Strawberry black vixen. How to grow strawberry black prince

This photograph of strawberry cake is being actively discussed on the Internet. At first glance, nothing special: just a picture of poor quality - perhaps the author went too far with the filters.

Photo MATT LIEBERMAN / TWITTER

In fact, everything is somewhat more complicated: the picture has completely no red pixels, but despite this, the human eye still sees red berries. The red color of strawberries exists only in our imagination: the mind deceives us, because the berries are depicted on a blue background.

In different lighting things and colors look different - for example, under office fluorescent fluorescent lamps or in the soft lighting of a living room. However, the human brain independently makes corrections to the drawing so that we still see red strawberries.

This feature of human perception is called "color constancy."

“Your brain says:“ The light source in which I see these strawberries adds some blue to them, so I will automatically remove the blue component from each pixel, ”explains the color expert Bevil Conway in an interview with Motherboard.

Of course, we know that strawberries should be red. And it also helps the mind adjust the color of the image.

Then I connected to the discussion Matt Liebermanby posting on Twitter a slightly modified image, which, however, also did not contain red pixels.

Many responded to Matt's post, adding gray rectangles to his picture for comparison. Carson Mall took color samples from several places that seem red to us, and placed them on a white background.

The gray color becomes more apparent if you look at each berry separately from the rest of the picture. Try to close the background in the photo with your hands.

In 2015, the Internet was divided into two camps, fiercely arguing among themselves, what color the dress was: blue-black or white-gold.

The gray strawberry that looks red has a slightly different explanation, however in both cases it is a matter of color correction, which our mind resorts to depending on the type of lighting.

Garden pruning Black Prince has recently appeared in horticultural farms, but has already received good reviews and enjoys well-deserved popularity. Having an Italian origin, it not only has an original appearance, but also contains many useful qualities. Breeders annually develop new varieties of strawberries. Variety is noted for the taste and properties of berries. In this case, the Black Prince is exotic, the fruits are dark in color. The variety is considered not only unusual, but also very promising.

History of the variety

Dark strawberry belonging to the Black Prince variety appeared in the nursery of the Italian agricultural company New Fruits. This company is notable for the high quality of the produced planting material. Breeders worked for a decade. The variety was tested in Europe and Ukraine, where it received good recommendations. Russia and Kazakhstan also speak well of this variety of almost black strawberry color. But a number of sources describe under this name an early variety of Polish berries called Kama, which for some reason was renamed the Black Prince.

Although such a strawberry appeared recently, and not all gardeners know about it, but it receives good reviews for its early ripening, excellent taste. Varietal culture is suitable not only for giving, but also as an industrial one, grown in large agricultural enterprises. Harvested before the onset of autumn.

Strawberry crop

Characteristics and features of the variety

The main distinguishing characteristic of the variety is the dark red color of the berries. This is a very aromatic culture with a rich smell of garden strawberries with juicy pulp. The taste is sweet, somewhat sour, the appearance is very attractive. The fruits are large enough, fruiting continues for a long period. Description of the bushes - sprawling and powerful, with rapid growth. At the age of 4 or 5 years, the plant is quite tall, comparable to potatoes or tomatoes. Peduncles are tall, with numerous ovaries turning into green fruits. During mass ripening, they bend to the ground under weight.

Medium-sized leaves have a green color, glossy, somewhat corrugated surface. Strong shoots carry many ovaries, which are filled with maturity, leaning to the ground. Whiskers are formed with medium intensity, but their thickness decreases every year. From this we must draw a conclusion about the timely provision of planting material for the propagation of culture.

Berries have the following characteristics:

  • Deep dark color, almost black.
  • Weight - up to 50 g.
  • Glossy surface.
  • In shape, the fruits are similar to a truncated cone.
  • Berries do not become small throughout the season.
  • The pulp is red, saturated color. Qualities - juiciness, density, lack of voids.
  • The variety is suitable for transportation, which is well tolerated, not deformed until 2 weeks.
  • The taste is very pleasant, there is a slight sourness.

