planting in a permanent place, seedlings of the Alexandria variety are hardened off, gradually leaving them longer in the fresh air.
Planting in open ground and caring for bushes
The site for the Alexandria variety is chosen to be sunny. Humus and 400 g of wood ash per hole are mixed into the soil. The most optimal method of cultivation is a two-row placement of strawberry bushes of the Alexandria variety in a bed 1.1 m wide. There is an interval of 0.5 m between the rows. The bushes are planted in holes measuring 25 x 25 x 25 cm, spilled with water, and spaced 25-30 cm.
- The first flower stalks on strawberries are carefully cut off so that the plant gets stronger. The next 4-5 peduncles with 4-5 berries on each are left to ripen;
- In the second year, bushes of the Alexandria variety produce up to 20 peduncles;
- At the end of summer, remove reddened leaves.
Mulching of plantings
After compacting the soil around the planted Alexandria strawberry bushes, mulch the entire bed. For organic mulch, take straw, dry hay, peat, pine needles or old sawdust. Fresh sawdust needs to be shed with water and left for a while, otherwise it will take on all the moisture from the soil. Over time, organic matter becomes a good fertilizer in the garden beds. After 2-3 months, new mulch is applied and the old one is removed.
They also mulch with film and agrotextiles. They stretch the material on the bed and cut holes in the holes through which the strawberries are planted. This mulch inhibits growth weed and retains heat in the soil. But during prolonged rainy periods, strawberry roots under polyethylene may rot.
Soil care
Until the mulch is laid, the soil between the rows is systematically loosened and weeds are removed. Loosening provides easy air access to strawberry roots and also retains moisture. Before the berries begin to ripen, you need to loosen the soil at least 3 times. During fruiting, soil cultivation is not carried out.
Watering
After planting, Alexandria strawberries are watered abundantly 2 times a week. It must be assumed that to sufficiently moisten the hole and all the roots of 10-12 bushes, 10 liters of warm water, up to 20°C, is enough. During the growth phase of young leaves, water once a week. Strawberries do not like too high humidity.
Feeding
The Alexandria variety is fertilized with a humus solution or an infusion of bird droppings in a ratio of 1:15 every time the ovaries begin to form. The retail chain offers ready-made organic-based fertilizers. The EM series (effective microorganisms) is popular: Baikal EM1, BakSib R, Vostok EM1. Targeted mineral complexes for strawberries are also used: Strawberry, Kristalon, Kemira and others, according to the instructions.
Ways to combat diseases and pests
Strawberries Alexandria are resistant to fungal diseases. If the plants are infected, they are treated with fungicides after picking the berries.
Protect from pests by spring tillage of the soil with Bordeaux mixture or copper sulfate solution. Spray vitriol carefully, without touching the plants.
Features of growing in pots
Seedlings of the Alexandria variety are planted in containers with a diameter of 12-20 cm, 2-3 bushes each. Strawberryless strawberries do not take up much space. Containers should have a tray and a drainage layer of up to 4-5 cm. Water in the morning and evening so that the soil does not dry out. The soil is periodically loosened with a stick. When the strawberries bloom in the room, pollination is carried out manually. Pollen is transferred with a brush from flower to flower.
Reproduction methods
Strawberry Alexandria propagates by seeds, as well as by dividing the overgrown bush. In the 3-4th year, the bush is dug up in the spring and divided, making sure that all divisions have a central bud for the growth of peduncles. Planted in the same way as seedlings.
Conclusion
The plant is a favorite of mini-balcony gardens, since its compactness allows you to accommodate more specimens. The aromatic berries are also grown in open ground; they are valued for their excellent strawberry taste. Concerns with seedlings are leveled out in comparison with a fragrant harvest.
