Among a wide variety of garden strawberries, erroneously called strawberries, it is worth highlighting several interesting and unusual varieties. A particularly promising variety that recently appeared in the CIS was the Black Prince with large, glossy, dark burgundy, almost black berries.
The history of the variety Black Prince
The Black Prince garden strawberry variety was obtained from the New Fruits Nursery. This company is one of the manufacturers of high quality planting material in Italy. The work of breeders from the city of Cesene lasted ten years, the variety passed tests in Ukraine and has established itself well in Europe, as well as in many regions of Russia and Kazakhstan.
However, in some sources, this variety is given as an early garden strawberry of the Polish selection Kama, which, due to the dark cherry berries, began to be incorrectly called the Black Prince.
Grade description
Garden strawberry Black Prince belongs to the varieties of medium early ripening. The first berries can be tasted in the third decade of June, and fruiting ends only at the end of summer. Young bushes with dark green glossy leaves of medium size grow very quickly over time. Adult bushes of the Black Prince are superior in height to other varieties of garden strawberries. Peduncles tall, erect, but under the weight of the berries can bend to the ground.
Berries of a truncated conical shape, very large (weight - 50 grams), juicy, fragrant, with shine. The color of the fruit is dark cherry, approaching black. Seeds are large, dark in color, standing on the surface of the fruit. The taste of berries is sweet, with barely noticeable acidity.
The pulp is quite dense, does not contain voids, due to which the fruits are stored for a long time and tolerate transportation well.
It can be eaten in unlimited quantities even with diathesis, which is especially often observed in children. In general, the big paradox is that strawberries are a very sweet berry, but they reduce the amount of sugar in the blood. Therefore, you can eat strawberries even with diabetes.
Photo gallery: features of wild strawberry Black Prince
- Young bushes of wild strawberry Black Prince grow very quickly, giving a small amount of mustache
- Garden strawberry Honei (left) is significantly inferior in size to the Black Prince (right)
- The berries of the Black Prince variety are large, dark cherry
Grade characteristics
The variety has the following valuable qualities:
- long fruiting period - from June 20 to the end of August;
- high yield - more than 1 kg of berries per bush per season, 20-28 tons per hectare, with age, the yield increases;
- large-fruited - the average weight of one fruit is 50 g, and the size of the berries does not change until the end of the season;
- great taste - juicy, sweet, and the berry itself is dense and fragrant;
- high transportability of berries and ability to store - up to 30 days at lower temperatures without loss of presentation;
- the viability and yield of each plant is more than 5-7 years, with decent care - up to 10;
- good frost resistance and ability to withstand short spring frosts without harm to the crop;
- resistance to many diseases of garden strawberries.
But there are some disadvantages of the Black Prince variety:
- medium drought tolerance - without watering, the culture can withstand only a short period of time;
- poorly takes root and grows on heavy soils, the roots rot even with good drainage;
- gives a small number of mustaches and only 3-4 years, then you are left without planting material;
- affected by strawberry mites, and in the fall the appearance of anthracnose, as well as white and brown spots.
Photo gallery: autumn fungal diseases of garden strawberries
- It is impossible to cure white spotting, infected strawberry bushes will have to be completely removed
- Removing dry leaves, destroying spider mites, feeding with phosphorus and potassium, treatment with Fitosporin should help against brown spotting
- With black spotting, strawberries must be treated with fungicides, Bordeaux mixture with the addition of sulfur
Features of planting and growing
Proper planting and compliance with the rules of cultivation of the crop provide a long lifespan of the bushes and high productivity throughout the entire fruiting period.
Selection and preparation of a landing site
Garden prune Black Prince prefers light loam, sandy loam with good water and air permeability. The culture does not tolerate heavy clay soils, it will not grow on peaty and silty soils. When growing on black soil, it is necessary to make sand in a ratio of 1: 3.
The best places for growing strawberries are sunny, protected from cold winds and drafts, with a depth of groundwater not exceeding 60 cm. Lowlands and slopes will be an unsuccessful choice.
Crop rotation must be observed. The best predecessors for garden strawberries are legumes, siderates, onions, garlic, radishes, carrots, beets, cereals. The worst are nightshade, all kinds of cabbage, pumpkin, squash, cucumbers.
Before planting (3-4 weeks or in the fall), you need to dig the earth to a depth of 20-25 cm, add organic fertilizers (compost up to 10 kg per square meter or humus), peat-humic fertilizers (Flora-S, Fitop-Flora-S ), which improve the structure of the soil. With increased soil acidity, dolomite flour is required at the rate of 300 grams per square meter. And also during digging, it is necessary to remove all the remains of weeds.
Photo gallery: the best and worst predecessors for garden strawberries
- Rapeseed is a typical green manure, that is, a plant that enriches the soil with nutrients.
- Carrots are a good predecessor for wild strawberries
- Strawberries are not recommended to be grown in the beds where pumpkin grew before.
