History of selection
Many varieties of edible honeysuckle have been bred in Russia, one of which is the Vostorg variety. The merit of the selection belongs to the northernmost and only nursery in Western Siberia - FSUE "Bakcharskoye", where honeysuckle is considered the leading crop of the economy.
Work on its selection has been carried out since 1964, and in Russia today Bakcharskoye has the largest plantation of this crop - about 50 hectares. Delight is the newest honeysuckle variety bred at the Bakcharskoye Federal State Unitary Enterprise. In 2012 it was transferred to State variety testing. Along with this variety, the varieties Ussulga, Blue Cliff, Uslada, and Lavina are being tested.
Features of fruiting
Flowering and fruiting of honeysuckle begins early, at the age of three. In the first year, about 1.3 kg of dark purple fruits are collected from the bush. At the age of 6-15 years - maximum yield, up to 5.5 kg.
The berries begin to be picked in June, they ripen together, which facilitates the harvesting process. The shedding of fruits of the Vostorg variety, according to the description and reviews, is average. You need to start picking the fruit when the berries turn dark blue.
Botanical description
Honeysuckle is a berry shrub (Lonicera caerulea) member of the Honeysuckle family that grows without much support in temperate and cool zones in the circumpolar regions of the northern hemisphere. The crop is known as honeysuckle in Russia, haskap in Japan, and Honeyberry in English-speaking countries.
Did you know? Honeysuckle received its Latin
name Lonicera from the name of the 16th century German physician and botanist Adam Lonicer, who described this species in his works.
Edible blue honeysuckle is the precise name for the species in general, and is listed as an official food in the EU under the name "haskap" by order of the European Commission.
Characteristic
Delight is an early ripening variety with simultaneous ripening of berries. The ripening period is 70 days after pollination (May-June). The bush is vigorous, sparse, oval-shaped crown. Height - 1.7–1.9 m, crown diameter - 1–1.5 m. Shoots are erect, flexible, light green. The annual growth is 60 cm. Old branches are brown, curved at the base. The wood is highly fibrous.
Sometimes sections of the bark on honeysuckle peel off, flake off and expose the branches, which is a feature of the culture. The leaves are opposite, arranged in pairs, oval, 3–8 cm long and 1–3 cm wide, light green with a waxy texture. The flowers are yellowish-white, bisexual, large, 12–16 mm long, tubular, slightly fragrant, appear in March. They are located in pairs in the axils of leaves or at the ends of branches.
Description and characteristics of the variety
The honeysuckle bush of the Delight variety, according to the description and reviews of gardeners, stands out among other crops with its strong growth and rounded shape. There are few skeletal branches, the crown is sparse and seems openwork thanks to the dark green leaves. Both the height and width of the plant are within 170 cm.
The fruits are deep purple with a thick waxy coating. The mass of spindle-shaped berries is about 2.6 g. Tasters rate the taste at 4.8 points. Edible honeysuckle berries of the Vostorg variety contain up to 8.9% sugar, so they taste sweet and sour, without bitterness. The fruits are somewhat reminiscent of blueberries and blueberries, fragrant with a pleasant aftertaste.
The fruit ripening period is the second ten days of June. Unlike other varieties and hybrids, the berries of honeysuckle hold on tighter and do not crumble as much. Fruits with thick skin are easy to transport and their presentation is not lost. The purpose of honeysuckle is universal. The berries are prepared into compotes, jam, ground with sugar or frozen fresh.
Attention! The harvest of the first years fluctuates within 2.5 kg per bush, as the plant matures - up to 5.5 kg.
Pollinators
The variety Vostorg is partially self-fertile. Since honeysuckle blooms in early spring, when there is no active flight of pollinating insects, to obtain high-quality pollination and, thus, a good harvest, several pollinating varieties with close flowering periods should be planted nearby.
Did you know? The traditional name of the honeysuckle plant,
"ha-shika-pu" in the language of the ancient Ainu (indigenous inhabitants of the Japanese islands) translates as "many gifts at the end of the branch."
The best pollinators for this variety are the Bakchar varieties Yugana, Silginka, Bakcharsky Velikan, Daughter of the Giant, Narymskaya, Roksana, Kamchadalka.
