Strawberry Aroza: description and characteristics of the variety, cultivation, propagation methods

The leading position in the popularity rating among mid-late strawberry varieties is occupied by the Arosa variety. Due to the large fruits, high fruiting rate, good taste characteristics, it is often found in garden plots, as it is recognized by gardeners who know that good planting and proper care of the crop is required to obtain a generous harvest.

Description and characteristics of the Arosa strawberry variety

Italian breeders, having crossed the Marmalade and Chandler varieties, obtained a high-yielding variety that gives berries with excellent taste characteristics and commercial qualities.

Arosa Strawberry is a medium-sized bush, which is decorated with sprawling leaves, painted in light green color, slightly wrinkled. Peduncles are placed above the foliage. The flowers differ in size, the calyx is the same, with a corolla. Fruits that have an orange-red color and a rounded conical shape attract attention. The weight of one berry is up to 40 g. Medium-density pulp with a glossy, shiny skin has a taste characterized by juiciness, sweetness and rich aroma.

Mid-late ripening variety, fruiting observed in June.

Main pros and cons

Arosa strawberry variety has a lot of positive qualities, including:

high yield, you can get 220 centners per hectare;
fruits have an attractive appearance and excellent taste;
crop is perfectly transported due to the high strength of the berries;
possibility of growing in open, protected soil, pots;
resistance to major diseases and dangerous pests;
ability to withstand the complex effects of the external environment in winter, therefore, does not require shelter in the southern latitudes.

Description of the variety also provides for the designation of faults, which include:

moisture deficiency can cause a deterioration in the quality of the taste of berries;
uneven fruit ripening.

Features of growing garden strawberries

To get a rich harvest of fragrant Arosa strawberries, you need to follow a number of recommendations when growing a crop, which include the correct timing and planting patterns, as well as the choice of quality seedlings and suitable soil.

Pick up time

When determining the time of planting Arosa strawberries, be guided by the climate of the region. It can be planted both in spring and autumn.

Landing on a cloudy day. To do this, check the weather forecast and choose the best time for this.

How to choose seedlings

The future harvest depends on the quality of planting material. Strawberry seedlings ready for planting should have at least 5 leaves, without spots, holes and not eaten by insects, as well as powerful roots not exceeding 10-12 cm long. If there are various mechanical defects, as well as signs of disease on seedlings, such copies.

After buying seedlings, you should immediately root it. To do this, send it for a day to a cool place for hardening and adaptation to external conditions. Before planting, dip the roots of the seedlings into the clay mixture.

Site selection and soil preparation

Excessive fruiting will depend on the right choice of location. A sunlit area, away from shady trees and shrubs, is suitable for Arosa strawberries. Also, this southern variety of berry culture is afraid of drafts, so it is important to protect the planting site from the wind.

The chance of getting a crop is reduced if the plot is in a lowland. Groundwater should not be placed close to the planted strawberries, otherwise there is a risk that the seedlings will die.

For planting Arosa strawberries, it is better to choose loam or sandy loam soil. The acidity of the soil should be neutral, ranging from 5 to 6.5 pH. If this figure is high, it is required to pre-lime the strawberry beds.

Gardeners recommend planting Arosa after legumes, garlic, carrots, onions. Tomatoes, potatoes, eggplants are considered bad predecessors.

Before planting, carefully dig up the soil and remove all weed plants. Then add humus in the amount of 6 kg, nitrogen substances - 50 g, superphosphate - 10 g and potassium s alt - 50 g for 1 m^{2. The soil should be enriched with these nutrients a month before planting Arosa strawberries to avoid burning the roots of seedlings.}

Plant pattern

The compactness of Arosa strawberry bushes allows planting them in one or two rows, while maintaining a distance between planting units of 35 cm, and between rows - 30-40 cm.

In the process of planting, spread the roots over moist soil. After the strawberries are planted, you need to water well and mulch.

The basics of caring for culture

Caring for strawberries of the Arosa variety provides for the implementation of measures aimed at ensuring the survival of seedlings after planting and creating comfortable conditions for growth.

Spring care

In order for the Aroza strawberry to fully develop and bear fruit, you should surround it with care and attention in the spring:

after the snow melts, free the beds from dry foliage, which should be burned immediately;
do not allow the soil to dry out, which will ensure the intensive growth of young leaves;
to loosen the soil between the rows;
regularly free from weeds so that the growth of the bush does not linger and the quality of the fruit does not suffer;
treat strawberry bushes using time-tested drugs for diseases and pests;
fertilize with fertilizers containing nitrogen.

To avoid problems with yields, you should not neglect the care of Arosa strawberries in the spring.

Water and mulch

Watering Arosa strawberries is necessary if necessary, strong moisture adversely affects the roots of the plant. Water for irrigation should be at least 15 degrees, otherwise the risk of disease of the bushes or rotting of their root system increases. After irrigation, it is recommended to loosen the soil.

Strawberry Arosa is a drought tolerant variety, but this only applies to the foliage. As for berries, the lack of moisture will deprive them of taste, juiciness and adversely affect their appearance. Do not be zealous with watering, as the culture does not tolerate waterlogged soil.

