Strawberry Alba

Alba is a wonderful immigrant of Italian origin, one of the brightest representatives of large-fruited varieties, highly valued among Russian gardeners. The so-called strawberries are actually garden strawberries, which have spread in Europe, neighboring countries, and firmly established themselves in Russia.

The Alba variety was patented by the breeders of the Italian company New Fruits in 2003. The assigned task - the development of a form with large and tasty fruits - was successfully completed by the scientists, which eventually led to the incredible popularity of the variety. In addition, Alba has the highest commercial and transportable qualities. Taken together, all this explains its ubiquity. To obtain the final result, breeders used Cal. 97.85-6 and Albion.

Alba is characterized by a powerful, vigorous shrub with beautiful bright green foliage. Plant height up to 35 cm, peduncles are long, lodging during fruit ripening. The bush is not very prolific and does not grow very much mustache in order to independently provide itself with the joining of the nearby territory. The leaf is rather large, which makes the process of photosynthesis more active.

The plant belongs to the early maturing: the periods of flowering and fruiting occur in late May - early June. On the shelves of retail outlets, Alba can be seen one of the first, for example, in the southern regions, the harvest begins at the end of the second decade of May and ends in the last days of it.

Alba feels great in the continental climate of the southern regions of the Russian Federation, Belarus, Ukraine and European countries. The variety is included in the State Registers of Plants grown in the indicated territories, where it is known under its own code:

• in Russia - NF 311;

• in Belarus - Alba;

• in Ukraine - NF 311.

The variety is suitable for cultivation in the North Caucasus region, in Brest, Vitebsk, Gomel, etc. Adapted to the conditions of the continental and temperate continental climate.

The variety belongs to the middle class in terms of yield - under ideal conditions, 1–1.2 kg is harvested from the bush, but in practice, much depends on the weather and climatic characteristics of a particular area. In temperate climates, it is possible to get no more than 700 g of berries from one bush.

Alba is a medium-large hybrid with remarkable, in terms of technical and taste characteristics, fruits:

• the color of the berries is bright red;

• shape - conical;

• fruit size - medium-large;

• Weight - 25-30 g, sweet taste, with a light and pleasant sourness.

Honeycomb has a medium-pronounced berry aroma with a dense juicy pulp.

One of the positive qualities of the variety, gardeners call it drought resistance. The quality is excellent, but it affects the marketability and taste. With a lack of moisture, the berries lose their turgor (elasticity) and juiciness. To prevent this from happening, additional watering is needed.

Garden strawberries, in particular Alba, need sunny places on fertile soils. Favorable conditions are organized protection from cold air masses. In addition, the berry does not tolerate the proximity to the nearby groundwater.

For planting young seedlings, the plots are preliminarily prepared and the following activities are carried out:

• half a month before planting, the earth should be dug up, the roots of perennial weeds should be removed;

• complex fertilizers and organic matter are introduced into the soil - 50 grams of nitroammofoska and a bucket of humus, compost per sq. m .;

• at the end of the term, markings are made - rows are marked with 0.6 m aisles.The distance between the bushes is 0.3 m.

Each hole should have a depth of 0.2 m - a handful of wood ash and organic matter, as well as a pinch of nitrophoska, are added to the hole. Fertilizers are mixed with the soil, a low mound is made, and then water is added to the hole. The delicate roots are very carefully straightened, they set the bush on a mound and fall asleep, compacting and spilling the soil. In one place, the plant remains up to 2-3 years

Pollination occurs naturally. The sweet scent attracts bees, bumblebees, butterflies, moths and other insects.

They begin to feed the plantings with the soil warming up to 8-10 ° C. Fertilizers are applied after watering. The bushes are treated with an iodine compound - this is about 7-10 drops per 10-liter bucket of clean water. The event is held in calm weather in the evening or early in the morning. This treatment is repeated a couple more times before the beginning of the fruiting period. The procedure prevents the appearance of gray mold. A week later, the bushes are fed with urea - 1 tbsp. l. on a bucket of water at the rate of 0.5 liters of solution under a bush.

Alba is a winter-hardy variety that can withstand temperatures as low as -30º C under good snow cover.

The plant has increased resistance to powdery mildew attacks and successfully resists brown and white spot, as well as black rot. But preventive treatment with fungicides, insecticides against anthracnose and nematodes is required.

Alba reproduces successfully in three ways, and everything is available to gardeners.

• Reproduction by seeds. It will not work to remove your own seeds from the hybrid, since the offspring do not retain maternal qualities. The seeds can always be found commercially. They are stratified and germinated in February-March. Seeds of large-fruited varieties such as Alba germinate very slowly, so they are soaked before sowing.

• Sowing seeds in the ground. This is possible after all the necessary measures have been taken: preparation of containers, disinfection of the soil, organization of lighting and temperature conditions. Seeds are pre-sown in a common container 15 cm high and a greenhouse is organized. After germination, a pick is required. Before sowing, the soil is warmed up or spilled with special preparations.

• Dividing the bush and separating the rooted whiskers. Methods that are popular with a shortage of planting material and due to their simplicity. A healthy bush, on which 2-3 tops with rosettes are formed, are dug up and the rosettes are carefully separated, while carefully protecting the roots from damage. Each outlet is immediately planted in the prepared hole, not forgetting about watering. As for the rooted mustache, the situation is even simpler here. A rosette is formed at the end of each mustache. If you leave it on the ground, then after a while it will take root. It remains only to carefully remove it with a part of the earth, cut it off from the mustache and transplant it into the prepared hole.

Inexperienced gardeners can try all three methods - for some, one option will work, others will like another.

An analysis of numerous reviews showed a positive opinion of gardeners about the hybrid. Many people like its early maturity. Everyone who grows strawberries for sale is satisfied with the high commercial qualities of Alba: the beauty and gloss of the berry, its pleasant taste, as well as its excellent transportability.