Strawberry Alba: variety description, characteristics, photos and reviews

In Russia, gardeners are primarily interested in large-fruited varieties of fruit and berry crops. One of these varieties is the Alba strawberry variety, a description, photos and reviews of gardeners about it are offered in the article. Although we used to call this berry with a unique taste strawberry, in fact, the berry is a garden strawberry. Due to its taste and fruit size, this variety has become widespread in Russia, Europe and the countries of the Near Abroad. How does he bribe gardeners? Let's figure it out.

Description of the variety and its characteristics

Alba is Italian in origin; it has been cultivated on the territory of our country and the CIS countries relatively recently, since the beginning of 2000. The variety is considered elite and is famous not only for its super-early ripening dates.

Description of the plant

Alba bushes are quite decorative and will perfectly decorate any area:

plants are powerful, tall, up to 35 cm tall, but compact, have not a very large number of large bright green shiny leaves;
peduncles - tall and thin, do not support the weight of the fruit;
the variety forms a little mustache;
flowers are large, white. The flowering type is mainly female, therefore, for pollination, the presence of other varieties of strawberries and pollinating insects is necessary;
the plants of the variety bear fruit fully within 4 years. Further, they degenerate, and the berry becomes smaller, therefore, after 3-4 years, the Alba bushes need to be updated.

Flowering and fruiting times

Plants begin to bloom early: in the southern regions - by mid-April, in the middle lane a little later - in May. Abundant flowering, but not long - only about 2 weeks. The first fruits ripen at the end of May, and even earlier in the south. The variety bears fruit until mid-July. The crop is harvested as the fruit ripens.

Yield

Alba's yield is high. With good care, it is possible to collect up to 1.3 kg of berries from one bush.

The average yield from one plant is about 700 g, and from one hectare - 25 tons.

Description of fruits

The fruits of Alba are as beautiful as the plants:

large berries, weighing up to 50 g each, have a beautiful elongated cone shape;
bright red fruits have a shiny glossy surface;
pulp - juicy, tender, dense, crunchy;
the taste of the pulp is rich, refreshing, sweet-sour, with a medium-pronounced strawberry aroma.

Using

The variety has universal use - jam is made from berries, jams, confitures and compotes are made, juice is squeezed, and used to make desserts. Alba fruits can be frozen immediately after harvest.

Transportability and shelf life

Due to their dense consistency, Alba berries have a long shelf life. Due to this, this type of strawberry is well transported over long distances, without losing its presentation and taste for a long time. Alba is most commonly grown commercially for sale.

Testimonials

Anna Yurievna, Tuapse: The variety is really fast-growing. Bushes bear fruit very well in our climate. The berries ripen beautiful and large, tasty, without excessive sweetness. Can be frozen and canned.

Yulia Vladimirovna, Mariupol: I have been growing Alba for several seasons, empirically it turned out to improve the taste by regularly watering the bushes during the ripening period. A good variety for summer residents.

Maxim Viktorovich, Oryol: An interesting novelty, bears fruit with identical and attractive berries, the weight of one can reach 30 g. Strawberries are very aromatic, moderately sweet.

Diseases and pests

Strawberries of this variety are resistant to many types of fungal diseases and insect pests, however, plants are vulnerable to anthracnose, and they are also affected by insects such as aphids, slugs and weevils.

As a prophylaxis against anthracnose, the bushes are treated in the spring with a 1% solution of Bordeaux liquid (100 g of copper sulfate and lime are taken per bucket of water) or a 5% aqueous solution of potassium permanganate, which is prepared from 10 liters of water and 5 g of potassium permanganate powder.

If there are signs of the disease, then the plants are sprayed with Anthracol or Metaxil.

If the disease is severely neglected, and the plants began to die, then such bushes must be destroyed, and the land in which they grew must be disinfected using the same Bordeaux liquid or potassium permanganate.

Strawberries can be protected from insect pests by treatment with an aqueous solution prepared from wood ash and laundry soap (1.5 kg of ash and 50 g of grated laundry soap are used per 10 liters of water).

Breeding history

The hybrid was obtained and patented in 2003. The work on the development of a new variety was carried out by breeders of the Italian company New Fruits. The main task was to obtain a crop that could demonstrate high productivity, large-fruited and unique taste.

Another important characteristic was the transportability of berries. It is these features that are inherent in Alba, most of which she inherited from the mother plants. Forms Cal.97 and Albion were used as these.

Landing

In order for the variety to bear fruit well and give its first harvest quickly, you must follow the simple rules for planting plants:

first, we choose the right place for the berry bed. It should be dry, well-lit and protected from cold winds;
the soil should be light, loose and fertile, low acidity;
groundwater at the site should not come closer than 2 m to the surface;
the site for planting seedlings is prepared in advance. The soil is dug up, weeds and roots are removed, fertilizer is applied, organic and mineral. If the acidity of the soil is high, it is deoxidized by adding wood ash. If the soil is clayey and heavy, sand is added to it;
it is good to plant strawberries after siderates, mustard or lupine, as well as after vegetable crops - carrots, radishes, beets, celery, garlic or dill;
before planting seedlings, holes are prepared, 25 cm deep, into which they add handfuls of wood ash, superphosphate and potassium sulfate, mixed with a liter of water;
the distance between the holes is maintained at least 20 cm, and the distance between the beds should be at least 35-40 cm;
seedlings are placed in the holes, properly spreading the roots, covered with earth and watered. So that the soil around the bushes does not overgrow with weeds and does not lose moisture, the garden bed can be mulched with sawdust, straw or covered with a black film.

