Among the fruit bushes, blueberries have a special place. She is loved for unpretentiousness, high productivity and high resistance to diseases. Variety of tall blueberries Darrow has its own unique characteristics of cultivation and stands out from other garden counterparts.

Description of Blueberry Darrow

Blueberry Darrow (Darrow) was bred in 1965 in the United States. It belongs to tall garden crops with a late maturity and is characterized by high taste characteristics of berries. The bushes of this plant in height are from 120 to 180 cm, up to 150 cm wide. The branches are dense, elastic, upright, shoots of light gray color. Leaves are bright green, elongated, with a rounded end. Flowering bright, white flowers.

Important! Unlike other varieties, the bright scarlet color of the leaves of the Darrow bush in autumn does not indicate that the soil is not suitable for it, this is a normal seasonal phenomenon.

In autumn, the leaves of the bush are painted in a bright scarlet shade. Darrow blueberries reach enormous size, this is one of the largest fruit varieties. The size of berries in diameter can be up to 1.8 cm, the weight of one berry is up to 15 grams. Numerous photos from the network and reviews of breeders confirm this fact.

The taste of berries is sweet, saturated. The pulp is dense and juicy, the shape of the fruit is round, slightly flattened. The color is dark blue, with a light gray coating. Fruiting later - the first batch of the crop ripens in mid-August. The completion of berry picking takes place at the end of August. Productivity: up to 5 kg of berries from one bush.

Vitamin Composition

Blueberry is a champion in vitamin C. Its unique properties are known throughout the world.

In addition, the composition of the fruits includes such vitamins and beneficial compounds:

• Vitamin B1, B2, E, A, PP;
• fruit acids;
• antioxidants (three times more than in rose hips);
• phenols;
• aromatic compounds;
• natural blue dyes;
• fiber, pectin, water, sugar.

The calorie content of blueberries is small and is 39 kcal per 100 grams.

Useful properties and contraindications

• Useful qualities of the berry:
• normalizes blood sugar;
• lowers blood pressure;
• It has a mild diuretic and anti-inflammatory effect, therefore it is indicated for cystitis;
• regulates acidity (highly recommended for gastritis with low acidity);
• removes radioactive compounds from the body;
• source of vitamin C;
• improves eyesight;
• increases appetite.

• Contraindications for use:
• allergy;
• stomach ulcer;
• gastritis with high acidity.

Eating Blueberries

In cooking, there are many ways to consume this healthy, vitamin-rich berry, primarily eating it raw. The maximum concentration of vitamins and a bright taste with a wine aftertaste leave no one indifferent.

Did you know? The average life expectancy of one bush of blueberries is 90 years. In the wild, some specimens begin bearing fruit only in the 18th year of life.

The following types of blanks are also practiced:

• Jams
• jam;
• compotes;
• jelly;
• freezing of fresh fruits;
• mashed with sugar and frozen blueberries;
• dried (in a dehydrator).

Video: blueberry jam for the winter

Types of breeding and landing

Reproduction methods for Darrow blueberries:

• seedlings (two-year);
• woody cuttings;
• layering;
• partial bushes (they appear at the roots, this method is applicable for stunted plants);
• parts of rhizomes with processes.

The whole process of reproduction, regardless of the method, is very complicated, so gardeners with experience and experts in botany recommend buying seedlings in the nurseries. Firstly, this will preserve the purity of the variety, and secondly, such plants are genetically fruitful already in the second year after planting in the ground, while wild plants can begin to bear fruit only 3-4 years after “domestication”.

The most important secret to good growth: choosing the right soil. On dense soils, blueberries do not grow well, but loose soil with constant access to air and normal humidity is what it needs. Shrub prefers loamy soil with an acidity of 4.5 to 5.5 pH. Recommended planting pit size: 80 × 80 cm. Distance between bushes: at least 1 meter.

Important! Loosening the soil under a bush of blueberries is allowed no deeper than 8 cm! The root system of the plant is at a depth of 20 cm, it is very important not to damage the roots during cultivation.

In private gardening, they practice such a method of planting as thickening rows. However, it is permissible to use it if the plants are constantly monitored, and shoots are thinned out in the spring. In private plantations, the norms for the distance between the bushes should be observed: this way the plant will be better pollinated and bear fruit more abundantly.

If the soil is not acidic enough, it is allowed to plant blueberries in a large garden pot.

