Rowan ordinary: characteristics, cultivation and application

Is there a mountain ash with white berries

At the moment, more than 100 different types of mountain ash are known - wild and domesticated. In Russia, mainly trees grow with red, orange and, less often, yellow berries.

However, sometimes there is also a white mountain ash. In the wild, she prefers to settle in mountain pine forests, for example, in the regions of Central China, on the slopes of the Western Himalayas. At the same time, in our latitudes, white rowan is still not common. However, it is quite possible to cultivate it both in the Moscow region and in the North-West.

The white rowan, in comparison with the ordinary one, differs in the color of the fruits and more graceful leaves.

Likernaya Michurina

One of the Michurin varieties, lost and restored. It has a lot in common with one of its "parents" - chokeberry.

Characteristics of the rowan garden variety:

1. Medium-sized plant, about 5 meters, with a sparse oval crown. Sometimes found in shrub form. Gives strong annual growth (up to 30 cm).
2. Leaves are dark green, alternate, pinnate.
3. Beautiful dense inflorescences with a shield diameter of 10 cm. The color of the petals is white-pink.
4. Fruits are dark purple, almost black, weighing 1 g, ripen in September, stored for a month. The taste is reminiscent of black chokeberry - sweet, slightly astringent. Purpose - for making liqueur-type wines, jams.

Advantages of the variety: high winter hardiness and moderate drought resistance. Disadvantage: Fruits may rot.

Rowan variety Likernaya bred by Michurin, excellent for making liqueur-type wines, jams

Description of mountain ash with white fruits

White mountain ash is a medium-sized tree (2-3 m in height, less often 4-5 m) with a pyramidal or conical crown (it can be compact or rather spreading, 3-4 m - depending on the species). The berries are white, milky, sometimes slightly golden in color. Rounded in shape, growing in clusters. The diameter is usually 8-10 mm, sometimes up to 12-13 mm. The taste is very sour and bitter.

Winter hardiness of most varieties is average, so you can grow a tree:

• in outskirts of Moscow;
• in the regions of the middle lane;
• in the Black Earth Region;
• in North-west.

Important! Most varieties of white mountain ash are self-fertile. Therefore, they need to be planted with a number of other varieties of mountain ash - thanks to cross-pollination, both trees will give a large harvest.

Advantages and disadvantages

Despite its small number, white rowan has managed to catch the fancy of many gardeners due to its advantages:

• a beautiful, graceful tree with unusual white fruits that contrast perfectly against the background of foliage;
• winter hardiness is quite sufficient to survive the climatic conditions of the North-West, central Russia (Kene up to -23, White Swan up to -29 degrees);
• not only berries are distinguished by their beauty, but also leaves with jagged edges: in summer they are dark green, in autumn they are orange and red;
• white rowan has sufficient resistance to pests and diseases;
• varieties of white rowan are suitable for cultivation not only in the countryside, but also in the city (except for the White Swan, which grows poorly in a gassed atmosphere);
• the tree does not need special care - it does not require high soil fertility, abundant watering.

However, unlike ordinary ones, white rowan has its own disadvantages:

• berries are very bitter, sour - they are not suitable for consumption in any form (however, there is evidence that the Kene berries are used in cooking, mainly for decorating ready-made dishes);
• the plant does not differ in great winter hardiness - already at -23-25 ​​degrees, young shoots freeze slightly, in Siberia and the Urals breeding is unlikely;
• the tree does not like overly compacted soil and an abundance of precipitation.

This variety does not tolerate frost as well as other varieties. Otherwise, its varieties are no worse - and in terms of decorativeness, they even surpass other plants.

Ruby

The Michurin variety was also lost, but found, multiplied and transferred for variety testing to T.K. Poplavskaya. Like all old Michurin forms, this type of mountain ash has a slight astringency in taste.

Its characteristics:

1. A low tree, 3 meters high, with a drooping crown. Skeletal branches are located almost at right angles, shoots are straight, with light brown integuments.
2. The leaves are light green, with a finely serrated edge and a pubescent petiole.
3. Scutellum not wide, flowers small, pinkish-white.
4. Fruits are rounded-flattened, weighing 1.3 g. The skin is ruby-colored, the flesh is yellow. The taste is sweet and sour, slightly tart. The purpose of the fruit is for processing into juices, jellies, wines, liqueurs, jelly. Suitable for drying.

The plant is resistant to low temperatures.

Rowan variety Rubinovaya is good for processing into juices, jellies, wines, liqueurs, jelly

Rubinovaya rowan fruits can replace raisins after drying. To do this, you need to place them in a gauze bag and hang them for a while by the battery.

