Content
It is difficult for gardeners to choose black currant today for the reason that the varietal variety of the culture is too large. Each variety has its own advantages and disadvantages. Gardeners are trying to pick up bushes with large berries, unpretentious in care and fruitful.
One of these varieties is the black currant Leningrad giant. The plant was zoned in the Non-Black Earth Region in 1974. The variety has recently been removed from the State Register of the Russian Federation. But in the garden plots of Russians, it is still grown.
Description of the variety
The authors of the variety are scientists from the St. Petersburg State Agrarian University (LSHI) E.I. Glebova, A.I. Potashova. They pollinated the Altai Stakhanovka currants with the pollen of the Vystavochnaya and Nesypayaschaya varieties. In the seventies, when the Leningradsky Giant variety appeared, the berries were considered the largest and fully corresponded to the name. Today it is a berry bush with medium-sized fruits.
Bushes
Currant variety Leningradsky Giant is a tall shrub with erect shoots. But under the mass of berries at the time of ripening, the stems can spread out. Shoots of the first year of life are green, thick, with pubescence. Older twigs can be distinguished by their grayish-beige color. Buds on perennial stems are arranged in groups of 6-8.
In accordance with the description, the currants of this variety are characterized by short and plump buds in the shape of an egg, with a blunt tip. They are pink-purple in color, sitting on a stem, slightly deviating from the shoot.
Leaves
Black currant has large, light green leaves. At the tops of a yellow-green hue. Leaves are matte, vesiculate-wrinkled. The veins are dark, clearly visible. Each leaf blade has five lobes, with the middle lobe wider and longer than the others, with a sharp tip. The lateral parts of the leaf are in the shape of a triangle, but the lower lobes are located slightly obliquely.
Berries
On the currants of this variety, brushes of different lengths, each blooming from 6 to 13 flowers. Fruit set is average, so the plant needs pollinators. The berries are round, black, shiny, weighing up to two grams. The calyx is small, the skin is thin. The fruits are juicy, tender, with a well-pronounced currant aroma and dessert taste. The photo clearly shows that the variety of currants is fruitful.
The Leningradsky Giant variety is valued not only for its excellent taste, but also for its usefulness. The currant contains:
- dry matter - 15.3-23.8%;
- sugar - 7.1-12.7%;
- free acids - 2.4-3.5%;
- ascorbic acid - 155.2-254.8 mg / 100 g of raw berries.
Characteristics
As already noted in the description of the Leningradsky Giant variety, as well as according to reviews, currants are gradually leaving their summer cottages. Although this is a wrong decision, because according to some indicators, it can give odds to new varieties.
Dignity
- Getting early production.
- The berries do not crumble.
- Due to its high winter hardiness, the plant can be grown in harsh conditions.
- From one bush, from 3 to 4.5 kg of berries are harvested. When growing berry bushes on an industrial scale, the yield reaches 20 tons per hectare of plantings.The harvest is not bad, although in comparison with many modern varieties of currants, the Leningrad giant loses a little.
- Good taste and transportability allow the "old man" to stay on the sites of the Russians.
- The possibility of mechanical harvesting, since the berries ripen almost at the same time.
- Terry on plants is practically not observed.
Cons of the variety
Since the black currant Leningrad giant was created in the 80s of the last century, the breeders did not have the methods that are used today.
That is why the variety has disadvantages:
- One hundred percent fertilization is possible in the presence of pollinating bushes, since self-fertility is only slightly above 50%
- Excessive fragility of branches that can break under the weight of pouring bunches.
- Currants of this variety are sensitive to spring frosts. Flowers that have fallen under low temperatures do not set.
- The plant is sensitive to powdery mildew.
But connoisseurs of delicious black currant berries of the Leningrad giant, as gardeners note in the reviews, are not stopped by difficulties. They continue to plant bushes in the plots.
Planting currants
Currant Leningrad giant is a variety that is demanding on the soil and planting site. It is best to choose a sunny place without drafts on the site. Fences or walls of buildings can serve as natural protection.
You can plant seedlings early in the spring, before the juice begins to move, or early in the fall, so that the bushes can take root before frost.