Landing Features
When planting honeysuckle on your site, you should know that the plant grows slowly, although already in the 2nd year it can bloom and produce several berries. At the beginning of development (the first 2 years), the plant strengthens the root system, the diameter of which usually exceeds the diameter of the crown. This must be taken into account when applying fertilizers and loosening.
Deadlines
Seedlings need to be planted during the plant's dormant period - early spring (March) or late autumn (November), in Siberian conditions - the end of September or the first half of October. The land should be suitable for cultivation, that is, not frozen or swampy.
You will be interested to know why edible honeysuckle does not bear fruit.
Container varieties can be planted with a ball of soil throughout the year, but avoid planting in hot or cold weather. The time frame for spring planting of honeysuckle is very short, since the plants bloom early, so it is best to avoid planting during this period.
Selecting a site, preparing holes
Honeysuckle is so unpretentious that it can grow in fairly deep shade and on all types of soil.
But to optimize the harvest, both in quality and quantity, it is advisable to choose the following areas:
- The soil should be moisture-absorbing, but well-drained and fertilized with organic matter.
- When grown in northern regions, a sunny place where the sun shines for half a day, preferably in the morning (partial shading is acceptable). In the south, protection from the sun is needed, since in direct sunlight the berries become smaller and the leaves may burn.
- Soil type: light sandy or medium loamy.
- The pH level of the soil is not critical - honeysuckle grows in a range from acidic to alkaline soils. But pH levels around 6.6 are considered optimal for berry crops.
- The site should be protected from the wind (better pollination and prevention of berry shedding) and not located in cold pockets and swampy lowlands.
The degree of illumination affects the speed of fruit ripening, their size and sugar content, and also minimizes the risk of fungal diseases. Very deep shade at the planting site leads to a lack of flowering and growth of green mass, and heavy and wet soil or dry places lead to a stunted and sickly appearance of the plant.
Features of growing the variety
Apricot Delight
Even novice gardeners can cope with growing honeysuckle Delight. The plant is unpretentious, but requires knowledge of certain nuances. Shrubs are planted both in spring and autumn. In the spring, planting work is carried out before the buds begin to bloom, that is, as soon as the snow melts. Experienced gardeners prefer to plant and propagate honeysuckle Delight from the end of September to the end of October.
To plant young bushes, choose a place that is well-lit and protected from drafts. Groundwater in the selected bed should not approach the surface closer than 1 meter.
Honeysuckle grows well in soils with neutral or low acidity. It is advisable that the roots are in the shade and that a sufficient amount of sunlight falls on the crown.
Honeysuckle Delight has a special life cycle. The plant emerges from dormancy very early (the leaves bloom by the end of March), and enters the dormant period by the end of July. This must be taken into account when planting or propagating shrubs. It is better to plan this work for September-end of October. In this case, with the onset of spring, honeysuckle will immediately begin to develop, build up green mass and root system. A distance of 1.5 meters is left between the bushes. Currants will be an excellent neighbor for honeysuckle, so they can be safely planted nearby.
Honeysuckle Delight is planted in a well-lit and protected from the wind place
Seedlings selected for planting should be 2-3 years old. A hole is dug under them with a diameter and depth of at least 40 cm (the exact size depends on the volume of the rhizome). The bottom is laid out with a layer of drainage, which is used as stones, tree bark or cut branches. Compost, ash and superphosphate are mixed into the soil. The hole is well watered, a small mound is poured in the center and a seedling is placed on it. The roots are carefully straightened and the hole is buried. The root collar is buried no more than 5 cm. The soil around the bush is well watered and mulched. To avoid slowing down the growth of honeysuckle after planting it on the site, do not trim the branches.
Proper care plays a very important role in obtaining a good harvest. Honeysuckle variety Delight loves abundant irrigation. Due to a lack of water, not only the taste of the fruit suffers, but its size also decreases significantly and unwanted bitterness appears. Honeysuckle needs watering throughout the growing season.
After harvesting, the shrub begins the process of forming a crop for the next season. Despite the moisture-loving nature of Honeysuckle Delight, it does not tolerate waterlogging and stagnation of water.
In the first 2 years after planting, the plants do not require fertilizing. Only after 3 years do they begin to add organic matter. Fermented plants, mullein or chicken droppings have worked well. They are applied before the buds begin to swell, during flowering and after the leaves fall. During the formation of fruits, wood ash must be added under the honeysuckle bushes.
