Honeysuckle Blue spindle

Honeysuckle Blue spindle with edible berries enjoys well-deserved popularity among gardeners. Plants are especially appreciated in Siberia, since it was in this climate that the variety was bred. So, local conditions for honeysuckle are just what you need.

Inference history

The honeysuckle variety with blue berries belongs to plants with an early ripening period. The authors are scientists of the Research Institute of Horticulture of Siberia named after M.A. Lisavenko. Seedlings of Kamchatka honeysuckle Start were taken as a basis, free pollination was used.

Testing of a new variety of honeysuckle began in 1980, and nine years later the plant was included in the State Register of the Federation. The new variety had a compact bush, the yield was not inferior to the parental form.

Description and characteristics of the variety

The first to describe the honeysuckle Blue spindle were its authors. As planned, the result was a plant with a height of 80 to 100 cm with a rare rounded crown.

Bush

Skeletal branches of honeysuckle Blue spindle are directed upwards at an oblique angle. The plant is represented by thin upright shoots without pubescence. The main color of the stems is green, but under the influence of the sun the part becomes anthracite.

The honeysuckle of the Siberian variety has large elongated oval leaves of a rich green color. Both parts of the leaf blade (this can be seen in the photo) are sharp at the top and bottom and are folded in the middle right along the vein.

On the age trunks of honeysuckle, including the Blue Spindle variety, the bark begins to peel off. This is not a disease, but a feature of the variety.

Fruit

The varietal feature of the Blue spindle can be called the size of the berries, which do not change from the region of cultivation. Berries weigh 0,9-1,3 grams, about 3 cm long, 1,1 cm in diameter.

The honeysuckle variety got its name due to the shape of the berry, resembling a long spindle. The base of the blue-blue fruit with a wax coating is flat, the skin is dense. On the surface of the berry (see photo), transverse tubercles are noticeable.

Berries with tender, sweetish-sour pulp. In dry years with a slight bitterness. According to consumers and tasters, the taste of fruits directly depends on the region of cultivation.

The opinion of experts about the taste characteristics of fresh berries of the Blue Spindle variety ranges from 3,5 to 4,3 points. As for processed fruits, the score is much higher – 4,7-5 points.

Pollinators

Honeysuckle of the Blue Spindle variety is a self-fertile plant. Pollen from the plant itself does not pollinate, the fruit is not tied. That is why it needs pollination. If bushes of other varieties of honeysuckle do not grow nearby, fertilization will be minimal. The best pollinators are:

• Cinderella;
• blue bird;
• Azure;
• Kamchadalku;
• Tomicka.

In the photo below, the honeysuckle variety is Tomichka.

Features of fruiting

Fruiting on honeysuckle begins on 4-5-year-old bushes. Berries on the Blue Spindle variety are ready for harvest in the second half of June. Depending on the region from the 12th to the 23rd. Ripening occurs unevenly, extended until mid-June.

Advantages and disadvantages

The creators of the variety took care of the advantages of the plant, thanks to which honeysuckle is popular:

1. Early ripening.
2. Excellent yield regardless of growing region. About two kilograms of blue-gray fruits are harvested from the bush annually.
3. The Blue Spindle variety attracts with large tasty berries.
4. The bushes are compact, unpretentious in care, do not need shelter for the winter.
5. Drought-resistant and frost-resistant. Withstand temperatures up to -45 degrees, the fruits are tied even at 8 degrees below zero.
6. Practically do not get sick and are not affected by pests.

If we talk about the shortcomings, then they are minimal:

• the appearance of bitterness in berries in dry years;
• shedding, which leads to a loss of 10-15% of the crop.

Cultivation

There are no special secrets for growing honeysuckle bushes, there are only some nuances that beginner gardeners should be familiar with.

Why do you need honeysuckle in the garden, find out from the video:

How to choose seedlings

For planting, honeysuckle seedlings Blue Spindle at the age of two years are required. You need to purchase them in nurseries. And now about how to choose the right seedling:

1. When buying a plant, pay attention to the development of the roots.
2. You should not take cuttings short up to 25 cm, as they are still underdeveloped.
3. Sick honeysuckle bushes with broken branches should also be avoided.
4. If the height of the seedling is more than one and a half meters, then they do not take root well. Yes, and fruiting does not begin immediately, as the seedling is under severe stress from transplantation.

Terms of planting

When planting honeysuckle bushes Blue Spindle, you need to take into account the features of growing a seedling:

1. If the root system is open, then planting is planned for autumn, 30 days before the cold weather. Saplings are frost-resistant, they are not afraid of frost up to 45 degrees. In the spring, such bushes should not be planted, because the blooming of leaves begins early. The plant will spend all its strength on building up green mass and shoots, and the root system will not be able to develop. As a result, the bushes begin to hurt and die.
2. Honeysuckle seedlings Blue spindle with a closed root system can be planted at any time of the year.

