Strawberry Polka - history of creation and features of growing a popular variety

Polka strawberries have been widely cultivated in many European countries since the 80s of the last century. The variety is considered highly productive and one of the best tasting berries; intended for amateur gardening, small and medium-sized commercial production using environmental (organic) technologies.

The variety is valued for its high productivity and excellent consumer qualities of berries.

We will talk about the advantages and disadvantages of the variety in the article and start with the main characteristics of the Polka strawberry:

History of Polk's Strawberries

Dutch strawberry varieties have always been famous for their high yields and good quality berries. Polk's strawberries are no exception. Resulting from the crossing of the Unduka and Sivetta varieties, Polka was used for many years as an industrial variety. But progress does not stand still - breeders introduce new varieties that displace the already tried and tested. This does not mean that Polk's strawberries are losing their position. On the contrary, for 4 decades now the variety has been successfully grown in farm and private gardens.

Polka strawberries have not lost popularity for 4 decades.

The shelf has proven itself well in the Baltic countries, Ukraine, Belarus, and central Russia. It can be grown in cooler regions, but in this case winter shelter will be a prerequisite.

Reviews from gardeners

Anatoly, 54 years old, Kamchatka

I plant two main varieties for berries for sale: Honey (the earliest) and Polka, which ripens after it. In our conditions, the berries turn out very tasty and beautiful. During transportation they do not wrinkle and do not leak juice. By the end of the harvest, however, they become smaller, but they are well taken for home preparations. The variety is excellent: unpretentious, productive and disease resistant.

Ivanna, 46 years old, Kharkov region

Of all the strawberries to taste, the old Dutch Polk variety remains in first place for us. A wonderfully sweet berry with a caramel flavor and slight sourness. It itself is a wonderful dessert and we eat almost the entire harvest at once. If you manage to make jam, the berries retain their shape well during heat treatment and become dark ruby.

Description of the variety

The Polki bush is not tall, only 12 cm, but due to its good foliage it looks powerful. The leaves do not grow spreadingly, which is why the plant has a compact appearance. The leaf blade is bright green in color, with a slightly glossy surface with a jagged edge. The petioles are slightly pubescent. Among the 3-lobed leaves, 4–5-lobed ones are sometimes found. The root system of the bush is powerful. Peduncles grow flush with the leaves. At first they grow straight, but under the weight of ripening fruits they gradually bend towards the ground. The flowers are large and white.

The shelf blooms with white flowers located on strong peduncles

The berries have a very beautiful shape, resembling a cone with a blunt tip. The fruits are large, their weight on average is 30–40 g, but the first ripened berries are even larger – 50–60 g. The pulp is pink, which becomes lighter closer to the middle; there are no cavities or voids inside the berries. The skin is thin, shiny, dark red.

Polka strawberries have a beautiful appearance, but become smaller towards the end of fruiting

Polk strawberries are prized for their excellent taste. Sweet notes are slightly diluted with sourness. The highlight of the variety is the caramel aftertaste and delicate aroma. Tasting score: 4.3 points out of 5 possible.

Characteristics of culture

1. Polka refers to varieties with an average ripening period. The harvest ripens in the second ten days of June, when the first wave of strawberries has passed. The fruiting period is long.
2. The yield cannot be called excellent, but it is certainly very good. Up to 1.5 kg of berries are harvested from 1 m2. One bush during the growing season brings 400–500 g. Subject to compliance with agrotechnical standards, this figure increases.
3. Regarding frost resistance, problems can arise when the temperature drops to -200C. But in shelter, strawberries will calmly survive the frost.
4. The shelf is famous for its drought resistance and perfectly adapts to high temperatures.
5. Powdery mildew, gray rot, and bud mite are not harmful to strawberries. Diseases of the root system and verticillium pose a danger to the variety.
6. The formation is very intense. Therefore, in order to give the bush strength to bear fruit, the rosettes are cut off. Only the required amount of planting material is left to renew the beds.
7. Thanks to the dense consistency of the pulp and damage-resistant skin, Polka tolerates transportation well.

