Description of the Drogana Yellow cherry variety, planting, care and pollination

The exact origin of the Drogana Yellow cherry (with yellow drupes) has not been established. The variety is one of the oldest and was named after a Saxon breeder. Due to its unpretentiousness in cultivation, high resistance to fungal diseases, as well as excellent taste, it has become widespread in regions with warm climates.

Description and characteristics of the Drogana Yellow variety

Cherry trees up to 6 meters high have a spreading, round or pyramidal, well-leafed crown. The shoots are uniformly brown in color with a greenish tint and a lilac-gray bloom. Cone-shaped buds with shoot buds are dark in color. Generative flower buds are lighter, oval, and fit tightly to the shoots.

The leaves are large, about 16 cm long, 7 cm wide, without edges, smooth, elastic, with a sharp base and apex, and a double-serrated edge. The inflorescences consist of 2-3 medium-sized flowers with snow-white petals. The whisks are saucer-shaped as described. Bell-shaped calyx with sepals without serrations. Flowering and fruiting mostly occur on bouquet branches.

The Drogana yellow cherry variety produces medium (about 2 cm) round-heart-shaped fruits with a deep, wide funnel and an oval top, weighing about 7 g. The color of the skin is deep yellow. The pulp has a dense consistency, lighter, juicy, and sweet. Taste qualities are assessed by experts at 4.3 points. The percentage of dry matter content in 100 g of cherry fruit is 17.3, sugars - 13.5, acids - 0.2, vitamin C - 6.6 mg. The possibilities for using fruits are unlimited.

Due to poor transportability, it is recommended to quickly consume fresh berries, or process them into juice, dry them, make wine, cook jams, compotes.

The most optimal areas for growing yellow-fruited cherries of the Drogana variety are the territories of Volgograd, Astrakhan, the North Caucasus and Lower Volga regions, Central Asia, as well as Belarus, Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan.

Pros and cons of the Drogana Yellow cherry variety

The main advantages of cherries are considered to be medium-early periods of fruiting (4-5 years), a long period of productivity (up to 25 years), regular abundant yields (up to 150 kg per tree, up to 22 tons per 1 hectare), versatility in the use of berries.

When planting a garden, it is necessary to take into account that the variety is self-sterile. To ensure fruiting, several pollinators should be planted nearby. Cherries bloom and ripen quite late in the second half of June - early July.

Frost resistance of perennial wood, young branches and flower buds is average. Due to late development, generative organs rarely freeze under early frosts in spring. The variety is resistant to drought, as well as the most common fungal diseases.

Disadvantages include poor transportability of fruits, their cracking in rainy weather, and unsuitability for freezing. In addition, Drogan cherries suffer from fruit rot with moderate frequency and are highly vulnerable to the cherry fly.

Growing Drogana Yellow Cherries

When planting a garden, it is necessary to select several mutually pollinating varieties. Drogan's cherry is not self-fertile, therefore, to increase productivity, 2-3 suitable pollinators are planted nearby, coinciding with it in terms of flowering dates (Bryanochka, Revna, Bagration, Franz Joseph). Trees grow quickly. To ensure good nutrition of the root system, the optimal interval between seedlings should be 5-6 m.

When to plant?

It is recommended to plant young trees at the stage of slowing down development processes. For warm regions where there is a risk of rapid onset of hot weather, the best time for planting is September - late October. In autumn, the soil is well moistened; additional watering is not required.Over the winter, the seedlings will be able to grow young roots, therefore, they will retain strength for crown development and flowering.

In the fall, you can purchase seedlings at a discount, see which cherries bear fruit and compare different varieties.

If you did not have time to plant a seedling on the site in the fall, it is sprinkled with soil before the end of winter, placing it at a slope of 45 degrees. In the northern regions of Russia with a cool climate, it is better to plant Drogan cherries in the spring.

Choosing a place and soil for cherries

For planting this variety, areas protected from the wind with light, moist soils are most suitable. In the first year, the root system grows quickly; deep root feeding without damaging the roots cannot be done. Therefore, you should take a responsible approach to preparing a permanent place.

Planting holes are dug 80x100cm in size. Having previously mixed 3 buckets of humus or organic matter with the top fertile soil, 2 kg of ammonium sulfate, 3 kg of superphosphate, 0.5 kg of potassium fertilizers, fill the hole to a third of the depth in the form of a mound.

