Winter hardiness of felt cherry. Felt cherries - varieties, planting and care in the garden

1. What is a felt cherry, how is it different from the usual one.
2. The best varieties of felt cherries.

Who doesn’t like to eat cherry juice on a hot summer day, compote at any time of the year or fresh pastries, which are also made with the addition of this berry. Everyone on the site has at least a couple of trees with these red-burgundy fruits. With the onset of summer, both children and adults are looking forward to the harvest.

Pictured is Alice.

One of the best varieties of felt cherry, the tree is low 1.2 - 1.5 meters, with dense vegetation, the branches are thick, straight, the leaf has an oval shape. The berries are poorly separated from the stone, large, oblong, juicy, sweet, they can be preserved and consumed fresh. It is best propagated by young cuttings, begins to produce a crop for 3 years. At high soil moisture, it can be affected by monilia.

Weight: 3.5 gr.
Ripening: July 20 - 25
Advantages: fruits are large, tolerates frost well.
Flaws: over time, the fruits become smaller, poor transportability.

Summer

Compared to other varieties of felt cherries, slow growth is noticed, especially in the first couple of years after planting. This shrub is also called sandy-felted, it was bred in the Primorsky and Khabarovsk Territories. The plant is compact, straight, the branches are not thick, the leaves are oval in shape, the fruits are quite large in size. The fleshy pulp has a sweet and sour taste. The color of the cherries is heterogeneous from pale red to red. After the berries ripen for a long time, they remain on the branches without crumbling.
Productivity: 6 - 7 kg. from 1 bush
Weight: 3.3 gr.
Ripening: July 20 - 25
Advantages: small bush, large berries
Flaws: medium transportability, does not tolerate harsh winters

Firework

A tree about one and a half meters tall with fairly dense vegetation, it is not recommended to water it often. The fruits are round in shape, ripen quickly and simultaneously, reach a mass of about 4 grams, have a dark pink color. The flesh is rich red in color, sour-sweet in taste. The tree begins to bear fruit literally 3 years after planting. Considered a durable variety. With proper care, it gives a high yield, up to 11 kg from one bush. This variety of felt cherry tolerates frosts down to -35 degrees and drought quite well. Can be consumed fresh, dried, preserved, cooked jams and preserves.

Productivity: 9 -11 kg. from 1 bush
Weight: 3.5 gr.
Ripening: July 20 - 25
Advantages: high productivity, simultaneous ripening of berries, frost resistance.
Flaws: the pulp does not lag behind the bone well.

Princess

In the photo variety Princess.

The bush is not high, about 1.2 meters, with a rare crown. The branches are straight, the buds on them are small, the leaf is small, oval in shape, the fruit reaches a mass of 4 grams, ovoid. If you plant already grafted seedlings, then you can wait for the harvest in 2 years. It begins to bloom in mid-May, ripens by mid-July. After harvesting, it is recommended to process the crop as soon as possible, because cherry. If you overdo it with watering, then the likelihood of infection with monilia increases.
Productivity: 9.5 kg. from 1 bush.
Weight: 3-4 gr.
Ripening: 15 - 20 July.
Advantages: winter hardiness, large-fruited, pleasant to the taste.
Flaws: high probability of infection with monilia, poor transportability.

Natalie

Tall tree about 1.8 m, but can reach 2 meters, with an oval wide crown. This variety of felt cherry has large fruits weighing up to 4 grams, the skin is covered with hairs almost invisible to the eye, rich red in color, the flesh is dense and juicy. Does not tolerate transportation well. The tree is able to bear fruit for about 16 years. It tolerates harsh Russian winters well. Some of the best juices, desserts and wines are made from this variety of felted cherry.
Productivity: 8 kg. from 1 bush.
Weight: 3.5 - 4 gr.
Ripening: 15 - 20 July.
Advantages: winter hardiness, high palatability, semi-dry separation of berries, large cherries.
Flaws: when overloaded with a crop, the cherry begins to shrink.

Fairy tale

In the photo variety Fairy Tale

A tree of medium density, about 1.3 meters high, elongated leaves of a rich green color, fruits have a burgundy hue, cherries ripen amicably, taste pleasant sweet and sour. One of the best varieties of felt cherries according to tasters. The variety is self-fertile, drought-resistant, tolerates frost well. With frequent watering, the fruits can be affected by the fungus. Grafted seedlings begin to bear fruit after 2 years.
Productivity: 8 - 10 kg. from 1 bush.
Weight: 3.3 - 3.5 gr.
Ripening: 15 - 20 July.
Advantages: high winter hardiness, semi-dry separation of fruits, high yield.
Flaws: high risk of monilia disease.

Morning

The tree is slender, compact in size. The berries are round, bright red in color, medium in size, average weight is 3 g, the pulp is sweet and sour, juicy, fibrous. The stone in this variety of felt cherries is small and poorly separated from the pulp. The bush is not very susceptible to infection by the fungus.
Productivity: 6 kg. from 1 bush.
Weight: 3 gr.
Ripening: medium early
Advantages: good winter hardiness, almost not affected by codling moths.
Flaws: the pulp does not separate well from the stone.

Children's

The bush is not dense, about two meters high, the branches are strong, thick. The fruit is slightly flattened, attractive red color, oval-shaped stone, the maximum weight of 1 cherry is 4 grams. The skin is covered with almost invisible hairs, the flesh is juicy, fleshy, sweet with a slight sourness. Seedlings that have been grafted begin to yield in the second year. With proper care, a tree can bear fruit for about 18 years and give a large harvest, up to 9-11 kg from one bush. The great advantage of this variety is that it does not need to be watered often, otherwise it can get sick and stop producing crops. Ripens a few days earlier than other felt cherries.
Productivity: 10 kg. from 1 bush
Weight: 3.5 - 4 gr.
Ripening: July 10 - 15
Advantages: resistant to coccomycosis, high winter hardiness, very good yield.
Flaws: does not tolerate transportation well.

Anniversary

The variety was bred by crossing the varieties Ogonyok, Leto, Krasnaya Sladnaya and received a high production rating. Tree of medium size 1.7 m tall. Cherry deep burgundy. Own-rooted seedlings begin to produce a crop for 3 years, grafted after 2 years. Anniversary blooms on May 20 - 25, and ripens around July 18. After harvest, immediate processing is recommended.
Productivity: 8 - 9 kg. from 1 bush.
Weight: 3.5 gr.
Ripening: 16 - 20 July.
Advantages: semi-dry separation of fruits, precocity, does not need frequent watering, tolerates frost well, excellent taste, high yield.
Flaws: does not tolerate transportation well.