A feature of the variety is its rapid degeneration. The life cycle of the bush lasts 4 years. The most productive years are the 1st and 2nd. Then the berry becomes very small. To get decent harvests, you need to replace old bushes with new ones.

Table: advantages and disadvantages

Strawberry Polka is one of the varieties that tolerate transportation well.

Video: Polka variety strawberries

Advantages and disadvantages

It's time to sum up the description of the variety. For the better, we note the following features of Polka:

• excellent caramel taste of berries;
• versatility of use;
• long-term, more than a month, harvest yield;
• preservation of shape during processing;
• stable yield, little dependent on external factors;
• resistance to heat and frost;
• high resistance to diseases and pests;
• good keeping quality and transportability of berries.

At the same time, there are also disadvantages that need to be mentioned in the conversation:

• increased mustache formation;
• tendency to thicken;
• requirement for frequent plantation renewal;
• chopping berries for the last harvest.

Landing

A rich harvest of Polka strawberries can only be obtained if a number of rules are followed when planting.

Selecting a location

In order for the berries to delight with a sweet taste, strawberries should be planted only in the sunniest areas. Ideally, they should have a south or southwest direction. A flat place is preferable, but a slight slope is allowed.

In the shade, strawberries will grow and throw out tendrils, but flower buds will not form, so fruiting will not occur in due time.

It is advisable that strawberries be protected from cold northern currents by dense plantings of bushes or a low fence. But at the same time, the area should be blown by a light breeze. This will help protect the plantings from fungal infections.

The place for planting strawberries should be very light

Low-lying areas where cold air accumulates and water stagnates are not suitable. The groundwater level is no closer than 60–80 cm to the surface. The best soils for strawberries are dark gray forest soils, chernozems, loams and sandstones.

Strictly avoid saline, limestone or marshy areas. If there are no others, try growing strawberries in raised beds.

Planting material

Properly selected planting material is the key to a high yield. When choosing seedlings, pay attention to the following points:

• the root must be well developed - branched and fibrous, at least 7 cm long;
• the rosette consists of 3–4 leaflets;
• leaves are bright green, without signs of disease or pest damage;
• the heart is not withered or rotten;
• the root collar is powerful, 0.5 cm in diameter, without spots or signs of rot.

Strawberry seedlings must have a powerful fibrous root and healthy leaves

Planting material is best purchased at garden centers where they grow high-quality seedlings. A properly packed root system will not dry out, and you will not be deceived with the variety.

Landing dates

For Polka strawberries, summer-autumn planting is more suitable. It is held from late August to early September. At this time it is still very warm, but there are no high temperatures that can quickly dry out the soil and destroy seedlings. In addition, strawberries planted at this time will have time to lay fruit buds and will delight you with juicy berries the next season.

But in regions with cold autumns, planting can be postponed until spring. The end of April - beginning of May is the most suitable period. Strawberries planted in soil heated to 10°C will quickly begin to grow.

It is preferable to plant Polka in the summer-autumn period.

Soil preparation

If you plan to plant closer to autumn, then a month before you need to prepare the site. For spring planting, you need to start clearing and digging up space for strawberries in the fall. But no matter what time the landing is planned, there must be one plan of action.

1. Strawberries love clean soils, so the area is thoroughly cleared of remnants of vegetation.
2. The soil needs to be dug up 30 cm deep. This is exactly the distance a strawberry root can go.
3. For digging, nutrients are added per 1 m2: rotted manure or compost - 6-8 kg, potash fertilizers - up to 30 g, superphosphate - from 60 to 100 g.
4. Before planting, the area is leveled by first loosening the top layer of soil.

After spreading the fertilizer evenly over the surface, dig the soil deeply

Compliance with crop rotation

It turns out that neighboring crops or predecessors can affect strawberry yields. Strawberries grow remarkably well after dill, parsley, radishes, carrots and legumes. Garlic planted between the beds will help repel pests. But you shouldn’t plant strawberry bushes after tomatoes, eggplant, peppers and potatoes (or in close proximity to them).

