Raspberry Himbo Top

Today's guest in the long list of presented raspberry varieties is Himbo Top (synonym - the Latin name Himbo-Top), which belongs to large-fruited varieties of the remontant type. The unpretentious variety is still little known to Russian gardeners, but it has great prospects due to its excellent transportability and versatility in application. Berry Himbo Top is suitable for fresh consumption, the widest range of canning, shock freezing. The ability to carry transportation over long distances makes it possible to grow a variety for sale.

Himbo Top is the result of the talented work of Swiss breeders from the Rafz commune in the canton of Zurich. Authorship belongs to Peter Hauenstein. In the work were used as parent varieties Otm Bliss and Himbo Queen. As far as we know, Peter Huenstein named his brainchild Rafzaqu, but he transferred the rights to the variety to the well-known trading company Promo-Fruit AG. Raspberry reached the consumer under its current name, registered as an international trademark.

Himbo Top is a vigorous, powerful shrub 1.5-2 meters high with large spreading shoots covered with short purple thorns. At the same time, the plant produces a limited number of replacement shoots, which does not interfere with the active growth of lateral branches and obtaining high yields. Fruit shoots reach 80 cm in length and need props during the ripeness of the berry. The branches are covered with complex 3- and 5-lamellar wrinkled leaves with a color from light to dark green. During flowering, the shoots are covered with large white flowers, collected in highly branching brushes, which provides a high decorative effect of the bush.

The variety is remontant, therefore it bears fruit on both annual and biennial shoots. The difference in the timing of the ripening of the berry is that two-year-old branches give ripe berries much earlier than one-year-olds. That is why the ripening of the crop takes quite a long time - up to two months, and during this time the gardener manages to collect 2 crops. The fruiting period is in June and then August, September.

Himbo Top grows well and bears excellent fruit in the regions of the middle zone of our country. However, if it is cultivated in more severe latitudes, then the amount of harvest is noticeably reduced - the last berry simply does not have time to reach technical and physiological ripeness.

Raspberry Himbo Top belongs to high-yielding varieties - up to 3 kg of berries are harvested from 1 bush, up to 15 tons per hectare.

Bright red large conical berries of a rich red color weigh from 6 to 8 grams. The pulp of medium density has a pleasant dessert sweet taste with a slight sourness and a pronounced raspberry aroma. Tasting scores are consistently high.

The variety needs good agricultural technology, which allows you to get a high yield and high-quality berries. The very process of leaving is similar to caring for any varieties of raspberries and lends itself to growing even in the garden of a novice summer resident. The main condition is to maintain a significant distance between the bushes and rows, respectively - 150x300 cm.To plant young seedlings prepare trenches up to half a meter deep and 60 cm wide.

Gardeners traditionally choose autumn as the time for planting, although spring also gives excellent results - over the summer, young plants have time to build up a powerful root system. For cultivation, choose sunny areas with afternoon shading. The soil is prepared in advance, about half a month in advance. They dig trenches, strengthen the walls, arrange a drainage layer, fill the soil with complex mineral fertilizers and organic matter. When planting, the roots are carefully straightened, covered with soil, making sure not to deepen the root collar. The soil around the seedling is compacted and shed well.

For Himbo Top, pruning is required. It is carried out in the fall, after harvesting, removing the spent two-year-old shoots that did not have time to lignify. In the spring, sanitary pruning is carried out, removing sick and frail shoots.

The drought-tolerant Himbo Top raspberries need a standard irrigation scheme as needed. Here it is not the frequency that is much more important, but the depth - the soil should be saturated with water by half a meter. To prevent moisture from spreading before saturating the ground, it is best to leave the planting in a trench. After watering, you need to mulch, which will save moisture and save the earth from drying out and cracking.

Top dressing begins from the second year, before the plant has enough nutrition introduced during planting. In spring, nitrogen fertilizers are needed, in summer potassium-phosphorus fertilizers, in autumn organic fertilizers - compost, dung, humus.

Himbo Top is characterized by excellent winter hardiness, but in areas of risky farming, the plant needs shelter for the winter. After pruning, the shoots are bent to the ground, pinned and covered with spruce branches, straw or non-woven material. Additional protection in the form of snowdrifts is only welcome.

This variety of raspberries is highly resistant to fungal diseases and pests. Nevertheless, the plant needs preventive treatments with insecticides and fungicides. For fungal diseases use "Fitosporin", "Oksikhom", "Topaz". To prevent attacks of pests, drugs such as "Iskra", "Karate", "Karbofos" and others are used.

Unfortunately, Himbo Top gives few root suckers, so breeding with own-rooted seedlings is very problematic, especially since they take root very poorly. For its cultivation, seedlings have to be bought, and the originators are to blame. It was their efforts to reduce the formation of root shoots that led to a shortage of their own planting material. In nurseries, you can always buy young plants of this variety.