Each summer resident or gardener tries to allocate the best place on his plot for planting strawberries (strawberry), because both children and adults are eagerly awaiting the appearance of this berry. After all, fragrant and delicious homemade strawberries is incomparable with what you can buy in the market or in the store. When picking garden strawberries for planting, gardeners prefer unpretentious, productive varieties with good taste and early ripening. One of the best options among the existing ones is the Elsanta variety. It is not in vain that since its inception it has been considered a kind of standard of productivity and taste, an indicator of quality.
The story of the cultivation of the Elsanta strawberry variety
The Elsanta garden strawberry variety was bred in 1981 in Holland. He appeared as a result of crossing varieties Gorella and Holiday. The variety has proven itself so well that it is still one of the main industrial varieties in many European countries, occupies one of the main places in terms of cultivation and marketing.
European growers prefer to grow elsanta strawberries on an industrial scale
In 2007, the Elsanta variety was included in the State Register of Breeding Achievements of the Russian Federation and recommended for cultivation in the Volga-Vyatka, North Caucasus and West Siberian regions of Russia.
Description of the variety, its advantages and disadvantages
In terms of ripening, the variety is medium early. Here are its main characteristics:
- erect bush, highly leafy, of medium height and spreading;
- flower stalks are thick, are located on the same level with leaves, the number on the bush is up to 5 pieces;
- semi-spreading inflorescences, multiflorous;
- berries of the correct round-conical shape, bright red in color with yellowish seed blotches and bright splendor; the first fruits may have light tips;
- the size of the berries is mainly medium and large, the weight can reach 45 g;
- the crimson pulp, dense, juicy, has a sweet taste with a slightly noticeable acidity;
- pronounced delicate strawberry aroma;
- high productivity - from one strawberry bush you can collect up to 1.5 kg of berries per season and up to 74 kg per 1 ha of strawberry plantings.
Elsanta strawberry variety gained its incredible popularity due to its excellent taste, beautiful shape of berries and high yield
The advantages of the variety, because of which gardeners and summer residents prefer Elsante:
- universality of cultivation - the variety is adapted to open ground conditions, as well as film tunnels and greenhouses;
- the formation of a small number of sockets and mustaches;
- dense, but not hard flesh - allows you to store berries for a sufficiently long time compared to other varieties, transport the crop without difficulty;
- dessert taste of berries;
- easy detachment of the stalk;
- high resistance to viral diseases, fungal spots, gray rot;
- good winter hardiness;
- unpretentiousness in leaving.
A significant drawback of the variety is its high demand for soil moisture.
Video: Elsanta - sweet strawberry variety
Reviews gardeners
Elsanta is very satisfied. We don’t do any “dancing with tambourines” around her - there’s not enough time (all the main time is taking care of the vineyard). Weeding, watering, processing, harvesting. In the first message, a comparison was made "to the point" of Elsanta with Arcadia, I myself always say: "Elsanta is like Arcadia in grapes." It is very fruitful, it always loads itself so that it seems that it won’t stretch everything, nevertheless, the berry ripens and gains a rich taste and aroma. One of the favorites.
Gagina Julia//forum.vinograd.info/showthread.php?t=4055
Elsanta was pleasantly surprised by her taste. Planted in October last year for almost the sole purpose - to have a variety standard for comparison. I didn’t count on the taste. Compared to Darselect (it was received with a bang by everyone who tried it from me), Elsanta is richer in taste and smell. There are more acids, but I (and not only) liked it.
Yarina Ruten//forum.vinograd.info/showthread.php?t=4055
At me, Elsanta shows herself from the best side. Harvest good, the berry is beautiful, sweet! I never regretted that I put her on the site.
Julia26//forum.vinograd.info/showthread.php?t=4055
Good evening. Let me remind you of my Elsant. In the fall she showed pictures of Elsanta, prepared for winter. I have it on a raised bed, in the middle a drop on a black spandbond, from the sides it is mulched by needles and additionally by moss. Before frost, a spandbond threw onto the arcs and removed it only in the spring before flowering. Strawberries grew powerful with powerful numerous peduncles. I was pleasantly surprised when on May 30, the huge berries of wild strawberries began to blush. It is a pity that the photo does not convey all the charm of these berries. I have never seen such a strawberry crop! But there was heat and a dry wind blowing, the droplet could not cope, although it dripped 2 times a day through the machine. I had to additionally water 2 times and 1 time a little feed with grout, seeing what crop of berries is being poured. After all, in the spring, strawberries were not fed and were not processed by anything. Then she again threw the spandbond onto the arcs, the earth even cracked from the heat and the grass dried out. The first gathering was simply fantastic, it is a pleasure to pick such a large berry. But it got cold, it started raining. The second collection was also beautiful, although the berries were wet, they were strong and without sores. And on the third collection (the last) there were already about 15-20% of spoiled berries. But I am very pleased with Elsanta, beautiful appearance and taste at the height, the aroma is good, does not crease during transportation. This is just a miracle! I wish you all the same. Regards, Kalinovka.
