Content
Red currants were first introduced to Russia from Western Europe in the fourteenth century. Today, a shrub with sweet-sour berries of a bright scarlet color is grown in any garden from Kaliningrad to the Far East. Among the huge variety of varieties of domestic selection, the Rosetta red currant is considered one of the most popular species.
Breeding history
The Rosetta or Rosita variety was obtained at the Novosibirsk Horticultural Station of the Russian Agricultural Academy, in 2004 it was entered into the State Register of Breeding Achievements of the Russian Federation and recommended for cultivation in the West Siberian region.
Rosetta currant (Rosetta) obtained as a result of crossing two varieties of American selection:
- Red Cross (Red Cross) - medium ripening, with a spreading bush and large berries of sweet and sour taste.
- Minnesota (Minnesota) is a late variety with an erect, medium-sized bush, large, sweet berries.
Description of the variety of red currant Rosetta
The Rosetta currant bush is medium-sized, its shoots reach a height of 1.2 m. The branches are powerful, thick, compactly located, the shape of the crown is compressed. The bark on the stems is brown-red. The leaves are small, dull, wrinkled, dark green. The leaf plates have a three-lobed structure with less pronounced basal parts. Their edges are serrated, rounded, with a shallow notch at the base and a long petiole.
Pale flowers of red currant Rosetta are collected in a raceme up to 10 cm long, with a straight, pubescent axis of medium thickness. Sepals are pinkish, arranged horizontally.
The berries at the stage of full ripeness turn red, with a sweet and sour taste. Their shape is rounded-ovoid with a skin of medium thickness.
Characteristics
Rosita red currant was created in Siberia. The characteristics acquired by her are fully consistent with the climate of this region, allowing them to grow berry bushes in difficult weather conditions. These features should be taken into account in order to avoid mistakes during planting, cultivation and care.
Drought tolerance, winter hardiness
The Rosetta variety is highly drought tolerant. The plant easily tolerates sultry periods, lack of rain and watering. As a result of overheating, the berries do not bake, do not fall off, tolerating heat, dehydration and drying out of the soil. Red currant hardiness is high. Even in the conditions of Western Siberia, the plant does not require shelter for the winter, it is enough just to mulch the trunk circle and periodically add snow in the winter.
Pollination, flowering period and ripening times
Rosetta red currants are pollinated by bees. The presence of insects is essential in order to transfer pollen to the stigma. With the help of the wind, this does not happen due to its stickiness. To obtain a guaranteed yield, several bushes should be planted nearby.
The flowering of the Rosetta red currant begins in the second decade of May, and ripens in late July and early August.
Productivity and fruiting, keeping quality of berries
Ripening Rosetta red currant berries have a pleasant sweetish taste with a pronounced sourness. Experts estimate it at 4 points out of five. Sugars make up 9.9%, ascorbic acid - 30.2 mg / 100 g. Each weight is from 0.8 g to 1.7 g.
When grown on an industrial scale, the average yield of the variety is 9.4 t / ha. In the conditions of a personal plot, about 3 kg are collected from one bush.
Rosetta red currant has medium transportability, the skin of the berries is thin but dense. If necessary, they can be transported over long distances. The use is universal - they are used fresh, they prepare jams, compotes and preserves. Frozen can be stored for up to three months.
Disease and pest resistance
Rosetta has medium resistance to anthracnose and septoria. For the timely prevention of the development of diseases, preventive treatments of the shrub should be carried out.
Anthracnose
The first symptoms of a fungal disease appear as yellow spots on the leaves, which gradually dry out and fall off. To combat pathology, spraying with "Kuprozan", "Ftolan" is carried out at a time when the kidneys have not yet begun to grow.
Septoria
The indicator of the disease is white-brown spots, at first small, and later increasing, merging and affecting the entire leaf. Small black dots are visible on them - fungal spores. As a result, the bush can gradually die, and the neighboring ones can become infected with septoria. At the first signs of pathology, it is necessary to remove the diseased parts of the Rosetta red currant, and spray the healthy parts with preparations based on copper.
Among insects, the greatest harm to red currants is caused by glass and leaf aphids. To combat them, chemicals, tobacco infusion are used, garlic, marigolds and other plants with a strong odor are planted between the bushes.
Advantages and disadvantages
With proper care, the Rosetta red currant can bear fruit abundantly for twenty years in one place. Taking into account all the nuances of planting, it gives stable yields for many years.
The advantages of the variety:
- resistance to heat and drought;
- great frost resistance;
- large berries;
- their high palatability;
- ease of maintenance of the bushes;
- unpretentious care;
- versatility of use.
Cons of the Rosetta variety:
- low resistance to anthracnose and septoria;
- poor tolerance of waterlogged soil.
Features of planting and care
For planting Rosetta red currants, choose a sunny place. The best neighbor for her is gooseberries. The soil should be fertile, saturated with organic matter. Sandy loam is not suitable for berry bushes, and slightly acidic loams are the best choice for it. Currant does not tolerate boggy and high groundwater.
The optimal planting time is early spring, in this case the plant has time to root well and prepare for the upcoming wintering.
The site is cleared of weeds, the soil is loosened and holes 60 cm deep and wide are dug, placing them at a distance of 1.5 m from each other. Fill them with compost to 50% of the volume, add wood ash (2 glasses) and the earth extracted earlier. Mix thoroughly. Planting currant seedlings is carried out according to the plan:
- A hole is made in the planting pit.
- A seedling is laid in it at an angle of 45⁰, with the tip to the north.
- Cover with soil.
- The soil is compacted.
- Make a circular roller.
- Watering and mulching the trunk circle.
Further development of the seedling depends on the correctness and thoroughness of care.
Watering and feeding
In the first month after planting, currants are watered regularly, twice a week, spending up to 10 liters of water under one bush. Later, humidification is carried out in July and October, if precipitation is absent.
Top dressing is applied three times:
- urea - in the spring (20 g / m2);
- bird droppings solution - during the flowering period (1kg per 10 liters of water);
- wood ash - in September (100 g per bush).
Pruning
The first formative pruning of currants is carried out immediately after planting, choosing four powerful shoots on the plant and shortening them to five buds. In the second year, twice as many shoots are left, the tops of which are cut off by 20 cm. In subsequent seasons, growths located at an acute angle, dry, diseased and damaged branches are removed.
Conclusion
Red currant Rosetta was created specifically for the harsh conditions of the West Siberian region. Growing it in milder climatic conditions, a plant is obtained that has excellent characteristics that allow it to survive temperature extremes, frost, drought and at the same time maintain the quality of berries and high yield rates.