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Cherry Prima is widely popular among experienced gardeners, as this plant is durable, high-yielding, unpretentious and unpretentious. Sweet and sour berries, which are always in abundance, are eaten both fresh and processed into juices and jams. However, in order for the cherry to bring a rich harvest, it is important to know the agricultural practices of growing crops, care features, and also how to protect the tree from diseases and pests.
Cherry Prima always bears fruit abundantly
Description of the Prima cherry variety
For more than two thousand years, cherry trees have been grown in gardens throughout Europe, because the fruits of this culture are not only tasty, but also beneficial to the body. More than 100 types of cherries are known, however, Prima is one of the most popular due to its high yield and unpretentiousness. Further, the Prima cherry variety is considered in detail, a photo and description of an adult tree and fruits are given, and the agricultural technology for growing this crop is given.
Height and dimensions of an adult tree
An adult Prima cherry tree reaches an average size (up to 3 m in height) or is vigorous (up to 3,5 m). The dense, slightly raised crown with medium-sized glossy leaves has a predominantly rounded shape. Cherries of this variety are recommended to be grown everywhere in the central region of Our Country.
Description of fruits
Rounded dark red berries with juicy dense brightly colored pulp weigh from 3 to 4 g. The taste of the fruit is pleasant, with a rich cherry aroma, the stone is easily separated from the pulp.
Prima cherries are sweet and sour and very juicy
A characteristic feature is that its cherries are able, after ripening, to sag on the branches of a tree until September. At the same time, the gastronomic qualities of the berries do not decrease at all, they are not baked in the sun and do not lose their presentation.
Prima cherry pollinators
Cherry Prima is characterized by late flowering. The variety is not self-fertile, therefore, for pollination, the presence of other representatives of the species in one area is necessary. The following varieties of cherries are considered the best as pollinators:
- Vladimirskaya;
- Zhukovskaya;
- Lyubskaya;
- Shubinka.
These varieties, like the Prima cherry, bloom in the second half of May, and therefore are ideal pollinators for each other.
The main characteristics of Prima cherries
Cherry variety Prima is a fast-growing culture of late ripening, loving quiet, sunny and calm places. Under favorable weather conditions, from the end of July, you can start harvesting.
Drought resistance, frost resistance
Cherry thrives in regions with a harsh climate and equally tolerates heat and prolonged drought, as well as severe frosts and snowy winters. It is thanks to drought resistance and frost resistance that Prima is grown in almost all regions of Our Country.
Productivity
Prima begins to bear fruit under favorable conditions in the fourth year after planting seedlings. From one tree you can get up to 20-25 kg of selected berries, however, this is not the limit. Earlier, in especially favorable years, a harvest of 80-83 kg of cherries from one adult plant was recorded.
Fruiting depends on the soil and the place in which the tree grows, as well as on the watering and fertilizing schedule. If Prime does not have enough sunlight, the fruits will be few, they will be small and sour. Once every three years, the crown of the plant should be subjected to anti-aging pruning – this increases the fertility of the tree.
The berries have a strong elastic peel and dense pulp, therefore they tolerate transportation well and are distinguished by high keeping quality. The scope of the fruit is quite wide – they are consumed both fresh and subjected to culinary processing. Juices are made from cherries, compotes, jams and preserves are cooked, preserved and frozen for the winter.
Advantages and disadvantages
The advantages of the Prima variety include the following characteristics:
- high productivity;
- taste qualities of fruits, versatility of their use;
- good transportability and keeping quality of berries;
- adaptability to adverse climatic conditions.
However, despite such a number of positive qualities, Prima cherries have some disadvantages:
- tall stature makes harvesting difficult;
- the variety is susceptible to such a disease as moniliosis.
In addition, it is necessary to regularly thin the crown to ensure uniform ripening of the crop.
Rules of landing
In order for the tree to bear fruit well, it is important to follow the rules of cultivation cultivation, as well as to choose high-quality planting material. When buying Prima seedlings, you need to pay attention to the root system, it must be well formed and developed. This will speed up the survival of the plant in a new place.
Recommended dates
Prima cherry seedlings with a bare root system are planted in early spring in a pit prepared in advance and fertilized since autumn. Annual grafted plants are used as planting material. If cherry seedlings are containerized, they can be planted in the ground throughout the spring-summer period.
