Roxana Strawberry: variety description and characteristics, planting, cultivation and care

Italian selection Roxana strawberry is a medium-fruited productive variety that has taken root perfectly in the beds of Russian gardeners. Suitable for industrial cultivation. Differs in high productivity and endurance. It is not difficult to grow Roxana on a personal plot, it is enough to observe agricultural technology and carry out the prevention of pests and infections.

Description and characteristics of the variety Roxana

The variety has been grown in Russian beds for over twenty years. Roxana is a non-repairable type of strawberry of medium late ripening. The main part of the crop is formed in early autumn. The variety is grown both in greenhouses and greenhouses, and in closed ground.

Characteristics and description of the variety:

• The berries ripen in the form of a cone, the top of which is bifurcated. Because of this feature, Roxanne's fruit is often compared to an "unopened tulip".
• Fruits are glossy, smooth with pronounced superficial yellow seeds.
• The bush is vigorous, compact, medium foliage.
• Yield - up to 1.5 kg of berries from a bush per season.
• Excellent transportability of ripe fruit.
• Universal grade assignment.
• Strong immunity.

The variety endures winters without shelters at temperatures not lower than -20 ^{С, therefore in central Russia it is recommended to cover strawberry plantations for the winter with the help of covering material.}

Advantages and disadvantages of strawberries

The Italian variety of fragrant strawberries is loved by Russian gardeners for its piquant fruit shape, yield and excellent transportability of ripe berries. The main advantages of the variety include:

• Genetic resistance to powdery mildew.
• Taste qualities: balanced sweet and sour taste with a slight bitterness and a pronounced aroma.
• Friendly fruit ripening.
• Transportability and keeping quality of fruits.
• Suitable for commercial cultivation.
• Member of the berry conveyor: when early varieties finish fruiting, Roxana pleases gardeners with the first harvest.

An amazing feature of the variety is the ability of ripe fruits to hang on the bushes for a week without losing the elasticity of the berries and deteriorating taste.

There are practically no shortcomings in the variety. Negative characteristics include:

• Demands for watering and application of mineral fertilizers.
• Cannot stand temperatures above +35 ^C.
• Medium winter hardiness, additional winter shelters required.

Note: The main disadvantage of the variety is the lodging of peduncles on the ground during fruit ripening, the berries become vulnerable to fungal diseases. It is recommended to cover the bushes with sawdust or straw mulch, or plant plants on agricultural fabric.

Large berries ripen in the first harvest. In subsequent years, the berries become smaller, planting is recommended to be renewed.

Terms and rules of disembarkation

Planting seedlings in the soil of strawberries of the Italian variety Roxana can be carried out both in spring and autumn. The best time to create a good root system is August.

The holes are made shallow, 20-25 cm is enough. A mixture of organic fertilizers and sand is added. The roots of the plant are carefully straightened and sprinkled with earth, compacting the soil from above with the palm of your hand.Then each bush must be poured under the root with warm water. You can add a little urea and wood ash to the hole or sprinkle it on top of the soil, slightly loosening it.

Site selection and ground requirements

Roxana is adapted for growing indoors and outdoors. A plot for strawberry plantations is chosen on a hill. A small shadow is allowed. The soil must be nutritious, acidic soils containing limestone will not work.

Preparation of seedlings

For planting in the ground, it is important to make the correct selection of seedlings. Bushes should be he althy:

• Leaves are brightly colored, dark green.
• No spots on stems and leaves.
• The root system is well formed.

Too long roots are cut off. The day before planting seedlings in the ground, each pot of plants is abundantly watered.

Plant pattern

Traditional planting pattern for Roxana: 30 cm between bushes, 35 cm between rows. Italian strawberry forms not too sprawling bushes, plants can be planted in three rows.

In greenhouses, Roxanne's seedlings are planted on agrofabric, which reduces the contact of ripe berries with the soil and minimizes the likelihood of fruit rot.

In addition, the fruits always remain clean, which is especially important for their subsequent transportation for commercial purposes.

How to care

Traditional care for strawberry plantations of the Roxana variety: watering, loosening, cleaning weeds, fertilizing. It is necessary to pay attention to the procedure for preparing plants for the winter, strawberries need shelter for the cold season.

Cutting

Spring pruning - sanitization of strawberry beds after winter. Old leaves are removed from plantings along with pests that overwintered on them. Bushes receive more daylight, there is a kind of ventilation of the root system. In the plant, metabolic processes are accelerated, the growth rate increases. With the help of a rake or chopper, the soil is loosened, diseased dried leaves and shoots are cut with secateurs.