The optimal irrigation method is drip irrigation, it is especially relevant when cultivating strawberries on large plantations. If plantings occupy a small area of \u200b\u200bland, then watering is carried out manually. At the same time, it is important to take into account that when using a hose, you need to make sure that the jet is not strong in order to avoid washing out the roots and exposing them.

To maintain moisture, mulch the root zone using straw, rotted sawdust, peat. This technique prevents overheating of the soil and the development of weeds.

Fertilization

When growing Arosa strawberries, it is recommended to use a standard top dressing scheme. Apply nitrogen fertilizers in spring, saturate the soil with potash and phosphorus substances in summer and autumn. During the growing season, 3-4 procedures should be carried out.

Cutting

Strawberry Arosa annually forms a lot of whiskers, which should be cut without fail, it is better to do this in the fall, at the same time remove the old foliage. It is recommended to leave no more than 2 strong mother shoots on each plant.

Transfer

A feature of the development of Arosa strawberries is considered to be a gradual increase in the diameter of the bush due to the growth of new rosettes, which in the future negatively affects its fruiting.Therefore, plants require transplantation to a new place. This event can be held in the spring before flowering and in the first month of the autumn period.

Strawberry Aroza in one place is able to regularly bear fruit no more than 3-4 years.

Preparing for winter season

In order for Arosa strawberries to please with a rich harvest next year, you need to properly prepare it for the winter. To do this, prune the bushes in the fall, removing the extra mustache, old leaves. If the roots are bare, sprinkle them with soil, which will protect them from freezing.

Strawberry Aroza is a winter-hardy variety, so in the southern regions it can do without shelter. In the northern regions, it is necessary to cover strawberry bushes with a layer of sawdust mulch. Also, to protect plants from frost, you can use a material such as agrofiber. The best solution would be to cover the strawberries with spruce branches, which will serve not only as a good insulation, but also with its needles will securely hold the snow, and a strong wind will not be able to blow it away.

Ways to protect against diseases

Strawberry Arosa is not immune from the appearance of diseases. The culture is prone to fungal infections. This situation worsens especially in the rainy season, with a decrease in temperature indicators. Dangerous ailments of this berry crop are powdery mildew, white and brown leaf spot, and gray rot.

For prevention, it is important to create and maintain an optimal microclimate and a minimal infectious environment. This requires:

stick to moderate planting density of strawberry bushes;
water regularly;
protect from weeds that carry diseases;
remove dry, affected overwintered leaves in spring.

The treatment of bushes using chemicals should be carried out when signs of disease are detected. Choose a drug based on the type of pathogen and the phases of plant development.

Pest control methods

Pests such as strawberry mites, weevil, spider mites, nematodes also pose a threat to crops. They are able to ruthlessly destroy plants, feeding on roots, foliage, and some of them prefer to feast on fruits.

Ways to fight:

remove the top layer of soil between the bushes in the spring, as insects accumulate there;
loosen the soil and remove the young shoots of weeds;
if detected, treat the bushes with such folk remedies as a solution based on laundry soap, tincture of garlic with onions;
in case of a massive invasion of parasites, use insecticides, as well as sanitation of the soil with slaked lime.

Repeated spraying, inspection of plants will surely lead to victory.

Methods of reproduction

The plant propagates by seeds, mustache, dividing the bush. Each method has its own characteristics, pros and cons.

Usami

Strawberry Arosa forms few whiskers, but the rosettes on them are distinguished by power and vitality. For breeding culture, it is better to choose he althy uterine bushes and cut flower stalks from them. The mustache will take root on its own. When the sockets form roots, they need to be cut off from the mother plant and planted in a new bed.

Dividing the bush

This propagation method involves the division of strawberry bushes at the age of not earlier than 2-4 years, when there is a strong branching of the shoots. In this case, you need to choose plants with a he althy and well-developed root system.

Seeds

This method is considered very difficult, painstaking. To get seeds, you need to collect ripe berries and cut off the outer layer from them, then dry and separate the seeds. Stored seed material for 4 years.

To grow seedlings, place the seeds in March in containers, evenly distributing them over the surface of the soil, and lightly sprinkle with soil. Then put in a bright warm place. Moisten the soil from time to time. A month later, shoots appear. When 2-3 leaves are formed on the plants, pick a pick, planting them in separate pots. Plant in open ground in May, when the seedlings will have at least 6 leaves.

Features of growing in pots

According to the description, Arosa strawberries can be cultivated in protected ground. This will allow you to plant seedlings in pots and get a harvest of healing fruits indoors.

Collection and storage

If the strawberry harvest is planned to be stored or transported over long distances, then it must be harvested 2 days before full ripening. Pluck the fruits, leaving tails and green caps.Harvesting should be carried out in the morning or in the evening before sunset, so that the rays of the sun do not fall on the berries.

It is recommended to store fragrant berries in plastic containers arranged in one row in a room with a low temperature.