White rowan varieties

Among the most common varieties are Kashemirskaya, Kene and White Swan. It is worth considering in more detail the features of each type.

White mountain ash Kashmir

The Kashmir white mountain ash can grow in the middle lane, in the South of Russia, as well as in the regions of the North-West, but not in the Urals and not in Siberia. In severe winters, young shoots freeze and die. In the natural environment, it grows up to 10 m, in Russia - up to 4-5 m (this height it reaches in 20 years).

The crown is pyramidal, of medium diameter (3 m), the bark is gray with reddish tints, the leaves are paired. The fruits are large, 10-12 mm in diameter. But inedible - they are too sour and bitter. The color is white, rarely golden. The berries appear at the end of September.

Kashmiri white rowan berries resemble miniature apples

Kene rowan variety

Kene looks like an ordinary mountain ash, but is smaller (no more than 2 m in height), so it looks more elegant. Differs in average winter hardiness, so it can be grown in the Moscow region, Chernozem and southern regions of Russia.

Gives long shoots of paired small leaves - there can be from 17 to 33 on one branch. Blooms in May or early June for 1-2 weeks. Fruits are white, 7 mm in diameter - like peas. The berries are edible, but very sour, although they do not give a bitter taste.

White rowan Kene is distinguished not only by beautiful berries, but also by graceful leaves.

Rowan white swan

White swan is a hybrid variety based on Arnold's rowan. It is a fairly large tree, growing up to 7 m in height. It features a compact crown (1.5-2.5 m in diameter). It is successfully grown in the climatic conditions of the Moscow region.

Differs in oval leaves with jagged edges. In the summer they have a rich green color, and in the fall they turn red-orange. Fruits in the form of a ball, with an average diameter of 8-10 mm, grow in small clusters.

The fruits of the mountain ash White swan are inedible due to their bitter taste, but they have a great decorative value.

Bead

The variety was created by Tatyana Kirillovna Poplavskaya, Candidate of Agricultural Sciences. Fanatically devoted to science, in the 70s of the XX century she was actively engaged in the search and restoration of the lost Michurin rowan varieties.

The bead is one of the first varieties that do not have a tinge of astringency. It is a product of free pollination of Nevezhinskaya mountain ash.

Characteristics and description of the variety:

1. A plant of moderate growth, 3 meters high. Shoots are gray-brown, straight. Begins to bear fruit, according to various sources, at 3 or 5 years of age.
2. Leaves are light green, serrated.
3. The inflorescences are large, with white flowers.
4. Fruits are regular, rounded, with a red skin, weighing 1.2-1.9 grams. The pulp is creamy, with a hint of cranberry flavor, but no strong acid. The appointment is universal. Ripen early, by the end of August.

Particularly valuable advantages of the variety are its high resistance to extreme frosts, drought, and diseases. The yield is high.

The rowan variety Businka has no astringency, is highly resistant to extreme frosts, drought, diseases

Application in design

You can use white rowan for garden decoration in any way possible:

1. Since the tree grows large (2-3 m in height), it can be planted in front of the window, along the fence, the borders of the garden. It is used both in a single planting and in a group (in rows).
2. White mountain ash goes well with the more common varieties of red and yellow.
3. Compositions with viburnum, barberry, wrinkled rose, honeysuckle look good.
4. The tree can be used as a background for herbaceous perennials (for example, oak anemone, large-leaved bergamot, creeping veronica, marsh marigold).
5. White rowan is often used in compositions with hosts, tenacious birds, and fescue. In such mixborders, it is placed behind.
6. The tree looks good next to fir, spruce, pines - in this case, it is better to place the rowan in front.

In autumn, white rowan looks especially attractive thanks to its berries and leaves.

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Breeding features

White mountain ash can be propagated:

• seeds - they are harvested and sown in the fall, and in large quantities, since the germination rate is low;
• using green cuttings - they are obtained in early summer;
• by cuttings - in the autumn;
• inoculation of a sleeping kidney (in summer).

The simplest and most effective way is grafting. This is how varietal trees are propagated to obtain an exact copy of the mother plant. The species white mountain ash can be grown from seeds - this is a more laborious method. The new plant will have traits of its own that may not always match the parent tree.

Seeds are usually propagated by the Kene and Kashmir varieties

Planting white rowan

You can plant rowan in spring or autumn. In this case, it is necessary to carefully choose a place - the site must be open to light and protected from drafts.