Which planting scheme to choose

For Shelf, a 2- or 3-line scheme is more suitable. This type of planting makes caring for plants and harvesting much easier. The distance between the bushes must be maintained at least 35 cm. Leave a space of about 50–60 cm between the rows.

Strawberries are planted in 2 or 3 rows

Step-by-step description of landing

For convenience, use a cord to mark future beds. In order not to measure the distance between the bushes each time, take a stick 35 cm long and use it to mark the planting sites along the cord.

1. To prevent the seedlings from experiencing stress, choose a cloudy day or evening for planting.
2. Dig a hole measuring 25x25 cm. The roots should fit freely into the hole.
3. If nutrients have not been added previously, add them to each hole and mix well with the soil so as not to burn the roots.
4. Pour water into each hole.
5. Shorten overgrown roots to 7 cm.
6. With one hand, hold the bush in such a position that the heart is flush with the soil. Using your other hand, pour soil into the hole. Lightly compact the soil around the bush.
7. After planting, gently tug the leaves. Properly planted strawberries should not be pulled out of the soil.
8. Water the plantings again. After waiting for the moisture to be completely absorbed, mulch the soil under the bushes and between the rows.

The heart of the strawberry bush should be level with the soil

When planting, make sure that the roots are positioned vertically downwards. The heart should be located strictly at soil level. If planted too deeply, the heart will fill with soil and rot, and if planted too shallow, the roots will quickly begin to become exposed and dry out, which can lead to the death of the plant.

Video: proper planting of strawberries

Basics of agricultural technology

Caring for Polka strawberries is not much different from other varieties, but due to cultivation in an annual crop and undemanding soil conditions, it is much simpler. The land can be cultivated minimally - add 5-6 kg of humus per 1 square meter for digging or before mechanized processing. m.

For your own consumption, Polka is planted in a square-cluster method, at a distance of 30-35 cm between the bushes. Then the variety can be grown in one place for several years - the size of the berries will decrease, but their total number and yield will increase. Farmers practice strip compacted planting.

The variety produces enough tendrils to renew the beds annually. If the whiskers are not intended for propagation, they are removed as early as possible so as not to weaken the bush.

Care for Polk strawberries is as follows:

1. Regular watering. The variety's resistance to drought is high, but the quality of the crop will suffer in the absence of irrigation. Strawberries especially need water during flowering and fruit formation. If the bushes are going to be left to produce berries next season, they need abundant watering in the fall (moisture recharging).
2. Young strawberries planted in spring do not need fertilizing until the end of fruiting if the soil has been filled with organic matter. When the Shelf is left for the next season, after picking the berries, the bed is fertilized with a mineral complex, and in early autumn with phosphorus and potassium. In the spring they are fed with nitrogen, and during mass flowering - with a complete fertilizer with microelements.
3. Strawberry plantings are loosened, weeded, and when the fruits begin to form, they are mulched.
4. When grown over several seasons, the beds are protected from frost.
5. They carry out preventive treatments against pests and diseases.

Strawberry Polka, due to its simple planting and care, ease of obtaining propagation material, attractive appearance and good taste, remains one of the main varieties for growing for sale. To grow a bountiful harvest, the beds will have to be renewed annually, but this is compensated by the undemanding nature of the soil.

Planting care

In order for the berry to please you with its taste and size, you need to properly care for the strawberries. There is nothing complicated about this, but you should not neglect the rules.

Watering

The shelf can easily withstand dry periods, but in this case there can be no question of a high-quality harvest. There will be few berries, they will not please you with their size, and also with their taste - the sourness will prevail. For the variety to show its capabilities, the soil in the plantings must be in a moderately moist state. Spring plantings especially require this. If the temperature inexorably creeps up in summer, you will have to water almost every day until the plants take root.