It is important to remember that this cherry variety requires pollinators. Therefore, if there are no suitable specimens in neighboring areas, you need to purchase them directly when buying Prima seedlings and plant them in the ground at the same time.
Site selection and soil preparation
Cherry loves well-lit and draft-protected places. Therefore, it is advisable to plant Prima seedlings between courtyard or summer cottages, however, so that they do not obscure the trees.
It is also worth paying attention to the soil in which the cherry will grow. Prima does not tolerate stagnant water in the root system or periodic flooding during the rainy season. Therefore, if such a probability exists, it is necessary to ensure a good outflow of water or make an artificial hill before planting.
Most of all, drained loamy or sandy loamy soils with an acidity of 6.5-7.0 pH are suitable for Prima cherries. If a site with clay or sandy soil is allotted for planting, the plant is likely to develop poorly, bear fruit poorly and die quickly. To avoid this, it is necessary to prepare a large planting hole for the seedling, on the bottom of which drainage should be laid, as well as a substrate rich in humus.
How to plant
When planting young Prima cherry trees on the site, it should be borne in mind that they grow rapidly and, with a dense planting pattern, will shade each other. Therefore, between seedlings there should be at least 9-12 square meters. m.
Planting hole width – 80 cm, depth – 60 cm
Organic fertilizers are applied to the bottom in the form of horse humus or humus (two buckets), as well as 20 g of potassium chloride and 40 g of superphosphate. Prima seedling is planted in such a way that the root neck is 5-7 cm above the ground level.
Features of care
Cherry Prima does not require special care and all activities are reduced to regular watering, timely fertilization and annual crown pruning. In addition, despite the frost resistance of the variety, in regions with harsh winters, care should be taken to make the cherry easier to endure extreme cold.
Watering and fertilizing schedule
After planting the seedling, it is enough to water it once a week for a month. Then you can go to the schedule four times a month – twice a day (morning and evening). Each plant should take at least a bucket of water. It is important not to limit the watering of the tree during the fruiting period and the active formation of flower buds for the next year (this happens in June and July), otherwise the harvest will be poor both this year and in the future.
If fertilizers are applied in the form of granules, subsequent watering is necessary.
In addition to basal top dressing during planting, fertilizers are applied two more times a year:
- before flowering: in a bucket of water 10 g of urea, 25 g of superphosphate, 15 g of potassium chloride;
- at the end of the autumn season: cherries are fertilized with organic compounds (40 g of manure per tree), superphosphate (400 g) and potassium sulfate (150 g).
In addition, once every five years it is necessary to do liming of the soil. To do this, from 300 to 500 g of ground limestone or dolomite flour are scattered under each tree.
Trimming
In April of each year, before bud break, it is important to carry out anti-aging pruning of cherry branches. This will help increase the yield of Prima, increase the sugar content of berries, and is also a prevention of many diseases.
Weak curves, as well as shoots growing inside the crown, are completely removed. Leave only straight strong branches growing sideways, not up.
It is necessary to cut off the fruiting shoots that descend to the ground. You also need to limit the height of the tree at the level of 3 m, cutting off the branches stretching upwards. This will allow the side to develop. It is worth remembering that you can not remove more than a quarter of the mass of the entire crown at a time.
Preparation for winter
In order for the tree to better endure early frosts, when there is still no snow, as well as strong winter winds, it is recommended to mulch the root zone with humus in the fall. You should also wrap the trunk of young trees with a special covering material.
Diseases and pests
Cherry Prima is prone to such a disease as monilial burn or moniliosis, and if the plant is not treated, it dies. The causative agent is fungi, as a result of which the young leaves and shoots dry out. At the same time, they have a characteristic appearance, reminiscent of the effect of flames. Gray protruding growths appear on the fruits, the berries rot and fall off.
Cherry branch affected by monoliosis
They fight the disease by spraying the affected in early spring, as well as nearby branches with a 3% solution of nitrafen.
Blackened shoots should be removed. Then it is important to spray the tree with a 2% Bordeaux mixture before opening the buds. And immediately after the end of flowering, re-spraying is carried out only with a 1% solution.
Conclusion
Cherry Prima, grown in compliance with all the rules of agricultural technology, will surely please the amateur gardener with a bountiful harvest. It is important not to forget to carry out preventive measures to combat diseases in time, adhere to the irrigation schedule and apply fertilizers.
