Lingonberry gardening, planting and care for which does not require special efforts - beloved berry of all, giving a colorful taste to Russian national dishes. Known since time immemorial, it grows on vast areas, meeting in large numbers in the taiga and forest-steppe zones, and yields only cranberries in yield. Its name is a perennial plant, which is a low evergreen shrub with fleshy, succulent leaves, received from the word "logs", which means "red".
Lingonberries are small enough (up to 25 cm), have creeping rhizomes and erect, well-branched stems. This sweet plant blooms with small white-pink flowers, bears fruit of a rather large size (up to 8 mm in diameter), with a sweet and sour taste.
Lingonberry in the garden: features of cultivation
The cultivation of garden lingonberries is gaining more and more popularity both in the household and on an industrial level. Planting a plantation requires minimal investment, and returns are expected to be high and in the shortest possible time. Moreover, the bred repair varieties completely determine the high yield (from 1 sq. M - 1 kg) and, accordingly, high profit.
At home, growing lingonberries, planting lingonberries, care features are minimized, the main thing is to provide the plant with a comfortable place to grow; the most optimal will be well-lit areas that are not subject to regular flooding. Hollows should be avoided, because they accumulate moisture and stagnate cold air.
Blueberries and lingonberries: planting and care
The soil for planting these shrubs should be light, sandy or peaty, with a high level of acidity. Moreover, the plant can be planted in any, even the most unsuitable for planting area, pouring a 30-cm layer of sand with added peat and sawdust. Planting lingonberry seedlings and caring for plants is carried out mainly in the spring (April – May) or autumn. Saplings are buried in the soil by about 2 cm. It is advisable to plant lingonberries at a distance of 30 cm from each other in a row with a row spacing of 40 cm. This is convenient for both manual and mechanized picking of berries. The main thing is to prepare high-quality planting material, and planting lingonberries will not cause much trouble. The principle of planting lingonberries and blueberries is the same. On the flower beds and beds, you can plant shrubs after 20 cm to fully connect their crowns. After this, the area must be watered for compaction and mulched with a layer of about 5 cm.
Mulching is a factor in a good harvest
As a mulch, it is recommended to use sawdust, needles, straw, wood bark or shavings. In the first two weeks, the plant needs to be regularly watered, then watered to produce as needed. Top dressing begins in the second year after planting. Mineral fertilizers can be applied during the fruiting period of lingonberries. Organics do not contribute.
By the way, garden lingonberries, planting and care, the reproduction of which are more joyful than some special troubles, has one interesting feature: it receives food from the soil with the help of a mushroom living on its roots, sucking out mineral elements from the soil and transmitting it to the roots.
Reproduction and watering of lingonberries
Lingonberry propagation can be done with seeds or cuttings obtained by separating part of the ground shoots with roots from the mother plant. Harvesting seedlings can be made from spring to autumn.
Lingonberry gardening, the planting and care of which is quite easy, negatively tolerates both stagnation of water on the site and drought, so you should be careful when watering the plant. The most optimal is drip irrigation or small drip irrigation, recommended twice a week. Water consumption per square meter should not exceed 10 liters.
For optimum moisture retention, the soil must be periodically loosened and mulched. Be sure to get rid of weed grass; therefore, to prevent clogging of the site, it is initially required to provide the plant with mulch or modern covering materials. Coniferous wood chips are also effective from an aesthetic and environmental point of view.
Lingonberry: wind protection
Garden lingonberries, planting and caring for which give the gardener aesthetic pleasure, do not like winds, so protection should be carefully considered; most optimally it is provided by planting from pine and juniper.
The absence of wind ensures the active work of bees and bumblebees, the best warming of the site and a favorable climate for the early ripening of the crop. In this case, moisture evaporates less, the quality of berries due to the preservation of wax coating is higher, their size is larger. A small breeze is very useful for ventilating cowberries after rain.
Planting and care of lingonberries are aimed at maximizing the yield, and since the bushes tend to thicken, periodically the plants need to be thinned out. At 7–10 years of age, the plant needs to be trimmed; this is necessary to rejuvenate the bush, maintain the quality of the berries and their fruiting. Cuttings obtained as a result of pruning are an excellent material for reproduction and expansion of planting areas.
Winter-hardy qualities of lingonberry
Lingonberry garden, planting and care for which do not require material costs, has excellent winter hardiness, does not require shelter for the winter; in the cold season, under the thickness of snow, you can find dark green, shiny leaves of the plant. Flower buds can be adversely affected by temperatures below - 4 ° C.
With proper care, the crop should be expected in the second year. Ripening occurs in August – September, depending on the area and variety. Harvested crops can be dried, soaked, frozen, made fruit drinks and preserves.
