Cherevishnya Duke: description of culture, varieties, cultivation and care

Duke features

Hybrids of cherries and sweet cherries differ in many ways from their “parents”:

• Unlike parental pairs, dukes are self-sterile. “Loneliness” is contraindicated for them. In order for the hybrids to bear fruit, zoned varieties of cherries and sweet cherries, the so-called pollinators, are planted nearby.
• Dukes themselves are ineffective as pollinators.
• In the middle zone and in the Central Black Earth region, self-fertile cherries - Lyubskaya, Bulatnikovskaya, Molodezhnaya - are usually used to pollinate dukes.
• The best pollinator of dukes is the cherry. Recommended pollinators for cherry trees are Donchanka, Priusadnaya, and Annushka cherries. And the Iput cherry is considered an ideal variety for pollination.
  

  You can read about the listed varieties of cherries in the following article.

• When purchasing duka seedlings, you also acquire a pollinator. A high-quality pollinator is able to pollinate more than a third of the flowers - this is enough for the tree to be covered with fruits.
• Dukes, compared to cherries, are more winter-hardy. On the contrary, cherries are inferior in winter hardiness. Because of this, in the northern regions they grow in the form of bushes - gardeners cover them for the winter, saving them from extremely low temperatures.
• Dukes are not fed throughout their lives. Due to an excess of nutrients, the tree begins to develop intensively, which, spending energy on growth, does not have time to really get stronger and prepare for winter. This leads to the absence of fruits or the death of the plant.

The second name for cherry is duk. In the 17th century, a hybrid of cherries and sweet cherries was developed in England; it was named “May-Duke,” which literally means “Duke of May.”

Frost-resistant varieties of dukes

Dukes are a hybrid of cherry and cherry (they are called cherry-cherries or cherry trees). An interesting garden crop that can delight not only residents of the southern CIS countries and regions of the Russian Federation with juicy drupes of unusual taste, but also regions where winter weather is frosty beyond -25..-35 °C.

You can read more about dukes in our material: All about dukes - hybrids of cherries and sweet cherries.

Dukes need a pollinator, so they need to be planted next to several varieties in the garden. Individual clumps of different varieties of dukes look great when forming a garden landscape.

Duke varieties for central Russia

The Duke variety Krasa Severa was bred by I.V. Michurin in the 19th century. Constant work with the resulting hybrid made it possible to obtain a frost-resistant variety that is tolerant of spring temperature changes and can easily withstand frosts down to -30°C. Fruiting is early - in the first half of July. The fruits are light pink in color. The pulp is yellowish, juicy, the juice is uncolored. The taste of the fruit is sweet with a slightly noticeable sourness, refreshing. The pit is easily separated from the pulp. Frost resistance is so high that the variety grows normally and produces yields in Siberian conditions (Tomsk).

Miracle Cherry variety is most famous among gardeners for its abundant fruiting. The branches of the crop are literally strewn with bunches and garlands of large fruits. The variety is self-sterile. The best pollinators are the cherry varieties Yaroslavna, Sesstrenka, Donchanka, Annushka, and other varieties of duki. The fruits ripen in the second half of June. Fruits weighing up to 10 g, round, dark red with the same pulp. The pulp is sweet, more tender than that of cherries with a pleasant cherry flavor and aroma. The variety is grown as trees in the south, and in central Russia - in the form of a bush with little shelter from the drying winter-spring winds.

In the conditions of the Moscow region, you can successfully grow varieties of duka: Zhukovskaya , Pamyati Vavilov , Kormilitsa , Krepkaya . Duke berries have a cherry flavor, enriched with a cherry aroma with a pleasant, refreshing aftertaste. The fruits are high quality.

Duke varieties for the Northern regions

Breeders have obtained hybrid varieties of dukes, the winter hardiness of which allows them to be grown in Siberian conditions, more practical - in a bush form.

The Duke variety Alice is a mid-late variety. The fruits are dark red with delicate colored pulp. The taste of the fruit is sweet and sour, the juice is red. Due to the tender juicy pulp, transportability is low. Distinctive feature: the winter hardiness of the variety is generally high, but flower buds can freeze in severe, long-term frosts.

Dorodnaya variety belongs to varieties with medium-late fruit ripening. The trees are self-fertile. Pollinators - cherries, sweet cherries, and other varieties of dukes. The fruits are large, round, dark red with colored pulp and juice. The taste is sweet with noticeable sourness. Forms a high crown in the form of a tree. Winter hardiness is high.