Planting Drogana Yellow cherries

Damaged roots are removed from seedlings (preferably annuals), pruned to healthy tissue. The tree is placed on an earthen mound, the roots are straightened, and covered tightly with prepared soil. The root collar is placed 3 cm from the soil. Water well - 10 liters per tree. Thoroughly mulch the soil with peat or humus.

Further care of the variety

The development and fruiting of cherries largely depends on care. Trees need to be provided with regular watering, the application of suitable fertilizers, treatment for diseases and proper timely pruning.

How to water and fertilize correctly?

Moisten the soil around the yellow Drogan cherry according to the standard scheme.In the summer, taking into account the precipitation, several additional waterings of the tree are carried out. Each time the soil is loosened and mulched with humus. In the fall, before the onset of frost, cherries are thoroughly watered to completely saturate the soil with moisture.

If it was not possible to do this on time, it is necessary to water in the spring before flowering begins.

In the first year after planting, the soil in the area with seedlings is regularly loosened and weeds are completely destroyed. This ensures maximum moisture retention. Before the onset of cold weather, cherries require additional watering before loosening the soil. From the second year, the soil is cultivated within a radius of 50 cm, moving away from the trunk another 50 cm every year.

The amount of preparations depends on the characteristics of the soil. It is preferable to use liquid fertilizers; it is easier to plant them to a depth of at least 20 cm. Dry mineral fertilizers must be dissolved before application. The soil should be watered with nutrient solutions in the growth zone of young roots, which intensively absorb liquid.

The yield can be improved by sowing green manure that accumulates nitrogen. Any plants from the legume family, as well as honey plants, are suitable. They are sown in the second half of the growth and development phase of yellow cherries. In autumn, the resulting grass cover is mowed and used as mulch.

Crown design

Drogan cherries are pruned every spring at positive temperatures, in dry weather. Annual branches are shortened above the bud by about a third so that the central shoot remains at least 20 cm above the skeletal ones.

Annual shortening of annual branches prolongs the fruiting period of yellow cherries, as this increases the yield and strength of the branches forming the frame.

Cherry trees branch poorly, so young trees should not be heavily pruned. Shortening and thinning is useful at the stage of stable fruiting. Trimmed branches give a larger harvest and abundant growth of young shoots.

Removal of old, diseased or damaged branches is carried out with the onset of extinction of the vital processes of fruit trees. In this case, 7-8 year old wood must be removed.

You need to use sharp pruning shears. During thinning pruning, long stumps should not be left, as they will subsequently rot. It is also undesirable to cut close to the trunk; this can lead to the appearance of a hollow. To speed up regeneration, sections with a diameter of 1 cm or more are coated with varnish.

Protecting the cherry tree from frost, pests and diseases

In autumn, the soil around the tree is moistened abundantly. Such soil will freeze more slowly. The ground next to the cherry tree trunk is hilled up and mulched. For young seedlings, the trunks are covered with tin or roofing felt, wrapped in burlap, and tied with spruce branches. This not only insulates, but also serves as reliable protection against rodents. In winter, the trees are covered with snow. In the spring, to protect the garden from frost, smoke is used (with checkers or by setting fire to heaps of grass and branches prepared in advance).

To protect cherries from fruit rot, pests that transmit the pathogen to healthy trees are destroyed. Remove fallen fruits with signs of damage. Plants are treated with boron solution.

Every year, significant damage to gardeners is caused by the cherry fly, which lays eggs in green fruits. Larvae hatch from them and eat the pulp of the berries. Pest control begins with the onset of spring; yellow traps with sticky glue are hung.

After flowering ends, and then after harvesting, cherries are treated with copper oxychloride or Bordeaux mixture. When the leaves fall, coat the trunk with garden whitewash or a mixture of equal parts of clay, lime, and mullein.

Harvest and storage

Cherries ripen at approximately the same time; you can harvest the entire harvest from the tree in the second half of June. The skin of the berries is thin, so it is undesirable to transport and store the fruits for a long time. When frozen, the drupes crack and lose their shape. Drogan cherries are suitable for drying, preparing juice, compote, making jam, and wine.