Triana

In the photo, felt cherry Triana.

Bred by crossing varieties Pink and Red. It is easy to harvest from this variety of felt cherry, since its height is no more than 1.3 meters. The bush is elongated oval. Flowering begins in mid-May. Cherry is large 3.7 - 4 g, oblong, has a pink color. It is considered one of the best varieties in terms of yield. The pulp is tasty, sinewy, poorly separated from the stone.
Productivity: 10.5 kg. from 1 bush.
Weight: 3.5 - 4 gr.
Ripening: July 20 - 26
Advantages: good productivity, frost resistance
Flaws: does not tolerate long transportation

Darkie

Dense, undersized bush 1.2 meters high, oval leaf, slightly concave. Cherries are round, small only 2.5 gr. have a subtle pleasant aroma. The color of the fruit is red to dark burgundy. As with all varieties of felt cherries, poor transportability. With frequent rainfall, it can be subject to diseases of flowers and fruits. It is characterized by precocity, drought resistance. Has a dry break.
Productivity: 7 kg from 1 bush.
Weight: 2.5 - 2.7 gr.
Ripening: 15 - 25 July.
Advantages: decorative appearance, sweet taste.
Flaws: low yield, small size of cherries.

Gorgeous

A low tree about 1.3 m, with an oval wide crown. This variety of felt cherry has large fruits, weighing up to 3.5 grams, the skin is covered with hairs almost invisible to the eye, rich red in color, the flesh is dense and juicy. Does not tolerate transportation well. The tree is able to bear fruit for about 16 years. It tolerates harsh Russian winters well. From this variety of felt cherries, delicious preparations for the winter are obtained.
Productivity: 10.5 kg from 1 bush.
Weight: 3.5 gr.
Ripening: July 20 - 30
Advantages: high yield, good taste.
Flaws: does not tolerate transportation well.

Felt cherry, which has synonyms - Chinese, fluffy, belongs to the genus of small-fruited cherries. She is very decorative. Her homeland is Central China, where she, being very plastic, was cultivated.

In the future, cherry felt (Cerasus tomentosa Wall.) transferred to the fruit growing of Northern China, Korea, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and the Russian Far East. In the European part of our country, it is acclimatized.

Culture features

Felt cherry is a bush, less often a tree up to 3.5 meters high. It is frost-resistant, withstands temperatures down to -40 ° C. However, her winter hardiness is only average, as she suffers greatly from thaws.

This plant is photophilous, does not tolerate shading. Felt cherry is drought-resistant. In the conditions of the middle zone and the North-West, it is short-lived, here its maximum life expectancy is about 20 years, but usually it rarely lives more than ten years. Old bushes must be replaced in a timely manner.

Its root system is superficial, located at a depth of up to 35 cm. Branching is strong, the crown is dense, wide-spread, oval, up to 2.5 m wide. The branches are numerous, straight, rough. The bark on them is dark gray or gray-brown.

Shoots are greenish or greenish-brown. The leaves are small, strongly wrinkled, oval, on short petioles, shaped like elm leaves, but much smaller, felt-pubescent below; in autumn they turn yellow-orange.

Felt cherry begins to bloom 2-3 days earlier than ordinary cherry, simultaneously with the blooming of leaves. It blooms profusely, in our climate - from the end of May, up to two weeks. Flowering bushes are unusually picturesque, they look like huge bouquets. Flowers solitary or double, very numerous, pale pink or white, fragrant, on very short (2-4 mm) pedicels, up to 2.5 cm in diameter, rich in nectar, fragrant with honey aroma, attract a lot of bees. And, very importantly, they withstand frosts down to -3 ° C, but for safety reasons it is still more expedient to plant late flowering forms in the garden.

Felt cherry is very fast-growing and fruitful. With seed propagation, it begins to bear fruit from the fourth year of life, and with cuttings - from the third, on the growths of the previous year and bouquet twigs. The average yield from a bush is 4-5 kg.

Fruit color - from yellowish-light pink to dark red and dark cherry, almost black. They are spherical or egg-shaped, with a diameter of 10-18 mm, very convenient for collection. Their taste is pleasant, refreshing, from sweet to sour; it is less acidic than that of the common cherry. The taste of these fruits is more reminiscent of cherries, they ripen in late July - early August. Their average weight (with a stone) in selected plant forms is 1.5-2.5 g, and in some cultivated varieties it even reaches 5 g. The flesh is pink, juicy, tender. The stone is small, oblong, smooth; weighing 0.1-0.25 g, which is 8-13% of the weight of the fetus, is poorly separated from the pulp.

The chemical composition of fruits: sugars up to 10%, organic acids - 0.3-1.4, fiber - 0.5, pectins - 0.4%. Vitamins contain C (11-32 mg%), A, E, B1, B2, B3, B6, B9, PP.

The fruits are good for fresh consumption, as well as for making jam, compotes, juices, wine, jam and other homemade preparations. Their skin is thin, tender, not dense, because of this they are poorly stored and transported. Therefore, felt cherry is not widely used in industrial gardening. Another thing is in the farms of amateur gardeners, where these shortcomings play a secondary role. In horticulture, it can become one of the leading fruit crops.

Varieties of felt cherries

She does not yet have zoned varieties for Central Russia and the North-West. The only recommended variety for amateur gardening in all regions of the European part of the country is the Mechta variety. Far Eastern varieties, such as Rapture, Vostochnaya, Detskaya, Krasavitsa, Skazka, Smuglyanka eastern, Triana, Alice, Amurka, Pionerka, Ogonyok, Khabarovchanka and others, brought by cuttings and seedlings, cannot be introduced directly into the culture of the European part of the country. They will develop and grow quite badly.

However, felt cherry has a remarkable property: its seedlings, grown from varietal seeds, are exceptionally plastic, and in most cases acclimatize quite well, and most importantly, they largely retain the positive properties of the mother plant. Therefore, from the Far Eastern varieties, which, as already mentioned, are difficult to cultivate directly, it is worth importing and sowing seeds.