Dukes in the northern regions can be grown in private gardens and dachas, using varieties: Pivonya , Nochka , Excellent Venyaminova .

The Dyukov varieties Ivanovna and Spartanka are distinguished by their very high winter hardiness.

See the continuation of the list of frost-resistant varieties of popular fruit crops for cold regions on the next page.

Description and characteristics

The cherry tree is small, the crown is compact. The branches, arranged symmetrically, are covered with elongated glossy leaves. The inflorescences are white and the fruits are red-cherry.

Duke, being an intermediate crop, combines the characteristics of two plants at once:

• Fruit. In appearance and taste of the fruit, duki are closer to cherries, but in size and sugar content they are similar to cherries.
• Leaves. Large, like cherries. Density, color and shine - like cherry.

Cherry characteristics:

• The average weight of berries is 8-10 g.
• The taste is sweet, with slight sourness.
• The first fruits appear in the 3rd year after planting.
• The average yield is 10-15 kg per tree per season.

Popular cherry varieties, their brief description

The hybrid has several varieties, each of which has its own characteristics.

Miracle cherry

Description of Cherry Miracle:

• medium-sized plant, round crown, average leaf density;
• Fruiting occurs on bouquet branches and on annual growths;
• The berries are large, weighing about 8-9 g.

A distinctive feature is the juicy, very tasty pulp, which has a dessert-like taste.

Spartan

Medium-sized cherry with a spreading crown. The leaves are large, the fruits are small, weighing about 5-5.6 g. Ripening is average. Winter hardiness is very high.

Additional Information! The disadvantage of Spartanka is the wet separation of the fruits, without tails, which is why the crop is not suitable for transportation and long-term storage.

Nurse

The fruits are large, from 7 to 8 g, the pulp is sweet and sour. The advantage is very high frost resistance.

Advantages and disadvantages of a hybrid

Each of the parent trees - cherry and sweet cherry - are good in their own way, but their hybrid also has enough advantages. Cherry benefits:

• Disease resistance. They are immune to moniliosis and coccomycosis - diseases due to which many cherry orchards have no harvest for years. There are dukes that are almost not affected by the cherry fly.
• High taste characteristics. The fruits of duki have a wonderful taste - a unique cherry flavor combines favorably with cherry sweetness.
• Large fruit. The maximum fruit weight reaches 15-20 g.
• Frost resistance. The tree withstands frosts down to 24-26 °C
• Low maintenance requirements. Virtually no need for feeding. The amount of watering becomes minimal with age.

Cons of cherry:

• The buds do not withstand frost well enough and are prone to freezing.
• Poor transportability.
• Needs regular pruning as it is prone to overgrowth.

Pros and cons of Siberian cherries

An undeniable advantage of winter-hardy varieties is their high immunity to the main common diseases of cherry. Most species do not affect coccomycosis, moniliosis and clasterosporiasis. The harvest usually tolerates transportation and storage well and does not lose its presentation.

The main disadvantage of most winter-hardy varieties is self-sterility. To pollinate inflorescences, there must be at least one more tree of a suitable species within a radius of 50-100 m. Also, in rainy spring and summer, the berries may crack, which spoils the presentation and reduces storage time.

Attention!

It is better to buy seedlings from local nurseries with a good reputation, which zone their products. In this case, the seedling variety will be suitable for planting in all respects.

Optimal growing regions

Since breeders have developed dozens of winter-hardy cherry varieties, they have been grown in almost all regions of Russia. When choosing a variety for planting, it is important to correlate its frost resistance - the lowest possible temperature withstandable - with the winter temperatures characteristic of a particular region. Depending on climatic conditions, the appearance of the plant is formed - in the form of a tree or in the form of a bush.

The first cherry trees did not feel comfortable even in the middle zone, but today’s varieties are hardy and frost-resistant, and have moved far to the north. Today, dukes grow and bear fruit in the Leningrad, Nizhny Novgorod, Novosibirsk regions, Siberia, and the Far East.

Appearance and taste

In the southern regions and regions with mild winters, trees with a spreading crown are formed. In the northern regions and Siberia, bush-shaped trees are grown.

Externally, cherry is an average version of both crops, but the taste of the fruit is closer to cherries.

