Blueberry Chippeva: characteristics of the variety and features of cultivation

Among the garden berries grown in the middle lane, blueberries deserve special attention. The berry is a real storehouse of useful substances, has long been used in folk medicine for the treatment of disorders of the gastrointestinal tract, diabetes, inflammation of the mucous membranes of the mouth and throat. Many gardeners have already appreciated all the advantages of this crop, in particular, Chippev blueberries, an early ripe and productive variety, which will be discussed in the article.

Description of Chippewa Blueberries

Chippeva Blueberry is a tall, perennial shrub belonging to the Heather family. The characteristic form of the bush is spherical, compact with shoots tending upward. The maximum height is 1.2–1.3 m. The blueberry plant has oval leaves. Flowers - the shape of a five-toothed white-pink bell.

The berries are distinguished by a light blue skin and a rather large size, reaching 1.7–2 cm in diameter. Rather dense and very fragrant, with green juicy pulp, when fully ripened, the fruits become very sweet. Aging occurs in the first half of July.

Productivity of a plant depends on its age, care, and climate. On average, from an adult plant you can collect from 2.5 to 6 kg of healthy tasty fruits. Blueberry shrubs can bear fruit for decades, but the period between 7 and 10 years after planting is considered the most fruitful. Did you know? Studies have shown that it is enough to eat one serving of blueberries per day to prevent impairment of cognitive functions of the brain and weakening of memory, for which the berry is called "food for the brain." The culture is undemanding to care, grows well in soil with high acidity and is resistant to lack of moisture and frost. Chippewa blueberries are appreciated due to their excellent taste and chemical composition, which gives them useful and even healing properties.

The chemical composition of berries

Blueberries are an excellent source of vitamins that have a beneficial effect on the human body.

100 g of product contains:

  • retinol (vitamin A) - 2.7-3.0 mcg;
  • beta-carotene - 31–32 mkg;
  • tocopherol (vitamin E) - 0.58-0.6 mg;
  • phylloquinone (vitamin K) - 19.1-19.3 mcg;
  • ascorbic acid (vitamin C) - 9.6–9.8 mg;
  • nicotinic acid (vitamin B3) - 0.4 mg;
  • choline (vitamin B4) - 5.8-6.1 mg;
  • pantetonic acid (vitamin B5) - 0.1 mg;
  • pyridoxine (vitamin B6) - 0.1 mg;
  • folic acid (vitamin B9) - 5.9-6.2 mcg.

Blueberries are an excellent way to maintain the body in the cold season. Both fresh and frozen or dried, 100 g of berries contain:

  • calcium - 6.0-6.2 mg;
  • iron - 0.3 mg;
  • magnesium - 5.9-6.1 mg;
  • phosphorus - 12 mg;
  • potassium - 77 mg;
  • sodium - 1.0-1.1 mg;
  • zinc - 0.2 mg;
  • copper - 0.1 mg;
  • Manganese - 0.28-0.3 mg;
  • selenium - 0.1 mcg.

It is also a rich source of flavonoids, phenolic acids, anthocyanins and tannins, as well as nutrients such as sugars, essential oils, carotenoids and other nutrients that determine the beneficial properties of the berry.

Useful properties and contraindications

Bioactive compounds contained in blueberries have a number of properties that are actively used in dietetic, therapeutic nutrition and traditional medicine.

The fruits of this culture have the following properties:

  • antioxidant;
  • sedatives;
  • antitumor;
  • diuretics;
  • antimicrobial;
  • antihypertensives;
  • cardiotonic;
  • antipyretic;
  • anti-zingotic;
  • choleretic;
  • anti-sclerotic;
  • general strengthening;
  • anti-inflammatory.

  • The use of blueberries in fresh, dried, frozen form in a complex of therapeutic measures has a positive effect on the human body
  • With the ability to relieve inflammation and fever, it facilitates the occurrence of colds and accelerates recovery.
  • When eating fruits after severe illnesses, it accelerates the recovery of the body.
  • It is useful for diseases of the cardiovascular system, helping to strengthen the walls of blood vessels, lower cholesterol, and is indicated for hypertension.
  • Accelerates metabolic processes, improves the activity of the pancreas and intestines.
  • It is recommended for use with gastritis to increase acidity.
  • Reduces blood sugar, which is beneficial for people with diabetes.
  • Strengthens nerve cells and prevents their destruction.
  • Due to its radioprotective properties, it removes radioactive elements from the body.
  • Reduces eye strain and improves vision.
  • It is useful for people of advanced age, prevents premature weakening of memory.