Proper pruning is the key to good fruiting of Honeysuckle Delight
Shrub pruning deserves special attention. It lays fruit buds only on young shoots, therefore it is strictly forbidden to shorten them. An adult honeysuckle bush Delight should contain no more than 18 skeletal shoots, the rest are removed in the fall. From the age of 15, the plant reduces its yield, and at 20 years the shrub is already called old. To prevent the yield from falling for as long as possible, you should annually remove those shoots that did not bear fruit. Rejuvenating pruning is also useful for honeysuckle, which involves cutting off growing branches onto a stump in the summer. Very soon young shoots will grow there, which will begin to bear fruit next year.
Honeysuckle delight is resistant to fungal diseases, but preventive measures will not be superfluous. The shrub should be treated in a timely manner with Bordeaux mixture or Skor. Honeysuckle fruits can become a delicacy for birds and insect pests. In particular, aphids, leaf rollers, and willow scale insects can cause damage to the crop. To prevent this from happening, the plant must be treated with Fitosporin in a timely manner. Folk remedies include infusion of garlic or wormwood. It’s a good idea to plant calendula and marigolds nearby.
Experienced gardeners do not recommend propagating honeysuckle variety Delight with seeds. This technique does not allow preserving the varietal qualities of the plant. It is best to divide the bush, layer it, or cut green cuttings. In order to divide the bush, you should use an ax to cut down its part with 3 skeletal processes. The length of the rhizome is at least 20 cm. The separated part is immediately planted in a permanent place. It is important that at the time of division the mother bush is at least 8 years old.
Honeysuckle Delight is propagated by layering, dividing the bush or cuttings
It is easier for a novice gardener to propagate honeysuckle Delight by layering. To do this, the annual shoot is bent to the ground and sprinkled on top. After a year, it should form roots, after which the young plant can be cut off from the mother bush and planted in a prepared place.
Green cuttings for propagation are cut after the honeysuckle has faded. This happens around the end of June. The green shoot along with the heel is plucked and planted in a nursery with fertile soil to a depth of 5 cm.
Rules of care
Caring for the crop is not complicated and consists of optimal irrigation, fertilization as needed, seasonal and sanitary pruning, and prevention of pests and diseases. Honeysuckle Delight is moisture-loving, but at any age it does not like stagnant water, but prefers a slightly moist state of the root zone. During the first year, young plantings need regular watering to establish roots, but the top surface of the soil should dry out between waterings. Lack of moisture negatively affects the quality of berries, their crumbling and overall yield indicators.
Irrigation significantly increases fruit weight. Under honeysuckle bushes, around the root zone, it is necessary to lay a layer of organic mulch 5–7 cm thick. Mulching helps prevent the growth of weeds, maintain moisture and coolness, and improve soil fertility. Watering mulch and evaporating moisture increases the humidity around the bushes, which also has a positive effect on the development of the plant. In autumn, the mulch layer is increased to protect against frost.
Important! It should be borne in mind that too much nitrogen fertilizer causes rapid growth of green mass to the detriment of flowering and berry formation, as well as the growth of new shoots on the eve of winter cold.
If honeysuckle is planted in fertile and well-fertilized soil, then in the future it will grow actively without additional fertilizing for 2-3 years. In the spring, adding compost, humus, or low-nitrogen fertilizers stimulates flowering and replenishes the soil with nutrients. Slow growing plants can be fed again in early summer. In late autumn, a 2.5 cm layer of compost or rotted manure is placed under the mulch along the root zones of plants. Meat and bone or fish meal is a good feed additive.
Fertilizers are embedded in moist soil to a depth of 15–20 cm, where the bulk of the root system is located. Young plants only need to remove dead and damaged branches during the first 3 years. On adult bushes, weak shoots that thicken the crown, intersecting branches, and the tips of young shoots are pruned, which helps to increase flowering on the lateral parts. For the purpose of rejuvenation, old bushes 15–20 years old should be cut to a height of 30 cm from the ground. New shoots will appear in the spring, but the season's harvest will be lost.
