2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Vodyanik (lat. Empetrum) - a genus of evergreen creeping dwarf shrubs and shrubs of the Heather family. The plant is also known as bagnovka, shiksha, crowberry, bear berry, pork blueberry and black grass. All existing species have edible fruits, but only one species is cultivated - the black crowberry.
Spreading
In nature, crowberry is found in temperate and subarctic zones (Russia, Finland, Spain, Iceland, Great Britain, Greenland, Canada, USA, Japan, China, Korea, Mongolia). Some species are native to the Chilean Andes, Malvinas, Tristan da Cunha and Tierra del Fuego.
On the territory of Russia, culture has become widespread in the northern regions: Siberia, the Far East, Sakhalin, Kamchatka and the Kuril Islands. Typical habitats of wild varieties of crowberry are rocky and moss-lichen tundra, coniferous forests, sphagnum bogs, open sands, dunes, granite outcrops and mountains.
Characteristics of culture
Vodyanika is a low-growing creeping dwarf shrub or shrub 20-30 cm high, growing in clumps. The stem is strongly leafy, branching, dark brown in color. At a young age, the stem is covered with brown hairs over the entire surface.
Curtains grow rapidly, while forming adventitious roots. The central branches die off over time. The branches of the crowberry are hidden in a moss "pillow", equipped with pinpoint glands of amber or white color, reaching 50-100 cm in length.
Leaves are small, short-petiolate, narrow-elliptical, 3-10 mm long. The edges of the leaves are closed or bent downward, outwardly the leaves look like needles, and the shrub itself resembles a dwarf spruce. The flowers are inconspicuous, axillary, equipped with an actinomorphic perianth with three sepals and three petals of red, pink or purple color. In the European part of Russia, crowberry blooms in April-May, in Siberia - in May-June.
The fruit is a red or black berry with a harsh skin and hard seeds. Outwardly, the fruits are similar to blueberries. Fruits ripen in August-September (depending on climatic conditions) and remain on the branches until next spring.
Growing conditions
Vodyanika prefers peaty and acidic sandy soils with good drainage. Negatively relates to compacted, heavy clayey and waterlogged soils. The culture is favorable to sunny areas, although it develops no worse in partial shade. Some varieties accept full shade, and this is understandable, because the natural habitat of crowberry is coniferous forests and tundra.
Reproduction and planting
Crowberry propagated by seeds, cuttings and layering. The use of wild bushes taken from the forest is not prohibited. This method is simple and effective, and is subject to every gardener, even those who have no experience in planting trees and shrubs.
A planting pit for a seedling is prepared in advance, its depth should be about 40-50 cm, and its width should be 30-40 cm. At the bottom of the pit, a roller is formed from a mixture consisting of turf soil, sand and peat in equal proportions, and drainage is laid with a thickness of 10 -12 cm from coarse sand or crushed stone.
The root collar is not buried; it should be located a couple of cm above the soil level. Over time, the root collar will drop to the surface of the earth. The soil in the near-stem zone is carefully compacted, abundantly watered and mulched with peat or healthy fallen leaves. The distance between plants should be 30-50 cm.
Care
Crowberry care is standard procedures for most fruit and berry crops. Watering is carried out as needed, the soil should not be allowed to dry out. Watering is especially important during a prolonged drought. The culture has a positive attitude to feeding. During the season, two dressings are enough: in the spring - with organic matter, in the summer - with nitroammophos.
A little sanitary pruning is required for the crowberry. Weeding is carried out in the first few years of life, then the aboveground part of the plants suppresses the weeds on its own. It is important to monitor the growth of plants, otherwise they can grow over long distances, displacing neighboring crops.