Despite the benefits, the berry also has contraindications. Limit or refuse to use this product is recommended for people taking blood thinners, since it helps to increase its coagulability.

The combination of useful properties has a positive effect on:

  • activity of the gastrointestinal tract;
  • the work of the circulatory system;
  • hematopoietic system;
  • nervous system;
  • organs of vision;
  • skin condition.

Landing rules

In order for the bushes to actively develop and give a rich harvest, gardeners engaged in cultivation of crops recommend taking into account several points:

  1. Chippeva blueberry grows better on drained acidic soils with pH from 3.5 to 5. If the soil of the site is clay, it is better to choose a hill for planting to avoid decay of the roots of seedlings.
  2. The best time for planting young plants is spring, the time before the buds begin to swell. You can also do this in the fall.
  3. The bed selected for cultivation should be protected from the winds (especially the north), well lit and not obscured by buildings or trees.
  4. For planting, it is better to purchase several different varieties with healthy roots. This method improves pollination, allows you to get a rich harvest of quality berries. Better plants take root at two or three years of age.
  5. Landing holes are dug up two months before planting. Plants have a shallow root system, and pits for seedlings should be at least two times larger than the existing root system of the seedling. The optimal dimensions of the pit are 50 cm in depth and 60 cm in length and width. The intervals between young bushes should not be less than one meter.

Blueberry planting algorithm:

  1. Roots of seedlings 15-30 minutes kept in clean water.
  2. The prepared well is filled with a mixture prepared using acid peat, shallow bark, sawdust. You can acidify the mixture with sulfur. You can use acids (citric, malic, acetic).
  3. Roots carefully straighten and deepen the root neck to a depth of 7 cm.
  4. Pour water well.
  5. Planted blueberries are covered with bark or pine needles (you can also use sawdust, leaves) to preserve moisture in the soil.
  6. After planting, one-year-old plants are cut off weak shoots, and the rest is shortened by half the height. The culture requires additional care, especially during the first year after planting.

Video: Planting Blueberries

Subtleties of care and ripening

Care of seedlings consists of standard agricultural techniques: weeding, watering, top dressing, pruning. Some gardeners in the first year remove blueberry flowers to stimulate the growth of shrubs. At the first time after planting, frequent loosening of the soil to a shallow depth is recommended to ensure air access to plant roots and weed removal.

In the first pruning, a bush is formed, leaving from 5 to 8 strong branches. Next, plants should be pruned annually to increase yield, plant viability and remove diseased or broken epaulets. In the autumn, dried branches are removed. Blueberries Chippeva belongs to the early varieties. The first crop is harvested in early July. You may be interested in information about when the blueberry begins to bear fruit.

Watering and feeding

It is necessary to slightly loosen the bed before watering. Particular attention should be paid to seedlings at first, moistening the soil well at least twice a week in the mornings or evenings. One seedling requires at least 5 liters of water. It is important to prevent stagnation of water or drying out of the soil. When the plants take root, it is enough to water them once a week. You can use drip irrigation. Adult bushes require more moisture - up to 10 liters per bush, which doubles during a drought.

Blueberries are a water-loving plant, so they do not stop watering even during regular rains.

Many gardeners add electrolyte to the water at the rate of 1 ml per liter of water. In the spring and during fruiting, water for irrigation can be added ammonium sulfate at the rate of 1 tbsp. spoon on a bucket of water. After watering, it is advisable to mulch the wells.

In autumn, it is necessary to feed the seedlings with superphosphate and potassium sulfate. Consumption: 100 g per bush of superphosphate and 40 g of potassium sulfate. They are brought into the soil to a depth of not more than 0.1 m.

