Strawberry "Ostara": characteristics of the variety and agricultural technology

In order to successfully grow strawberries in your garden, you need to choose the right variety of culture.Among the existing variety of berries, reparative plants occupy a separate category, where not the last place in popularity belongs to the strawberry variety “Ostara”, which has won leading positions due to its positive characteristics and organoleptic properties of fruits.

“Ostara” refers to remontant types of garden berry crops, and since today it is rather difficult to find a country or backyard plot without strawberries, more and more gardeners prefer such plants, appreciating the advantages of the varieties. The main feature that distinguishes remontant plants, is the ability to bear fruit several times a year.

The variety has been cultivated for a long time by domestic and foreign gardeners, in the light of which the existing characteristics of the plant have been tested in practice. The culture has Dutch roots, was obtained in the 60s by breeders by crossing the varieties Mashrachs Daurernte and Red Gauntlet. The result of their work was a new sort of "Ostara", not losing its popularity now.

The plant is a culture of a neutral day, whose characteristics make it possible to gather juicy berries from the first summer months until the arrival of frost. This happens due to the constant flowering of bushes, followed by fruit set. The strawberry yield is increasing, so the number of harvested berries in June will impress the gardener little, and the subsequent fruiting, falling in August, will be about 80% of the total fruiting of the crop for the entire season. Not all plants are able to tolerate such loads, therefore After picking berries, there is a chance that some strawberry bushes will die.

"Ostara" is capable of forming berries not only on the mother bushes, but also on young shoots that develop after the rooting of the antennae of strawberries. Berry culture is considered large-fruited, but in some cases there may be a decrease in the mass of strawberries after the first fruiting. According to the description of the variety, the weight of the berries of the remontant plant varies between 20-75 grams. Strawberry bushes are not distinguished by their large size, on average, the height of one garden crop is about 20-25 centimeters. The foliage of strawberry is painted in saturated green color, there are minimal villus on the surface.

Culture demonstrates resistance to most fungal diseases, is characterized by an accelerated development period of one year. "Ostara" is not able to grow and produce good yields for several years. This is due to the continuous flowering of the bushes, as a result of which the plant ages prematurely and the berries become smaller. As the cultivation experience of the variety shows, it is in the first year of life that strawberry bushes are at the peak of their yield.

Strawberry tolerates negative temperatures withstand, but in the northern regions with significant temperature drops, bushes require compulsory shelter for the winter. Without additional protection, plants retain their viability at temperatures not lower than -15 ° C, however, the level of snow cover plays an important role in this matter. In winter, accompanied by the presence of a large snow shelter, strawberries bravely tolerate even more severe frosts.

As for the heat, in this case, the culture does not always cope with weather conditions. When the thermometer exceeds the level of +28 C, pollen suffers first - it becomes sterile, as a result, the overall level of fruiting culture decreases. It is worth noting that the variety does not belong to super-resistant, however, due to the excellent taste qualities of the Ostara berries, it has been in high demand for several decades. For an objective assessment of remontant strawberries, it is worth considering the positive and negative qualities of the plant.

The advantages of culture include the following characteristics:

• continuous fruiting;
• high survival rate;
• on the tasting scale, the taste of berries deserves the maximum rating;
• the formation of ovaries both on the plant itself and on the stepchildren;
• frost resistance;
• immunity to most fungal infections;
• the variety acts as a decent pollinator for other strawberry varieties.

By cons strawberry "Ostara" must include such points:

• due to continuous flowering, the culture ages rather quickly;
• the maximum size of the berries can be achieved only in the first year;
• harvest has a low level of keeping quality.

In order to obtain high yields of succulent berries “Ostary” in their area, you should follow the rules of growing crops, as well as plant the bushes without errors. Since the variety, in the light of its properties and characteristics, differs from the usual berry plants, the technology of planting and cultivating remontant strawberries also has its own characteristics. The culture needs planting on the sunny side of the site, such arrangement will provide berries with a sweet taste, in shaded places the growth and development of the bushes will be slow.