Strawberry bushes planted in autumn begin to be watered at the end of April. Irrigation frequency is once a week, water rate is 30 liters per 1 m2. At the end of summer - beginning of autumn, the frequency of watering is reduced by almost half.

The most important watering periods for strawberries:

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• during the period of ovary formation;
• at the moment of filling the berries;
• in the second half of summer, when the process of laying flower buds is underway.

You can water using a hose, directing it into the aisles. You should not pour directly under the bush, as the roots may be exposed and the bush will die. For watering, try to use warm water. You need to moisten the soil early in the morning or in the evening.

The most effective and economical is drip irrigation. It allows you to evenly saturate the desired areas with moisture and saves water. With this method of watering, the roots do not suffer, and water does not fall into the center of the outlet.

Drip irrigation of strawberries allows you to evenly saturate the desired areas with moisture and saves water

Weeding and loosening

Clean strawberries don't like weeds. Therefore, for Polka, weeding is one of the care items. By removing weeds, especially perennial weeds, you remove strawberry competition for nutrients and sunlight. In addition, you reduce thickening. But weeding must be done very carefully. You can simply pull out the grass between the rows, and if the weed has grown between the strawberry roots, it is better to cut it out with pruning shears. During the period of fruit set, strawberries should not be disturbed, so postpone weeding.

Loosening helps maintain normal gas and heat exchange in the roots. The procedure is carried out the next day after watering. This activity helps maintain suitable soil moisture and kills weeds.

The shelf likes the soil around it to be kept clean.

Mulching

To make caring for strawberries easier, experienced gardeners use mulch - straw, sawdust, pine spruce branches. It allows you to slow down the evaporation of moisture in plantings, reduce the frequency of weeding, and the berries, without coming into contact with the surface of the earth, remain clean and are less likely to rot.

Mulched strawberries have clean and healthy berries

Fertilizer use

Fertilizing affects many aspects of plant development, helps improve the quality of the berries and keeps strawberries healthy before the upcoming cold weather. If during the planting period the soil was filled with all the necessary elements, then in the coming season there is no need to feed Polka - excess fertilizer can have negative consequences.

Next year in the spring you need to apply the following fertilizers:

• 15 g ammonium nitrate;
• 30 g superphosphate;
• 10 g potassium salt.

To improve fruit set and increase their weight, it is useful to carry out foliar feeding with microelements (2 g of boron, zinc and manganese per 10 liters of water). The treatment is carried out in the evening to avoid burns to the leaf plates.

Shelf loves organics very much. It is natural ingredients that experienced gardeners prefer to add in the fall.

1. Solutions of bird droppings and manure are ideal as liquid fertilizers. But they must be used with extreme caution so as not to burn the roots. Manure is diluted with water in a ratio of 1:10, and bird droppings - 1:20. Fertilizing is carried out only on moist soil, trying not to get on the leaves.
2. Leaf humus is considered one of the most successful fertilizers for strawberries. By generously sprinkling the mixture into the beds, you will not only provide the bushes with the necessary nutrition, but also protect the roots from freezing in the winter.
3. After pruning old leaves in autumn, sprinkle the strawberry plantings evenly with ash. This fertilizer contains a lot of phosphorus, which is so necessary for the root system of the plant.

After fruiting, the shelf needs to be pampered with organic fertilizers

Autumn chores and preparing strawberries for winter

In autumn there comes a time that is no less significant for strawberries than spring awakening. The plant must be properly prepared for the dormant period.

1. Conduct a thorough inspection of the strawberry plantation.
2. Trim off any old, dead or diseased leaves, and remove remaining fruit and poorly rooted tendrils.
3. Treat the planting against diseases and pests.
4. Loosen and clear the soil of any remaining weeds.
5. Apply necessary fertilizers.

The shelf tolerates frosts down to -150C well, and if sufficient snow cover forms in winter, it will withstand temperatures down to -200C. But in the absence of snow, strawberries need to be taken care of. For insulation, the bushes are covered with dry grass, leaf litter, and spruce branches. You can also use covering material.

