Content
Many gardeners dream of planting fragrant strawberries in their garden, which gives a bountiful harvest all summer. Ali Baba - mustacheless variety that can bear fruit from June to late autumn. For the entire season, up to 400-500 sweet berries are removed from the bush. This is one of the best varieties of remontant strawberries that every gardener should grow on his site.
History of appearance
Ali Baba got its start in the Netherlands in 1995. The new variety was developed by Dutch scientists from the Hem Genetics company from wild strawberries. The authors of the variety are Hem Zaden and Yvon de Cupidou. The result is a berry that combines many positive properties. The plant is suitable for planting in many regions of the Russian Federation.
Description
Ali Baba's strawberries are a remontant and high-yielding variety. The plant bears fruit from June to the beginning of frost. Gardeners collect up to 0.4-0.5 kg from one bush for the whole summer fragrant berries. And from ten roots - 0.3 kg of fruits every 3-4 days.
The plant has a sprawling and powerful shrub that can grow up to 16-18 cm in height. It is abundantly strewn with dark green foliage. Even in the first year of fruiting, many white inflorescences are formed. A distinctive feature of the variety - strawberries do not form a mustache.
Ali Baba's strawberries bear fruit in small bright red berries, the average weight of which varies between 6-8 grams. The shape of the fruit is conical. The pulp is tender and juicy, colored in a milky color. The bones are small, so they are not felt. The berries have a sweet and sour taste and an alluring aroma of wild strawberries. This is an unpretentious variety that tolerates drought and cold well.
Advantages and disadvantages
According to gardeners' reviews, a number of advantages and disadvantages of Ali Baba strawberries can be distinguished. They are presented in more detail in the table.
pros | Minuses |
Bountiful harvest | Does not give a mustache, so this variety can only be propagated by dividing a bush or by seeds |
Continuous and long-term fruiting | Fresh berries can be stored for only a few days. Therefore, after collecting them, it is advisable to immediately eat or process them. |
Delicious, aromatic fruits of universal use | Low transportability |
Well tolerates lack of moisture and soil freezing | It is recommended to rejuvenate the plantation every two to three years. Otherwise, the quality of the berries will deteriorate, and the yield will significantly decrease. |
Resistant to fungal diseases and rarely affected by pests |
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The plant begins to bear fruit in the first year after planting in the garden |
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This berry variety can be grown in a pot as an ornamental plant. |
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Unpretentiousness to the soil. Can grow in all climates |
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Ali Baba's strawberry variety is ideal for home growing. To preserve the berries for a long time, they are frozen. You can also make various jams and preserves from them, add to baked goods.
Reproduction methods
Since this variety of strawberries does not form a mustache, it can only be propagated by seeds or by dividing the mother bush.
By dividing the bush
For reproduction, plants choose the largest and most prolific specimens. After harvesting, the bushes are dug up and carefully divided into several parts. Each of them should have at least 2-3 white roots.Plants with dark brown roots are not suitable. Some gardeners prefer to carry out the procedure in early spring. Then the next year it will be possible to take off a bountiful harvest.
Growing from seeds
Everyone can grow Ali Baba's strawberries from seeds, the main thing is to have patience and adhere to simple rules for growing seedlings.
Sowing seeds is carried out at the end of January - early February. In case of insufficient lighting, the planting date is shifted to March. Before planting, the seeds must be processed. They can be sown both in boxes and in peat tablets. After the emergence of shoots, a pick is carried out.
Landing
Ali Baba is an unpretentious cultivar. But in order for the strawberries to bear fruit continuously throughout the season and the berries are sweet, it is necessary to observe the peculiarities of agricultural technology.
How to choose seedlings
Buy Ali-Baba strawberry seedlings only in certified nurseries or from trusted sellers. When buying seedlings, pay attention to the following points:
- By the end of May, the plant should have at least 6 leaves green color. If the foliage shows dark and light spots of various sizes, it is most likely that the strawberry is infected with a fungus. Also, do not take seedlings with pale and wrinkled leaves.
- Check the condition of the horns. They should be juicy, pale green in color. The thicker the horn, the better.
- The root system should be branched, at least 7 cm long. If the seedling is in a peat tablet, the roots should come out.
Only by adhering to simple recommendations, you can choose high-quality seedlings.
Site selection and soil preparation
Strawberries of this variety feel comfortable in sunny areas with a flat surface. You cannot plant it in a lowland, as the plant does not like dampness. If the groundwater is close, prepare high beds or ridges. The best predecessors of Ali Baba's strawberries are legumes, garlic, clover, buckwheat, sorrel, rye. Every three years, the plant must be transplanted to a new location.