Lingonberry - a guarantee of excellent health
For the health of lingonberries, growing, planting, care for which is a pleasure - it's just a find! Everything is useful in this pretty small plant: bright red berries (which accumulate a huge amount of useful trace elements and vitamins), as well as shoots and leaves, which are an excellent basis for a useful healing decoction.
Lingonberry leaves have a powerful antiseptic, wound healing, diuretic, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory and tonic effect. This is a great remedy for treating viral diseases. Decoctions and infusions are recommended to be used to rinse the throat and oral cavity, which is very effective in the treatment of many infections, especially staphylococcal. It is also an excellent tool to help lower blood sugar levels, which is very beneficial for people with diabetes. It is a valuable source of protein for dieters.
Collection of leaves for healing broth
Lingonberry leaves for the preparation of a medicinal decoction should be collected in early spring, before flowering begins, and only survivors of winter are required to take, because young leaves will blacken when dried. Secondary raw materials can be collected in the autumn, after the flowering of lingonberries. Leaves from the bush must be plucked carefully, without breaking the shoots, in order to avoid injury to the bush. Re-collection of leaves is allowed after 5-10 years, after complete regeneration of the plant. Before drying, unsuitable leaves should be selected: injured and blackened. Drying cloth must be spread in a warm dark place, spread the leaves in a thin layer.
Useful qualities of lingonberries
Lingonberry is mainly used as a diuretic and is used to treat kidneys (if they have stones) and the bladder (for urinary incontinence, especially in children). Also, this sour berry helps get rid of gout, rheumatism and diarrhea; has the ability to lower blood sugar.
Juice from ripe lingonberries, as well as the fruits themselves, is useful for high blood pressure and vitamin deficiency. With colds and fever, the plants make a healing soothing tea from the berries. The bitterness present in this priceless berry causes an increase in appetite, therefore for children and people weakened by the disease it is an indispensable ingredient.
Planting and care of lingonberries are often made for medicinal purposes, because this berry is an excellent antiseptic that prevents infection in the genitourinary system and protects the intestines and stomach from poor-quality food. A long daily intake of decoctions or tea from berries and leaves completely cures the infection of the genitourinary tract. Lingonberry is used in the treatment of various diseases. Also, the plant has a good antipyretic effect.
Lingonberry in cooking
Despite the fact that the lingonberry berries are sour in taste, the jams and jams are simply magnificent. By the way, lingonberry jam is a sweet medicine for prostatitis, and tincture made on lingonberry will help with hypertension, fever and chronic gastritis.
Berries are consumed both fresh and soaked. Due to the content of benzoic acid, berries can be stored for a long period, about 2-3 weeks. For a long time, the valuable qualities of berries, as well as their natural wax coating, can be preserved by soaking in water or low-temperature freezing.
In cooking, cranberry sauce is often served for meat , because it contributes to the maximum assimilation of dishes from it, reducing energy consumption for digestion. And in the old days, fresh meat was often stored in lingonberries.
Decoction for the kidneys and liver.
60 g of leaves in 3 cups of water - boil for 10 minutes in an enameled bowl. After cooling, strain and drink in a day in 3 divided doses.
There are several varieties of lingonberries that are popular, giving excellent harvests and having large berries. Mostly varieties differ in height, decorativeness, size of berries and productivity.
Varieties of berries
"Ruby"
This lingonberry variety is characterized by dark red berries, which have a sweet and sour taste and weigh about 220 mg. Leaves are leathery, with a smooth surface. The flowers are medium sized, white. The variety can withstand temperatures up to -30 0 C, in the spring it can withstand frosts up to -30 0 C. The ripening period of berries is late.
"Coral"
A high-yielding decorative variety that came from Holland. The bush has a spherical compact shape and reaches a height of 30 cm. The average mass of the fruit is about 300 mg. Harvest gives 2 times a year, from one plant you can get up to 120 g of the crop.
"Red Perl"
This variety reaches a height of 25 cm, characterized by rounded berries with a dark red color. Fruits 2 times a year, bred in the Netherlands.
Mazovia
Low-growing variety, the height of the bush is 20 cm, the berries are dark red, the yield is high.
"Kostroma pink"
Bushes up to 15 cm tall, pink berries, about 1 cm in diameter, ripen in mid-August.
Sanna
Variety bred in Sweden. The mass of fruits reaches 400 mg; yield from the bush is up to 300 g.
Lingonberry - a delicious berry, characterized by beneficial properties and excellent yields of fragrant sweet and sour berries. In any case, the cultivation of lingonberries is an interesting activity that brings a lot of pleasure and delivers aesthetic pleasure.