The leaf blade is a rich green color, larger than that of a cherry, reminiscent of cherry leaves, with a noticeable shine and a denser structure. The petioles are long.

The fruits are formed on short stalks and bouquet branches and are large in size. Average weight – 10 g, maximum – 20 g. The structure of the pulp is like that of cherry fruits. The sugar content is similar to that of cherries, but a large amount of acids slightly impairs the taste. The fruits hang on the branches for a long time. The taste characteristics only improve. The taste is sweet and sour, herbaceous, delicate, with a refreshing aftertaste.

The central trunk and shoots are smooth, like a cherry . The bark is dark brown. Skeletal shoots are sometimes located at an acute angle to the central trunk.

In the middle zone, flowering begins at the end of June, in the southern regions - in May. Flowers of white or white-pink shades are collected in inflorescences in the form of bouquets.

Cherry cherry is a fast-growing crop and, in the presence of suitable pollinators, produces the first harvest in the third year. At the end of flowering, unpollinated flowers fall off.

Biological features

Cherry cherry is a stone fruit crop that has received the best characteristics from its “parents”. Most varieties are self-sterile, but abundant flowering makes it a desirable ornamental crop.

Sharp temperature fluctuations, sudden frosts, and heat negatively affect the formation of eggs and pollen. The number of flowers capable of pollination is reduced to 1%. In some cases, germ cells are not formed.

Under optimal development conditions, only 5% of flower buds are literally hung with large fruits.

Cherevishna does not tolerate loneliness due to self-sterility. Experienced gardeners recommend planting trees next to cherries and sweet cherries. Dukes do not interbreed with each other.

Pollination

The best pollinators for Duke:

1. Nurse - cherries of the Podbelskaya and Vstrecha varieties, Valery Chkalov and Krupnoplodnaya cherries.
2. Ivanovna – Shalunya cherry, Franz Joseph and Krupnofrodnaya cherries.
3. Nadezhda - large Black, Kent and Lada cherries, Large-fruited cherries.
4. Griot Melitopol - Meeting and Waiting cherries, Vinka cherries.
5. Toy – Samsonovka and Shalunya cherries, Large-fruited cherries, Valery Chkalov, Franz Joseph.

It is recommended to purchase cherry seedlings together with pollinators that are capable of pollinating 1/3 of the flowers. This guarantees a bountiful harvest.

Landing

The main features of proper planting of cherry seedlings are maintaining intervals between neighboring plants and preparing the pit. All other agrotechnical measures are the same as for other fruit trees.

Selecting a location

When creating plantings of dukes, cherries and cherries, it is recommended to select a site that meets the following requirements:

• Sunlight all day long. There should be no shadow, but partial shade is allowed.
• The soil must be nutritious. Wetlands are excluded.
• Elevation is preferable; the groundwater table should not be higher than 2 m.
• Protection from drafts and winds.
• There should be cherry and/or sweet cherry trees nearby for pollination.
• The minimum distance to neighboring crops is 5 m.

Dukes are not planted in lowlands. In winter, cold masses are concentrated here, and in summer the humidity is too high. The best option for dukes is areas with sandy loam soils and indirect, diffused light.

Acidic soils are neutralized with chalk - add 1.5 kg per 1 sq. m. m. Heavy clay soils are replaced during planting with fertile soil and sand mixed in equal parts.

When preparing the soil for planting, you should maintain fertilizer standards for dukes - they do not like soils that are too nutritious.

Purchase and preparation of seedlings

Cherry seedlings are prepared for planting in the same way as any other planting material for fruit trees. The seedlings are soaked in water a day before planting, and then all damaged roots are cut off with pruning shears.

When buying duke seedlings, pay attention to:

• age and time of landing;
• variety;
• pollinators.

Seedlings aged 2-3 years are considered to have the best survival rate. Other recommendations for choosing planting material:

• the presence of a tag indicating the age of the seedling, variety, pollinator varieties and other details of agricultural technology;
• trunk – straight;
• the root system is developed, without signs of disease;
• shoots are colored evenly, without gum or damage;
• the height of the main trunk is about 60 cm, the branches are shortened by a third - such signs indicate properly prepared planting material;
• the variety must be regionalized and suitable for specific climatic conditions.

The health of the roots of seedlings is indicated by the white color of their cuts.

Duke seedlings should be purchased from nurseries or specialized farms that professionally grow fruit trees.