Growing seedlings from seeds

Before sowing, it is advisable to store the bones in a moist substrate so that they do not dry out. And if the seeds were still dry, they should be soaked for 4-5 days before sowing, changing the water daily. During spring sowing, a long-term and gradual stratification of cherry pits is required for a total duration of up to 130 days in a wet mixture of peat with sphagnum moss (1: 3). The first month - at a temperature of about + 20 ° C, then 40 days - at + 5 ° C, and after the cracking of the stones has begun, they should be further stored at 0 ° C.

To avoid all these troublesome operations, it is preferable to sow cherry seeds in felt autumn - in September - October. The seeding rate is 100 pieces of seeds per linear meter of the ridge to a depth of 2-3 cm and at the same distance from each other. Rows are placed at a distance of 20-25 cm from each other. Crops are watered and lightly mulched.

In the spring, weak seedlings are removed, leaving only strong ones, and then, when the 4-5th leaf appears, the plants are thinned out again at a distance of about 10 cm, leaving the best ones. A very good planting material is obtained when it is grown in film greenhouses. Seedlings, when they reach a height of 30 cm, are pinched for better branching. After that, they grow on the ridge for another year.

Planting seedlings

Seedlings are planted in a permanent place at two years old. It is better to plant in early spring, before bud break. The root neck of plants after shrinkage of the soil should be at ground level. The optimal placement during landing is 2.5x1.5 meters. It is better to plant felt cherries on mounds, in which planting pits are made with dimensions of 50x50 cm and a depth of 40 cm. When planting, the seedlings are shortened again - up to 40 cm, so that they bush better.

Vegetative propagation of felt cherry

Vegetative propagation of felt cherries is possible with green and lignified cuttings, horizontal layering, grafting, but only from those plants that have already acclimatized well.

The main method of propagation of cultivars is green cuttings. They are harvested in the first half of June, when young growths reach 15-25 cm, the shoots are cut into cuttings bearing 3-4 buds. The lower cut is made under the kidney, observing an angle of 45º, and the upper one is made horizontally, above the kidney. After that, the cuttings are placed for 12 hours in a growth stimulant solution (30 mg of heteroauxin per 1 liter of water). Then they are washed and planted in a greenhouse in washed or calcined sand, poured in a layer of 4-5 cm over rich soil. Rooting lasts up to 25-30 days, during which the optimal soil and air humidity is maintained in the greenhouse. The rooting rate of cuttings is about 80%. After that, the rooted plants are grown for another year in the greenhouse or by planting them in the garden.

lignified cuttings take root in 30-40 days. Layers are obtained according to standard technology, bending to the ground, fixing with hooks and sprinkling with earth one- or two-year-old shoots. After the formation of roots, they are separated and planted in a permanent place.

Varieties and forms of plants that are not resistant to underheating of the root collar are best grown by grafting them onto plum trees. It is better to graft in the spring, the most suitable methods of grafting are budding and improved copulation. Grafting should be done above the level of the expected snow cover, i.e. at a height of 0.7-1 m.

Choosing a place and soil in the garden

When placed in the garden, felted cherry bushes like to have protection from the withering cold winter winds on the north side. They also do not tolerate landing in low places. The self-fertility of the felt cherry is low, the bushes normally bear fruit only with cross-pollination. To do this, at least two or three different varieties or generative forms should be planted on the site.

It does not cross-pollinate with common cherries, does not interbreed, and does not even take root when grafted. Can cross with plum, cherry plum, sand cherry and apricot. In turn, it serves as a good low-growing stock for them. The felt cherry itself is also grafted normally. However, both her and the listed breeds have separate varieties and forms with low compatibility, which are poorly grafted onto each other, they form blonds and die off. This potential hazard must be taken into account.

Soils felt cherry loves light, rich, cultivated, well-drained, preferably sandy or light loamy, with a pH of 5.5–6. Acidic soils need to be limed. Clay and peaty soils are completely unsuitable for its cultivation. It does not tolerate a high level of groundwater and even a very brief flooding. And on overmoistened soils, its shoots do not have time to mature and freeze slightly.

After planting, the first years the bushes are almost not pruned, forming a crown of 10-12 branches, removing only dry, diseased, frail and thickening branches in the center of the crown. But every 4-5 years it is advisable to carry out rejuvenating pruning, in which completely cut or shorten old unproductive, poorly leafy branches, especially in the center of the crown, leaving replacement shoots. And the cuts must be immediately covered with garden pitch or plasticine. Without rejuvenating pruning, yields will fall rapidly in the future. Pruning is carried out in early spring, before bud break.

Feeding and control of diseases and pests

nitrogen fertilizers they are applied under felt cherries only in spring (20 g / m² of urea or ammonium nitrate), and phosphorus (15 g / m² of superphosphate) and potassium (20 g / m² of potassium chloride) - in the fall. When leaving, the soil under the bushes is not dug up, but only loosened.

Pests and diseases she is almost unaffected. An attack by aphids and scale insects is possible, and from diseases - a disease of moniliosis, spotting and gray fruit rot. She is resistant to coccomycosis.

In winter, felt cherry bushes often injure mice and hares, so appropriate pest protection is necessary. And in summer, birds willingly peck at ripened fruits. In addition, heavy rains during the ripening period can cause cracking of the fruit.

In years with wet autumn and frequent and long thaws in winter, when they alternate with frosts, it happens that the ends of the growths of the last year freeze slightly on the bushes and the flower buds die, so the next year's plants may be left without a crop.

A particularly dangerous type of damage is root collar underwarming., often occurring in winter with a thick snow cover covering unfrozen soil. And although the root system usually remains alive, the bush dies, since the felt cherry does not give root offspring. If the root collar has died only partially, offspring may appear on the surviving parts of it. But even then the bush will hurt for a long time and recover very slowly. Weakened, it often dies completely in subsequent winters.

It should be remembered that felt cherry prefers frozen soil and thin snow cover, so it should be planted in places with little snow. Additionally, in order to reduce the risk of underheating, at a distance of 15-20 cm from the root collar itself, in autumn it is advisable to rake the soil to a depth of 5-10 cm and fill the hole with coarse-grained sand. And even better - sand mixed in half with foam granules.

After winters with prolonged thaws, the drying of branches to varying degrees can also be observed in spring. In general, despite some shortcomings, and all fruit species have them, felt cherry is very promising for cultivation in horticultural areas of the North-West of the country. Therefore, every effort should be made to select the best forms of felt cherries, more adapted to our climate.