Seat preparation
Unlike many varieties of currants, the Leningrad giant is picky about the soil. Excellent yield is possible only on well-filled soils with organic matter. Poor podzolic soils and chernozems, as well as strongly alkaline soils, are poorly suited.
For autumn planting, pits are prepared in two weeks. The dimensions of the pits are not less than 50x50x50 cm. If the currants are planned to be planted in the spring, then they are dealt with in the fall. At the bottom of the pit, drainage is poured from medium-sized pebbles. In each planting pit, in addition to the usual soil, add 6-8 kg of compost or humus and two tablespoons of superphosphate. The soil and nutrient feed are mixed before filling the pit.
Reproduction methods
New currant bushes The Leningrad giant can be obtained in different ways:
- cuttings;
- layering;
- dividing the bush.
Young shoots of currants are able to build up the root system. Cut them obliquely on both sides, leaving 4-5 buds. Can be planted directly into the ground or placed in water. Some gardeners grow currants from cuttings in potatoes, as in the photo below.
In the spring, tilt the branch, press it with a bracket and sprinkle it with earth. In the summer, they monitor the condition of the soil. Drying of the top layer is not allowed. By autumn, a good root system is formed, the seedling is ready for planting in a permanent place.
Dividing a bush is the most common breeding method. When the bush grows strongly, it is dug up and divided into parts. Each of them must have a good root system.
Step-by-step instruction
Before planting, the seedlings are examined. The branches must be lively, flexible. If signs of disease or pests have been found, the seedling is discarded. Not only will it not be possible to get products from it in the future, they can become sources of infection and infect all currant bushes.
The pits are located at a distance of at least 100 cm, in row spacings of 1.5-2 m. This distance will be enough for caring for the Leningradsky giant currant bushes.
A mound is made in the center of the seat and a bush is placed on it.The peculiarity of planting currants of any varieties is the installation of seedlings at an angle of 45 or 60 degrees. So the plants take root better.
The roots are spread over the entire surface of the pit and sprinkled with nutritious soil. The earth is lightly tamped, watered abundantly to the state of mud. This facilitates the penetration of soil under the roots. Water will squeeze out excess air, and the root system will better adhere to the ground.
Care features
According to the description of the variety, as well as reviews of gardeners, the Leningrad giant currant requires neighbors of pollinators.
As for the features of care, they boil down to standard activities: watering and loosening, removing weeds and feeding, as well as treatment from diseases and pests. Watering currant bushes, if there is no precipitation, you need to every week. One plant requires 2-3 buckets of water.
Simultaneously with watering, fertilizing is introduced. It is performed twice per growing season. When the berries begin to pour, the bushes of the Leningradsky Giant variety are fed on the leaves with any micronutrient fertilizer. At the beginning of the growing season, in early spring, nitrogen fertilizers are applied in liquid form at the root.
As noted in the description, the cultivar may suffer from spring frosts. For him, frosts from -2 degrees and below become fatal.
To protect flowers and ovaries, in the evening:
- Landings are watered abundantly not only under the root, but also along the entire perimeter from above. At night, the water will freeze, and under the ice coat (inside 0 degrees!) Tassels with flowers and ovaries will remain alive.
- They cover the bushes with any material under which a positive temperature is maintained.
Gardeners in their reviews often complain that the currant twigs of the Leningrad giant do not withstand a high harvest and break. That is why, even in the spring, the bushes are necessarily tied to a support. You can drive in 4 pegs and tie them around the perimeter with dense twine or stuff the slats.
Useful tips for caring for currants:
Salvation from disease
The Leningrad giant, according to the description and reviews of gardeners, suffers most from powdery mildew. To save the currant bushes, as well as the harvest, the use of chemicals will be required, since folk methods in the fight against the disease are too weak.
The first treatment is carried out in early spring, while the buds have not yet blossomed. For this, you can use drugs Hom, Ordan and others. The next spraying is carried out after 14 days several more times. Preventive measures are stopped three weeks before harvest.
Recommended drugs:
- Colloidal sulfur (Tiovit Jet);
- Vectra, Topaz, Raek.
The drugs are used to treat the affected currant bushes twice, alternating means. Any activities with chemicals must be stopped 21 days before picking berries.