Landing in the ground

It is better to plant dukes in early spring, when the soil has warmed up to the desired temperature. If you plant seedlings in the fall, they may die without taking root. Autumn planting is only suitable for regions with warm climates.

Features of planting duka seedlings:

• The pit is prepared a month before planting.
• The distance between adjacent holes is 4-5 m if 2 or more cherry seedlings are planted. This is enough so that the trees, when they become adults, do not interfere with each other.
• The dimensions of the hole must be such that the root system fits freely in it.
• Drainage must be laid at the bottom of the hole to prevent stagnation of water near the root system. Make a drainage layer from stones or broken bricks.
• A manure-soil mixture is poured onto the drainage. The mixture includes a fertile layer.
• The soil obtained by digging a hole is mixed with superphosphate (300-400 g), potassium sulfate (250-300 g) and ash (2-3 cups).
• If planting is done in infertile, depleted soil, compost or humus is added to the hole - one bucket.
• The seedling is placed in a hole, its roots are straightened. Sprinkle with soil so that the root collar and the surface of the earth are at the same level. You should not bury the seedling too much - rot may develop, which will lead to the death of the young tree.
• When the seedling is planted, water is poured under the root - 2 buckets.

Cherry care

Caring for hybrids of cherries and sweet cherries does not cause difficulties even for novice gardeners. By devoting a minimum of time to this unpretentious tree, you get large harvests of delicious berries. Unlike other fruit trees, dukes do not need fertilizing, which makes care even easier.

Regularity of watering

It is recommended to water the planted young plants every week. Water abundantly, use settled water, not cold. The older the tree gets, the less frequent the watering. Watering for dukes is a must, regardless of age. An adult tree requires approximately 20-40 liters of water. During periods of prolonged drought, the displacement is increased.

Like all stone fruits, cherry trees do not like frequent and abundant irrigation. Overmoistening leads to rotting of the roots and cracking of the trunk bark and skeletal branches. Trees need more watering until they are 5 years old, and then the frequency of irrigation is reduced based on the weather.

The need for digging and mulching

To make the root system feel comfortable, two loosenings per season are enough. Loosening saturates the soil with oxygen and at the same time removes weeds. It is recommended to loosen the soil in tree trunk circles after watering. Gardeners often sow green manure in gardens to fertilize the soil; for dukes, this option is allowed, but with one condition - the tree trunk circle should only be under black fallow.

To prevent the tree roots from overheating and moisture from the soil from evaporating too quickly, the tree trunk circle is mulched. Recommended mulch is hay. Do not spread mulch on dry soil.

Top dressing

The absence of the need for feeding is an important advantage of dukes. Fertilizers are applied only when planting a seedling. In the future, the gardener is spared from fertilizing - the dukes develop better and bear fruit in soils of average nutritional value.

Pruning and crown formation

The first time cherry trees are pruned immediately after planting. From the surface of the ground to the pruning point - 0.6 m. Having trimmed the top, cut off the skeletal branches. On seedlings 2 years old, the side branches are cut by 1/3.

While there is no harvest, the young animals are growing intensively. And as soon as the first berries appear, growth activity decreases. The crowns are thinned out in a timely manner - their thickening leads to a decrease in yield. When cutting branches, take into account the angle at which they depart from the trunk - the sharper it is, the smaller the end to be cut off.

For old trees, rejuvenating pruning is carried out every 5 years - sprouts are removed from the entire crown - to the level of four-year-old trees.

Diseases and pests

Among the fungal diseases that threaten dukes, the most dangerous and common ones are shown in Table 2.

table 2

Preparing for winter

Modern varieties of dukes are quite frost-resistant, so they do not require insulation for the winter - mulching the tree trunk circle is enough. Hay or fallen leaves are used as mulch. Varieties that are not particularly resistant to frost, grown in regions with harsh winters, are better insulated. Seedlings that have not reached 5 years of age are insulated for the winter, regardless of the growing region.

Insulation of dukes:

• the crown is covered with thick and dense polyethylene;
• The tree trunk is covered with snow.

Many gardeners wrap the trunks of fruit trees, including dukes, with burlap. Or covered with spruce branches. This method of shelter allows you to solve two problems - to save the tree from frost and from rodents. Hares are a terrible danger to young trees, and the smell of pine needles effectively repels them.

