Cherry Ashinsky

The beauty of a blooming cherry orchard is unlikely to leave anyone indifferent. And if this beauty turns into delicious berries over time, this is doubly good. It is precisely such a tree that can decorate any garden, and at the same time please a bountiful harvest, is Ashinskaya cherry – a young promising variety of selection.

History of breeding

Ashinskaya is a spontaneous hybrid of garden cherry and steppe cherry (bush). Named after the district center Asha, Chelyabinsk region, from where the material for selection was taken. The authors of the variety are scientists from the South Ural Research Institute of Horticulture and Potato Growing (YUUNIIPOK), Chelyabinsk. Since 2002, the variety has been included in the State Register for the Ural region.

Description of the culture

The table below gives the main characteristics of the Ashinskaya cherry variety.

Now it is grown in the Ural region, in the North Caucasus and in Central Our Country from the Upper Volga to the Kuban.

Characteristics of a variety

Cherry Ashinsky is considered a productive winter-hardy variety of late ripening. The average life span of a tree is 35–40 years. Fruiting begins at the age of four. The hybrid is suitable for both industrial cultivation and individual gardening.

Drought and winter hardiness

From its progenitor – the steppe cherry – Ashinsky got good resistance to drought and frost. The winter hardiness of the variety is average – up to -42 degrees. The resistance to frost of generative buds is average, the resistance of flowers to frost is above average. After damage by severe frosts, the Ashinsky cherry is able to quickly recover with almost no loss in yield.

Pollination, flowering period and ripening period

Cherries of this variety are partially self-fertile; in the absence of pollinators, 20–50% of flower ovaries are fertilized. To increase productivity, it is recommended to plant any stone fruit crops with similar flowering periods near Ashinsky. It blooms in the last decade of May, the flowering period is extended. Photos of Ashinsky cherries during the flowering period below.

yield, fruiting

The fruiting of the Ashinskaya cherry variety begins from the fourth year and continues annually up to 30 years or more. Fruit ripening is friendly. The yield from one adult tree is 8-10 kilograms. The table shows the main characteristics of Ashinsky cherry fruits:

Scope of berries

Despite the fact that the Ashinskaya cherry variety is a dessert variety, the berries are also well suited for processing. It is used for making juices, jams, compotes, jams.

Disease and pest resistance

The variety has a high resistance to coccomycosis. No other diseases or insect pests were observed.

Advantages and disadvantages

For all its merits, Ashinsky cherry has a number of disadvantages. The table shows its positive and negative qualities:

Features of landing

Ashinskaya adult cherry is a beautiful tall tree that can decorate any garden both during the flowering period and during the ripening of the crop. When planting it, some features of the variety should be taken into account.

Recommended timing

The optimal time of the year for planting Ashinsky cherries is the spring, when the soil has already completely thawed, but the buds have not yet begun to bloom. In central Our Country, this period falls on April. Later dates are undesirable because of the worst survival rate of seedlings.

Autumn planting is not carried out, in this case it is more expedient not to plant the seedlings, but simply dig in until spring on the south side of the house or fence and shelter from frost.

Choosing the right place

When choosing a landing site, it is worth considering the size of the future tree and its longevity. Most likely, it will not be possible to transplant an adult cherry to another place, since this tree does not tolerate transplantation well and will most likely die. It is preferable to use the southern sides of buildings and fences, because cherries do not like cold winds. It is desirable that the soil at the planting site has an acidity close to neutral and is not too heavy.

What to plant next to cherries

Not all neighboring plants get along well with each other. The optimal neighborhood for Ashinsky cherries will be the same stone fruits – cherries, cherries, plums. They can be planted at a distance of at least 3 meters from each other so that their crowns are not intertwined with each other. Undesirable neighbors for cherries are oak, linden, maple. And also, you should not plant some shrubs near Ashinsky: gooseberries, sea buckthorn, raspberries, as well as light-loving varieties of currants.

Selection and preparation of planting material

Ashinskaya cherry is planted mainly by seedlings. You can make your own or buy them from a nursery. Cuttings for future seedlings are harvested at the beginning of summer, in cloudy weather, in the morning or in the evening. The length of the cuttings is 30–35 cm. The cherry shoot is soaked for a day in a growth stimulator, while the cut end is immersed in it by only 1,25–2 cm. After that, the cuttings are planted in nutrient soil and covered with a film. After two weeks, adventitious roots should appear, after a month – difficult to root.

Landing algorithm

It is better to prepare a pit for planting Ashinskaya cherry seedlings in the fall. Its standard size is 60x60x60 centimeters. Sod land is preserved for the preparation of nutrient soil. A peg is hammered into the center of the pit for gartering the future tree. A layer of earth is poured to the bottom in the form of a mound so that the root collar of the seedling standing on it is 5 cm above the ground level.

Sod land is mixed with humus in a ratio of 1: 1, the roots of the seedling are covered with it. The earth around must be lightly tamped so that a groove ring 8–10 cm deep forms around the seedling. After that, the seedling is watered with three buckets of water, and the earth around it is mulched with sawdust or humus.

A complete guide to planting cherries is in the video below:

Culture aftercare

Cherry Ashinsky is undemanding to constant care, but regular pruning, top dressing and watering can significantly increase yields. Pruning is a mandatory procedure, since the plant forms many shoots that greatly thicken the crown. They also cut out dry, broken, as well as branches growing inside the crown, since it is very inconvenient to harvest from them. It is also necessary to remove the numerous basal shoots of cherries, which the plant forms in excess.

Cherries need watering only during periods of drought. You need to feed the trees occasionally, it is best to use humus, peat and wood ash for this, bringing them together with digging directly into the trunk circle. Top dressing with mineral fertilizers is needed only on very poor sandy loamy soils. To do this, you can use superphosphate and potassium sulfate, diluted in a proportion of 1 tbsp. a spoonful of each in a bucket of water. This top dressing is done in the fall, about once every three years.

Diseases and pests

Cases of damage to this cherry variety by diseases are extremely rare and are found only on very neglected trees. No insect pests were observed either. The harvest can be partially spoiled only by birds pecking at the berries, but such cases are not widespread either.

Conclusion

Despite the fact that Ashinskaya is a fairly young variety, it has a good future. This is due to its unpretentiousness and undemanding care. Frost resistance is also of great importance, as well as the ability to quickly recover from severe frosts. Abundant annual fruiting and a long period of tree life make it possible to unequivocally recommend this variety for cultivation in garden plots.

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