Important! Do not prune he althy leaves and young plant buds.

After the "spring transformation" procedure, the berries are watered and fed. Subsequently, the berries will ripen faster, which will certainly please gardeners.

Prophylactic spraying

Spraying strawberries must be carried out before flowering. Plants need a protective barrier during this period, future fruits are laid, and the plant is most vulnerable to diseases, as it devotes all its strength to a set of ovaries.

From folk remedies, potassium permanganate or an aqueous solution of brilliant green with iodine is used. Natural natural antiseptics - bactericidal preparations tested for decades. When cultivating strawberries on an industrial scale, chemical processing agents are used.

Spraying at temperatures below -18 C and above +30 ^{C is not recommended, plant leaves may get burned.}

Feeding

The application of mineral and organic fertilizers is an important step in the care of Roxana strawberries. Top dressing can be applied using a drip irrigation system, spraying the leaves manually, watering under the root. In the spring, the plants are supported by the application of nitrogenous fertilizers. Proven recipe: 20 g of ammonium nitrate per 10 liters of water. Bushes are watered under the root, getting on the leaves is undesirable.

The next dressing is an aqueous solution of bird droppings or infused cow cakes. For 10 liters of water, it is enough to dilute 1 kg of fertilizer. During flowering and fruit set, berry bushes are fed with an aqueous solution of wood ash: 1 glass of ash per 10 liters of water.

After harvesting the last crop, plants need fertilizers containing potassium and phosphorus. Always after fertilizing, it is recommended to loosen the soil and sprinkle the bushes with humus.

Irrigation

Roxana is demanding on watering. This procedure should be carried out often, but to prevent waterlogging of the soil and stagnation of moisture at the roots of plants. Water for irrigation should be clean and warm, the optimum temperature is +20 ^{С. Mulch keeps moisture in the soil, and if it is present in the beds, frequent watering is not necessary.}

Moisturizing is done after harvest, in the morning or evening hours. Excess moisture in the soil leads to rotting and diseases of the berries, and a lack of it leads to a decrease in yield and a decrease in the size of the fruit. The gardener should assess the degree of soil moisture before watering.

Loosening

Regular loosening will help improve the access of oxygen to the roots and activate the metabolic processes between the soil and plants. In the aisles, the soil is loosened to a depth of 10 cm, at the roots of plants, directly under the bush - by 3 cm.

The root system of strawberries is located close to the surface of the beds. After loosening, the bushes are spudded and sprinkled with humus.

Shelter

Roxana has an average winter hardiness. The variety is able to withstand frosts not lower than -20 ^{С, it is recommended to close strawberries for the winter using film shelters or textile covering material. You can use spruce branches and straw. In regions with little snow in winter, Italian strawberries may freeze.}

The berries are covered after preliminary preparation of the berries for winter: loosening, weed removal and top dressing.

Disease and pest control

Breeders genetically protected the variety from powdery mildew. The immunity of the plant is stable, but this does not mean that strawberries do not get sick with anything. Anthracnose or black spot is a dangerous disease that often overcomes Roxanne. This disease is fungal and occurs in conditions of high humidity. Prevention of anthracnose consists in spraying plants in the spring with Bordeaux liquid.

Protection against diseases lies in the timely and regular inspection of plants for diseases. Diseases detected at the initial stage are easily treated and do not affect the yield in any way.

Propagation of strawberries Roxanne

Strawberry cultivar Roxana is propagated with a mustache. Mustache formation in the Italian variety is average. 2-3 daughter bushes are added dropwise next to the plant, the rest of the mustache is cut off. In autumn, young plants that have grown stronger are transplanted to permanent beds.

The transplanted bushes need shelter from the sun and watering for the first few days. Feeding of young plants is carried out in the fall, during the preparation of seedlings for winter.

Collection and storage of variety

The transportability of Roxanne's fruits is excellent. Ripe fruits can remain on the bushes for up to a week without changing the taste characteristics. Berries do not give juice and do not lose their shape.

The collected fruits are stored in fruit boxes, wicker baskets in a dark cool place. It is important to ensure ventilation in containers with harvested crops. Roxana fruits can be frozen and canned as a whole. Strawberries of the Italian variety are suitable for decorating desserts. After defrosting, it preserves the entire set of vitamins and nutrients.

Italian berry will decorate strawberry beds. High productivity is combined with the unpretentiousness of the variety.A novice gardener will be able to grow Roxana. In industrial greenhouses, the berry can bear fruit throughout the year. The fruits retain their presentation for a long time and do not lose their taste properties.

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