Harvest ripens in the medium term, but the fruiting is long. Green berries can be observed in early June. By the middle of the month they mature. So the bushes bring crops throughout the summer. From one plant, up to 1.2 kg of large-sized berries are harvested, up to 20 tons per hectare in a farm way.

Attention! An increase in fruiting is observed in the bush with age, with an increase in which the indicators become higher.

The fruiting ability lasts up to 7 years, which distinguishes this variety as twice as high as the norm. It can increase by 2 years if the care was correct.

Attention! Mustaches on the bush appear only the first few years.

Winter hardiness is good, the plant tolerates -20 ° C. Also, it is not afraid of frost in the spring. But drought is highly undesirable. Varietal sign - versatility. Berries are eaten fresh, prepared strawberry jam, jam. Also, the variety is for liquor, suitable for sale.

Agricultural technology

Planting strawberries begins with the choice of place. It should be well lit. The best time is the beginning of autumn, as well as April and May, in case of favorable climatic conditions. From the north, you need to protect the beds from the winds. Otherwise, the roots will freeze even at -10 ° C, as the snow layer will be blown away. If there is no draft, the plant can withstand up to -20 ° C.

Planting strawberries

Fruiting depends on the location and soil, which should be loose, permeable to air. Light loam or sandy loamy soils, sierozem are quite suitable. Chernozem is diluted using river sand. A heavy soil type will not result in fruiting, as this is unfavorable for root development. Poor soil is mixed with compost. It is also important to ensure that moisture does not stagnate. To do this, exclude the location of beds in the lowland. Ground water should be located not less than 70 cm from the surface.

A good neighborhood for the Black Prince is legumes, onions, carrots, cereals, garlic. But not cabbage, eggplant and potatoes. The beds are prepared in advance, digging them 30 cm in depth. At the same time, humus, manure, peat are introduced. Weeds are removed; soil treatment with a herbicide is recommended. Soil acidity is also important. Favorable for the variety of slightly acidic and neutral environment.

Tip. Before planting, it is advisable to soak strawberry roots in a weak solution of potassium permanganate, and to stimulate growth in Epina.

To place the bushes, they dig holes with a distance of 40 cm and 50 cm between the rows. The plant quickly grows greens, planting is not recommended to thicken. Half a liter of water is poured into the pits, the growth point is left above the ground by 1 or 2 cm. After tamping the ground, water it again. It is advisable to finish with mulching with straw, sawdust or needles. Up to 3 weeks, you need to regularly water the seedlings. Favorable time for landing is evening.

The care includes the following activities:

  • Daily watering of seedlings, taking into account the fact that the plant loves moisture (especially during flowering). Stagnation of water is excluded. Adult bushes are watered weekly, use a sprinkler, grooves.
  • After wetting, the soil is loosened against the formation of a crust.
  • Fertilizing with solutions or in bulk fertilizers. This is ammonium nitrate, urea. When budding, phosphate fertilizers (superphosphate) are added. When ripening, a complex composition is used. Fertilize the first time when planting.
  • Post-harvest actions: harvesting mulch, removing old leaves. You need to monitor the roots, which should not be exposed.

Advantages and disadvantages of the variety

Notable seeds are considered a disadvantage, giving the berries “spiny” to the touch. According to reviews, stable productivity is noted, as well as resistance to mite damage. Late autumn may cause spotting. Taste, transportability are among the pluses.

Garden strawberries or strawberries are presented in a wide variety. There are unusual varieties, one of which has recently appeared in the Russian Federation. The black prince, distinguished by large dark berries, is promising, introducing new things in the development of gardening. Subject to simple rules of care, he will delight the gardener with a harvest for a rather long period of time.

First, without looking under the cut, decide - what color is the strawberry in the photo? Boldly)). The fact is that this is another optical task - an illusion from the Japanese professor of psychology Akioshi Kitaoko. All his works become canonical, and this is striking every time. But first, netizens actively discuss it. This time, he suggested that everyone guess the color of the berries in the picture.

