Nastya is a unique grape variety: many new varieties appear every year, and he, a native of the Soviet Union, is still among the top ten best grape varieties. Due to its harmonious dessert taste and unpretentiousness to the growing conditions, Nastya rightfully takes a worthy place both in amateur gardens and in vineyards of large farms.
The history of growing grapes Nastya
At least the fact that it is known and is grown in large quantities even in the most "grape" country - France, whose inhabitants know a lot about grape varieties, speaks about the popularity of the variety. The hybrid form of grapes Nastya (middle name - Arcadia) appeared back in the days of the USSR and is still among the most beloved in the territory of all the republics that were part of it.
Nastya was bred by breeder E.N. Dokuchaeva at the V.E. Tairov Institute of Viticulture and Winemaking (Odessa) by crossing the Cardinal and Moldova grape varieties. Both of her "ancestors" are table varieties. It is worth saying that several more hybrid forms of grapes were bred from the same varieties, but Nastya is one of the best on this list, the most famous of all.
The cardinal - one of Nastya's parents - does not at all resemble her
Through the efforts of E. N. Dokuchaeva who was born in 1926 in the city of Michurinsk in the Tambov Region, more than 60 grape varieties were bred with the staff of the Institute, most of which are included in the Register of Varieties of Modern Ukraine or patented. And the breeder was awarded high Soviet awards - Orders of Friendship of Peoples, Badge of Honor, Red Banner of Labor.
It is interesting to note that Nastya's “parents” are dark varieties. But their daughter is a classic white-fruited variety. Such are the wonders of genetics.
Grade description
Nastya is an early grape variety, deservedly among the record holders for productivity. The berries are known for excellent taste, and the variety itself is unpretentious in cultivation, quite frost-resistant.
Bushes, depending on the region and growing conditions, grow from medium to tall plants. The proportion of shoots on which berries grow is up to 75% of their total number. Under normal weather conditions, shoots have time to ripen over the summer almost the entire length. The length is very long, which should be considered when cropping. Even better is to pinch the longest young shoots with more green, as soon as they reach a height of 1.5-2 meters. Nastya has five-lobed leaf plates, slightly pubescent below.
Nastya has large bushes, and there are a lot of berries on them
The variety is quite frost-resistant, which allows it to be grown both in the south and in the middle zone of Russia. But in the middle lane it necessarily requires easy shelter for the winter, as it can withstand frosts only to -22 aboutC, and subject to impeccable agricultural technology - only a couple of degrees more. It has good resistance to various diseases, but requires preventive spraying, after which it is almost not affected by mildew and oidium.
Nastya is famous for its very high productivity, and if the load is not rationed, all the berries even have time to ripen, but this is not very good: this situation negatively affects the condition of the plant.
Overloaded with harvest, the vines do not ripen by autumn and as a result die almost the entire length, which leads to a sharp decrease in the total harvest for the next year. But even the completely lost aerial part of the bushes, subject to the integrity of the root system, is quickly restored.
The variety is early, but not super early: from the awakening of the buds to harvesting, it takes about 120 days, and in the middle lane the main harvest of berries occurs in September. In the southern regions, the first berries ripen by mid-August. The clusters of Nastya are very large, they are mainly conical in shape, but cylindrical specimens can also be found. The structure of clusters of medium density: you can find both fairly well-packed berries, and loose, not very large. However, few bunches weigh less than 500 g. With good care, the average weight is about 900 g, but bunches weighing up to two, or even three kilograms, often grow.
Nastya’s flowers are bisexual, so she can grow and bear fruit separately from other grape varieties: extraneous pollination is not required, and her flowers are pollinated by almost 100%. On the contrary, Nastya is an ideal pollinator for some other varieties.
Berries are sometimes rounded, but almost always grow somewhat elongated and even ovoid. The diameter of the berries is from 25 mm and above, up to 35 mm, weight is from 8 to 15 g. The pulp is fleshy, very juicy, the skin is thin, inconspicuous. In a state of technical ripeness, they have a yellowish color, and when fully ripened, they turn into amber-yellow, covered with a white waxy coating. The taste of berries is excellent. The content of acids and sugars is very well balanced in it, allowing you to eat a huge amount of them. Sugar content does not exceed 16%, and the total acidity is 5-6 g / l. Therefore, for those people who are afraid to get better, this is one of the most suitable grape varieties. When consumed, a barely noticeable muscat aroma is felt.