Planting and care
The crop is planted in a sunny area, otherwise the honeysuckle yield may be reduced. Delight should be planted next to a fence or other hedge. Structures that protect plants from the wind have a beneficial effect on the condition of the bushes. Edible berry bushes do not grow well in areas with stagnant water.
Plants are placed in neutral or slightly acidic soil, loamy and sandy loam soils. The gardener has at least 2 seedlings of different varieties on the plot, since honeysuckle needs cross-pollination.
We recommend that you read: Using barberry berries
Moisturize Delight moderately, 1-2 times every 7 days, pour 10 liters of liquid under one bush. Work is carried out in the morning or evening hours. After irrigation, mulch the soil to protect the bushes from freezing. The gardener applies rotted horse manure, pouring it next to the tree trunk.
Plants need high-quality care and produce a bountiful harvest if the seedlings grow in the sun. In the shade, a lot of green mass is formed, but few berries; they contain a small amount of sugar.
A strong root system is the key to long-term fruiting. Correct landing plays a big role. Seedlings are placed in loose, fertilized soil. The farmer adds 2-3 buckets of humus, 100 g of superphosphate, 500 g of wood ash to the ground. It is necessary to provide drainage if groundwater is located near the plantings.
Fertilizing with organic compounds is carried out annually: dry (humus) and liquid (mullein solution).
Harvesting and storage
Honeysuckle berries usually ripen in late May or early June, 4–6 weeks after flowering. Fully ripe berries are purple inside and have a complex blueberry-raspberry flavor with a hint of black currant. Fruits picked too early are more sour. When picking, try not to crush the ripe fruits. They can be picked by hand one berry at a time or shaken from the branches onto a cloth laid under the bushes.
We advise you to find out how long honeysuckle can bear fruit.
Harvesting is possible in one go due to the simultaneous ripening of the berries. Honeysuckle is great for fresh consumption and for making juices, jams or wine. It tolerates freezing well - can be stored in a freezer for up to 12 months without loss of nutritional and taste qualities.
Preparing for winter
Honeysuckle Delight, according to gardeners, easily tolerates the whims of northern weather and severe Siberian frosts, and its flower buds will withstand short-term spring frosts. For the winter, the bushes do not require additional shelter, but it is worth tying them to pegs and covering them with coniferous spruce branches as protection from mice and snow cover, which can break the branches.
Forest birds (bullfinches, waxwings), which flock to human habitation in winter, love to feast on fruit buds. To solve these problems, the bushes should be covered with nets. A mandatory procedure for preparing honeysuckle for winter is feeding with potassium and phosphorus fertilizers. During this period, nitrogen fertilizers are not used so as not to cause the growth of new shoots.
Video: preparing honeysuckle for winter
Plant care
Having correctly planted honeysuckle of the “Delight” variety, minimal plant care is required. It consists of such activities as: watering, fertilizing, loosening and protection from diseases and pests.
Watering and fertilizing
Unpretentious shrubs of "Vostorg" respond well to watering and fertilizing
The most important thing is to carry out these activities on time, otherwise they will not only not bring any benefit, but may also harm the plant. So, if the season is not rainy, then watering is carried out:
- early spring during flowering;
- during fruit filling;
- at the end of the season - at the end of August - beginning of September.
For young bushes, 2-3 buckets of water will be enough, and for adult plants, the norm for one watering is 5-6 buckets.
Feeding is carried out according to the same schedule. It should be taken into account that in the spring, honeysuckle requires fertilizers with a high nitrogen content, during the fruiting period, balanced complex formulations, and after fruiting, phosphorus-potassium fertilizers.
Advice! Wood ash is an excellent complex fertilizer. It contains a full range of substances necessary for honeysuckle during flowering and fruiting. This environmentally friendly fertilizer is used both for preparing infusions and solutions, and in dry form.
Loosening and weeding
"Vostorg" has a fairly shallow root system, so it is very important to monitor the condition of the soil under the bushes. It is better if the soil is freed from all kinds of vegetation, even cultural ones. It is easier to care for the soil under black fallow; it is enough to loosen it after rains and regularly free it from weeds
Loosen the tree trunk circle not deeply, trying not to damage the roots of the plant. Some gardeners replace loosening and weeding with mulching. It is important to remember that you cannot use roofing felt or black film for these purposes; this can lead to overheating of the root system or its damping out. The best for these purposes are straw, humus and wood chips.