1. First set the stage. The ratio of peat, sand and sawdust of pine is 5: 1: 1.
2. A thin layer of drainage is placed at the bottom of the box or pot - for example, small crushed stone from a shell rock.
3. Then pour the whole earth mass from peat, sand and sawdust, make a depression in the soil and install a seedling in it.
4. Then they dig in the roots, densifying the earth well.

If planting is not done in a pot, but in the ground, the edges of the planting pit are protected with thin boards. Thus, the root system of blueberries will be perfectly protected, the plant will receive the necessary conditions for good growth. After planting and watering, pine sawdust and a small layer of peat are placed in the root zone, so the moisture will begin to evaporate more slowly, and the roots will be protected from external influences.

According to a botanical description, Darrow belongs to self-pollinated plants, but the bushes will be larger and denser if next to them plant blueberries of other varieties, for example, Spartan, Patriot, Berkeley or Bluehold.

The subtleties of care

High-quality care is the key to a large crop and plant resistance to adverse environmental factors. On how good will be watering, fertilizing and preparing the plant for winter, in general, its viability depends.

Watering

Watering the plant should be moderate, but regular. The shrub does not like dampness, but even more it does not tolerate excess moisture. In nature, blueberries grow successfully in swamps or near rivers, but few know that the fruiting activity is directly related to the presence of mycorrhiza, a single ecosystem with fungal spores.

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That is why peat soils and irrigation with standing water for at least 24 hours are preferred. In dry summers, shrubs are watered once every 7 days, water is poured strictly by the near-stem method. It is allowed to spray the leaves with spray water after sunset (on very hot days).

How to feed

As a top dressing, experienced gardeners recommend using natural fertilizers in the fall and nitrogen supplementation in the spring. Natural fertilizers (for example, manure or humus) are applied to the soil after the leaves fall; in this case, the mass of land is dug up, and then covered with coniferous needles or a layer of peat until spring.

Spring top dressing for blueberries can be this:

• ready-to-feed supplements, diluted according to the instructions with water or poured into the soil per 1 m² (“Master”, “Vira Vila”, “Florovit”);
• ammonium sulfate (applied to the soil in dry form, digged and watered), it is applied in three stages. At the beginning of March, 50 grams of the substance is introduced into the space around the blueberry bushes, scattering the granules evenly, at the beginning of May another 20 grams of the compound are added in the same way, and at the beginning of June - another 20 grams;
• magnesium sulfate in dry form - is applied to the soil once, at the end of March, in the amount of 20 grams (scatter granules, dig, water the soil).

Winter preparations

Blueberries Darrow tolerates winter and frost. A plant without shelter can survive frosts down to -24 ° С, however, in the northern regions, root shoots often freeze in winter, which, however, is not bad for a bush. In the wild, with the help of the natural dying off of extra shoots, the density of blueberry thickets is regulated. If the bushes are young (from 4 years and older), they are covered with agrofibre for the winter on the site, additionally installing wind shelters.

Video: preparing blueberries for winter

Collection and storage of blueberries

Being a rather delicate berry, blueberries love a neat harvest. And although large farms use harvesters to collect, manual picking is always more popular and well paid. The best containers for collection are containers with a lid, plastic or bark. Shelf life: up to 3 months in a cold room (temperature up to + 12 ° С, without blowing with cold).

Did you know? In the Scandinavian countries, blueberries were stored a hundred years ago in birch bark boxes, with a layer of moss at the bottom. For safety, the berries were poured with fish oil.

If you want to keep berries for a longer time, the temperature in the chambers is reduced to + 2 ° C, but this storage method usually works for industrial warehouses, and not for amateur rooms. An excellent method of storing berries is freezing - they are stored frozen until the next harvest. You can also grind blueberries with sugar or pour sugar syrup.

Pests and diseases

The plant is little susceptible to pests and diseases, but for the purpose of prevention, breeders recommend a two-time (spring and autumn) treatment for parasites and all types of fungus or rot. For treatment, such complex preparations as Topsin (0.2% solution), Euparen (0.2% solution) are used. These funds are suitable for the prevention of stem cancer, fungi of the genus Vaccinii.

Spraying is carried out in early spring, before the swelling of the kidneys. If you want to prevent parasites, but the bush already has berries in the ovary, you can add wood ash to the root zone (500 grams for each bush).

Find out why blueberries do not bear fruit.

Compliance with the rules of agricultural technology will allow each gardener to get a rich harvest of tasty and healthy Darrow blueberries. The berry will come in handy in the winter as a raw dessert, or as a component for baking or vitamin drinks. Its delicate taste softens the usual dishes and makes them even more appetizing and healthy.