Aronia chokeberry (mountain ash) - a medicinal berry containing antioxidants in fruits. The plant has a high yield, not requiring constant care.
The composition of the fruits of aronia and useful properties
The fruits of chokeberry in botany are not considered berries. Their correct name is small apples, which can be black or purple in color, contain seeds.
If we talk about the chemical composition, then 100 grams of berries contain 1.5 g of protein, 0.2 g of fat, 10.9 g of carbohydrates and 4.1 g of dietary fiber.
The sweetness of the plant does not affect calories. 100 g contain only 55 kcal. The composition of berries also contains:
- sorbitol;
- potassium;
- phosphorus;
- magnesium;
- calcium;
- iron;
- organic acids (malic, citric, acetic);
- tanning elements;
- flavonoids;
- vitamins A, B, C.
The beneficial properties of the plant are due to a large number of vitamins and nutrients. Chokeberry is used as a medicinal plant. It helps strengthen the walls of blood vessels, regulate sugar and cholesterol levels, strengthens the immune system.
Mountain ash is rich in iodine, so it is often used for iodine deficiency. You can eat the fruits during pregnancy, as they reduce toxicosis. Fresh berry juice helps with high blood pressure.
Rowan requirements for growing conditions
The plant is winter-hardy, unpretentious to the type of soil and climatic conditions, so it can be planted throughout Russia. Rowan is best grown in bright areas. In the shade, it also shifts, but the yield will decrease. Lowlands are good for the plant, because the rowan roots are shallow.
It is better to give preference to chernozems, peat bogs, gray and sod-podzolic soils. Unsuitable for growing chokeberry stony and boggy soil types. It is important that the earth has enough moisture for the roots, since its lack slows the growth of the plant.
Varieties of chokeberry and seedling selection
Varieties of chokeberry are many. The most popular of them are:
- hakkiya;
- ruby;
- Viking
- black-eyed.
Varieties differ in taste and term of appearance of the fruit. Therefore, it is recommended to choose a seedling in special nurseries or take as a basis a bush from a nearby site.
You must choose an annual or biennial plant. Seedling height up to 1.3 meters, bark without damage, and roots at least 25 cm in length. Aronia can bear fruit for 30 years.
Mr. Dachnik explains: how and when to plant a chokeberry
The bush is always planted in the fall, because at this time it is better to take root. For planting, you need to prepare a hole with a depth of 50 cm and with the same diameter. The lower layer of the earth does not require fertilizers, since the roots will not reach it. The following is added to the topsoil:
- a bucket of humus;
- 100 g of superphosphate;
- 60 g of potassium sulfide.
The lower layer of soil pours out into the pit, and then a seedling is immersed there. On top of it, you need to fill it with a mixture of fertilizers and earth. The roots should be deepened no more than 15 mm. After this, the seedling is poured with a bucket of water, and the ground is covered with sawdust or humus.
After landing care
The plant does not require special care. Shrub is rarely attacked by pests.
Shelter for the winter
The seedling needs to be prepared for the winter season. It is necessary to bend it to the ground and press it with boards. This is done before the temperature drops to minus indicators.
If you do not perform these steps, the stem may break, its elasticity deteriorates. When the bush bends down, it is important to ensure that the height of the arc is not higher than 25 cm.
After a stable spring temperature is established (+15 degrees), the plant is straightened, because with a long bent state, the shoots are warmed up.
Do I need to cut the shoots
Shrubs are formed in young shrubs quickly enough, so you need to annually destroy the root stems to avoid thickening. Only 5 branches with buds are left.
It is necessary to carry out sanitary pruning, removing old and rotten branches. It is impossible to remove annual shoots, since then there will be fruits on them.
It is also worth reducing the stems by half, every 3 years, increasing the yield of the plant. Autumn pruning is done only when the rowan is damaged by diseases.
Top dressing
Feeding is done twice a year. This requires ammonium nitrate and potassium salt. It is possible to carry out foliar top dressing after flowering is completed. It consists in spraying with a urea solution.
Watering and loosening the soil
Mountain ash requires abundant watering only during the growing season. During the summer heat, the bush needs to be moistened weekly. Adult chokeberry requires about 30 liters of water.
Twice a season, loosening the soil and removing weeds. It is worth paying attention to the loosening of the earth in the fall, since compacted soil will lead to freezing of the soil.
Disease and Pest Prevention
The most suitable time for prevention is the flowering of the buds and the end of the collection of all fruits. As measures to prevent the development of diseases, treatment with fungicides is used, namely spraying the bush with Bordeaux liquid. If the pests damage the bush, you need to use chemicals, although, as a rule, chamomile is resistant to pests.
How to breed chokeberry
Reproduction is carried out in various ways. However, the most popular are considered generative and with the help of cuttings.
An exceptionally healthy plant is suitable for the handle. Its length is usually 10-15 cm. The leaves that are on the bottom are completely removed.
In the handle, a bark is longitudinally incised under each kidney, the field of which is lowered for 6 hours into a substance that stimulates root growth. After it is washed and planted, observing a distance of 30 cm. Another mandatory condition is tamping the soil. The temperature in the greenhouse is no more than +20 degrees. If you follow all the recommendations, the roots will appear in a month.
Aronia diseases
The most common diseases:
| Disease | Symptoms | Treatment |
| Peripheral rot of wood. | Fleshy, yellow-brown mushrooms appear on the plant, which provoke decay of the bark. | Spray with Bordeaux fluid. |
| Moniliosis. | Rotting fruit. | Use Bordeaux liquid or copper oxychloride, destroy infected fruits. |
| Septorious spotting. | Pale brown spots on the foliage. | Spray Bordeaux fluid, timely destroy the fallen leaves. Treat the infected bush with copper oxychloride or Abiga peak. |
| Comb | The formation of fungus on the branches. | Trim the affected branches. Spray Abiga Peak. |
Subject to these rules, the likelihood of plant damage by diseases is significantly reduced.