- If cucumbers were the predecessor of strawberries in the garden, it may produce a poor harvest.
Breeding
For strawberries, the following breeding options are possible:
- seeds
- dividing the bush
- layering (mustache).
Video: growing garden strawberries from seeds
With a sufficient number of strong adult plants, strawberries can be propagated by horns (dividing the bush). This method is especially relevant for the Black Prince variety, since after almost three years it practically does not give a mustache.
Video: division of strawberry bushes
Layers (mustache) - this is the easiest, most popular and reliable way of planting and propagating garden strawberries.
Video: Mustache Reproduction
Planting material must be purchased from trusted suppliers. Since the Black Prince very quickly grows large lush bushes, plantings must be placed freely, at least 0.4 m from each other, and if you want to get a young mustache from the uterine bushes - the distance needs to be increased.
Planting young strawberry bushes in the ground is carried out according to the following algorithm:
- Sockets are planted in well-spilled holes, straighten the roots, not allowing them to turn up.
- The seedling growth points, called hearts, do not deepen and leave a little higher than the soil level.
- We compact the soil under the bushes, water it and, after absorbing the liquid, mulch it with straw or needles.
- After planting for 2-3 weeks, beds with strawberries continue to be regularly watered.
Landing care
Strawberry The Black Prince is unpretentious enough, but you won’t succeed in waiting for the desired harvest without caring for the plants. It is necessary to constantly weed the planting, to update the layer of mulch.
If you do not plan to breed large berry plantations, carefully remove the mustache so that they do not deplete the uterine bush. Water the strawberry Black Prince regularly, but in moderation: with excess moisture, the taste of the berries will deteriorate. Increase the volume of water only during the laying of fruits, as well as in dry and hot weather. Do not use sprinkling and watering under the root, the best option is to water the bushes in the drip way or into the grooves between them.
The best wetting option for strawberries is drip irrigation
To extend the life of the bushes and get a rich harvest of high quality berries, it is necessary to feed strawberries throughout the season.
In early spring, the Black Prince wild strawberry needs nitrogen (15-20 grams of urea per 10 liters of water), and during budding and flowering, phosphorus (30-40 grams of superphosphate per meter2) During the fruiting period, it is good to feed the bushes with complex fertilizers such as Berries or Agricola (according to the instructions). They must be applied in dry form to the soil under the bushes or dissolved in water.
After collecting the last berries, you need to take care of the bushes again, now for laying the next year's crop. Remove damaged dried leaves and old mulch, feed the plants, weed, shed the beds with a weak solution of potassium permanganate. With regard to the weather, the bushes should be watered periodically. Starting from the second year of life, the roots are often exposed in the bushes. In this case, they are covered with earth mixed with compost and watered (1.5 liters per bush).
Video: autumn feeding strawberries
Reviews about the strawberry variety Black Prince
Black Prince: planted area 0.2 ha; yield: at least 20-30 t / ha from the second year. further more. planting: 1 year 20 cm in a row with thinning through one to the second: year 40 cm - very quickly and powerfully increases the top dressing bush: 1 time in 10 days (Kemira or EM concentrate) from the first flower stalk of the disease: very resistant to underlying diseases and tick. spotting appears on some bushes in late October - early November. I practically do not treat against diseases - there is no need for a root system: super with good care a large number of 2-3 carob seedlings a very large number of class 1 seedlings (0.9-1.6) which is suitable for growing in 60 day plantings tastes: the market eats first , then other varieties are sold. fully ripened berry really delicious transportability: if not poured - super. storage with rapid cooling for at least 10-12 days the berry is average, it does not grow smaller in terms of fees in terms of increasing the planting area up to 0.5 hectares as an average variety to whom, but I like (always a lot, tasty, you can keep in one place 4- 5 years, I have grown so much without decreasing productivity - I have information about planting up to the age of 10. I don’t know yet, but I will try. (only compost) into the trench formed as a result of hilling, with up by pouring and watering
Vadim, Ukraine, Sumy//forum.vinograd.info/showthread.php?t=4703
Great variety. Very tasty and beautiful berry. Productivity is very good. I currently have only two varieties. Cleary and the Black Prince. I don’t want any more
mopsdad1 Old-timer, Stary Oskolforum.vinograd.info/showthread.php?t=4703&page=2
Review: Strawberry variety "Black Prince" - Very tasty, sweet and fruitful strawberries. Pluses: Fragrant, sweet, large strawberries. Minuses: Short stalk, but not critical.
Lyobov Russia, Novosibirsk//otzovik.com/review_4822586.html
It is safe to say that in all the variety of varieties of garden strawberries, the Black Prince will not get lost and will gain more and more fans. The taste of berries, appearance, transportability, a long period of fruiting, productivity, the ability to grow up to 10 years in one place with proper care make him a welcome guest both in the beds at summer residents and on the fields of farms.