Recommended timing

Planting is allowed both in spring and autumn. In the first case, white rowan is planted in March or early April, but no later. Spring planting is allowed if the root is protected by an earthy clod. If not, the tree is planted in late September or early October.

Choosing the right place

The location should be chosen based on several criteria:

1. Location in the design - for example, on the border of the garden, next to the windows of the house, behind herbaceous perennials or, conversely, in front of large conifers (pine, spruce).
2. The place, if possible, should be elevated, protected from stagnant water.
3. The side of the garden is preferably south or east - the white mountain ash loves light, therefore strong shadow is not allowed.
4. At the same time, the site must be protected from strong winds by adjacent trees, buildings or a fence.

The optimal soil type is light loam, but the tree grows well even on poor soil

Selection and preparation of planting material

There are a few tips to consider when choosing an escape:

• seedlings should be 2 years old - they take root better;
• developed root system: 2-3 large branches at least 20 cm in length;
• the roots are not weathered, no damage;
• the bark is smooth, free of cracks and other defects.

Advice! White rowan seedlings are best purchased in nurseries or specialty stores.

Landing algorithm

The landing technology is as follows:

1. The pre-selected site is cleaned. A rectangular hole is dug on it with approximate parameters of 60x80 cm, and about 60-80 cm deep.
2. Fill with a mixture of humus, peat, compost and topsoil with top dressing (200 g of superphosphate fertilizers, 100 g of wood ash and 2 shovels of rotted manure are taken for 1 pit). The whole mixture should fill the hole a third of the height.
3. They fall asleep up to half with garden soil.
4. Water well and wait until the water is absorbed.
5. Take out a seedling. If it does not have an earthen coma, the roots are immersed in a mixture of water and clay.
6. Fix in the center and cover with soil.
7. They compact the soil over the entire surface of the trunk circle.
8. Water again.
9. Lay out a layer of mulch (straw, sawdust, peat, hay can be used) - total height 6 cm.

The interval between adjacent trees when planting should be 5-6 m, since the crown of the white mountain ash grows well in width.

Follow-up care

Further care for white rowan is very simple:

1. Watered only during dry periods: 2-3 buckets of water are given for 1 tree.
2. 2-3 times per season, the soil is loosened over the entire surface of the trunk circle (to a depth of 5 cm).
3. They feed only for the third season. They give nitrogen (in spring) and complex (in summer) fertilizers.
4. In early spring or mid-autumn, pruning is carried out. The longest shoots (upper bud) are removed, diseased and damaged branches thin out the crown.
5. To protect against rodents, conventional methods are used - for example, metal mesh, spunbond, spruce branches, tights, roofing felt and other materials.

Important! If the white rowan is planted in the fall, it must be spudded, making a layer of soil along the diameter of the trunk circle. Before frosts, the trunk should be insulated with spruce branches, foliage, and also covered with agrofibre. If there is little rainfall in winter, they are additionally covered with snow.

Diseases and pests

White mountain ash is resistant to pests, but sometimes it is exposed to fungal diseases, an invasion of aphids, moths and other insects. You can deal with them using standard methods.

* Various preparations are used as fungicides - for example, "Fundazol", "Fitosporin", "Skor", Bordeaux liquid with a concentration of 1%.

** Karate, Decis, Aktellik, Biotlin are used as insecticides.

When white mountain ash is affected by a gall mite, the foliage must be removed and burned

When white mountain ash is affected by a gall mite, the foliage must be removed and burned

Success secrets

Rowan ordinary can grow in partial shade, but in illuminated areas it grows, blooms and bears fruit much more actively. It is best to place plants at the edge of the plot where they will not interfere with other crops.

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These trees are hygrophilous, but they are quite content with precipitation. Additional watering is needed only during particularly dry months.

Plants are fed from the age of three. In the spring, nitrogen fertilizers are applied to the soil, after harvesting, phosphorus-potassium fertilizers.

The minimum doses of fertilizers applied per one non-bearing tree / shrub during the year:

• Ammonium sulfate, 20.5% N - 200–500 g;
• Superphosphate, 18% P2O5 - 150-450 g;
• Potassium salt, 40% K2O - 200-400 g.

The minimum doses of fertilizers applied per one fruiting tree / shrub during the year:

• Ammonium sulfate, 20.5% N - 700-1400 g;
• Superphosphate, 18% P2O5 - 400–800 g;
• Potassium salt, 40% K2O - 450-900 g.

Maintenance activities include weed control, gentle loosening of the soil and removal of root growth. In addition, sanitary pruning is essential in early spring.