At first glance, we just see a picture of poor quality - perhaps the author went too far with the filters.


In fact, everything is somewhat more complicated: the fact is that the picture is completely missing red pixels - which does not prevent us from seeing red berries.

The red color of strawberries exists only in our imagination: reason deceives us, because the berries are depicted on a blue background.
In different lighting things and colors look different - for example, under office fluorescent fluorescent lamps or in the soft lighting of a living room.

However, our brain independently corrects the image so that we still see the strawberries red, regardless of where and under what circumstances we eat them.

This feature of human perception is called "color constancy."
"Your brain says," The light source in which I see these strawberries adds some blue to them, so I will automatically remove the blue component from each pixel, "Beville Conway, an expert in color vision, explains in an interview with Motherboard.

“And when you take the gray pixels and remove the blue, as a result, the image starts to appear red to you,” Conway explains.
Of course, we know that strawberries should be red. And it also helps the mind adjust the color of the image.

Then Matt Lieberman joined the discussion, posting on Twitter a slightly modified picture, which, however, also did not contain red pixels.

Matt Lieberman / Twitter Copyright holder artwork MATT LIEBERMAN / TWITTER


Many responded to Matt's post, adding gray rectangles to his picture for comparison. Carson Mall took color samples from several places that appear red to us and placed them on a white background.

Carson Mell / Twitter Copyright holder artwork CARSON MELL / TWITTER
Image caption


"I took a few flowers that appear to be the most" red "spots of strawberries, and laid them on a white background on the right."

The gray color becomes more obvious if you look at each berry separately from the rest of the picture (for example, covering the background in the photo with your hands).
Many people remember how in 2015 the Internet was divided into two camps, fiercely arguing among themselves, what color the dress was: blue-black or white-gold.

Gray strawberries looking red have a slightly different explanation, however, in either case it is a question of color correction, which our mind resorts to depending on the type of lighting.

Strawberry "Black Prince" - the "child" of Italian breeders working for New fruitis. 10 years of persistent pipe allowed them to develop a completely new variety that is resistant to frost and high humidity. If you look at the photo of the described wild strawberries, you will notice that her bushes are powerful and rather tall, with green leaves that look so light gloss. Shoots are strong, usually have a large number of ovaries. There are a lot of thick mustaches in the early years, but later their number is significantly reduced.

Strawberries “Black Prince” are similar in color to apples, they are also dark red. Although from afar they seem even black. Interestingly, the seeds inside the berries of the same characteristic shade. By weight, the fruits reach 50 grams. They have a glossy surface, a shape in the form of a truncated cone, juicy and dense red flesh, without voids. What is characteristic, throughout the season they do not fade.

Fruiting time

Berries with a characteristic strawberry aroma and a wonderful taste with a little bit of sourness begin to ripen in the second half of June. They blush throughout the summer. On average, up to 1.2 kg of large fruits can be harvested from strawberry bushes “Black Prince” for 1 season, with proper agricultural technology. The variety is able to bring berries for 6-7 years. And if you look after him correctly, this period can be easily increased by a couple of years. But strawberries will give antennae only the first 2-3 years. Therefore, if you want to breed a plant on the site, do not be late with their harvest.

Winter hardiness varieties

Almost black strawberries of the described variety tolerate a temperature drop to -20 ° С. Therefore, for the winter it can be left without shelter. What the Black Prince does not tolerate is drought. In the hot season, it should be watered more often. Then it will grow large and give you berries that can be used for fresh consumption, for sale on the market (excellent transportability!) Or for the preparation of various dishes and drinks (jams, wines, liquors, etc.).

Today, the popularity of such a variety of strawberries as Black Prince is growing rapidly. And this is not surprising, since the variety is quite promising in terms of yield. To obtain juicy and sweet berries do not need special skills and knowledge. It is important to simply follow the simple rules of agricultural technology and the desire to care for berry bushes.

Description and photos of the strawberry variety Black Prince

The foliage is thick and medium in size. On the bush, an average number of thickened mustaches is formed. Moreover, every year their number decreases. But fruiting with each one only increases. Moreover, the number of berries collected does not decrease even with prolonged cultivation.

