Florina strawberry variety
Florina (Florina) - remontant variety of garden strawberries of early ripening period for universal use. It is the second variety obtained under the Flevo Berry strawberry breeding program organized by the Dutch company Goossens Flevoplant. The first brainchild of the same organization was a variety with a very consonant name - Florin (Florin). Do not confuse these two varieties, as they have some differences, which will be mentioned below. Mainly, our heroine differs from her “brother” by earlier ripening periods, improved immunity and resistance to negative natural phenomena, and also has a higher yield. Unfortunately, on the Russian market, sellers of seedlings often confuse these two varieties, so be extremely careful when buying planting material.
Plants with vigorous growth, quickly build up green mass and begin to bear fruit early. Bushes of medium height, rather spreading, well leafy. Usulation is moderate. Leaves are large and medium in size, slightly corrugated, bright green in color. Strawberry flower stalks are of medium thickness, long, erect, lodged under the weight of the harvest. The flowers are white, large.
The berries are large, leveled in the total mass, of a very beautiful presentation, similar to the fruits Elsants... The berries have a regular conical shape, very uniform, one to one, the neck is practically absent. The skin is bright red, attractive color with an intense glossy sheen. The crop does not lose color saturation and shine during transportation and storage, which makes Florina very promising for commercial cultivation for the sale of berries. Achenes are yellow, small, sunken to medium depth. The pulp is dense, but not firm, without apple crunch when bitten, due to which the fruits perfectly tolerate transportation without compromising consumer qualities.
The flavor of this variety is excellent, although, according to some reports, it is slightly inferior to Florin strawberries. The berries are sweet, with a fairly harmonious palette of taste, not devoid of a subtle hint of sourness. The specialists of the German company Kraege rated the taste of the fruit at 4-5 points out of 9, which is, in principle, very good for a highly productive remontant. The pulp is fragrant, although the intensity of the scent of Florin is slightly superior to our heroine. The harvest is versatile in use, perfectly suitable for any kind of processing, is wonderful fresh. Berries are well suited for freezing; when defrosting, they will not lose their shape and will not flow. The variety has established itself as a commercial one, due to its excellent transportability of the crop and its suitability for long-term storage. The fruits do not lose their rich color and shine, and therefore they look amazing on the market, attracting buyers.
The average weight of berries in the season is at the level of 20-25 grams; in the first waves of the harvest, the fruits are slightly larger. The variety has evenness of berries in the total mass, produces a high percentage of first-class fruits, so there is no need to be afraid of giant specimens or trifles. Florina is a truly commercial strawberry, has stable fruiting, produces one-dimensional large first class berries throughout the season. Fruits ripen at the same time, harvesting is not delayed, which is very convenient for farmers.
The strawberry yield is very high, higher than that of Florin, but it is highly dependent on the level of the agricultural background and climatic conditions. Thus, the spread in numbers can be very large - from 500 grams to 1.5 kg of berries per plant, although the potential of the variety promises even more than 1.5 kg of fruits per bush. Indoors, this remontant manifests itself as a truly highly productive, proving its value and prospects as a commercial variety.Coming back to the comparison, it should be said that Florin strawberries were credited with huge yields (over 3 kg per bush), but this turned out to be a simple commercial move. For Florina, there are no such huge indicators in official sources, and getting more than 3 kg of berries from a plant is a very difficult task, even if grown indoors and under controlled conditions.
Strawberries begin to ripen early, from about the third decade of May. The timing can vary greatly depending on the region of growth; in colder areas, the first harvests will begin later. In fruiting, two main waves are distinguished: the first - in May-June, the second - in July-August. This variety is thermophilic, so it will show higher yields in warm climates. In principle, the variety is not too sensitive to bad weather conditions, it tolerates heat with drought and cold with rains, but after all, such phenomena will still affect the yield and taste of berries. Winter hardiness of strawberries is average; in cold regions, it is highly desirable to have a good shelter of plants for the winter. Also, bushes can suffer from return frosts in the spring.
Florina's immunity is very good, she is extremely rarely affected by the main diseases of the culture, the berries do not suffer from gray rot even in seasons with bad weather conditions. Of course, do not forget about preventive treatments. Strawberries also have no special preferences for soils, although the better and richer the composition of the soil, the greater the productivity of the plants. The variety is great for growing indoors, in containers. Under controlled conditions, strawberries are able to reach their full potential.
Florina is not particularly demanding in agricultural technology, it does not require much attention. One simple rule applies to successfully growing these strawberries - the better you take care of the plants, the more you can expect. The potential of a variety is highly dependent on the level of the agricultural background. Of the features, it can be distinguished that this strawberry strongly dislikes thickening, requires a larger area of nutrition. The rest of the agricultural technology does not differ from the standard, typical for the cultivation of remontants.
Florina is a promising commercial variety with excellent yields, excellent immunity and good taste. The berries are distinguished by their outstanding presentation, which is undoubtedly a striking advantage of the variety, making it ideal for commercial use. Among the shortcomings, one can single out not particularly high winter hardiness and frost resistance, as well as confusion with names. And the last nuance is really serious, so before buying strawberry planting material, check whether you are offered exactly what you expect.