Rooting of plants in the garden is best done in the spring months or at the end of summer, when the air temperature will be more gentle. In the role of planting material varieties "Ostara" are rooted antennae and young rosettes. The holes on the ridge should be located at a distance of 50 centimeters from each other. The pits are additionally fertilized with humus or compost, mineral compounds and wood ash are injected. To improve the structure of the soil, some gardeners use vermiculite, which contributes to the preservation of nutrients in the land and the optimal level of moisture. Vermiculite will activate plant growth processes of the root system.

After the rooting of the planting material, the plants are treated with a growth stimulator, and the use of Epin gives good results. The drug allows to reduce the adaptation period after planting, and also reduces the overall stress level of the plant after the change of location. On the next day, it is required to water the seedlings with “Fitosporin”, which will have a disinfecting effect, as well as a positive effect on the immunity of strawberries as a whole.

During rooting of young plants, the strawberry heart should not be too deep in the ground, for further development this part of the plant should be located above the ground level. Shortly after planting, the formation of peduncles will begin at the culture, they must be removed in order to enable the young bushes to take root as best as possible. For the second season, strawberries can already bear fruit with juicy berries.

After work on rooting young crops, it is important to properly plan agrotechnical activities in the garden. The main tasks relating to the care of strawberries are:

• watering culture;
• mulching beds;
• loosening the soil and removing weeds;
• the introduction of fertilizers;
• whisker removal;
• preparation for wintering.

Plants belonging to varieties of neutral daylight, need regular introduction of moisture, so during the cultivation of "Ostara" should monitor the level of soil moisture. An extra layer of mulch will help keep the ground moist. In addition to maintaining optimal moisture, mulching will eliminate the development of weeds in the garden beds, besides, there will be no need for loosening the soil after watering, and ripe berries will remain clean.

The optimal raw material for mulching strawberry beds will be sawdust, straw, or specialized covering material for horticultural crops. For productive fruiting of the remontant strawberry, you will need regular introduction of nutrients. Fertilizing culture is carried out throughout the flowering season and harvest. As a rule, fertilizers are used both in dry and in liquid form. Good results are shown by feeding strawberries with the following beneficial compounds:

• shop mineral complexes;
• wood ash;
• compost;
• liquid infusions on bird droppings and mullein;
• infusions of herbs.

Fertilizing plants with mineral and organic compounds is carried out alternately. The complex of agrotechnical measures also includes works on the timely removal of antennae, which are formed on the mother culture. To remove the extra load from strawberry bushes, all whiskers are subject to removal, except the first one, which moves away from the plant. To breed and update the beds should be selected the most powerful mustache.

The culture is susceptible to infection by gray mold, especially at high humidity and too close plantings of plants on the ridges. This disease can provoke the death of 80% of all ripe berries. To eliminate the risk of strawberry damage, care should be taken to ensure good ventilation of the beds, as well as to avoid contact of the plant with the ground as much as possible. To do this, it is recommended to mulch the area with the berry crop. Care should be taken to introduce nitrogen-containing compounds so that the bushes do not gain excessive green mass.

As preventive measures, it is necessary to process cultures with Bordeaux liquid at the beginning of the growing season and during active foliage growth. After the formation of buds and picking berries, strawberry bushes are sprayed with colloidal sulfur. To overcome the disease, you must use fungicides or biological products. Good results are obtained with the use of Kaptan, Strobe or Alirin-B funds.

Berry culture can also be affected by brown spot, due to the same mistakes associated with planting. In addition, sudden fluctuations in temperature can cause illness. As a preventive measure, in the spring the plants are treated with Bordeaux mixture and the removal of dry foliage. It will not be out of place to take care of mulching strawberry plantings on the plot. Already diseased bushes are treated with "Fundazole" or "Strobe."

In addition to diseases, strawberries can be attacked by insects, among which a strawberry mite is capable of causing great damage to the crop. For the destruction of the pest apply colloidal sulfur or "Malathion". Spraying is performed in the spring months, as well as after the end of the fruiting period. Frequent cases of destruction of nematode bushes.In this case, the affected areas of the plant or the entire crop is removed from the bed and burned. For the destruction of spider mites use "Karbofos."

Numerous responses of Russian gardeners and gardeners engaged in the cultivation of the Ostara variety include positive characteristics, especially regarding the taste properties of the berries. However, the remontant culture needs special care, and the harvest is low transportability, so the crop is most suitable for private cultivation.

Review the bush strawberry variety "Ostara" see in the video below.