Organic fertilizers are not used for blueberries. Fertilize with mineral compounds from the second year after planting. This should be done before the sap flow begins, as well as during the flowering of the bush. At the first feeding, 25 g of finished fertilizer per bush is enough, and in subsequent years, the rate is doubled each time. From the fifth to sixth year, the amount of fertilizer per plant is left unchanged. Pay attention to information on how to fertilize blueberries.

Winter preparations

Blueberries Chippeva easily tolerates severe frosts, but requires shelter if winter in the region is characterized by temperature extremes and little snow. In this case, the bush is insulated with non-woven material. You can tie branches with spruce branches. Many gardeners bend shoots to the ground and lay the spruce branches on top.

Collection and storage of fruits

They begin to pick fruit in the first half of July. They ripen unevenly (sometimes the collection process lasts up to 2-3 weeks), so first pick berries that are easily separated from the brush. Picking berries is better early in the morning in dry weather.

Pests and diseases

Chippewa blueberries are susceptible to damage by pests and diseases characteristic of many berry crops.

Most often on the bushes you can find crawling pests:

  1. Leaflet triangular flat. Butterfly larvae (caterpillars) pull leaves together and hit them. Caterpillars have a light green color and two dark green stripes on the sides.
  2. Blueberry moth. Yellow caterpillar with two pairs of legs on the abdomen. There are many black longitudinal stripes on the body. Pest development occurs in May.
  3. Yellow peat yellow. It has a green body with bright yellow stripes on the sides. Eat in late spring.
  4. Arrowwort heather. Butterfly caterpillar covered with short hairs. Color - black-brown with black and white dots. Develop between June and September.

When caterpillars appear, they are removed singly in the affected leaves. For prophylaxis, plants are treated when the first leaves appear with the preparations: Fufon, Kemifoks, Iskra, Inta-Vir, Kinmiks.

Common diseases of blueberries are spotting of fungal origin, requiring timely treatment:

  1. Trachemic fading. Caused by pathogenic fungi, the roots of plants are affected, which acquire a brown color and rot. Infection can occur due to the introduction of contaminated soil or planting material. It quickly spreads with a lack of light on clay soils with stagnant water. The decay of the roots is accompanied in the autumn-winter period by blackening of the buds and drying of the branches. Methods of control: plants are dug up with roots and removed from the beds, at the first sign all shrubs are treated with Fitosporin-M, Alirin-B or Gamair, adding a solution of one of the substances under the bushes.

  2. Cytosporosis. It appears in the form of brown blurry spots on the stems and branches of blueberries, which lead to cracking of the bark and the death of the branches. To prevent the disease, it is necessary to use only healthy planting material. All sections must be disinfected with a solution of copper sulfate (1% solution) and coated with oil paint. Preventive spraying of bushes in spring with a Bordeaux mixture (1% solution) until the leaves bloom will also help.

  3. Phyllostic spotting. It appears in the form of large dark brown spots of a round shape with a purplish-brown border. Affected leaves turn yellow and crumble. Methods of control: crumbling leaves must be disposed of, because they are carriers of infection. For prevention, during the period of leaf blooming, the bushes are sprayed with 1% Bordeaux liquid. Infected plants are re-sprayed after harvest.

  4. Septorious spotting. It appears by mid-summer in the form of small red-brown spots of a round shape. After a while, the center of the spots acquires a gray-brown color, and the contours remain red-brown. Later, the affected leaves turn brown and fall off. Strong distribution leads to the defeat of young shoots and leads to their drying. Scattered leaves must be disposed of, because they are carriers of infection. For prevention, during the period of leaf blooming, the bushes are sprayed with 1% Bordeaux liquid. Infected plants are re-sprayed after harvest.

  5. Red spotting. Appears on the leaves in the form of translucent spots along the veins, which gradually turn red and dry. On the affected bushes, the leaves turn yellow, become small, the shoots stop growing. Such plants lose their hardiness and may freeze. Methods of control: removal and burning of affected bushes.

Blueberries are an excellent source of vitamins, minerals, organic acids. Its excellent taste and useful properties testify in favor of growing this crop in personal plots. Among the many varieties, special attention should be paid to Chippeva blueberries, because the variety belongs to the early ones, it is characterized by high productivity and frost resistance. Caring for a plant will not cause any particular trouble even for novice gardeners, and the result when performing simple agricultural operations will exceed expectations.

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