It is very fertile, blooms beautifully, is especially attractive strewn with bright red fruits, therefore, in addition to fruit growing, it can be used both as an ornamental culture and in landscape design. In it, it is especially good as a border shrub. Moreover, although it usually grows as a typical bush, for the sake of decorative purposes it can also be formed in a standard or semi-standard form.

Vladimir Starostin, dendrologist, candidate of agricultural sciences

Other materials about felt cherry:
G. Alexandrova.
Nikolai Khromov.
V. Stepanychev.

Now it is already difficult to imagine a Far Eastern garden without this cherry. In early spring, its slender, compact bushes from the base of the branches to the tops are completely covered with snow-white flowers. At this time, they resemble huge bouquets, attracting many bees with their aroma. Felt cherries are no less decorative in July, when branches loaded with garlands of bright berries bend to the ground. To taste, the berries are tender, juicy, pleasant taste. And after harvesting, felt cherry bushes still delight the eye for a long time with dark green leaves, which acquire a yellow-orange color after the first frost.

In appearance, the felt cherry differs sharply both from wild cherries and from all known types of cultivated cherries, especially from ordinary and steppe cherries. It grows in a small bush up to 2-2.5 meters high. The fruits are attached to the branches with a very short stalk. The leaves are small, noticeably corrugated, on the underside, as if covered with felt. Hence the name of the cherry - felt.

Systematic botanists classify the felt cherry as a subgenus of small-fruited, and within the subgenus as a section of the almond cherry. In the literature, this cherry is known under the names fluffy cherry, Chinese, Ando and Tomentosa.

The homeland of felt cherries is Central China, from here it came to Korea and Northern China, and then to the south of the Far East. Here it was discovered in the 30s by the famous breeder N.N. Tikhonov, who received the first varieties of felt cherry and its hybrids with sandy. But these varieties, bred in the south of Primorye, freeze slightly when planted in more northern regions.

I. V. Michurin received seeds of felt cherry from the Far East, who grew his own variety Ando. From I. V. Michurin, cherry seeds spread in a number of regions of the central zone of the former USSR, in Ukraine and the North Caucasus.

As a result of a long-term selection of felt cherry seedlings grown from seeds, winter-hardy and large-fruited forms were obtained, which became varieties: Amurka, Pionerka, Ogonyok, Khabarovchanka, Felt early, Rossiyanka and others.

From free pollination and re-pollination of hybrids of felt cherry with sandy, relatively large-fruited winter-hardy varieties were grown: Sandy-felt, Leto, Damanka, Voronezhskaya and a number of promising forms. Damanka, Voronezhskaya and Rossiyanka are now undergoing state variety testing. Forms with maroon fruits and dense pulp of sweet-leavened taste are distinguished. In each new generation, the plants carry less and less signs of sand cherries, their productivity increases and, most importantly, resistance to cherry pocket disease remains.

Felt cherry and its sandy hybrids were crossed with Ussuri plum, apricot, sweet cherry, common and steppe cherry. Ussuri plum crosses quite easily with felt cherry. Among the hybrids, vigorous, profusely flowering plants are distinguished, but with a mediocre yield. Fruits weighing up to 10 grams with red flesh and a sour taste resemble cherry plum. When sowing seeds from free pollination, seedlings of hybrids repeat their parents. This confirms the possibility of breeding a new type of stone fruit plant.

Felt cherry and apricot hybrids bloom normally, but do not set fruit.

When crossing felt cherries with sweet cherries, common cherries and steppe cherries, it was not possible to obtain seeds. As a result of back crossings - steppe cherry with felt cherry - abundant fruit ovaries were obtained, but seedlings grown from seeds turned out to be similar to steppe cherry.

Varieties of felt cherries and its hybrids with sand cherries come into fruition very early. Already one-year-old grafted seedlings form fruit buds, and in the second year after planting they can give a small harvest. Seedlings bear fruit in the third or fourth year. The yield is annual and stable over the years: the maximum yield is 20 kg per bush, the average is 5-8 kg. The most fruitful are Pionerka, Amurka, Ogonyok, Khabarovchanka, Rossiyanka. The mass of fruits from plants grown from seeds is from 0.5 to 2-3 g, varietal cherries - 3-4 g. The largest fruits are in the Leto variety (4 g). The fruits contain more than 12% dry matter, 8-10% sugar, 0.8-1.2% malic acid and 16-22 mg% vitamin C. They ripen from July 10 to August 5-10 and are kept on the branches for a long time . To taste, the fruits are sweet and sour (Khabarovchanka, Pionerka), sweet and sour (Spark, Amurka, Leto, Damanka, Rossiyanka) and sweet (Sandy felt). In color - light pink (Summer), pink (Khabarovchanka), red (Pionerka, Rossiyanka), dark red (Amurka) and maroon (Damanka, Peschanovoylochnaya).

Felt cherries are easily propagated by seeds, while repeating their qualities, and sometimes showing better signs in terms of large-fruitedness, yield, and fruit taste. This method is simple and accessible to any gardener, it is widely used in the Far East. Seeds are collected from the most productive and winter-hardy bushes with large fruits. The bones washed from the pulp are dried in the shade and stored until sowing in plastic bags in a cool room. In early September, the seeds are mixed with river sand. The best sowing time is 10-15 days before the onset of stable frosts.

Beds or ridges for sowing are prepared on highly fertile soils. Grooves are made across the ridge at a distance of 25-30 cm, in which seeds are laid out every 2 cm. Embedding depth - 2 cm. After sowing, the bed is sprinkled with a thin layer of sawdust, humus, peat or leafy soil. With good care, seedlings up to a meter high grow during the summer.

To preserve the biological and valuable economic properties of the felt cherry variety and its hybrids with sandy ones, they are propagated vegetatively: by rooting green and lignified cuttings, layering, budding and grafting. In collective partnerships, they are more often propagated by layering and budding. Seedlings of felt cherries are used as rootstocks, and less often of Ussuri plums, since cherry bushes grafted on plums turn out to be less winter-hardy and durable.

Cherry is propagated by layering and woody cuttings in the same way as blackcurrant. Annual or biennial shoots are bent into small grooves, pinned with hooks and lightly sprinkled with earth. Lignified cuttings of one to two years of age with three buds are planted obliquely into the soil, mulching on top with humus, peat or forest soil. Plant out in early spring, as soon as the soil thaws. By autumn, layering and cuttings form a powerful root system.