Site and soil selection

In one place, the Blue Spindle honeysuckle bears fruit for up to 20 years, so you need to immediately decide on the site. Plants like a well-lit, sunny place without drafts. The site must be protected from harsh winds knocking down buds and berries. In the photo, honeysuckle is planted against the wall of the house.

The root system can be destroyed by highly suitable groundwater. When choosing a place, you need to consider that they should not be higher than one meter from the surface.

Although the honeysuckle variety is unpretentious, the soil in the planting hole should be well seasoned with nutrients. Experienced gardeners recommend laying dry branches, chips, which not only feed the plant when it rots, but also warm the root system.

Bush planting

The further development of the plant and fruiting depends on the correct planting of the seedling:

1. The size of the pit should be 40×50 cm. The hole can be made larger, it all depends on the root system.
2. Drainage is laid at the bottom, then fertile soil, mixed with a bucket of compost, 300 gr. ash, 30 gr. potassium sulfate and 100 gr. superphosphate.
3. The root collar of the honeysuckle seedling is buried 5-7 cm higher than it grew in the nursery. The roots are straightened and covered with soil up to half. Immediately pour a bucket of water to straighten the root system.
4. After the hole is filled to the top, the soil is compacted and another bucket of water is poured. In order for the moisture to evaporate more slowly, the surface under the Blue Spindle bush, as shown in the photo, is mulched with a layer of 5-7 cm.

Care

According to gardeners who have been involved in culture for more than one year, caring for honeysuckle does not leave much difficulty. The main thing is to carry out basic agrotechnical measures.

Watering

As noted in the description, the plant is drought-resistant. Berries of the Blue Spindle variety are edible, but with a lack of moisture, bitterness appears in them.

Watering is especially important during flowering and fruit ripening. You need to water the bushes weekly, under each bush you need 4-5 buckets of water.

Additional fertilizing

Honeysuckle of the Blue Spindle variety is a perennial plant and needs timely feeding:

1. Fertilizer is applied for the first time in early spring, as soon as the ground begins to thaw. Under each bush, pour half a bucket of compost or humus mixed with mulch. Exactly the same top dressing can be made in the fall, after the leaves fly around.
2. The second time the bushes are fed with wood ash (1/2 cup) for each plant during the budding period and in August, when the buds are laid.
3. In autumn, when plant growth stops, a groove is made around the bush at least 20 cm deep and fed with 1 tablespoon of superphosphate. Then level the groove and water.

Trimming

If you do not form a bush, then after 3-4 years the crown will become too thick, which will adversely affect fruiting. After 2-3 years, the apical buds die off, but the intensive growth of lateral branches begins.

Pruning secrets:

1. Sanitary pruning of Blue Spindle honeysuckle is necessary in the first six years. It is performed in autumn and early spring. During sanitary pruning, all shoots that grow in the middle of the bush are removed so as not to obscure the crown. It is carried out every 2-3 years, the skeletal branches are shortened by a third.
2. In the future, in addition to sanitary pruning, thinning is necessary. It is held in late autumn.
3. Old shoots need to be cut at the base into a stump of 7-8 cm. Replacement shoots will appear on them next year.
4. To rejuvenate the bush, it is necessary to cut off all the shoots on a stump (as in the photo) so that new shoots grow, because fruiting goes on them.

Protection against diseases and pests

The Blue Spindle variety, judging by the description and reviews of gardeners, is resistant to many diseases and pests. Although there are fungal diseases from which plants need to be protected. Honeysuckle is affected:

• reddish-olive spotting;
• blackening of the branches;
• powdery mildew;
• tuberculosis;

It is impossible to fight viral diseases, but to protect against fungal diseases, you can use a 3-4% solution of Bordeaux liquid or Skor preparation.

The honeysuckle Blue spindle suffers greatly, according to gardeners, from the caterpillars of the honeysuckle fingerwing, which infect the berries. No less harm is caused by insects that damage the leaves.

To combat harmful insects use:

• You decide;
• Inta-Vir;
• Aktellik;
• Confidor.

Reproduction

For honeysuckle, seed propagation at home is not suitable. The fact is that the seedlings are too tender and weak, almost everyone dies. If they survive, then, most likely, wild animals that will give the first crop in 5 years. But the berries will be inedible.

You can grow plants from young annual shoots.

They are plucked with a heel from the mother bush in June and rooted in a greenhouse. Although this is also a dubious option, especially for beginners. The fact is that for a whole month the plants need high humidity, which is not always possible.

Learn how to propagate honeysuckle with green cuttings from the video:

Conclusion

Honeysuckle berries are of high value because they contain a large amount of vitamins. The fruits of honeysuckle are especially useful for older and middle-aged people. P-active substances have a beneficial effect on the cardiovascular system, help cleanse blood vessels, increase their elasticity.

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