Those would look great in pots if the branches were braided into a single trunk.
Victor, good to have you back. You definitely rock the honeyberry space. Keep it coming!
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How long have you been using the nonwovens? I have such a struggle with weeds.
This Spring was a test for these plants that I have not experienced during 20 years of cultivation. After the warm winter, there were constantly recurring late frosts, which tested the resistance of the varieties in various stages, from buds, through flowers and then fruits. From what I followed, the Canadian varieties -Aurora, Blizzard, Beast best passed this test of various varieties and were sprinkled with fruit as if nothing had happened. the exception was the Honeybee variety, which at some stage frozen fruit.
The sweet Russian variety L. Velikán turned out the worst. It was also an exceptional year from the point of view that every variety that I have basically blossomed at one time, whether sooner or later.
It seems that some Russian varieties are more prone to such extremes than Canadian ones. the only exception was Honeybee.
After such verification, it is possible to see which varieties to limit and which to expand.
Frost damage to Honeybee fruits
on the contrary, the Beast and other Canadians were sprinkled with fruit
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I have been using non-woven fabrics since I found that they grow much better if the roots are protected from drying out and that weeds that are essentially at the same level do not grow there.
And it’s been about 20 years since I’ve done it.
They like to grow in the thicket one plant next to each other and do not let weeds among themselves and thus protect their roots. This knowledge is important for successful cultivation. As for pollination, it’s better this way. Insects also prefer to look for plants that grow in this way. This naturally protects the roots and prevents weeds from growing.
But if I want to have a comfortable harvest and therefore plant them at large intervals of about 1.5 m, then it is necessary to replace the shading of the root system and especially young plants. This fabric proved to be the easiest for me.
I always plant the plants in my own compost and often top up the crushed branches from the trees and cover it all with non-woven fabric. In this way, the fabric is as if in the air and a climate is created there, which these plants love very much. I no longer interfere with the roots, nor do I dig and anything like that. If the roots are not covered and overgrown with weeds, they are also sensitive if weeds with roots, growing close to the plant, are uprooted during the vegetation. This must be prevented
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we had a similar winter and spring here. many early blooming fruits lost their whole crops to late freezes. my mulberry was leafing out when the frosts killed all the leaves! the honey berries and currants were undamaged. i guess my honeybee got lucky.
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Very similar here moose. Frost hit the honeyberries the one in midbloom seems like it passed away minus a few branches here and there. Other honeyberries went through without a hitch.
What viktor is saying about protecting the roots around the top makes sense and its where my soil dries out pretty fast, the honeyberries definitely create a nice shade zone for their roots.
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my 5’’ plus of wood chips around mine helps also. all through our severe drought i only watered maybe a handful of times and they held on to all their leaves and fruited well.
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I definitely should be woodchipping all mine. I will try and make a go out of it this winter during a warm spell I hope as i always get overrun in spring.
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there must be some arborists in your area. hit em’ up. local road crews will drop you a load if they’re working nearby. wood chips would be a godsend in your environment where water is so precious!
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I like to experiment. Maybe it would be possible. they do not like to grow in containers. I could try it on some loose plants and very carefully. Although shoots grow like willows, they are fragile and bent at first and often break off at the trunk in the wind. But at some stage the green shoots lose their fragility and become tougher. I would have to figure out when to do this and do it carefully and gradually intertwine. It would look nice if it worked. I’ll try and let you know…
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in April I counted 20 frosty nights. Such constant spring frosts have affected the harvest of some varieties.
as for other fruit, there is nothing. completely frozen cherries, plums, apples, pears and basically a year without this fruit.
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In Russia, Canadian Hascap varieties are becoming increasingly popular. Here we see a poetic commentary on the Canadian varieties as a revolution in selection:
Experience and Fertility in Canadians
Russian and Canadian varieties planted in Ukraine
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Viktor, wow! Do you have to net for birds? How about deer? And do you leave the landscape fabric on year round? Does grass eventually come up through the fabric? I have a cylinders of chicken wire with posts around each bush, but it is a nuisance. I have used wood chip mulch, but within a year the grass and weeds grow through the mulch. I’m not sure how to remove the weeds without disturbing the roots.
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Weeds do not have to be removed because the roots are disturbed. All you have to do is add mulch, fertilize it and cover it with geotextile on top. The grass will not pass. They like it very much if the roots are covered with agrotextiles. Agrotextile is year-round. I give mulch, but on top of that I still cover it with non-woven or woven agrotextile. Woven agrotextile 130g / m² is better and lasts about 6 years. The width is 1.05 m, which I cut to 0.5 m. I will put one half on one side and the other on the other side and between the plants I will close them with an office stapler. It can be stretched back, or fertilized, or the mulch can be added and fastened again with a stapler. I press the edges to the ground with steel wire - U-shaped clips. When I mow, I try to blow the grass out of the agrotextile. This will last a very long time.
Conversely, nonwoven agrotextiles begin to disintegrate after 3 years. It depends on the thickness.
Jelenov we have whole herds. When there is a lot of snow, they bite the fruit trees. But Haskap shrubs are quite dry in the winter and I have not yet observed a bite of an animal. They prefer juicier twigs from fruit trees.
I have to put a net against the birds.
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mulch is so much easier.
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Thank you, Viktor, for that information. I have some weed barrier that I bought on clearance, so I may try it on a few bushes.
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Does anyone know if these cultivars are available for sale in the US? If so is there another name they might go by here? I have spent some time searching the Canadian websites I’ve seen posted in various threads but have not yet been successful. A search for Amur returns results for the river it is likely named after. Additionally, has anyone else tasted them to compare to any other varieties available to the US like the new strawberry sensation, Blue Moose, Happy Giant? This is my quick post before deciding how crazy I want to get with growing lots of haskaps in all of the room I won’t have after all the other things I’ve planned for my yard.
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It is very unlikely that you will get the variety Amur, L. Velikán.
As Amur has a more balanced taste, it has one big disadvantage. It has poor fertility and has a fine surface. Due to this, it is not commonly widespread. We usually consume it straight from the bush, but it is really excellent on a longer stalk and does not fall off.
L. Velikán is similar in fertility, but it is too sweet and very aromatic.
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Thank you for the response Viki! I was afraid that would be the answer, but it doesn’t hurt to ask. Hopefully someone is able to share these cultivars somehow in the future. The fact that you rank them so high in comparison to Aurora gives me hope that better varieties will continue to be made. I realize there are international border regulations for sharing plant material.