Strawberry "Kimberly" ("Wim Kimberly"): characteristics and cultivation

In the light of the huge range of strawberry varieties, it is quite difficult to make a choice in favor of a particular crop for planting. However, in the line of the most sought-after berries a special place is occupied by strawberries "Wim Kimberley", whose popularity is due to the high taste characteristics of the crop and a number of unique varietal qualities.

Large-fruited culture has Dutch roots, the company Vissers Aardbeiplantin B.V. was engaged in breeding the variety. Despite the fact that the manufacturer identified the plant for early varieties, in the Russian registry strawberry "Kimberley" is positioned as a medium.

Domestic gardeners and gardeners cultivate the variety not so long ago, however, they have already managed in practice to evaluate the positive aspects of the crop, as well as to get good yields of tasty berries. Wim Kimberly is actively grown throughout Europe, as the plant is recommended not only for amateur breeding in private gardens, but is also excellent for industrial cultivation.

The plant was obtained by crossing two fairly well-known types of strawberries - "Chandler" and "Gorella"who have long been familiar to gardeners around the world. Cultures are notable for large fruit, resistance to adverse environmental conditions and ease of care. The hybrid took over all the advantages of mother plants, and even surpassed them in some parameters.

Garden strawberries "Kimberly" stands out powerful bushes with large foliage. The green mass firmly rests on rather high petioles, which provides the culture with good air exchange, access of sunlight to the fruits, and the ability to avoid the development of many diseases.

The foliage of the strawberry is slightly concave, with sharp teeth, the color is predominantly light green. Whiskers are formed in a minimum amount.

Despite a lot of disputes regarding the timing of ripening varieties, it is worth noting that the period of flowering and fruiting directly depends on the region in which the plant develops. Often there are cases that even in the same climatic zone a strawberry produces a crop at different times; temporary difference may be about a month. The peak of taste at the berry will fall on the season in which good weather conditions were observed. "Kimberly" refers to heat-loving plants, the lack of heat adversely affects the period of adaptation of the bushes after wintering, as well as the plants have a slow development, which further worsens the taste of berries.

When planting varieties in zoned regions, the mass of strawberries can reach from 20 to 50 grams. The berries ripen the same, have a conical shape that looks like a heart. The term of ripening can be stretched in time, so on one bush it is rare to find a large number of already ripe fruits.

Timely picking of strawberries will avoid shredding the crop. The pulp of the berries stands out for their density, and there are seeds on the strawberry surface. According to the evaluation of tasting qualities, the variety "Wim Kimberly" deserves the highest score. The berries are not sugary, in the taste there is a slight sourness. According to some reviews in the fruit marked caramel flavor.

As for the chemical composition, the sugar content in the berries is about 10%. Harvest is amenable to transportation, retains its consumer appeal and taste. With well-planned and carried out agrotechnology, it is possible to gather about two kilograms of juicy berries from one strawberry bush.

The following qualities should be attributed to the positive characteristics of the variety:

• large fruits;
• the structure of the bush, to avoid contact of the berries with the soil;
• the absence of voids in the pulp of the berries;
• the visual appeal of strawberries;
• immunity to fungal diseases;
• cold resistance

Like any other crop, the Dutch strawberry variety has some drawbacks:

• the berry is often destroyed by pests;
• fruiting period does not exceed 3 weeks;
• culture does not tolerate the lack of moisture.

In terms of rooting, the variety is not much different from similar works with other berry crops. The only requirement when planting bushes in regions with a harsh climate is to shelter the plants from the cold, otherwise the size of the berries and the yield will sharply decrease.

The primary task during cultivation of a variety is considered to be the correct choice of a seedling, since the endurance of the plant will directly depend on the characteristics of the planting material. It is worth refusing to buy strawberry seedlings in unchecked places, since there will be no opportunity to verify the high quality of the planting material being sold. Strawberries should be purchased in nurseries or specialty stores.

According to some external signs, it is possible to determine the health of the culture - first of all, the state of the leaves will indicate the absence of any diseases. They should have a uniform color, without dry inclusions or blotch. Pale leaves with dots will be a sign of plant infection with fungal infection. Seedlings should be sold in special containers, indicating the variety of berry culture.

Until the planting of the crop, it is better to keep it in water in order to avoid drying out, as well as to allow the plant to be saturated with liquid.

Beds for planting strawberries should be prepared in advance, should be preferred to sunny places, with reliable protection from drafts. From the landing of "Kimberly" in the ground, where before the growth of buckled crops should be abandoned. The optimum area for the ridges with strawberries will be the southern side of the garden with a slight angle of inclination.

Kimberley does not require any specific soil composition, there will be enough soil for crop growth with good aeration, a balanced content of trace elements, as well as the presence of sand and peat. To normalize these or other indicators of land on the site, you can use the standard options for improving soil fertility.

