In arid areas with low winter temperatures, the choice of suitable garden crops is limited. Unpretentious and easy to care for, the bush cherry is an alternative to the ordinary tree cherry. It grows well in poor alkaline soils, easily tolerates hot summers without abundant watering and is not sensitive to severe frosts.
Varieties and their characteristics
Shrub varieties are usually called varieties bred from wild steppe cherries, which are widespread in Western Siberia, Kazakhstan, and the European part of our country.
The common features of all varieties bred from wild bush cherries are:
- short stature, the height of the bush usually does not exceed 1.5-2 m;
- fruits are medium or small, sour;
- spherical crown;
- abundant growth;
- high resistance to dry periods and frosty winters.
Crossing the unpretentious steppe “resident” with other productive representatives made it possible to obtain good resistant varieties.
Subbotinskaya cherries deserve attention for their bright scarlet fruits with a pleasant sweet and sour taste. It is unpretentious in care, rarely grows above 2-2.5 m in height, and independently forms a neat spherical crown. Requires the obligatory presence of pollinating trees on the site; the yield is high (5-9 kg).
Another interesting “descendant” of our steppe “resident” was the Altai Krupnaya cherry variety. Low bushes are characterized by good yield (5-9 kg) and unpretentiousness. Large flattened drupes are pleasant to taste and versatile in use. The description of the variety warns that in especially frosty winters, flower buds may freeze and the yield may decrease.
If you need a particularly frost-resistant and unpretentious variety, Early Stepnaya cherry is suitable. Small dark red fruits are good for canning and juice production. In the presence of pollinators, it produces decent annual yields (up to 3-4 kg per bush).
Features of planting and care
It is better to plant a cherry shrub orchard on a gentle slope, where there is no risk of spring stagnation of melt water. Choose an open sunny place with sufficient area for the growth of shoots. Planting and caring for bush cherries is not very difficult, but contains several important points.
Important! Preferably on a site nearby plant other varieties of cherries (pollinators) with similar flowering times, this will increase the yield by 2-3 times.
Soil preparation
Steppe cherry is less demanding on soil than tree cherry, but responds well to the application of organic and mineral fertilizers during planting.
The root system of the shrub lies close to the surface, so it is enough to prepare a fertile layer of 30-40 cm. To do this, add humus (10-12 kg/m2) for deep digging2) and complex mineral fertilizing (150 g/m2) superphosphate. Sowing green manure followed by digging during the budding phase will help improve the soil structure and fill it with organic matter.
Advice. It is better to dig holes for seedlings in advance, at least a month before planting.
Landing
It is important to start planting seedlings in the fall, three to four weeks before the first frost, or in the spring, before the start of sap flow:
- Within 3-4 days, the pit is filled with fertile soil with the addition of organic and mineral components (humus 4-5 kg, potassium salt 50 g, superphosphate 150 g, ammonium sulfate 50 g).
- Healthy young bushes with developed fibrous roots have their root collars a couple of centimeters above ground level.
- The soil around the seedlings is compacted with feet. After watering, the soil settles, and the neck should be at ground level.
One of the reasons for the increased frost resistance of steppe cherries is the ability to retain snow between the bushes and shoots. It makes sense to place the seedlings close to each other (1.5-2 x 2 m). The planting is mulched with a thick layer of dry grass or peat.
Fertilizer
If the soil is properly prepared, additional fertilizing is not necessary in the first year. For the next 2-3 years, one spring nitrogen fertilizing (urea 20 g/m2) for digging. Next, the bushes enter the fruiting period and require a more serious application of nutrients: in the fall - humus for digging (8-10 kg/m2), in spring - superphosphate 50 g/m2, potassium chloride 10-20 g/m2, urea 25 g, followed by sealing.
Watering
Although bush cherries are considered not very demanding in terms of soil moisture, they respond gratefully to timely watering with increased yield and juiciness of drupes. Watering 2-3 times per season is considered sufficient: after flowering, during fruit filling, at the end of summer. After each watering, shallow loosening is recommended 2-3 days later.
Trimming
Shrub cherries are characterized by independent formation of a rounded crown. Therefore, pruning is mainly aimed at reducing density and rejuvenation. Fruiting usually occurs on last year's growth, so only the excess branches growing inside the crown are removed.
Rejuvenation of cherry bushes is carried out after growth has subsided, cutting off skeletal branches at the points where branching ceases.
Since the steppe “resident” is characterized by a large number of shoots, thinning should be carried out in a timely manner. The lifespan of one bush without a decrease in fruiting is about 8-10 years. To rejuvenate the planting, strong and healthy cuttings are left, gradually replacing the old ones.
Advantages and disadvantages of bush cherries
Advantages:
- increased frost resistance and drought resistance;
- low requirements for soil fertility;
- early ripening, early maturing;
- decorative appearance during flowering;
- dense growth allows you to regularly rejuvenate the planting;
- Fruiting occurs already in the 3-4th year;
- resistant to diseases.
Flaws:
- sourish fruits, often tart, often small;
- bears fruit only in an open sunny place;
- numerous shoots require frequent thinning;
- short lifespan of one bush.
Planting bush cherries will not bring much trouble to the gardener. The main thing is that the area is sunny and open. Even with minimal care, the annual harvest of juicy cherries will justify the cost.