Strawberries can be planted both in spring and autumn, but in order to get a harvest next year, it is best to plant Alba in the fall, before the onset of cold weather.

Strawberries or garden strawberries?

Many gardeners are confident that they grow strawberries on their plots. However, as a cultivated plant, strawberry has not received practical distribution. But in summer cottages and backyard territories, just garden strawberries grow. These berry bushes belong to the same genus of strawberry plants: strawberry - musky or nutmeg strawberry, garden strawberry - pineapple strawberry. Strawberry leaves are large, light green, whiskers are short and few.A feature of strawberries is the presence of male and female bushes (the plant is bisexual), as a result of which the yield of strawberries is much lower than that of garden strawberries. Shaded, humid places are favorite for strawberries, in contrast to them, strawberries are drought tolerant and like sunny areas, the berries are large and juicy.

Large fruits of garden strawberries and small strawberries

Reproduction

You can propagate this variety:

seeds;
dividing the bush;
mustache.

Sequence of planting seeds for seedlings:

before sowing, the seeds are placed in a refrigerator for three days. To do this, the gauze is moistened with water, put on a saucer, and the seeds are placed in the gauze. Further, for another day, the planting material is kept in a growth stimulant solution;
at this time the seat is being prepared. Containers or wooden boxes are filled with special soil purchased from a store or prepared independently from three parts of sod leafy soil, one part of sand and one part of peat;
the seeds are dried in the open air and mixed with a handful of sand, then poured onto the soil surface, evenly distributing, watered with a spray bottle and covered with a film;
for seed germination, it is necessary to create appropriate conditions - the air temperature should be + 20-25 ℃;
after 3-4 weeks the first shoots will appear, and when the plants have 2-3 full-fledged leaves, they must be dived into separate pots;
seedlings are planted in the ground when they have six full leaves.

In order to propagate Alba by dividing the bush, take a 2-3-year-old plant, and divide it into at least three parts so that each of them has full-fledged roots.

The most accessible and widespread method of reproduction of Alba is by whiskers. As soon as the plants bear fruit, they give a mustache, which is rooted in a separate container, and in the fall are planted in a permanent place of growth.

Available ways to increase the yield

In addition to large farmlands, this variety is also grown on personal plots for themselves and children. Many people change the black film to a layer of mulch (organic residues, weeds, straw, sawdust) - this is the number 1 tool, it also gives a lot of advantages:

Affordable material that does not require additional investments and a lot of time;
Exceeds the film in terms of purity, does not contain harmful substances;
The fruits also remain clean;
Retains moisture no worse than a film (it is worth removing it - you can immediately see that under it there is not only moisture, but worms and bugs, which many call "earth cows" and equate to their weight in gold);
Promotes rapid melting of snow in the garden in early spring.

But mulch also has disadvantages:

Has a light color (repels heat);
It is quickly eaten by worms, some of it rotts, it needs to be replenished often.

Thanks to the mulch under the Alba bushes, a layer of organic matter is created in the garden. But the moisture will quickly evaporate, the bushes will be weaker than those planted on the film. It does not contribute to the rapid heating of the soil in early spring, and when combined with agrofibre, the latter will retain less heat.

Old bedspreads are effective remedy number 2. They are superior to agrofibre, but can only be used at night when there is no sun. They help to keep the daytime warm on warm soil, and in the morning the seedlings will be much fresher than without them.

The best temperature for the growth of the bush is about 5 grams. heat. During this period, most of the bushes are still in "hibernation", but Alba actively leaves leaves. At first, the beds can be protected from night frosts with a warm blanket.

Effective remedy # 3 is plastic bottles buried next to the bushes. You need to bury the bottle upside down, cut off the bottom, but leave the cork. Water will leave through the unscrewed cap, you can adjust the required amount by turning the bottle counterclockwise.If the water leaves too quickly, you need to turn the bottle clockwise.

In addition, bottles can be used to cover strawberry bushes. We get double protection from frost. But you need to cover at night, which is the mistake of many. When the seedlings are covered day and night, the bush does not develop, the stem is weak, unaccustomed to the wind. If you remove it sharply, the bush can hurt for a while.

Many strawberry lovers have been using this variety for a long time. It is great for early picking of red berries. With proper care, it is capable of producing huge yields. The density of the berry has always been exemplary, as well as the taste with a subtle sour tint, which conquered many people.

Care

Caring for Alba consists in:

watering, which is carried out as needed. Do not allow the soil to dry out. Also, it should not be allowed to become waterlogged, otherwise the plants can get sick and die;
fertilization, which is done three times per season. In the spring, organic matter is introduced (rotted manure, humus or chicken droppings infused in water), during the formation of ovaries, the bushes are fed with potash, magnesium and phosphorus fertilizers, and for good mustache formation - with nitrogen-containing substances;
weeding and loosening, to get rid of weeds, which take all the useful components from the soil. Loosening allows better oxygen supply to the plant roots;
preparation for winter, which consists in pruning the bushes, with the help of which all dry and damaged leaves are removed, and covering with straw, spruce branches or moss.

Preparing for winter

In autumn, loosen the beds, sprinkle the plants, sprinkle the protruding roots with earth. This must be done several weeks before frost, so that accidentally damaged roots have time to recover.

For shelter, you should not use straw (mice like to live in it) and dry foliage (by spring they crumble, it is difficult to separate them from plants). Spruce branches or pine needles are perfect for this purpose; they keep snow well. Sprinkle adult bushes around, and cover young ones completely. You can install arcs and use Agrotex synthetic material, it breathes, it allows moisture to pass through well.