Many have heard of useful goji berries, which are used in Asia to treat various diseases and weight loss. Many like their unusual taste, which is difficult to compare with something. To have goji on your site, care and cultivation must be carried out according to all the rules.
Shrub bush - description
The fruit plant belongs to the Nightshade family. They call it "tree". In nature, the shrub grows in China, in Tibet and the Himalayas. If you know the conditions of cultivation, goji can be planted on your plot or at home in a pot.
- The height can reach 3.5 m, but if you carry out pruning, you can make it grow in breadth. An experienced gardener manages to create a stamped appearance.
- On the surface of branches there are thin spines, and the leaves have the shape of an ellipse. Flowers are like bells and painted in purple.
- The berries are oval in shape and are painted in alo-red color. In length they reach about 12 mm. It fructifies goji, the care and cultivation of which is carried out according to the requirements, or from May to September or from July to October. During this time, you can collect up to 13 crops, but the most valuable are the fruits, ripped in August.
Planting of goji
In order for the shrubbery to develop and develop well, it is necessary to take a responsible approach to choosing a place. It is important to take into account that goji is a fast-growing culture that has a powerful root system. You can use it as a hedge or you can grow it better in empty areas. To get large goji berries, planting can be done on sunny or shaded areas. You can even grow this house at home, observing wintering conditions.
Goji tree - seed planting
Harvest can be collected in 4-5 years and in each fruit there are 8-15 seeds. The berries must first be soaked for 5-10 minutes. in warm water to make it easier to get small seeds. They are recommended to leave for a couple of hours in "Zircon" or "Epin". To successfully grow goji from seeds, consider a number of features:
- The temperature should be moderately warm, that is, be in the range of 20-25 ° C. No less important is the moist soil. To ensure these conditions, planting is best done in a deep container, which must be covered with film or glass.
- The ground should be normally drained and medium looseness. It is better to give preference to a neutral soil. You can mix peat and loam in a 1: 2 ratio.
- Do not deepen the seeds more than 2-3 mm, otherwise thin sprouts will be difficult to break out. It is important that the soil does not dry out even for a short period of time.
- To launch active goji growth, care and growing it at home means removing the film or glass when sprouts will appear. Continue to monitor the moistening of the soil. It is better to water, using a spray gun, in order not to flood the ground too much.
- Transplantation into a separate pot can be done when 2-3 pairs of leaves appear. The pot should not be deeper than 7 cm. When the bush already has good branches and reaches a height of 30-40 cm, you can transplant it into the open ground.
Planting goji in spring with seedlings
For reproduction of the plant, a semi-mature stalk with old wood can be used. Saplings grow hybrid varieties in most cases.
- It is important that the length of the handle is not less than 10 cm. To speed up the growth, it is recommended to dip the cut into "Kornevin".
- Landing goji and care for it begin in July-August, and you need to do it under a film or in a greenhouse. In order for the rooting process to pass quickly, it is better to choose a cool place, for example, a glazed balcony. This process takes time from autumn to spring.
- Under the seedling, it is necessary to make a pit approximately 40 cm deep and up to 60 cm wide. If several specimens are planted at once, then there should be a distance of 1.5-2 m between them. Note that goji is a cross-pollinating plant, so you need to grow at least two bushes.
- Will only pour and mulch with peat or humus.
Goji tree - growing
Sturdy culture does not require the creation of special conditions and the use of complex methods of cultivation. The main thing is to choose the right place for planting and you can already assume that half of the job is done. Finding out how to grow goji berries, we will note that it will be possible to collect fruits 3-4 years after planting and it is very easy to do this: you need to lay a film or any fabric under the tree and just shake the bush.
Cultivation of goji - soil
Since this culture is hardy, it does not raise any special requirements concerning the soil. Well developed shrubs on neutral and alkaline soils. On acidic soil, it will take root, but that's to grow and yield it will be worse. In order to grow goji berries every year, you can grow a plant on your dacha on stony ground, the more so it will prevent water stagnation.
When the seedlings are planted in the open ground, it is recommended to prepare a soil mixture: in equal proportions, combine fermented humus, large river sand and garden soil. To them, to increase the fertility, it is necessary to add a number of fertilizers: 200-300 g of superphosphate and 1 l of wood ash. Another option - for each bush pour 300 g of potassium sulfate.
The temperature of goji bush cultivation
Since in nature the plant is found in the mountainous terrain, low temperatures are not afraid of it. It has already been said that the seedling takes root at a reduced temperature. Cultivation of goji plants in the open ground should start in the spring, since the young can not survive the winter. An adult shrub normally feels at -15 ° C. Heat, he is also not afraid, most importantly, in severe drought, do not forget about watering.
Goji care
There are a number of recommendations for care, which are important to take into account, that during cultivation, the shrub grows well and eventually yields:
- During the first years, the shoots of the plant are thin, and they can fall behind the ground. To avoid this, set up a trellis or pedestal.
- To obtain a rich harvest of goji berries, care and pruning are carried out according to the rules, so if you do not shorten the branches, the shrub can grow over 3 m, and the fruits will be small. It is better to form a low and spreading plant, on which there will be large berries. Remove unnecessary skeletal branches, leaving only the strongest in different directions. On them the shoulders will form, and from them to leave the fruit branches, which need to be cut every year, leaving no more than four kidneys.
- If the winter is too cold, goji can freeze, so nursing and growing means transplanting into a deep container and dropping it into the basement. There are gardeners who claim that the lapnik and snow cover is enough.
How to grow a goji herb - watering
During the first years after planting, the young plant is vulnerable, so care includes proper watering. It is important to ensure that the soil does not dry out, but excessive moisture should be avoided, as this can damage the roots, especially in the cold season. To avoid this, the list of procedures necessary for the correct cultivation of the goji bush should include sheltering the ground around the trunk with film during prolonged rains or frosts. An adult plant requires watering only in arid periods and if it grows on a sunny plot.
How to grow goji - top dressing
Unlike many berry crops, this shrub is able to grow and bear fruit even on poor soils, but it is better before planting it into organic soil. Care in the spring for godzh means the addition of compost and a balanced mineral fertilizer, which includes potassium, nitrogen and phosphorus. There will not be any other feeding for a year.
Growing goji at home - diseases and pests
Shrub is not only unpretentious in care, but also resistant to the effects of various diseases and pests. Young shoots can rarely be damaged by aphids, and a Colorado beetle can be seen on flowers and a young ovary. During the growth of goji berries during rainy periods powdery mildew may appear. Cope with pests can be, using spraying infusion of wormwood. Diseases, for example, phytophthora occur with poor care or the choice of unsuitable soil. As a preventive treatment of chemical preparations is not necessary.