Grown seedlings in collective and household gardens are planted at a distance of 2 m between rows and 1-0.5 m between bushes. You can plant this cherry among vigorous fruit crops - apple trees, plums, apricots. The best planting time is early spring, before bud break. In autumn, seedlings are not planted, they are dug in.

Before planting, a mixture of organic and mineral fertilizers is applied: 8-10 kg of humus or composted peat, 50 g of superphosphate and 25 g of potassium salt and ammonium nitrate per plant. Planted in small holes, fertilizer close up when planting.

In low damp places, it is better to plant cherries on the hills, without a hole. The seedling is installed near the planting stake, the roots are spread over the surface and covered with earth taken from the row spacing. After planting, 1-2 buckets of water are poured under each plant. Caring for the planted seedlings, they systematically loosen the soil, remove weeds and water. In subsequent years, when tilling the soil, organic, mineral and lime fertilizers are applied. For each square meter of the trunk circle and strip, 5-7 kg of organic fertilizers, 70 g of phosphorus, 30 g of nitrogen and 20 g of potash are required. Felt cherry forms a bush naturally and does not require much shaping. All that is needed is light thinning of excess thickening, dead, damaged or frozen branches.

When fatty shoots appear inside the crown from dormant buds, rejuvenating pruning is necessary. Such pruning is also used when restoring the crown of frozen bushes, as well as every 4-5 years, to enhance the growth of bushes.

In the Amur Region and the northern regions of the Khabarovsk Territory, cherry bushes are bent down for the winter and lightly sprinkled with earth. Sometimes bushes are tied with paper, burlap, film and other materials. The snow covering the bushes reliably protects cherries from frost. In the European part of the country, where snow often falls on thawed ground, root collars may be warmed up. Therefore, it is useful to first remove the snow from the base of the bush, and after freezing the soil again spud.

In general, felt cherry is winter-hardy and adapts well to new conditions. It can grow and bear fruit on the territory from the shores of the Pacific Ocean to the Baltic and Black Seas.

Diseases and pests of felt cherry in the middle zone of the Non-Black Earth Region, including in the Moscow region, it is not observed, but in the Khabarovsk Territory they are found. Therefore, you need to know them in order to detect them in time and take appropriate control measures.

pockets- fungal disease. The fruit ovaries do not form stones and look like puffy sacs with bloom. Diseased fruits dry up on branches and disperse spores of the fungus.

Clusterosporiasis- small brown spots on the leaves. Affected buds do not bloom and secrete gum that is sticky to the touch. Sometimes such secretions appear on the affected shoots.

Moniliosis- wet fruit rot, which affects mature fruits. The fruits dry out and remain on the bushes until the next year, spreading the disease. Flowers darken in spring. leaves and annual shoots.

When these diseases appear in early spring, before bud break, the bushes are treated with 2-3% nitrafen or 5% iron sulfate. G1o "green cone" use 1% Bordeaux liquid or its substitute 0.3% copper oxychloride.

Concominosis felt cherry is not affected.

The Ando variety was bred by I. V. Michurin, he worked on this variety from 1912 to 1923, having completely completed its variety testing by 1928. Translated from Chinese into Russian, Ando means mountain cherry. From here, apparently, the whole agricultural technology of this cherry follows. She does not like groundwater close to the surface, her root is prone to wetting and damping. Requires planting in high places, without deepening the root neck. For amateur gardeners, it is better to plant it on mounds or high beds with grooves to drain excess water.

Felt cherry likes soil that is breathable, non-acidified (ph 6-6.5), so it must be limed every five years. The experience of gardeners near Moscow has shown that when growing felt cherries on heavy clay soils, a more voluminous planting pit (at least 50 X 50 X 50 cm) or a trench filled with a light, nutritious earth mixture (ventilated peat, sand, rotted manure or compost in equal parts). Seedlings are planted at a distance of two meters, without deepening the root and root neck, they are placed on top of a pit or trench and covered with an earthen mixture.

The plant does not give root shoots and does not litter the garden, its roots almost do not go beyond the projection of the crown of the bush, which is very helpful for amateur gardeners with a dense planting. For better cross-pollination, the same types of cherries are planted nearby; felted cherries do not cross with ordinary cherries.

Cherry felt Ando well tolerates pruning. By forming seedlings, you can grow bushes less dense, with stronger main branches and powerful new shoots that will ensure active growth and yield. Felt cherry begins to bear fruit in the third year. In the seventh or eighth year, you have to thin out the bush, which contributes to better sunlight and air exchange, which means that it not only increases the yield, but also protects against pests and diseases. For the same purpose, the bushes need annual sanitary pruning. Anti-aging pruning allows you to extend the fruiting of cherries up to 20 years. If you cut the felt cherry for reverse growth “on the stump” (above the root neck), many shoots from 1 to 1.5 meters high appear from the dormant buds of the root neck. Their number, so that the bush does not thicken, is regulated by pruning weak shoots, leaving stronger ones.

After flowering, during the formation and filling of fruits, it is good to give liquid mineral dressing with trace elements (1 tablespoon per 10 liters of water). In the middle of summer, bright appetizing fruits will appear on the cherry, tightly touching each other. Even old and skeletal branches bear fruit, where the fruits are formed from bouquet buds. At this time, you can not pass by this wonderful tree, so as not to reach out and enjoy delicious fruits.

Felt cherry deserves to be placed in every garden and grown along with ordinary cherries, further enriching our gardens with this beautiful, frost-resistant, productive, disease-resistant crop.

Felt cherry jam. The fruits are sorted, washed. take out the bones. Sugar is poured into a bowl for cooking jam and the juice formed from peeled cherries is poured. Water is not added. Sugar is allowed to boil and dissolve, then fruits are placed in hot sugar syrup and boiled until tender.

For 1 kg of peeled fruits - 1 kg of sugar.

Compote. The sorted, washed fruits are laid out in clean hot jars and immediately poured to the top with boiling sugar syrup (400 g of sugar per 1 liter of water). The jars are covered with sterile hot lids, rolled up and turned on their side to cool. Store in a dark place for no more than 8 months, if the compote is with bones.

Jam. Prepared and pitted fruits are boiled with sugar to a thick consistency, stirring all the time so as not to burn. Hot jam is laid out in heated, steamed glass jars. When the jam has cooled, the jars are closed with plastic lids or parchment and stored at room temperature.

For 1 kg of pitted fruits - 200-300 g of sugar.