It is easier to care for the soil under black fallow; it is enough to loosen it after the rains and regularly clear it of weeds. Loosen the tree trunk circle not deeply, trying not to damage the roots of the plant. Some gardeners replace loosening and weeding with mulching
It is important to remember that you cannot use roofing felt or black film for these purposes; this can lead to overheating of the root system or its damping out. The best for these purposes are straw, humus and wood chips.
Trimming
As noted above, shrubs of this variety are not prone to strong growth. Therefore, the pruning procedure is not carried out for the first 6-7 years. As plants age, dried, old branches begin to appear; they are removed in the autumn, when honeysuckle enters a dormant state. Dry and damaged branches are pruned to the level of healthy tissue.
Diseases and pests
The variety has good resistance to various fungal and viral diseases. But according to reviews from gardeners, in rainy years and during mass outbreaks of diseases, plants may suffer from powdery mildew. Therefore, as a preventative measure, before the buds swell in the spring, the bushes are sprayed with Bordeaux mixture. Such treatment will not affect the environmental friendliness of the crop, but will serve as excellent protection not only from various fungi, but also from insect pests.
In addition to insects, birds can cause significant harm to plants. Hungry birds peck not only ripe berries, but also swollen buds. In order to protect the bushes, they are covered with special nets or canvas from old curtains.
Reproduction methods
Honeysuckle does not produce shoots, so it is propagated by offsets, cuttings and seeds. In the case of propagation by offsets, annual shoots are tilted towards the ground, secured with a wooden pin and sprinkled with earth. After rooting, new shoots on the branch are separated and replanted. The grade is preserved.
The plant takes root easily from dormant stem cuttings about 10 cm long and with 2 buds. Cuttings can root in water or soil. After a good root system has developed, they can be planted in a permanent place in the garden. Young bushes begin to bear fruit after 2–3 years. Cuttings also preserve all varietal characteristics.
Honeysuckle seeds do not require special treatment before sowing , such as scarification or delamination, but the process is considered more labor-intensive and troublesome, and the plants will begin to bear fruit later than seedlings from cuttings. Reproduction of the crop by independently collected seeds leads to variability of the species.
Reproduction and shelter for the winter
Delight is propagated by seed only by breeders; this method is not used in everyday life. Gardeners divide the bush into layering or cuttings. Seedlings take root well when properly separated. You need to separate the bush as follows:
- choose a shrub over 8 years old. The nearest part is cut down with an ax, leaving at least 3 skeletal branches and a rhizome 20 cm long;
- The cuttings are planted immediately in the prepared soil in a permanent place.
You can propagate Delight by layering, it’s easier. Bend a healthy shoot to the ground and sprinkle it with soil. Within a year it will produce roots, and it can be transplanted to another place. In spring, honeysuckle is propagated by cuttings: lignified branches are cut in mid-March and planted at a slight slope. The buds cannot be buried; they must remain on the surface.
Honeysuckle winters successfully even in severe frosty winters. There is no need to cover the bushes. After fruiting, the bush continues to be watered. When the air temperature drops to almost zero, sanitary pruning is carried out: the remaining unfallen leaves and old diseased shoots are removed. The cut areas are filled with garden pitch. A thick layer of mulch, 4-5 cm thick, is laid on the ground. After wintering, when it gets warm, the mulch is removed and the honeysuckle is fed with nitrogen fertilizers.
Diseases and pests
The Delight variety is resistant to diseases and pests and is excellent for organic gardening. But violation of agricultural practices, infection from neighboring plants or weather conditions can cause infections. Careful observation of plantings will allow you to notice signs of damage in time and take appropriate measures.
Important! To maintain variety, you should buy honeysuckle seeds and seedlings from specialized nurseries, where you can get qualified advice on sowing and growing.
The most common problems are:
- Pests - aphids, mites, scale insects, fingerwings, leaf-eating insects (sawfly caterpillar, leaf miner larvae and fox moths). For destruction, insecticides and acaricides are used: Envidor, Actellik, Rogor-S, Confidor, Inta-Vir, Decis, Eleksar.
