Irga honey plant belongs to the pink family. In the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere, nineteen species of this ornamental shrub and several of its hybrid forms grow.
The content of the article
- 1 Significance for agriculture
- 2 The main varieties
- 2.1 Alder-leaved
- 2.2 Canadian
- 2.3 Blood red
- 2.4 Spiky
- 3 Agrotechnics
- 4 Honey productivity
- 5 Useful properties of honey
Significance for agriculture
You can meet irga both in the wild and in the garden and park areas of Europe, the Caucasus, North America, Crimea, where it plays the role of a decorative plant.
Dwarf apple and pear trees can be grafted onto shrubs in the northern regions of Russia. When used in landscape design, irga shows itself as an unpretentious plant that develops quickly, blooms profusely, has beautiful bright foliage in autumn, does not freeze in winter, resists droughts well, tolerates growing in the shade of other garden plantings.
The reddish-purple or bluish-black fruits (berries) of the shrub, which resemble tiny apples, also look decorative. They can also be used for culinary purposes. For example, for coloring compotes or jelly. Fresh, these sweet berries are readily eaten by children. Jam, jelly, and wine are made from them.
And if the owners miss the harvest time, flocks of birds immediately swoop down on the bushes. It is believed that it is the birds that are “to blame” for the wildness of the cultivated irgi – birds, along with droppings, carry seeds over long distances, “littering” young plantings, forest edges and other territories with them.
The main varieties
Four types are predominantly distributed on Russian territory:
- blood red (black);
- Canadian;
- colossal;
- round-leaved (alder) – Crimean and Caucasian native.
Irrigated shrubs are popularly called cinnamon or June berry. When feral, they resemble real multi-stemmed trees up to 8-10 meters high. In culture, the shrub is pruned – the hedge will be 1,5-2 meters in height. Through such a lively and fairly dense fence, stray dogs and other animals cannot get into the site.
Fencing the apiary, you can count on late spring bribes. True, the opinions of beekeepers regarding the honey productivity of the plant differ. Some argue that the play bushes are covered with bees during flowering. Others complain that colonies completely ignore this honey plant.
Alder-leaved
This species is a large shrub up to four meters high, the numerous trunks of which are covered with dark gray bark. The foliage is round, in autumn it is painted in a rich yellow hue.
The flowers are white, not very large, exuding a subtle aroma. The fruits are set annually. These are very sweet purple apples. Up to 10-12 kilograms of harvest can be removed from an adult shrub.
Canadian
This type of honey plant has thin, easily drooping twigs. But at the same time, it can have an impressive height of up to 7-8 meters. The foliage is decorative, very beautiful in appearance – copper or slightly pinkish. In autumn, the bushes turn orange or dark red.
The flowers are whitish, rather large, grouped in loose inflorescences. Fruits are dark pink with soft, sweet pulp.
Blood red
This variety is distinguished by a small height of up to 2,5-3 meters, slender branches and bright green oblong leaves. In autumn, the color of the foliage changes to an orange-yellow hue.
The flowers are large with beautiful elongated petals. Fruits are small, black. An adult bush gives up to 5-6 kilograms of “apples” per year.
Spiky
This species is a compact shrub with a height of 2 to 5 meters, the branches of which are covered with oval, serrated foliage. The flowers are white or pale pink. The entire upper part of the shrub is literally dotted with flowering brushes.
The plant easily tolerates 50-degree frosts! Lives up to thirty years. It resists diseases and pests well, only occasionally being invaded by leafworm caterpillars.
Agrotechnics
It is most convenient to propagate the game with annual seedlings. They are planted in spring or late autumn (planting pattern 5 by 2-3 meters). The planting technique is no different from the propagation of gooseberries.
To form a hedge, young bushes are placed in a checkerboard sequence, with a distance in a row from 50 cm to 1,80 meters (the thicker, the more reliable the live fence).
The best choice of soil is sod-podzolic sandy loam or fertile loam. However, irrigation shoots take root well on any soil. The main thing is that the area is sufficiently moist and protected from bright direct sunlight.
The whole care of the plantings consists in the timely cleansing of the bushes from old and broken branches, root growth. In the first 2 years, all strong shoots are left. Next, two strong branches are selected, which are left for further growth. A properly formed bush consists of 10-15 trunks. Its height is limited by pruning.
To obtain seedlings, seeds are sown on beds that are abundantly watered. Sprouts appear by autumn, less often by next spring.
Honey productivity
Unfortunately, we do not know the honey productivity of Irga in domestic conditions. But according to information from thematic forums, this plant is visited by flight bees during the flowering period, provided there are no other, more attractive honey plants nearby. And from it the bees bring mainly pollen.
Polish beekeepers claim that irga, depending on the variety, shows the following productivity of nectar from one hectare:
blood red (black) – up to 370 kg;
Chinese (bushy) – up to 195 kg.
Such results are valid specifically for Poland, where the shrub blooms from mid-May to the first ten days of June, providing support for bee colonies in the period without tipping.
Flowering in the middle lane begins in April, mid-late May (depending on the region). The fruits ripen in June-August.
Useful properties of honey
Theoretically, nectar collected from irrigation bushes can be found in May honey. The plant is valued in folk medicine as:
- multivitamin, useful for vitamin deficiencies;
- an agent that lowers blood pressure and strengthens the walls of blood vessels;
- an agent that soothes the nervous system and normalizes sleep;
- a remedy effective in the treatment of colds.
Beekeepers of the Crimea, the Caucasus, Western Siberia and the Far East may well rely on bribes from this honey plant.
