Cherry Vasilisa

Sweet cherry is rightfully considered one of the most delicious berries. Due to the variety of species, each summer resident can choose a suitable variety for planting, and enjoy the harvest every summer. Cherry Vasilisa of Ukrainian selection is one of the popular varieties.

Vasilisa is a popular cherry variety obtained at the Artyomovskaya Experimental Horticultural Experimental Station in the early 2000s. The author of the variety is the famous Ukrainian breeder Lilia Taranenko. In the process of breeding the variety, the parental forms were used: Donetsk coal and Donetsk beauty.

Ukrainian cherry is a medium-sized tree with a spherical crown, abundant branching, powerful brownish shoots, strong foliage with dark green foliage with a glossy sheen and a developed rhizome. The ovaries are formed on last year's growths and bouquet twigs. In a healthy environment, the tree grows up to 4 meters in height.

Early flowering at the tree: late April - early May. The round crown is densely covered with snow-white flowers that attract with their pleasant aroma.

Vasilisa is a large-fruited variety. The average weight of berries is 11-12 g, sometimes up to 14 grams. The shape of cherries is correct - rounded, with a smooth and glossy surface. Ripe berries are evenly covered with an intense red color. The peel of the sweet cherry is quite dense, while there is no hardness in it. If you look closely, you can see numerous small subcutaneous points. The ventral suture is barely visible. The berry adheres firmly to the shortened stalk. Ripe berries do not crack. The exceptions are those fruits that ripen in conditions of regular rains and high humidity.

Sweet cherries are characterized by a universal purpose - they are eaten fresh, used in cooking, processed into jams, drinks, marmalades, and also frozen. Due to the dry separation and dense skin, the harvested berries can easily be transported and can be stored in a cool place for some time.

Large-fruited sweet cherry has excellent taste and marketability. The deep red flesh has a fleshy, tender, medium density structure. In addition, the pulp has a slight cartilage and good juiciness. The berry has a balanced taste - sweet and sour with a wine aftertaste and pleasant aroma. Experts characterize the taste as wine-sweet, dessert. The large bone is easily separated from the cherry pulp. The cherry pulp Vasilisa has a characteristic feature - it is rich in potassium, calcium, magnesium and iron.

Sweet cherries with medium ripening times pleases with the first harvest in the 4-5th year after planting. If a tree is formed by a bush, then it begins to bear fruit a little earlier. Fruiting in the stone fruit culture is stable - annual. The phase of active ripening of cherries falls on the third decade of June. In the northern regions, the peak of fruiting may shift slightly - until early July. The fruitful age of the tree is 15-20 years.

Abundant yield is one of the advantages of the variety. On average, having provided a tree with complex agricultural techniques, it is possible to harvest from 25 to 30 kg of berries per season. The maximum yield from a tree reaches 50-60 kg of cherries.

Sweet cherry is massively grown throughout Ukraine, as well as in most of Russia, especially in the Moscow region. In addition, Vasilisa is very loved by gardeners in Europe and America.

The variety, like most cherry varieties, is self-fertile, therefore it needs donor trees planted nearby. The most productive varieties are those that bloom in the same period as the Vasilisa cherry. These include: Bigarro early, Starking, Annushka, Burlat, Drogana yellow, Melitopol early, Valery Chkalov, Donetsk coal.

Cherry seedlings are planted in spring or autumn (depending on the climate of the region). For this, an annual seedling with a developed root system and a height of 90-100 cm is selected. Cherry Vasilisa is voluminous, so she needs to provide space. The distance between plantings should be 3-4 meters, so that shading does not form, which slows down the ripening of berries.

The site must be chosen flat, without lowlands and stagnant water. It is better to plant a tree in the southern or southwestern part of the site, where there is a lot of sun and light, and there is also protection from wind and draft.

Intensive agricultural technology of Ukrainian cherries consists of standard measures: regular watering by introducing water into small grooves around the tree, crown formation, sanitary and thinning pruning, loosening and weeding of the soil, fertilizing from 2-3 years of age, soil mulching, disease prevention, and preparation for winter.

A little trick will help to form a spreading and round shape of the crown - tying weights to the branches, which will facilitate harvesting in the future.

A fine-grained metal mesh installed around the trunk will help protect against rodents. For the winter, the trunk is wrapped with agrofibre or burlap, and a dense layer of mulch is also laid using leaves and straw to protect the root system from freezing. The shelter is also well protected from insects by spruce branches.

The variety has a high resistance to fungi, which causes coccomycosis. In addition, immunity protects against standard diseases - moniliosis, fruit rot. The only insect pests that attack the tree are shoot and fruit moths, as well as cherry flies, which will help to get rid of insecticide treatments.

Vasilisa is frost-resistant, but return frosts in spring are detrimental to flowers, ovaries and buds. It is also worth noting the increased drought resistance, adaptation to heat. It is comfortable for cherries to grow and develop in fertile, loose, moist and breathable soils with neutral acidity. Optimally, these are loams.