- Fungal infections - powdery mildew, cercospora blight, ramulariasis and rhesus mosaic virus. In case of disease, it is necessary to treat the plants with Fundozol, Topaz, Fitosporin, Tiovit Jet, copper or iron sulfate. However, rezuha mosaic cannot be treated. The bushes must be uprooted along with the roots and burned, and the area must be disinfected.
Shrubs should be regularly pruned to ensure good air circulation and problem parts of plants should be removed, and the remaining plant debris should be taken out of the garden or burned. Periodically, it is necessary to check the leaves and, if pests are detected, try to wash them off with water pressure or spray the bushes with tinctures of garlic, tobacco and pepper. .
To control pest infestations, try to use all available methods to reduce the likelihood of disease and insect damage. Many pest problems can be avoided by proper site selection , crop rotation, variety selection, soil cultivation and planting healthy, disease-free plants.
Important! When using chemicals during the fruiting period, use only organic biological products or folk remedies, because honeysuckle berries are consumed mainly fresh.
Having familiarized yourself with all the simple methods of honeysuckle agricultural technology and choosing the Delight variety to grow on your plot, you will be able to replenish your garden with valuable berry bushes and get high yields of the earliest berries in the season.
Description of the variety
Delight is the development of the Bakcharskoye horticultural enterprise. The agricultural company has long specialized in developing new varieties of fruit crops. In 2012, she introduced a new product - honeysuckle Delight. However, for certain reasons, the culture has not yet been included in the State Register, but this has not prevented its spread. The shrub has excellent frost resistance, so it can be grown throughout the country, including the northern part.
The bush is formed in a couple of years and reaches a height of 1.7 m. The shape of the crown is round, there are few skeletal branches, which gives it an openwork appearance. The leaves are dark green. Delight is planted in a prominent place, since the plantings have a decorative appearance, and landscape designers often use shrubs to decorate local areas. Like most varieties of honeysuckle, Delight is a self-sterile variety. For good fruiting, it needs pollinators with a similar flowering period. These are several varieties: Strezhevchanka, Silginka, Bakcharsky giant, Yugana, Daughter of the giant.
By the way, Afmora honeysuckle is also a common variety among gardeners.
Attention!
On the site you need to grow at least 3 additional pollinators within a radius of 1.5-2 m.
Delight begins bearing fruit 2 years after the start of cultivation and continues annually for 20-30 years. How long honeysuckle will live depends on planting conditions and further care. The bushes begin to bear fruit towards the end of June. When ripe, they do not fall off and stay on the branches for a long time. The skin of the berries is dense, so they are easy to pick, and when transported over long distances, they do not crush and do not lose marketability.
The fruits are large in size and spindle-shaped. The weight ranges from 1.5 to 2.6 g. The skin is dark blue, there is a strong waxy coating, the flesh is juicy and dark. The taste is sweet and sour, without bitterness. The tasting score is high: 4.8 points out of 5. The sugar content is 8.9%. Gardeners assure that the taste of the berries of Delight is somewhat reminiscent of blueberries and blueberries, the pulp is aromatic and very pleasant.
The purpose of the fruits is universal, they are suitable for everything: jam is made from honeysuckle, homemade tinctures and liqueurs are made, ground with sugar and frozen fresh. After defrosting, the fruits do not lose their attractiveness, completely retain their taste, and their content of useful microelements and vitamins does not decrease at all.
The productivity of the shrub reaches its maximum 4-5 years from the moment of planting. It is 4-5 kg per adult plant. Developing bushes bear less fruit - 2-3 kg per plant. When the crop reaches the age of 15 years or older, the yield may decrease, so to restore high yields, shoots are completely pruned. After the branches are renewed, fruiting occurs abundantly
Delight is rarely affected by viral and fungal diseases; sometimes the variety is attacked by insects. Treatments with insecticidal preparations help against pests.
Delight has many advantages:
- friendly return of the harvest in the early stages;
- large berries with good taste;
- early entry into fruiting;
- suitability for transportation;
- high yield;
- easy fruit picking (dry tear);
- unpretentious care;
- resistance to diseases and pests;
- cold resistance.
No serious shortcomings have been identified in Delight; the culture fully lives up to its name, since everyone who has encountered the variety speaks positively about it and recommends it for planting.