Kalinovka//forum.vinograd.info/showthread.php?t=4055&page=3
Features of planting and growing strawberry varieties Elsanta
It is important to choose the right place for planting strawberries.
Site selection and preparation
Choose a sunny, sheltered from the winds plot with little shading. The soil should be light, water-absorbing, breathable. The best option would be neutral or slightly acidic loam. It is better to plant garden strawberries after carrots, parsley, dill, lettuce, beets, radishes, peas, onions, tulips, marigolds, daffodils. Fertilizers close up under predecessor cultures. If the site is under steam, then fertilizers are applied at least two months before the strawberries are planted.
Elsanta varieties of garden strawberry seedlings are best purchased in specialized stores for gardeners
Landing
Experienced gardeners recommend autumn planting for the Elsanta variety, claiming that when planted in spring, strawberries produce smaller fruits. The optimal time for planting seedlings is September or early October. The best time is an evening on a cloudy day.
- Before planting, seedlings are recommended to withstand for 10 minutes in a solution of potassium permanganate, and then rinse the roots with running water.
- For planting this variety, it is preferable to choose a single-line scheme with a distance between rows of 60-80 cm, and between plants in a row - at least 25 cm. You can use the method of planting a two-line tape. In this case, you should adhere to the 80 × 40 × 25 scheme.
For planting Elsant strawberries, you can apply a single-line or two-line planting scheme
- Prepared wells must be carefully watered.
- When planting, the bush must be positioned so that the apical bud is at ground level.
- The soil around the planted plant should be tamped and watered again.
If agronomic cultivation is observed, then the fruiting of the bush begins the next year after planting.
Dressing and care
It has been experimentally established that this variety does not require constant top dressing. If you do not fertilize in the first season, then the berry grows endurance and resistance to weather vagaries and other problems. It is recommended to apply fertilizers only in the spring in the third year of the plant’s life, when the plantings are last used and will be removed in the fall.
The variety has a poor reaction to direct fertilizer application.
During the season, the variety requires minimal attention. The following sequence of procedures is mandatory:
- Shallow loosening of the soil (every 2 weeks).
Optimum for loosening strawberries is the time after rain, as well as when a large number of weeds appear
- Mustache removal (every two weeks). More often than the specified dates, it is not recommended to remove the mustache, since in this case the plant will be stimulated to form new rosettes. Mustache must be removed with a sharp tool.
Mustache must be removed as necessary throughout the growing season
- Removing parts of old leaves. It is carried out in the spring, as well as after the end of the fruiting period.
Strawberries are usually cut in early August so that the plant can grow with new young leaves before winter.
- Watering. Elsanta is a moisture-loving variety, so the ridges must be kept moist. The root system of the plant is located at a depth of 25-30 cm from the surface. The drying out of the top layer of the soil has a bad effect on the productivity of the plant, its growth and development: fruit setting is worsened, berries are poorly poured, fruit buds of the future crop are not planted.
In the southern regions, as well as during droughts and high temperatures, the best option for watering this variety is drip
- Mulching plantings with compost, dry grass, peat or humus.
Mulching strawberries (garden strawberries) - a reliable way to protect the harvest of delicious berries from diseases, pests, dirt and weeds
- Shelter for the winter. The variety is considered winter hardy. In the presence of snow cover, plants easily tolerate a temperature drop of -35 ° C. Without snow, the aerial part of the plant and the root system can suffer at -10 ° C. Shelter strawberries are recommended after the first frost. This will enable the plant to harden.
Dried grass is a good shelter option.
If you renew planting every 3-4 years, then the strawberry yield will be maximum.
Elsant's strawberry diseases and their prevention
The most vulnerable part of the plant is the root system, which can be affected by rot and fungal diseases. That's why:
- seedling roots are sanitized before planting,
- they try not to over-moisten the earth in the ridges,
- do not fertilize plantings, so as not to provoke the reproduction of parasites.
The aerial part of the plant can be affected by powdery mildew, late blight, but not more often than other common varieties of garden strawberries. To prevent the occurrence of diseases and parasites, it is necessary to carry out simple preventive measures:
- regularly remove old leaves;
- in case of detection of diseased plants, destroy them immediately;
- comply with crop rotation rules;
- regularly weed, mulch planting.
If you are faced with the question of choosing garden strawberries, then it is worth considering the Elsanta variety. Sweet, aromatic, graceful fruits, excellent productivity, unpretentiousness in leaving - almost faultless grade standard of garden wild strawberry!
