Early varieties of apples: advantages and disadvantages, description and advice on choosing

Not to find in Russia a single country garden, where at least one apple tree does not grow. Apple is the most popular seed culture, the fruits of which are so loved by everyone. Apples are present all year round in our diet starting with summer varieties, then autumn ones, and winter ones ripen in the basement. I want to enjoy the freshly grown apple from my garden as early as possible. Therefore, it is so important that it is the early varieties of apples that grew on the summer cottage.

In terms of ripening apples are summer, autumn and winter. All summer varieties can be divided into:

• ripening in July, in the 1st half, - early summer varieties;
• with the term of ripening from the 2nd half of July to the first decade of August - mid-year;
• ripening in the 2nd half of August - late summer.

Summer apples have a special sweet taste and pleasant aroma. Color shades of different varieties can be from rich green to bright red. They differ in the size of the fruit. Common to summer apples is that they are not subject to long-term storage, are immediately eaten or subject to processing into jam, jams, juices, compotes. They are stored on average no more than three weeks. If they stay longer, their juiciness will disappear, the flesh will become tasteless and crumbly, like that of a potato.

The benefits of apples are well known. They contain a huge amount of all existing vitamins, pectins, which contribute to the removal of toxins, fiber, eliminating cholesterol, about 12% sucrose, mineral salts of potassium and calcium, iron, magnesium and copper elements, as well as carotene and essential oils. Apples have a positive effect on the digestive and cardiovascular systems, and have a beneficial effect on the skin.

There are not many old early summer varieties of apples. Perhaps this is due to the tradition not to eat apples until August 19 - Apple Savior. Also, their inability to be stored for a long time, the need for immediate processing, led further to a gradual decrease in the cultivation of such apples on an industrial scale. However, fruit growers for themselves all summer varieties are very popular. Such well-known varieties include “Early Aloe”, “Early Sweet”, “Honey” and “Moscow”.

The variety was bred in the 60s of the last century. This hybrid of varieties "Papirovka" and "Melba" is the result of the work of the All-Russian Scientific Research Institute for Breeding Fruit Crops. It has frost resistance and yields are much higher than those of the Papirovka. The apple tree is adapted for cultivation in the middle lane and north-western regions of our country because of its undemanding nature and its ability to withstand adverse climatic conditions. Fruiting occurs in the 3-4th year of growth.

A special feature of the variety is rapid growth, the apple tree grows up to 3-4 m in height, has a dense round crown. Straight and thick branches directed upwards. Green leaves with a downy reverse surface have a yellowish tinge and a slightly pointed shape. Flowering begins in the second decade of May. White-pink large flowers have oblong petals.

The weight of apples can reach 130 g. They have a brilliant red skin with bright scarlet stripes. The taste of apples are sweet and sour, juicy, with loose pulp. The merits of the "Early Scarlet" in his:

• unpretentiousness and frost resistance;
• high yield;
• the rapid onset of fruiting;
• early ripening.

The disadvantages include:

• moderate immunity to scab;
• uneven ripening of apples, in which over-ripening occurs quickly in dry summer;
• small shelf life (not more than a month).

This summer variety was received by Belarusian breeders. It belongs to varieties of dwarf species, one of the most popular and common. In apple crown has a rounded flat shape. The height of the trunk directly affects the size of the entire adult apple tree, which usually reaches 1.5–2 m with a stem of 0.5 m. 30 cm. Fruiting in Early Sweet comes in 3-4 years of life, and the yields are quite high (up to 60 kg from an apple) for this type of apple.

The shape of the fruit is round-flat or round. The size of apples is average, sometimes less; fruits can have a weight of 80-90 g. Ripe apples have a light yellow color. The white flesh of the fruit is creamy. They taste very sweet, juicy with tender flesh. Grade advantages:

• increased ability to tolerate frosts, as due to the dwarf growth in winter, it is almost all covered with snow;
• every year regular fruiting;
• large yields;
• the dwarf structure facilitates the care and harvesting;
• immunity to scab, and in case of a disease, the scale of damage is small and recovery occurs quickly;
• fruit ripening occurs earlier than other summer varieties, 10 days.

“Honey” also has another name - “Medunitsa”. It belongs to the dessert varieties of apple trees. Breeders MSU. Lomonosov - the creators of the variety "Honey", which is a hybrid of "Brown Stripe" and varieties "Wesley". It is considered a late summer variety that ripens after the 20th of August, but the fruits are usable and unripe.

"Medunitsa" has a high cold resistance, it carries a brief frost in -40 degrees. Bringing apples starts at 3-5 years of growth and has high yields. The apple tree is large, its wide crown in the shape of a pyramid occupies a vast space. Skeletal branches with dense foliage hang down. Branched root system easily transfers the proximity of groundwater.