Nastya's berries have a variable color depending on the period and light
In connection with the chemical composition of the berries, Nastya is a variety intended primarily for fresh consumption. Yes, and it's a pity to let it go for recycling! At the same time, it is not easy for one family to cope with huge harvests. Shelf life of berries is good, transportability is also decent, but from one bush you can collect up to 40 kg, or even more berries. In the refrigerator at about 0 aboutSince they are stored up to 3 months, but home refrigerators are much smaller in size.
Of course, you can squeeze the juice, cook the compotes, dry the raisins. But Nastya is absolutely not suitable for making wine. Of course, the juice is fermented normally, but the taste of the resulting product is very average. Nevertheless, this table variety is both very popular among summer residents and farmers engaged in the cultivation of grapes for commercial purposes.
Video: Nastya (Arcadia) on the bushes
Characteristics of grape varieties Nastya
Having examined the description of the grapes Nastya, we will try to give him a generalized description. Of course, by any sign, you can find the best and worst varieties, but by the totality of the characteristics, this variety is one of the best. So, there are grapes of earlier ripening, with larger berries. There are berries with a high sugar content, a long shelf life. There are bushes, less susceptible to disease and more frost-resistant. But there are no ideal varieties, and probably never will be. And in Nastya consumer properties are very well balanced, allowing to recommend it for growing to every summer resident or farmer.
Among the indisputable advantages of Nastya include:
- excellent taste of berries;
- attractive appearance, including shape and color;
- the size of both berries and bunches in general;
- good preservation of the crop;
- high transportability;
- early ripening of berries;
- very high productivity (up to 40 kg per bush);
- the bacillus of flowers, which does not require planting next door bushes of another grape variety, acting as a pollinator;
- high frost resistance, which allows even in the middle lane to winter under light shelter;
- ease of propagation by cuttings;
- ease of cultivation;
- resistance to mildew.
Like any grape, it also has drawbacks, and very significant ones:
- a tendency to get sick with gray rot and oidium without special treatments;
- cracking of berries during waterlogging of the soil.
Perhaps, Nastya has no other serious shortcomings. The variety, according to most indicators, occupies a leading position among the grape varieties of early ripening. And the advantages discussed above make its cultivation also cost-effective.
Features of planting and growing crops
Even novice summer residents can plant Nastya at their site, since caring for this grape is very simple. Neither the rules of planting, nor the basic principles of care differ from those in the case of other table varieties.
Like any grape, Nastya loves sunny areas protected from cold winds. It is advisable that the walls of the house or a high blank fence protect the bushes from the north side. It’s not a problem to buy Nastya’s sapling, but this should be done not “on the sidelines”, but from sellers who at least have any documents for the goods. But Nastya is very easily propagated by cuttings, the survival of which is almost one hundred percent. Therefore, if you get a stalk, you can grow a seedling yourself. When choosing a seedling, the main thing is that it has healthy roots. Immediately before planting, the seedling should be put into the water for a day, slightly cutting off the tips of the roots so that it is saturated with moisture. You can plant grapes in the autumn, but it is better in the spring, in April.
For spring planting, the pit should be ready in the fall. And first, back in the summer, the selected site must be dug up with fertilizers (manure, ash, superphosphate), removing perennial weeds. In autumn, you need to dig a large hole, at least 80 centimeters in each dimension. Drainage at the bottom (15-20 cm of gravel or broken brick) is absolutely necessary. At the bottom of the pit you need to put a layer of fertilizers mixed with good soil, and in this layer (20-25 cm) there should be more humus than land, as well as half a bucket of ash and half a kilogram of azofoska. And above, where there will be young roots, only pure fertile soil!
If the soil is not sandy, you need to draw a piece of a thick pipe to the bottom of the pit, so that in the first years it is to water the roots.
In addition, you need to drive a stake to tie up the shoots in the first year (then a strong trellis will replace the stake). It is necessary to plant deep so that no more than 2 buds remain on the surface. Watering the seedling well, it is necessary to mulch the soil around it.