In order for the strawberries to begin to grow faster in the spring and the crop to ripen earlier, wire arcs are installed above the bed and covered with agrofibre. In warm regions, one layer is enough; in cooler regions, a two-layer shelter is needed.

An agrofibre cover will not only protect strawberries from frost, but will also allow you to get an earlier harvest.

Description of preparation for winter

How the plant endures the winter cold will determine its further growth and harvest. The very first protection for Polka strawberries (variety description, photos, reviews are presented in the article) is the presence of voluminous leaves, which the plant grows for winter. The ideal condition is considered to be heavy precipitation, that is, snow, which serves as the best heat insulator, thanks to which the soil does not freeze. If the winter has little snow, strawberries need to be covered. Pine needles are suitable for this. It ensures the conservation of heat coming from the ground. In addition, the roots will not rot, since coniferous spruce branches have good throughput.

Diseases and pests

Having good immunity, Polka strawberries perfectly resist powdery mildew and gray rot, which often affects berries of other varieties, especially at high humidity. The variety is also resistant to bud mite. But besides these diseases and pests, there are others. Therefore, only preventive measures will help avoid a big disaster. If a problem manifests itself, the measures taken to combat it will help to cope with it.

Table: diseases and pests found in plantings Shelves

Photo gallery: how to identify strawberry diseases and pests

Verticillium leads to the death of strawberries. On berries, anthracnose appears in the form of spots. Rhizoctoniosis first affects the roots, and then the rest of the plant.

Nematode-affected roots are unable to provide the plant with nutrition.

Raspberry-strawberry weevil eats buds

The whitefly loves shaded places and settles on the underside of the leaf.

Rules for weeding and loosening

Strawberries suffer greatly from the presence of weeds. Weeds not only take away a significant share of nutrients and sunlight, but can also be a source of disease and a breeding ground for pests. Therefore, it is very important to remove them in a timely manner.

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Polka strawberries also require breathable soil. This can be achieved by loosening, which is carried out a few hours after watering.

Harvesting

Strawberry is a tender and delicate berry. Therefore, before harvesting, you need to immediately prepare a suitable container so as not to transfer the fruits later. To prevent the berries from becoming wrinkled, use small containers, for example, birch bark boxes, wicker baskets or cardboard boxes. Apply only 2-3 layers.

Strawberries need to be collected in small containers

Choose only ripened fruits that are evenly colored. Strawberries need to be picked with sepals and tail to prevent juice from leaking out. When collecting, sort immediately. Set aside even slightly damaged berries for processing; whole and strong ones can sit for a while. Do not leave rotten fruits on the bush, but immediately put them in separate containers and destroy them after collecting.

Harvesting should only be done in dry weather, early morning or evening. If the berries are covered with dew, it is best to spread them in a thin layer in a cool place and let them dry.

Berries intended for storage should never be washed. Don't store strawberries in plastic. It does not allow air to pass through, and the berries quickly become moldy. Properly harvested Polki fruits feel great in the refrigerator. They can stay there for almost a week. Freezing involves longer storage. Before harvesting, you need to sort, wash and dry the berries. Then the fruits, laid out on a wide dish, are quickly frozen. After this, the finished product is packaged in small bags and sent to the freezer.

Polki fruits are perfect for making preserves, marmalade, confiture and compote. For lovers of natural taste, we can recommend strawberries, grated with sugar. In this form, microelements and vitamins are preserved, which will support the body during the winter.

Polka makes wonderful aromatic jam

Site preparation

Preparing the soil for strawberries should be done in advance. It includes clearing and digging up space for future plantings. Be sure to do the following:

• Clear the planting area of ​​weeds and debris;
• Dig the soil to a depth of about 30 centimeters;
• Loosen the top layer of soil and level the area;
• Apply the necessary fertilizers.

For the Polka variety, planting in two or three rows is considered the most suitable. With this planting scheme, it is much easier to care for the plants and harvest in the future.

The gap between the rows should be 50-60 centimeters, and the distance from one bush to another should be at least 35 centimeters.