The planting of the variety is as follows.

• An important rule regarding the planting of strawberries "Wim Kimberley", is to respect the distance between the bushes. The optimal distance between cultures will be a step of thirty centimeters. Such an arrangement is necessary to fill the ridges with a good fit of the bushes to each other during the formation of the antennae.
• The holes for garden strawberries should be deep, planting is carried out taking into account that the planted bush will be located below ground level. In this way, it will be possible to preserve moisture in the soil for a long time, and the culture itself, which breeds with antennae, will self-lift over the level of the bed over time.
• Before planting strawberries, it is necessary to add ash and humus in each well, in a ratio of 1: 1. Usually, about 250 grams of fertilizer is injected into each fertilizer. The root system is well sprinkled with soil, avoiding the formation of layers of air in the ground. Particular attention should be paid to the point of growth of the culture - it should be located above the soil, otherwise the bush will soon rot.

If the planting falls in the autumn months, the Kimberley bushes pruned all the old foliage, this will help the culture to adapt to a new place.

After landing, the bushes must be watered every day, the best time to perform work will be early morning or evening, after sunset.

In order to get regular and high yields of strawberries, the gardener is obliged to adhere to the basic rules concerning agricultural technology for the selected variety. Kimberly will require maximum attention from the summer resident in the adaptation phase to the new conditions; if care activities during this period are carried out with gross errors, you can lose most of the seedlings. The soil near the young seedlings after irrigation must be loosened, the work should be done with extreme caution, without going too deep into the ground, since there is a likelihood of damage to the weak root system. It is impossible to neglect the loosening of the soil after the introduction of moisture due to the fact that after watering a crust forms on the ground, which disrupts the level of soil aeration.

As the strawberry bushes grow, the frequency of irrigation and loosening can be gradually reduced. This will avoid the contamination of the culture with fungal diseases, moreover, it will have a positive effect on the yield.

The approximate scheme of the work is presented below:

• the first introduction of fertilizers is carried out in the spring, shortly after the snow melts;
• a second recharge will be required by crops before flowering;
• the third introduction of nutritional formulations should be carried out immediately after the flowering of the culture;
• recent work is done after picking berries.

Best of all, Kimberley responds to organic and mineral preparations, which can be purchased in specialized stores already in finished form or to prepare the compositions on their own.

Organic matter is solutions based on mullein or bird droppings, but during the preparation of infusions with your own hands you should carefully monitor the ratio of substances and water. Since these fertilizers, if overdosage is applied, will be able to harm the crop.

As for the mineral complexes and substances, strawberries will need nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. There is a huge selection of products recommended for strawberry fertilizer.

Mulching of beds will help summer residents to obtain a rich harvest of berries, since this variety is unable to develop and fruit in dry land next to weeds. As a layer of mulch, you can use dry leaves or grass, needles of needles. Quite good results are obtained by using special covering materials. Mulching strawberry beds should be carried out in the flowering phase of the crop. Using natural raw materials for mulch, you need to make sure that the grass or straw will be sufficiently dried. Raw material can provoke infection of the plant, as well as attract insect pests to the strawberry.

With the arrival of autumn, the bushes need to be cut, such work should be carried out every year. Some gardeners also prune strawberries shortly after harvest, such activities contribute to the formation of young shoots on the plants.

Culture demonstrates immunity to powdery mildew and gray rot, in some cases resistance to fungal blotch is noted. But despite this, strawberries are susceptible to anthracnose and nematode damage; in addition, berries are a lure for insects such as wasps, ants, ticks and slugs.

For preventive purposes, work is being done to dig up the soil around the bushes; in addition, unhealthy or damaged parts of plants should be cut, weeds should be removed.

To combat the nematode, the affected shoots should be cut off from the bushes, and the culture should be treated with Topaz or Bordeaux mixture. To cure a berry culture from gray rot, use a solution based on iodine for spraying. For its preparation will need about 10 ml of the substance dissolved in 100 ml of water.

To destroy pests, you can use the following options:

• remove insects from the bushes yourself;
• use dandelion infusion to process the crop;
• garlic-based infusion is an effective remedy.

Gardeners and gardeners engaged in the cultivation of the Kimberley variety in different climatic latitudes characterize the culture from the positive side, primarily in the light of the good yield of the variety, as well as high taste qualities of the berries. In light of this, this plant is recommended both for personal cultivation and for cultivation for industrial purposes with the subsequent sale of berries.

As practice shows, the productive life of crop beds is at least 3 years, after which there is a deterioration in the taste characteristics of the fruit, in addition, the berries become smaller.

Four rules for the harvest of large strawberries are waiting for you in the next video.