Caring for Nastya is simple: watering, feeding, garter shoots, pruning, preventive treatments. Everything except cropping does not require special knowledge. But grape pruning is an art, but without the correct pruning it is impossible: the harvest will only get worse every year.
To get huge ripe clusters, you need to cut off all the extra shoots, and extra clusters too
Excess water is not necessary, but periodic irrigation is required, especially in arid regions. The need for water is especially great during the growth of berries, but from the end of July, Nastia should be irrigated: let the berries collect sugar and become tasty. In the case of dry autumn, winter watering is necessary shortly before sheltering the bushes for the winter. Feed should be mainly ash: bury a couple of liters annually under a bush. Every two years in early spring - two buckets of compost, in shallow pits along the periphery of the bush. And 2-3 times during the summer - foliar top dressing by spraying the leaves. Before flowering and immediately after it - with weak solutions of complex mineral fertilizers, after another 2-3 weeks - only with potash and phosphorus.
Nastya is quite resistant to mildew, but for preventive purposes, early spring spraying with a solution of iron sulfate will not hinder. But to the oidium, it is unstable, especially in rainy years, because of it you can lose a lot of berries. Therefore, when 3-4 leaves appear on the shoots, it makes sense to sprinkle the vineyard with Ridomil Gold.
Unfortunately, the oidium is the scourge of Nastya, and we must guard against it
In early spring, before the sap flow begins, you can carry out a small pruning of vines. The trouble is that Nastya begins to “cry” quite early, so many summer residents are late with this operation. It is much more convenient to cut grapes in late autumn, before sheltering bushes for the winter. But the main work on normalizing the bush from extra shoots, stepsons and, unfortunately, clusters should be done in the summer, while the breakable areas are still green and small: according to the rules, only one bunch should be left on each shoot. If you work hard in the summer, in the fall it will be much easier. The total load on the bush should be no more than 50 eyes.
Before the onset of frost (around the end of October), all vines must be removed from the trellises, tied in bundles convenient for handling them and covered with any suitable materials on the ground. In not very harsh regions, spruce or pine branches or dry foliage of trees are suitable for this, in the northern regions they try to use non-woven materials or old clothes. The trouble is that under such shelter mice feel good that eat the bark close to the roots. As a result, the entire aboveground part of the bush dies. Therefore, in the case of a serious shelter, pesticides for rodents should be spread out underneath it.
Gardeners reviews
When overloaded, it matures poorly in the Belgorod region. And if objectively, then this is a feature of the variety - to pull any overload to the detriment of the vine. Here is such a "caring mother."
Stanislav Sharygin//vinforum.ru/index.php?topic=212.0
A very reliable variety, our favorite (despite the large number of grape varieties on our site), does not fail in any years. Always with a crop. So in the last season of 2017, she again pleased us with a large and high-quality crop. In 2017, the beginning of the growing season was May 1-2, i.e., about a week later than in 2016. But flowering began almost at the same time on June 16. True, the load this season was significantly higher - a total of 39 clusters were left. This, of course, affected the maturity, but not significantly. So, on September 5, the sugar content in berries was 15-16%, and we began to cut individual clusters on September 1. The berry was large and tasty. Some clusters hung until September 29, since September was good and warm. But the vine ripened by only 4-6 eyes, which is much worse than in 2015 and 2016. Apparently, the congestion and the long holding of bunches on the vines affected. But for a good harvest next year, such aging is enough.
Peganova Tamara Yakovlevna//vinforum.ru/index.php?topic=212.80
In my opinion, a completely hassle-free variety. Pulls the load. This year, a pair of 400 g brushes hung on a vine no more than 5 mm thick. And both have ripened. Now the vine is ripening quietly. So, "you need such a cow yourself!"
Gray hair//www.vinograd7.ru/forum/viewtopic.php?f=58&t=156&start=60
Video: grape harvest Nastya (Arcadia)
Nastya is an early grape variety that seeks to have the majority of summer residents on its site, and they plant it in large farming enterprises. The combination of positive qualities inherent in both bushes in general and berries makes it popular among a wide range of professional winegrowers and lovers. Among table varieties, Nastya is one of the best in consumer properties and ease of cultivation.
