What year after planting does honeysuckle bear fruit?

Edible honeysuckle is becoming more popular every season. Juicy oblong fruits are increasingly found in markets and stores. Many gardeners have high hopes for this crop, but are often disappointed with the yield.

From the article you will learn when honeysuckle begins to bear fruit, how long it grows before fruiting, and how to increase and maintain productivity.

What year does honeysuckle bear fruit?

When does honeysuckle bear its first fruits? Seedlings begin to bear fruit 3-4 years after planting. If the shrub is propagated by cuttings, the berries appear within a year, but in this case the fruiting is poor. The first large harvest can be harvested only after 6-7 years. Gardeners collect 1-2 kg of honeysuckle berries from one bush. Some varieties enter the fruiting phase 1-2 years earlier.

Reference. The fruits of wild varieties of honeysuckle are bitter taste, while the period of intensive fruiting often exceeds 50 years. Wild plants produce a harvest only 5-7 years after planting.

How many years does honeysuckle bear fruit?

The duration of fruiting is affected by the variety of honeysuckle. Some varieties can bear fruit for 12 years. The average varies from 5 to 7 years.

Aging of honeysuckle begins after 8-10 years of active growing season, and the yield level gradually decreases. To maintain optimal fruiting, shrubs are pruned into a ball shape.

Honeysuckle fruiting time

When choosing a honeysuckle variety, gardeners recommend paying attention to the period of growth, development and maturation. There are early, mid-early and late varieties.

The most popular varieties in domestic gardening and their fruiting dates are as follows:

• Long-fruited - early May;
• Swallow - mid-June;
• Blueberry - early July;
• Altair, Lapis lazuli - mid-July;
• Chelyabinsk - early August;
• My joy is mid to late August.

How to increase honeysuckle fruiting

Honeysuckle is one of the unpretentious shrubs, but sometimes even with proper care fruiting declines. This happens for a number of reasons:

• deficiency of sunlight as a result of thickening of plantings;
• frostbite of shoots due to returning spring frosts;
• lack of pollinating insects, especially when the heat comes too early;
• nutritional deficiency.

Sometimes there is a decrease in yield if the bush is too young or too old.

Advice from experienced gardeners will help increase honeysuckle fruiting:

1. Pay attention to productive varieties of shrubs. Half the success depends on this choice. The most productive varieties are considered: Lenita, Amazon, Arechnaya, Elizabeth, Maria, Long-fruited.
2. Before planting seedlings, properly prepare the planting holes. The size of the pit should be 50x60x40 cm; add 10-20 liters of humus, 1 liter of ash, 30-50 g of superphosphate, 15 g of potassium salt to each of them. To maintain moisture and soil structure, add 3-5 liters of vermiculite.
3. Plant different varieties of shrubs nearby. You can place up to 15 bushes in one area. This stimulates cross-pollination and increases yield. With proper planting, it is possible to collect about 12 kg from one plant.
4. Irrigate plants with sugar water (2 tbsp.granulated sugar per 10 liters of water) to attract pollinating insects.
5. Control soil acidity. The optimal pH level is 5.5-6.5. Add slaked lime (400-500 g per 1 sq. m) to highly acidic soil. For alkalization, use gypsum (500 g per sq. m). For the normal development of honeysuckle, loam and sandy loam are best suited. Loosen clogged, heavy clay soil using humus (10 liters per 1 sq. m) or river sand (bucket per 1 sq. m).
6. Monitor moisture levels. Honeysuckle is a moisture-loving plant and needs regular watering during flowering and ripening of berries. When there is a shortage of water, the bushes drop flowers and ovaries, and the berries acquire a bitter taste. In May and June, one bush requires 4-5 buckets of settled water. The frequency of watering depends on weather conditions and is 3-5 times a season.
7. Carry out a thinning haircut honeysuckle as its branches grow, starting from the sixth year of development. The optimal distance between bushes should be 1.5-2 m, and the row spacing should be 2-2.5 m. The bush does not need pruning for the first 3-5 years. The optimal period for the procedure is the end of autumn.
8. Don't forget on time fertilize the plantings to maintain health and fruiting. Nutrient deficiency slows down the ripening of fruits and provokes the addition of fungal infections. Fertilize honeysuckle with humus in the spring, phosphorus in the summer, and wood ash in the fall.
9. When feeding bushes, do not overdo it. Excess nutrients increase the number of shoots and lead to shading. The optimal amount of organic fertilizer is three times a year, 5-7 kg per bush. In spring, plants are fertilized with ammonium nitrate - 30 g per 1 square meter. m.In June, a second portion of fertilizer is applied - 10 g of ammonium nitrate, 15 g of potassium nitrate, 15 g of double superphosphate per 1 sq. m. m. In autumn, when digging to a depth of 10 m, add 15 g of double superphosphate and potassium salt per 1 sq. m. m.
10. To fight with insect pests use herbal infusions of garlic, mustard, tomato or potato tops, and yarrow. To protect the crop from birds, cover the bushes with nets.
11. Mulch the tree trunk with grass or humus. This will retain moisture in the soil.

Conclusion

In the article, we told you in what year after planting honeysuckle bears fruit and how to maintain the optimal level of crop yield. Much depends on the choice of variety. Experienced gardeners recommend buying Lenita, Amazonka, Arechnaya, Elizaveta, Maria, Long-fruited varieties in order to get 1-2 kg of selected berries per bush.

Before planting, you need to properly prepare the holes, choose a place with diffused lighting, water and fertilize the plants on time, attract pollinating insects and control pests. After each harvest, honeysuckle bushes are rejuvenated by thinning.