Cherry in sugar. Prepared and pitted fruits are poured into an enamel bowl with sugar and kept, stirring slightly, until it is completely dissolved. Then they are transferred to sterile glass jars and closed with plastic lids or parchment. Store in a cool place.

For 1 kg of pitted fruits - 2 kg of sugar.

Stuffing for pies and dumplings. Prepared and pitted fruits are placed in a colander. When the juice drains, sprinkle with sugar and stuff pies or dumplings. You can bake an open pie with such a filling.

Planting felt cherries

Warmed gentle slopes with light, well-drained soils - loamy, sandy and even sandy are most favorable for cultivation of felt cherries. Plants are planted with a distance in a row - 2-2.5 meters, between rows - 3-3.5 meters. The size of the planting pits, the doses of organic and mineral fertilizers during planting and subsequent care are the same as for local types of cherries.

Reproduction of felt cherries

The valuable properties of the felt cherry include the inheritance by most of its seedlings of the properties of the parental form, which determines the evenness of the offspring during seed reproduction according to economically valuable traits. This allows it to be propagated in the simplest technique and at no additional cost in the way - by seeds that are taken from the best varieties or seedlings. Stratification of seeds is carried out in the usual way: in sand, peat 90-100 days before sowing. Seed propagation is easy to combine with breeding: first, seeds are collected from the most economically interesting bushes, and then even more interesting seedlings are selected in the offspring.

It is also possible to reproduce by green and lignified cuttings, grafting, as well as layering.

Varieties of felt cherries

The study of felt cherry as a new fruit plant was carried out primarily in the Far East. The Far Eastern Research Institute of Agriculture (Khabarovsk) created the first varieties of this type of cherry. We present a description of some of them.

Twinkle. The fruits are quite large (weight 2.8 grams), rounded-angular, red. The flesh is pink, thick, sweet-sour, pleasant to the taste. Ripens in early July. The yield is annual, steadily plentiful. Relatively winter-hardy.

Khabarovsk. The fruits are large (weight up to 3 grams), rounded flattened, pink, sweet and sour, pleasant to the taste. Fruiting is plentiful, winter hardiness is high.

Pioneer. The fruits are quite large (weight 2.8 grams), rounded-angular, unequal-sided, bright red. The pulp is thick, pink, sweet and sour. Ripens at the end of July. The bush is vigorous, compact.

Amurka. The fruits are large (weight up to 3 grams), round-oblong, dark red. The pulp is liquid, sweet-sour. Ripens in mid-July. The bush is vigorous. Winter hardiness is high.

Sand and wool. An interspecific hybrid obtained from cross-pollination of a hybrid of sand cherries with felt cherries and again with the same species. The fruits are medium-sized (weight 1.5-2.5 grams), maroon or almost black. The flesh is dark red, thick, sweet or fresh. Ripens in early August. According to the main features - the structure of the bush, branching, size and shape of leaves, fruits, the hybrid occupies an intermediate position between the original species. Valuable quality - its resistance to the "pockets" of cherries and klesterosporiosis - diseases characteristic of felt cherries. The bushes are more vigorous than felt cherries. Winter hardiness is high.

Summer. The largest of this type of varieties (weight 4 grams). Obtained from the repeated pollination of Sand felt felt cherry. Fruits are round-oblong, unequal-sided, light pink. The flesh is pink, thick, sweetish-sour. The fruits ripen in late July - early August, remain on the bushes without falling off, almost until the end of August. The bush is medium in size, compact. The yield is moderate.

Damanka. Obtained by sowing Sand-Foil in the third generation. Fruits of medium size (weight 2.3 grams), rounded, slightly angular shape, maroon, almost black in color. The pulp is thick, juicy, with a pleasant sweet-sour taste. In terms of taste - the best of this type of variety. The fruits ripen in mid-June. The yield is average. The bush is upright, compact, vigorous.

Cherry sandy (bessey). This cherry is native to North America. Here, in the wild, it grows on the sandy banks of mountain rivers, the dunes of the Great Lakes, for which it got its name. It is also known under the Latin name as Bessey's cherry, which corresponds to the name of its discoverer, the American botanist C. Bessey.

Sand cherry is a small, up to one meter tall, shrub of the most diverse form: from compact upright to typical stlanets. It is remembered for its unusual leaves: narrow, like a willow, whitish-greenish in color, leathery, even harsh to the touch. The attention of fruit growers was attracted by the extraordinary resistance to adverse growing conditions, combined with completely edible fruits. Fruits from 1 to 5 grams, round or oval, black, brown or even greenish-yellow in color; sweet, with low acidity. Unfortunately, they often have a very tart, even astringent taste, which is why they are used mainly for processing. At the same time, there are forms with fruits that are quite suitable for fresh consumption. Ripening occurs in Siberia from the beginning of August, in the south - from the second half of July. A feature of fruiting is the non-shattering of fruits even when they are fully ripe: if they are not harvested, they dry out on the bushes and, by the way, improve in taste.

Sand cherry is very fast-growing: its seedlings begin to bear fruit already in the 3rd year after sowing. Harvest - up to 8-10 kilograms from a four to five-year-old bush. Due to the precocity and productivity, the plants age quickly, so it is advisable to keep them in the garden for no more than 8-10 years. It is self-infertile, so it is better to plant several copies. Easily propagated by seeds, green and woody cuttings. Seeds are stratified for 4 months at a temperature of 1-5°C.

The extraordinary vitality of the sand cherry is explained by the conditions of its growth in the wild. Its origin from North America already testifies to frost resistance, and its confinement to sands indicates undemanding to soils and drought resistance. Sand cherry tolerates temperatures down to -40°C without much damage. And if it is damaged during the winter, it is easily restored. It is distinguished by increased winter hardiness of flower buds, which, as you know, is lacking in cultivated varieties of cherries.

Sand cherry is one of the few fruit plants that can grow in the unusually harsh conditions of Yakutia. That is why this plant is the most promising for the northern regions and it is no coincidence that Siberians became the pioneers of introducing it into culture - the Botanical Garden of Tomsk State University. These first steps were taken at the beginning of the century. In the 1930s, sand cherries were studied in scientific institutions, and from here, as was the case with other new fruit crops, it spread through amateur gardens, primarily in Siberia and the Far East. This cherry is especially good in the steppe and forest-steppe zone of the Altai Territory and worse, due to the lack of summer heat and greater moisture, in its forest zone. With the development of virgin lands in Altai and in the virgin land, for example, in the Pavlodar region, its industrial plantations were even created. This cherry attracts the attention of experimental gardeners from the middle lane.