Apples ripen quickly and immediately throughout the tree, but they do not fall to the ground and remain on the apple tree. Yellow with a green tint apples have a reddish blush on almost the entire surface. The harvest can be stored for a relatively long time, without losing freshness and taste.

Advantages of "Honey":

• undemanding cultivation and ease of care for it;
• fruits are large, with excellent taste, do not fall off when ripe;
• shelf life is large compared to other summer varieties;
• frost resistance, even with frost damage, baffling occurs quickly;
• resistance to scab and rot even with high humidity.

Grade Disadvantages:

• the need for regular formation and trimming of the crown, which is difficult because of its size;
• periodicity of yield, after a big harvest comes a lean year.

The variety of old breeding, known since the end of the 18th century, is familiar to every gardener and is popular for its excellent qualities. A large apple tree with a straight trunk has a dense branched crown, having a pyramidal shape, which with the growth time takes the form of a ball, as its branches descend. Elongated ellipsoidal green leaves have a fine toothed edge. Blooming flowers have shades from light pink to white.

It begins to give the harvest at the 4th year of life, apples ripen in late July. Fruits do not differ in large size and weight (from 80 to 120 g). The color of apples from lemon to pale green is almost white with stripes from crimson to red. They have a thin smooth skin with a waxy coating.

Apples have a pleasant fresh aroma, sweet and sour taste with brightly felt sourness.The flesh of the fruit is soft, white, sometimes yellowish or creamy, and in ripe apples even pink shades.

Advantages of "Moscow pear":

• very high resistance to frost, can carry up to -50 degrees;
• high yield - from 60 to 170 kg from one apple tree;
• rapid onset of fruiting - from 4-6 years of growth;
• good immunity to scab and rot.

Disadvantages:

• sensitive to a lack of moisture and drops apples in a dry summer;
• yields frequency;
• uneven and gradual ripening of apples on one apple tree;
• short shelf life;
• poor transportability.

It’s not entirely simple to choose a variety for a particular region, as the plants may not adapt to the conditions of the area and lose their taste qualities. There are certain requirements for the selection of varieties imposed by gardeners, common and independent of climatic zones. It:

• resistance to various infections and pests;
• early onset of fruiting apple trees, preferably by the 2nd or 3rd year of growth;
• yield varieties;
• the ability of the fruit for long-term storage;
• the size of the tree, which is important for small areas of the dacha (at present, dwarf and columnar apple trees have become very popular due to this requirement);
• the ability of apples to transport;
• fruit taste.

Therefore important:

• frost resistance of the variety and the ability to tolerate high (above -20 degrees Celsius) frosts in the conditions of the snowless months of the late fall - the beginning of winter or their return in the spring after positive temperatures
• immunity to scab and other diseases;
• ripening time of apples, so that the harvest ripen before the onset of cold weather.

Based on all requirements for the middle band of early summer varieties, two varieties are suitable:

• "Helena", a low-growing apple tree, bred by breeders of Belarus;
• "Arkadik", with annually stable yields, created by Moscow breeders.

From middle-summer varieties under these conditions are well cultivated "Moscow pear", "Medunitsa", "White filling", "Melba", "Papirovka", "Apple saved."

For the Tver region, located north of the center of the country, the main selection criteria are frost resistance and early ripening of apples. Early summer varieties are not acceptable here, because their flowering occurs before the establishment of heat and the flowers will die from the cold. From the summer varieties “Moscow pear”, “Bely filling” are growing well. But the most suitable for this region will be later varieties - “Uslada”, “Antonovka Zolotaya”.

Leningrad region does not have good conditions for gardening. The normal growth of fruit trees is hindered by the rather harsh climate and composition of the soil, which does not differ in fertility. It happens that the fertile layer does not exceed 30cm. Often, suburban areas are used and peatlands, and sandy, and loamy soil.

For the Leningrad region, frost resistance, immunity to various diseases and insect pests are important, early ripening of apples. The following varieties grow well here.

• "Chosen One" - ripens in late August - early September. This is a hybrid varieties "Antonovka" and "Bellefle-Chinese", derived by Moscow breeders.
• "Melba" - old foreign variety, bred in the late 19th century. In Canada. Appeared in Russia about 100 years ago.

Experienced gardeners are advised when choosing an apple tree to focus on varieties zoned for this region, as they are derived from the climate, and are immune to diseases and pests characteristic of these places.

Experts advise choosing varieties low apple treesThis will allow to plant more seedlings, as well as facilitate the care and collection of fruits. According to gardeners, seedlings with a dwarf rootstock are better suited for planting in places with close groundwater.

In the next video, the Greensad garden center expert will talk about how to plant a fruit tree seedling.