Fruiting and pollinators of the Miracle cherry

The tree begins to bloom during the onset of stable warm weather. Most often this is mid-May. In regions with colder climatic conditions, this period may begin at the end of June.

The flowers of this cherry variety are quite massive, they form on short stems. Flowers are connected in brushes of 4-9 pieces.

Fruiting occurs on short (0.5-5 cm) fruit formations (also called bouquet branches), which are located at the top of the tree. Bouquet branches consist of fruiting and growth buds.

The Miracle Cherry fruits are quite large (their weight reaches up to 10 grams), dark red in color and have a wonderful dessert taste. Ripe cherries hang in clusters on the shoots. The pulp tastes sweet with a pronounced taste of the best varieties of cherries and with subtle notes of cherry aroma.

The duke begins to bear fruit consistently from the fourth year.

Harvest and storage

Cherry fruits are ready for harvest in June or July - it all depends on the climatic characteristics of the region and the ripening time of a particular variety. The harsher the climate of the region, the later the harvest.

The berries are removed without tearing them off the stalks - this extends the shelf life and allows the harvest to be transported. The transportability of dukes is unimportant; it is not recommended to store the berries - it is advisable to put them into processing as soon as possible.

If you can’t immediately process the fruits, you can extend their life by placing them in the refrigerator. There is no need to wash them before storing them. containers are not covered. Cherry berries are stored for no longer than two weeks. The berries are used to make candied fruits, marshmallows, jam, and liqueurs. The fruits can also be dried and frozen.

Winter-hardy cherry varieties for the Moscow region

There are winter-hardy varieties of self-fertile cherries for the Moscow region. Some of their flowers are self-pollinating, but they still need pollinators for abundant fruiting. Most often, summer residents look for seedlings of Fatezh, Narodnaya Syubarova, Revna, Valery Chkalov, Cheremashnaya, Iput. The harvest is harvested in June.

The path ripens early, at the end of June, and Cheremashnaya and Valery Chkalov are not far behind. Other early varieties for the Moscow region: Krasnaya Gorka, Ovstuzhenka, Priusadnaya yellow. The fruits of Fatezh, Narodnaya Syubarova, Revna ripen in the average time. The harvest is harvested in July.

To enjoy cherries from late July to mid-August, late-ripening varieties are planted in the garden: Leningradskaya Chernaya, Podarok Stepanov, Michurinka. The harvest is harvested in August.

Reviews from gardeners

When deciding whether to plant cherry cherries in the garden or not, and if so, what variety, it is important to read reviews - about hybrids in general, and then about varieties separately.

★★★★★
Nikolay Elnikov, Kursk region. The Miracle Cherry variety grows in my garden.
Its berries ripen very early, the tree practically does not suffer from anything - the simplest preventive measures help. The ubiquitous cherry fly is not particularly interested in my duke. I harvest 12-15 kg. The disadvantages are the presence of a pollinator and the need to form a crown. The tree was planted 8 years ago. The berries are much sweeter than cherries, the sourness is barely noticeable. The taste is such that you won’t immediately understand what it tastes more like – cherry or sweet cherry. ★★★★★
Lyudmila L., Murom. I planted a seedling of the Excellent Venyaminova variety.
Perhaps it was necessary to choose a more frost-resistant variety. The berries were very tasty, and they appeared two years after planting. Each harvest was larger than the last. But our winters are cold, even though we covered the tree for the winter, in the eighth year it still froze and never recovered. Hide

Add your review

Duke is a great opportunity to experiment and add variety to your garden. Thanks to new frost-resistant varieties, dukes are confidently moving north, becoming available to gardeners from regions with harsh climates. This unpretentious and hardy hybrid with abundant harvests is a desirable trophy for any garden.

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Mistakes when growing cherries in Siberia

Having decided to plant cherries in your garden for the first time, it is useful to pay attention to the experience of a large army of enthusiastic summer residents who, through trial and error, have already learned in practice how cherries grow in Siberia. Five mistakes that lead to failure:

1. Wrong choice of variety for Siberia.
2. Rootstock without frost resistance.
3. Formation of a trunk that is too high, falling into the area of ​​probable frost damage.
4. Overdose of nitrogen fertilizers, leading to insufficient ripening of annual shoots.
5. Lack of a pollinator variety in the garden, because most cherries are self-sterile.

You can learn more about the cherry varieties grown in the southern Urals in the video