Strawberry Black Prince

The foliage is medium in size, has a dark green color and a glossy surface. The fruits of the Black Prince variety also have large sizes, since the weight of one reaches 50 g. They have a conical shape and a dark red color. All of them are sweet, juicy and have a rich strawberry aroma.

The peculiarity of the variety is that when harvesting the berries do not grow smaller. This allows you to get tasty and large fruits throughout the season. In addition, berry bushes perfectly tolerate drought, and can also bear fruit throughout the season, because the Black Prince is a remont.

Subject to all the rules for the care and planting of the plant, the harvested crop can be stored for a long time and not lose its appearance. From one bush you can collect about 1 kg of berries. And from 1 ha to 20 tons of ripe berries. And you can read the information about the variety Festivalnaya.

How and when to plant

When planting strawberries Black Prince is important to choose the right place. It should be well-lit by the sun and protected from the wind. Groundwater should be located below 60 cm. Otherwise, the root system will rot. For this reason, strawberries should not be planted in the lowlands. In addition, you should not choose a place located on a steep slope. The fact is that water will drain down, and the plant will not be able to absorb the right amount of moisture.

On the video - the correct planting of strawberries:

Soil preparation

Variety Black Prince is demanding on the type of soil. Sandy loam, gray forest land and light loam are perfect for him. But growing strawberries on heavy clay and peat soils is useless. Even with good drainage, the roots will rot. If you grow berry bushes on black soil, you will need to use sand.

Great predecessors for the Black Prince will be cereals and legumes, as well as onions and carrots. Do not plant seedlings where eggplants, cabbage, tomatoes, and potatoes were grown before.

Before sending plants to the ground, it is worth planting the selected area with green manure. This will saturate the earth with the necessary trace elements. Soil preparation takes place 3-4 weeks before planting. You can still carry out preparatory activities in the fall. But how to plant a variety can be seen in the photo.

It is necessary to introduce humus in the amount of 5 kg per 1 m2. Be sure to dig the site, removing all weeds and plant debris. Also for the Black Prince variety, the acidity of the soil is of particular importance.

Berry bushes grow best on neutral or slightly acidic soil. if the acidity level is exceeded, then dolomite flour should be used. For 1 m2 it accounts for 300 g.

Timing and landing scheme

It is best to land early in the fall. But if you live in a region with a hot summer, then start planting work really in May. For these purposes, a planting scheme of 40x50 cm is used. It is excellent for strawberry bushes, for which the growth of green mass is characteristic.

Strawberry Planting Pattern

Moisten the wells before planting using 1 liter of water per well. Next, take the seedlings and place its roots in the recess. The heart should be concentrated 1-2 cm above the ground. If the bushes are large, then they should be planted at a distance of 400 cm in a row.

But between the rows a distance of 0.6 m should be observed. This distance will be enough for proper care of the strawberries.

How to care

Watering

Strawberry Black Prince is a moisture-loving crop. It is necessary to moisten the soil during flowering and after planting every day.

But during the fruiting period, daily irrigation will lead to the fact that the fruits become watery and unsuitable for storage and consumption. In this case, watering will be carried out once a week. For 1 m2, 10-20 liters of water will be required.

Fertilizer application

Top dressing is an important component of care for berry bushes. Use for this root and foliar compositions. 30 minutes before applying fertilizer, you need to water the bushes, while moisture should not get on the leaves. When processing strawberries, due attention is paid to the underside, which will absorb all substances.

In the early spring before active vegetation, ammonium nitrate or urea is used. Make it at the root or spray the leaves. 10 g of water accounts for 15 g of the substance.

At the stage of bud formation, it is necessary to use foliar top dressing. For this, superphosphate or double superphosphate is used. 30-40 g or 15-20 g of the substance per 1 m2.

You may also be interested in information about.

Pest and Disease Control


What siderates for strawberries in the spring should be used in the first place, and what is their name, outlined