And yet, even with such a promising start, sand cherry did not become a new fruit crop. The main reason is the mediocre taste of the fruit and the warming of the bark on the root collar in snowy winters.

To be or not to be a sand cherry in our gardens depends on the success in creating its varieties. While they are not. In general, this cherry was somehow unlucky with selection. In our country, it began repeatedly, but at the stage of selection of selected forms each time it stopped. A small amount of such work is now being carried out at the NIISS named after M.A. Lisavenko. But the great variety of its plants in terms of fruit quality, bush type and other economic and biological characteristics indicates the prospects of its selection. Gardeners-experimenters can also provide scientists with great help in this work. The path here is the same as for other new fruit crops - the selection of the best forms, sowing seeds and growing seedlings on a high agricultural background. The main attention in the selection should be paid to resistance to frost, winter desiccation, damping off, late flowering, self-fertility, yield, size and taste of fruits. And one more feature: it is important that the pulp of the fruit does not liquefy when ripe.

The sand cherry is probably the only fruit plant around which scientific disputes regarding the exact botanical affiliation still do not subside: some scientists consider it a cherry, others a plum. And this confusion is not accidental, because in the nature of this plant there is something similar to both cherries and plums.

The fact that this plant is more plum than cherry is evidenced by its easy crossing, while giving prolific offspring with many types of plums. From such crossing, scientists get the so-called plum-cherry hybrids, from which, for example, in America, a whole group of varieties was isolated - Opata, Sapa, Beta, Miner. These varieties can be found in plantations of research institutions and experienced gardeners. Their value is in the combination of rather high taste qualities of fruits with unpretentiousness to growing conditions, unusual precocity and yield. In our country, such varieties were obtained in Ussuriysk - Novinka, Utah, Avangard, Kroshka. More winter-hardy plum-cherry hybrids were obtained in Krasnoyarsk. These are Chulym - a natural semi-stubble with fruits of a good sweet taste and Pchelka - a semi-shrub with fruits of a good sweet and sour taste.

Plum-cherry hybrids and sand cherries require an elevated, well-drained site. In low areas where a lot of snow accumulates, they die from overheating. This negative property of sand cherries and plum-cherry hybrids is especially strong in the middle lane.

Experienced gardeners know that what crosses well, grafts well. Therefore, it is no coincidence that scientists have led a search in the use of sand cherries and as a rootstock for plums. It turned out that varieties of Ussuri, Canadian, American plums and, of course, plum-cherry hybrids develop well on it. Varieties of homemade plums feel satisfactory. In the same way, the root stock of varieties of the Far Eastern apricot, felt cherry, blackthorn, and peach is assessed on this.

This stock is good for many: it is both winter-hardy and drought-resistant, but there are also negative sides to its use - abundant growth of shoots at the root collar, insufficiently elastic bark, which makes grafting difficult, due to the superficial location of the roots, their weak “anchoring”, leading, especially in windy weather, to the fall of trees. Therefore, scientists are looking for forms devoid of these negative properties. One of the promising ways is to obtain forms from crossing sand cherries with plum species that have qualities valuable for rootstocks: resistance to aging and chlorosis. Practice shows that in this case it is better to use cherry as a mother form.

Sand cherry has not yet become a new fruit crop, but this rather indicates an inattentive attitude towards it, rather than its potential, which can and should be revealed by man. Recommended for creative and limited consumer gardens.

(Shrubs and semi-shrubs)

Yaroslavtsev E.I. etc. Your garden. - 2nd ed., revised and additional. - M.: Agropromizdat, 1992. - 317 p.: ill. ISBN 5-10-002199-3

Felt cherry is native to Southeast Asia, where it grows naturally. In the Russian Far East, felt cherry is still considered a cherry, and its ungrafted seedlings can be found in every garden. However, as a fruit crop, felt cherry is more recognized in the gardens of Europe and North America, although it got there only in the middle of the 20th century.

In the European part of Russia, it appeared thanks to Ivan Vladimirovich Michurin, who acclimatized seedlings and brought out the first large-fruited form of Ando.

Felt cherry in the garden is:
early fruiting and ripening 1-1.5 weeks earlier than ordinary cherries
increased winter hardiness and frost resistance
decorative and stable annual harvest
resistance to coccomycosis
absence of root suckers.

Sweet juicy fruits are especially loved by children, they ripen early - in early July and are easily accessible on low bushes.
Felt cherry is very fast-growing. Grafted one-year-olds begin to bear fruit in the 2nd year after planting, and seedlings grown from seeds - in the 3rd-4th year of life.

The average yield of an adult bush is about 8 kg, but with good care you can get much more. Fruiting annual, on annual shoots. Gives good yields for 10 years.

The fruits of felt cherries are good fresh and for processing into jams, syrups, juices, compotes.
They are useful in anemia and cardiovascular diseases. Calm the nervous system. In folk medicine, they are used as a diaphoretic, antipyretic, cold and laxative, in addition, they increase appetite and have antiseptic properties.

According to the flowering period, felt cherry varieties are divided into early, medium and late flowering. In places where return frosts are possible, early-flowering varieties should not be planted. For example, for the Moscow region, where flowering begins in the first decade of May, late varieties are preferred.

In years with a long warm autumn, the growth of one-year-old shoots is delayed in felt cherries and they do not have time to fully mature. The unripe parts freeze slightly or die from winter desiccation, but this does not have a great effect on the vegetation and yield of the entire bush.

Felt cherry is very weakly affected by clusterosporium and is resistant to coccomycosis. And this disease is just a scourge of common cherries, because of it, up to 80% of the crop often dies.

The best varieties of felt cherries

TRIANA. Winter-hardy, mid-season, self-fertile variety. Bush of medium size. The fruits are broadly oval, dark pink, weighing up to 4 g. The average yield is about 10 kg per bush> Resistant to fungal diseases.

PRINCESS. Mid-season, winter-hardy variety. Bush about 1 m high, with a wide oval crown. During the fruiting period, it is strewn with bright pink shiny large cherries weighing up to 4 g. Yields up to 10 kg per bush. The fruits are juicy, tasty, rich in vitamins.

