Grapes is a thermophilic crop, but it is grown in many regions of our country. There are many varieties in nature, but even the Southerners who are spoiled for its variety love the Kesha grape variety. They emit excellent taste and high yield. Read about cultivation in the article.
Description of grape "Kesha"
This is a large-fruited, productive variety, bred by breeders from Russia by crossing such crops of this species as Vostorg and Frumoasa Albe. Hence another name - the improved "Delight". "Kesha" - an early grape, ripens four to four and a half months after the buds open. This time falls on August, mid or end of the month. The plant is tall, the vine per season can grow up to five meters. This is a self-pollinated crop, as it has bisexual flowers.
Large clusters do not suffer from peeling, they are dense and clingy, they reach 24 cm in length. Brushes with a long leg, which attaches well to the shoot, have a conical or cylindrical shape, but due to the lack of structure, the cluster often looks shapeless. On average, one brush weighs about a kilogram, but its mass may be more. If the crop is plentiful, the weight drops to 600 g. You need to constantly monitor the brushes so that there is no overload on the shoots. In Kesha grapes, all shoots are fruitful.
Description of berries
The fruits of grapes are berries collected in a bunch. They are large and of decent weight. The berries have an oval shape, their mass reaches 10-15 g. They look very appetizing and attractive. The skin is creamy white, the pulp is dense, transparent. Berries of this variety resemble a fruit dragee. They contain few seeds. The taste is very rich, pleasant due to its high sugar content. Ripe berries have a pale yellow color. "Kesha" refers to table grape varieties. It is consumed fresh and grown for sale to the public. This variety is suitable for table setting; white wine is produced from it.
Characteristic
Grapes "Kesha", according to consumer reviews, is very popular due to its positive characteristics.
- It has high frost resistance, can withstand temperatures down to -23 ° C. It is grown in risky farming, which is characterized by regions with cold winters.
- This grape is well preserved for a long time, especially in the refrigerator.
- Kesha is grown to meet personal needs and for industrial purposes, as it has high transportability.
- It is characterized by rapid rooting of cuttings and early fruiting. With good, competent care, it presents its owner with the first bunches a couple of years after planting.
- Grapes "Kesha" unpretentious in care, resistant to many diseases of this type of plant. However, bacterial damage cannot be avoided anyway. Therefore, during the vegetative period , the vine is sprayed with fungicides two to three times. Bordeaux can be used.
- Being a perennial plant, it bears fruit for a long time (up to 10 years) without transplanting to another place of growth.
What time to plant grapes?
Two seasons are suitable for this: spring and autumn. Which one to give preference depends on the choice of planting type and region. Grapes are bred using seedlings and grafting, which is done on the stem of the bush. The best time for planting seedlings is spring, when the air warms up to +15 , and the soil - up to +10 . Grafting of cuttings is carried out throughout the entire growing season.
Planting grapes with seedlings
Seating for grapes "Kesha" are prepared in advance. When planted in spring, pits are dug in the fall at a distance of one meter from each other. As a support for the vines often use the wall of the outbuilding. Pits should be located at a distance of 40 cm from it, with a free landing - 1.5 m. Their bottom is covered with a mixture of humus and soil, fertilized with useful substances.
Young seedlings have a fragile root system, so planting should be done carefully. It is important that the root neck and the grafting site are not covered with soil, but left over its surface. After planting, young plants need abundant watering for better soil compaction. For each seedling, you need to pour 30 liters of water and immediately tie it to a pre-installed support. When planting in the fall, the seedling should be insulated. To do this, a barrel without a bottom is installed around it and is covered with earth.
Preparation of cuttings
First you need to chop them with a healthy vine. Slice locations should be wedge-shaped. In order for the roots to form more quickly, the cuttings of the grapes with the trimmed part are placed in a solution, for the preparation of which 10 drops of “Humate” are needed, as well as water in the amount of one liter.
The cutlery should be treated with paraffin if vaccinated before winter. This is done as follows: paraffin dissolves in water, after boiling it floats to the surface. There, for a few seconds, the stalk falls, is quickly removed and poured over with cold water. Paraffin cools, enveloping the stalk.
Stub preparation
First, the old plant is cut, all splinters are overwritten so that the cut is smooth. Then the boom gently splits. To do this, use a hammer or a small hatchet. The size of the split should correspond to the diameter of the handle. Making it too large can damage the boom. It happens that several cuttings are planted at once. This happens if the old bush is large.
How is vaccination done?
When replacing an old grape variety with a new one, do not get rid of the old bush. You can graft grape cuttings of another variety, Keshi, for example, to its stem. A new bush will grow faster and bear fruit well.
The procedure is to place a stalk in the split made on the stem. The junction should be tightly rewound with a cloth and tied with a rope. Over time, the materials will decompose. If vaccination is done in the fall, it is important that moisture is retained in the stock. To do this, it should be greased with clay and covered with soil, like a seedling. A prerequisite is the installation of a support.
Grape growing
The key to successful cultivation of the crop and a good harvest is to ensure proper care of the plant.
It includes the following procedures:
- Watering, on the quantity and regularity of which depends on the quality of the grapes. In the spring, plants awaken, vegetation processes begin in them, accompanied by an increased need for watering. Until the bush completely fades, this need remains. It is necessary to ensure that the surface of the soil does not dry out. If the weather is arid, the frequency of irrigation increases. Therefore, the installation of drainage systems around the vineyard, responsible for the outflow of excess fluid, is an important condition for growing crops, as excess moisture can destroy the root system.
- Top dressing, for which fertilizers with a high content of phosphorus and potassium are used. Plants also need nitrogen, but they should be applied carefully.
- Mulching the surface of the soil under the bushes of grapes. Thanks to this procedure, moisture is retained in the soil, which will not freeze in severe frosts. Manure is used as a mulching layer.
- Control the number of bunches. It must be carried out regularly so that there is no overload of the bush. One bunch is left on the shoot, the rest are removed. With a lack of moisture and infringe it, pinching off the excess.
- Installation of the support. When growing crops on a personal plot, they often use the wall of an outbuilding as a support. If there is none, they are specially installed.
- Treatment of bushes for the purpose of prevention. It is held twice a year. Bordeaux liquid is used, on the basis of which a 1% aqueous solution is prepared.
- Preparing grapes for the winter. It lies in the fact that in the last month of autumn, before the onset of winter colds, the bushes of the plant are covered with hay, straw, dry leaves, coniferous branches or something else that is at hand. The covering material is secured with a load so that it is not blown away by the wind.
Pruning
Growing grapes without pruning is problematic, because thanks to this procedure, the correct distribution of the load on the bush is carried out. In addition, you can beautifully and accurately form a crown, and most importantly, clusters will regularly receive fresh air. During pruning, the branches and dried stems that are damaged by mechanical means or diseases are primarily disposed of.
Grape pruning is best done in the autumn period, since at this time all the vegetation processes have already been completed, the plant is preparing for the next phase, which is called the dormant period. Pruning of grapes can be carried out in early spring before awakening the buds on the plant. The process technology is the same as in the autumn procedure. Pruning at any time of the year provides plants with health and high productivity. It will be correct if only one vine is left on each branch. This is especially true in a dry summer.
Compliance with the main principles of grape care will help to grow a rich harvest from year to year.