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Raspberries The Moscow giant has become one of the novelties among large-fruited raspberry varieties of recent years, but, despite its very attractive characteristics, the appearance of this variety is covered with a touch of obscurity. Indeed, the Moscow giant has not yet been entered into the State Register of Russia. And in the catalogs of raspberry varieties of famous Russian breeders working in the Moscow region, he is also not mentioned.
Nevertheless, the Moscow giant raspberry is actively distributed and advertised by several large garden centers, such as Russian Garden and Victoria. In this article, you can find a description of the variety, as well as its photo and some reviews from gardeners. But how reliable these data are, you can only check for yourself by planting this variety of raspberries in your garden.
Description of the variety
It should be noted that, in addition to the Moscow giant raspberry variety, you can often find a description of the Moscow giant variety in various sources.
They may be the same variety whose name has been modified for promotional purposes.
The name of the variety speaks for itself in many ways. In plants of this variety, all parts are gigantic in size - from shoots and leaves to flowers and berries.
It is clear that the stems are characterized by great vigor. They are capable of reaching a height of two meters or even more. In general, the bushes have a tendency to build up a large amount of green mass, so it makes sense to be very careful when feeding raspberries to the Moscow giant. Otherwise, instead of many large berries, you can get only powerfully overgrown green bushes.
Nitrogen fertilizers can be applied only in early spring, and then it is better to switch to phosphorus-potassium fertilizers with the obligatory addition of microelements.
The leaves are unusually large in size and rich in bright green color.
Shoot-forming ability is in the middle range - about 10 new shoots are formed every season, some of which can be used for reproduction. Root shoots are formed, but also on a medium scale - up to 4-5 per bush.
In terms of ripening, the Moscow giant raspberry can be attributed to early ripening. It begins to bloom in May-June, and the first fruits appear by the beginning of July. An important feature of this variety of raspberries is its tendency to remontant. That is, in conditions of an abundance of sunny days, it is able to give a second crop at the end of summer - in the fall on young shoots of the first year.
Their main difference from real remontant varieties is the fact that berries appear, as a rule, only in the very upper part of the shoots, and not along their entire length, as in remontant raspberries. In addition, the appearance of a second crop is largely determined by warm and sunny weather conditions during the spring and summer. A guaranteed second harvest on this raspberry variety can be expected only in the southern regions of Russia.
Nevertheless, in such favorable conditions, the Moscow giant raspberry yield can reach a total of 10-12 kg per bush per season. But the average yield of this variety is impressive - even when grown in the conditions of Central Russia, about 6-8 kg of raspberries are obtained from one bush.
It is also assumed that this variety has above average resistance to major pests and diseases and high frost resistance. There are some doubts about the last point, since large-fruited varieties of raspberries, if they can tolerate frosts down to -25 ° -30 ° C, do not tolerate periods of thaws well and often vanish with significant temperature changes in winter. True, judging by the reviews, the Moscow giant raspberry bushes have good recoverability and are able to resume from the roots even after freezing or damping of the lower part of the shoots.
Characteristics of berries
The name of this raspberry variety refers primarily to berries. They can really be gigantic in size from a matchbox and more. The mass of one berry is on average 10-15 grams, and the very first berries easily reach 20-25 grams.
- The flesh of the Moscow giant raspberry fruit is quite dense, but at the same time very juicy;
- The berries have a very beautiful shiny surface;
- Drupes are firmly linked to each other;
- The shape of the berries is conical and occurs from moderate to highly elongated;
- The color of the fruit is bright, red-crimson, when fully ripe, it is dark;
- The taste is sweet, typically raspberry, with a barely expressed sourness;
- The seeds are so small that they are not felt at all when eaten;
- The berries of this raspberry variety, due to their density, have good transportable properties and are well stored, therefore, they are quite suitable for growing for sale;
- The use of berries is universal, they retain their shape after freezing, they make delicious fruit drinks, compotes, jellies and jams;
- The fruits can be stored for up to 3-5 days at room temperature and up to 10 days in the refrigerator.
Planting and leaving
Despite the high yields and the gigantic size of the berries, caring for Moscow Giant raspberries is no more difficult than for any other large-fruited raspberry varieties.
It is necessary from the moment of planting to make sure that the raspberry bushes are comfortable and cozy in the place chosen for them.
The place should be not only bright, but also sunny, but at the same time protected from strong winds. Any raspberry will love to grow on supports or trellises, as this increases the access of air and light to all parts of the plants. And, of course, regular watering is a necessary part of caring for this raspberry variety. One bush will require about 10-15 liters of water.
Since raspberry bushes spend a lot of energy on the return of a large harvest, they also require regular feeding throughout the warm season. But by the beginning of autumn, it is advisable to stop them so that the shoots have time to mature well and prepare for winter.
Raspberry pruning The Moscow giant is also different from pruning traditional raspberry varieties and remontant ones. If young shoots of the first year managed to bear fruits at their top in the current season, then before the onset of stable frosts, the upper part of the shoot is removed. This is done even if unripe berries are preserved on the top. The next year, fruits are formed on the remaining lower part of the shoots, and only after the final harvest is the entire shoot removed completely.
It is not recommended to prune these raspberries as remontant varieties completely before autumn, since in this case you will lose part of the harvest that would have ripened on these shoots the next year.
But in regions with harsh climatic conditions, it is possible to grow the Moscow giant like an ordinary two-year-old raspberry, cutting out only two-year-old shoots that have borne fruit in the fall and not at all touching the one-year growth.
Gardeners reviews
The Moscow giant raspberry variety appeared quite recently and therefore there are not so many reviews on it.In addition, gardeners often confuse it with other varieties such as the Yellow Giant, Moscow Giant, Hercules and others.
Conclusion
Raspberry Moscow giant is one of the largest and most productive varieties. But in order for it to be able to show all its capabilities, it is necessary to find the right approach to it.