CHILDREN'S. Winter-hardy variety of early ripening. Bush of medium size. The fruits are round, bright red, weighing 3-4 g, sweet. Resistant to fungal diseases.
AUTUMN VIROVSKAYA. A variety of medium ripening, drought-resistant and winter-hardy. Bushes up to 1.8 m high with a spreading wide oval crown. Fruiting is plentiful. The fruits are bright, shiny, dark red, almost burgundy, weighing about 3 g. The taste is sweet and sour, the pulp is juicy. Disease resistant.

NATALIE. A beautiful cherry with a wide oval crown about 1.8 m high. During the fruiting period, the branches are strewn with ruby fruits, effectively contrasting with dark green, wrinkled, heavily pubescent leaves. Fruits weighing about 4 g, tasty, high in vitamins. The variety is early ripe, drought-resistant, winter-hardy, it is weakly affected by diseases.
OCEAN VIROVSKAYA. Late ripe variety. The bush is large, medium branching. Fruits of medium size, with dense pulp, sweet and sour, burgundy color. Up to 10 kg can be collected from a bush.
DAMANKA. A new late variety of felt cherry with large, tasty sweet and sour fruits of burgundy color. Productivity up to 10 kg per bush.

WHITE. Fully corresponding to the name, a one-of-a-kind albino hybrid. The fruits have a white skin, white flesh and even a white stone. They are small (about 2.5 g), sweet and sour. The variety is mid-season, without any special advantages, but decorative, grows well in the Moscow region and is interesting as an exotic.

Having picked up varieties of early, medium and late ripening, you can collect fresh fruits for a whole month and even longer.
Large selection in the online store of seeds and seedlings:

Growing felt cherries

Felt cherry is photophilous, for it choose an open sunny place with fertile, light, well-drained soil of neutral reaction. It does not tolerate acidic soils. If necessary, 1-2 years before planting, the soil is limed to bring the pH to 5.5-6.0.

On clay soils and in low places near felt cherries in winter, the root collar can support, and then the aerial part dies. However, it is possible to grow new shoots from the root.

Plants are drought-resistant, excess moisture has a bad effect on their growth and worsens overwintering. All varieties of felt cherries are winter-hardy and withstand frosts down to -30 °C. However, for flower buds in winter, temperature drops are dangerous when, after prolonged thaws, colds come again. Frosts during the flowering period can kill the flowers.

For high-quality cross-pollination, at least three varieties of felt cherries must be planted on the site. With ordinary cherries, despite the resemblance, it does not pollinate, as some gardeners mistakenly believe.

It is better to plant in the spring at the earliest possible time - before the buds swell, but it can also be done in the fall - at the end of September. The root neck of seedlings should be at the level of the soil surface. The distance between plants is about 2 m.

When caring for felt cherries, tree trunks are loosened to a shallow depth and then mulched. Its root system is superficial and is located in the soil at a depth of about 40 cm.

top dressing. Plants need annual feeding. After flowering, fertilizers are applied along the edge of the near-stem circles, each bush requires 5-7 kg of organic matter, 70 g of phosphorus, 30 g of nitrogen and 40 g of potassium. The efficiency of fertilizers is higher if the soil is limed every five years: 200-300 g/m2 of dolomite flour for autumn digging.

pruning. Crown formation begins immediately after planting. Annual seedlings are shortened to 40 cm above the soil surface. In two-year-olds, after planting, 5-6 main side branches are left; shortening them by a quarter, the rest are cut out. In the future, the bushes are regularly thinned out, and from the 7-8th year of life, anti-aging pruning is carried out.

Felt cherry is sometimes planted as a border along the paths, cutting the bushes at a height of 60-80 cm above the ground.

The main pests are aphids (cherry and plum) and scale insects. You can cope with them with the help of Fufanon and Aktellik.

Felt cherries are loved by birds and often have to be protected with netting or lutrasil.

The most common diseases are leaf spot, moniliosis, gray fruit rot. For
prevention and treatment practice early spring spraying with a 3% Bordeaux mixture and repeated before flowering - 1% or copper oxychloride.

reproduction

Felt cherry is propagated by seeds, layering, green and lignified cuttings, as well as grafting.
With seed propagation it retains all the main features of the mother plant and gives the most viable offspring. Seeds are harvested from productive and large-fruited specimens.
Before sowing in autumn, the bones are stored in moist sand or sawdust so that they do not dry out. In the second half of October, they are sown on a school bed to a depth of about 3 cm and the surface is mulched with peat.

The whole next season the seedlings are well cared for - watered, fed, weeded. If by autumn they grow to 60-80 cm, they can be used for planting. Weak seedlings will have to be grown for another year. In the greenhouse, it is guaranteed that you can get felt cherry planting material in one season.

More seedlings are planted in the garden than necessary, so that after the first fruiting, the best fruits in terms of yield and size are selected.

Green felt cherry cuttings perfectly rooted in a greenhouse with constant moisture. The best time for cuttings is the third decade of July, when the shoots are already half ripe. The cuttings are cut with three internodes and 3-4 leaves, the bottom leaf is removed during planting.
A mixture of river sand and peat in a ratio of 1:1 is used as a substrate.

When breeding lignified cuttings they are harvested in the second half of September from annual shoots with a thickness of at least 0.5 cm. The length of the cutting is 20-22 cm.
The cuttings are tied in bunches and stored until spring in the basement, half buried in wet sawdust or sand. In the spring, before planting, they are soaked in solutions of growth regulators that promote rooting (heteroauxin 150 mg / l or indolylbutyric acid 30 mg / l). Grow cuttings in a greenhouse with regular moistening and ventilation.

Reproduction by horizontal layering exercise in the same way as currants and gooseberries.
Valuable varieties are propagated by grafting, mainly by budding. Felt cherry can be grafted onto its own seedlings, as well as Ussuri plum, blackthorn, cherry plum. Vaccinations for common cherries, steppe cherries and sweet cherries are not successful. The optimal time for budding is the end of July - the beginning of August. The cuttings are grafted onto the bedbug stock VVA-1, plum and apricot seedlings.

Long awaited harvest

Harvest cherries as they ripen without stalks. Already ripe, they may not crumble from the branches for a month and not lose consumer qualities, but plucked ones deteriorate very quickly even in the refrigerator.

That is why felt cherries are not sold in markets and shops. It has to be processed immediately.
The stone is small, poorly separated from the pulp. Less sugar is used for jam from this berry than from ordinary cherries.

According to the newspaper Priusadebny Vestnik