Strawberries prefer a nutrient soil with a neutral or slightly alkaline environment. If the soil is acidic, dolomite flour is added to it. For each square meter of the garden, 2-3 buckets of humus are brought in, two tablespoons of superphosphate and 1 tbsp. l. potassium and ammonium nitrate. Then the soil is carefully dug up.
Landing scheme
Ali Baba's strawberry saplings do not need to be planted too close, as they grow over time. To make the plant comfortable the bushes are planted at intervals of at least 35-40 cm. About 50-60 cm should remain between the rows. At first it will seem that strawberries are rarely planted, but after a year the rows will become denser.
In accordance with the planting scheme, holes are dug. The roots of the bush are straightened and lowered into the recess. Gently sprinkle with soil, slightly compact and watered with 0.5 liters of water.
Care
Regular care guarantees long-term fruiting and a healthy appearance of strawberries. Ali Baba needs loosening, weeding, watering, feeding and preparation for the winter period.
Loosening and weeding
To provide the roots of the plant with air, the soil around the plant must be loosened. The procedure is recommended to be performed before the strawberries ripen... The beds must be cleaned of weedsas they take nutrients from the ground. They are also hotbeds of the spread of diseases and pests. Together with the weeds remove old and dried strawberry leaves.
Watering and mulching
Despite the fact that Ali Baba's strawberries are drought-resistant, they need watering to get sweet fruits. The first irrigation is carried out during the flowering period.On average, strawberries of this variety watered every 10-14 days. One plant should have about 1 liter of water.
After watering, mulching is carried out. The row spacing is covered with a layer of dry sawdust, grass or straw.
It is undesirable to use the sprinkling method, since moisture on the surface of strawberries can contribute to rotting of the fruit.
Top dressing
Ali Baba's strawberries begin to fertilize in the second year after planting. For this, organic and mineral dressings are used. In total, it will take about 3-4 procedures. For root growth and rapid early growth in the spring, nitrogen fertilizing is introduced. During the formation of flower stalks and ripening of berries, the plant requires potassium and phosphorus. To store nutrients and increase winter hardiness in the fall, phosphorus-potassium fertilizers and mullein are applied.
Preparing for winter
After harvesting, sanitary cleaning is carried out. To do this, the damaged leaves are cut off, and the diseased plants are destroyed. Ali Baba strawberries need shelter for the winter. The easiest option is cover the bushes with dry spruce branches. As soon as the snow falls, a snowdrift is collected on top of the spruce branches. Some gardeners make a wire frame over the garden bed and stretch a film or agro-cloth over it.
Diseases and methods of struggle
This berry variety has high resistance to various diseases. But if you do not take care of the plant, bushes and berries can be affected by late blight, white spot and gray rot.
The table contains a description of the typical diseases of strawberries of the Ali Baba variety.
Disease | Signs | Control methods |
Late blight | Dark spots and white bloom appear on the berries. The roots rot, and the fruits shrink and dry out | A sick bush is removed from the garden and burned |
White spot | Brown spots form on the foliage. Over time, they turn white and acquire a dark red border. | Spraying the aerial part of the plant with Bordeaux mixture. Removal of infected leaves. |
Gray rot | Dark spots appear on the leaves, and a gray bloom on the fruits | Treatment of bushes with Bordeaux liquid and removal of dry leaves |
Pests and ways to deal with them
The table shows the main pests of strawberries of the Ali Baba variety.
Pest | Signs | Control methods |
Slug | Holes are visible on leaves and berries | Spraying with superphosphate or lime |
Spider mite | A cobweb appears on the bushes, and the leaves turn yellow. White dots can be seen in places | The use of anometrine and karbofos. Removing infected foliage |
Leaf beetle | The presence of egg-laying | Treatment with lepidocide or karbofos |
Harvesting and storage
Berries plucked as they ripen every 2-3 days... The first crop is harvested in June. The procedure is best done in the early morning. Ripe fruits are identified by red dots. Store fresh strawberries in a cool place no more than 2 days.
Features of growing in pots
This strawberry variety can be grown in pots on a loggia or windowsill. In this case, it will bear fruit all year round. For planting, choose a container with a volume of 5-10 liters and a diameter of at least 18-20 cm. Drainage is poured at the bottom, and nutrient soil is laid on it. In winter, additional lighting is required. The more light, the better the berry will be. For better pollination, the bush is shaken periodically.
Outcome
Ali Baba is a high-yielding and unpretentious strawberry variety that can bear fruit all summer, until the frost. And if you grow it on a windowsill at home, you can feast on berries all year round.
