Description and features of apricot cultivation Saratov ruby
Apricot is known to be a southern culture that loves warmth. However, through the efforts of breeders, varieties resistant to low temperatures appear, which gardeners of the northern regions can also grow. This article gives a description and nuances of growing the Saratov Ruby variety.
Grade description
One of the scientists, employees of the Saratov biotechnology enterprise Alexander Golubev, in the early 2000s, bred a new apricot variety. To make it possible to grow crops in Siberia, the breeder crossed the late Central Asian and Manchu varieties. In 2010, scientists submitted an application to the institution of the State Commission for admission to cultivation; after five years of testing, the culture was recommended for the Volga region, North Caucasus region.
The tree grows quickly to about 5 meters in height. The crown is medium-dense, spreading, in the form of a sphere. The shoots are straight, directed upwards, covered with brown bark with noticeable peeling. The foliage is round in shape, with a point on the tip, with a smooth surface, dark green in color. The edge of the leaf plates is absent, the petiole is of medium length.
Did you know? Seed inside apricot kernel can replace almonds in baked goods.
An early variety blooms when the snow has not completely melted. Single five-petalled baskets in white. Fruiting is just as early, 2-3 years after planting. Ripening time is July. Oval fruits weigh up to 42 g, the skin is dense, pubescent, orange with a carmine blush. The pulp is well separated from the bone, juicy and sweet and sour in taste. The bone is small.
Pros and cons of the variety
The main advantage is the ability to tolerate frosts down to -36 ° C.
- Other advantages:
- early entry into bearing and ripening;
- excellent taste of pulp;
- universality in application;
- small seed size;
- resistance to claustosporiosis and moniliosis;
- transportability;
- good productivity (up to 338 kg / ha)
- resistance of fruits to high humidity (long-term rainfall).
A lack is considered the need for pollinating varieties, despite partial self-fertility.
Suitable plants are:
- Dessert Golubev;
- Gourmet
- Manitoba
Landing Features
Properly selected for landing site and prepared in advance landing pit - this is half the success in growing plants.
Location and Ground
Unlike heat-loving varieties, the southern side of the site is not suitable for planting the Saratov ruby. The variety is already early flowering, and under the sun can bloom even earlier and suffer from return frosts. It is better to choose the east or west side of the site with a barrier (building, fence) in the north.
Important! On acidic soil, due to an excess of magnesium and potassium, the tree is at risk of infection with gummosis (gum-detecting).
Lighting is required most of the day, otherwise the fruits will be acidic. The occurrence of groundwater is not lower than 2.5 m from the surface of the garden. The soil should be loose and nutritious with a neutral reaction. Dense soil should be diluted with sand, and sour dolomite flour or lime.
Landing time
In the middle lane and in the northern regions, planting is recommended in the spring in April, when the snow melts, the soil dries out a little and warms up. In order to be in time before the movement of juices in plants begins, preparatory work is carried out in the fall. In areas with a warm climate, you can plant trees in the fall, in October.
How to plant
In the autumn, they dig a hole measuring 70 × 70. At the bottom, it is desirable to place drainage with a layer of about 15 cm.
The extracted soil layer is mixed with fertilizers:
- 2 buckets of humus;
- 2 kg of ash;
- 200 g of potassium and phosphorus.
A little further from the center of the pit, a wooden stake is driven in, which in the future will serve as a support for the seedling. During the winter, the soil will sag under the influence of moisture, and for planting it will be necessary to form a hill, after adding earth.
Find out how and what you can plant apricot on.
Landing process:
- The roots are pre-wetted in a clay mash.
- Have a seedling in the center of the hill (20-30 cm).
- Sprinkle with soil, holding the trunk and ramming the layers of the earth to remove voids.
- The growth point of the tree should be 5 cm above the ground.
- The seedling is tied to a support.
- After planting, a roller with sides is formed to hold water, watering is carried out with two buckets of water.
Features of apricot care
Crop care is standard, as well as other fruit trees. This moisturizing, fertilizing, prevention of possible diseases and insect attacks. No less important is tree pruning and soil cleanliness in the tree circle.
Watering and fertilizer
The Saratov ruby calmly tolerates dry periods when it is an adult tree that has a formed root system. Seedlings and young trees with insufficient rainfall should be watered in addition to the main procedures.
We recommend that you find out why the apricot tree does not bear fruit.
In total, apricot is moistened 3 times during the season:
- before flowering;
- during flowering;
- during fruiting.
It is better to divide the daily watering rate into two - for morning and evening. Thus, moisturizing will be more even. According to the author of the variety, the Saratov ruby does not perceive the introduction of fresh organic matter.
Pruning
The Saratov ruby is growing rapidly, so trimming is a necessity for him. This procedure is sanitary and formative. Remove all broken shoots that have not survived the winter. Branches are also cut off, knocking out of the formed skeleton and growing inside the crown. When forming a seedling, the first tier is created at a height of 50-60 cm from the surface.
Did you know? In the United States, residents of the country express their love for apricot in the celebration of National Fruit Day on January 9.
The central trunk is 70 cm higher than the lower tier. One tier is formed in one year from opposite shoots growing at an angle of 45 degrees. The second tier and those following it in the same way, it is desirable that the angle of the branches of each subsequent "floor" increases by 5 degrees.
Protection against diseases and pests
One of the possible problems of the tree is the allocation of gum, the scientific name is gummosis. In this way, the plant responds to a mistake in care or injury. An error in care may be excessive pruning, without observing sanitary standards, excessive introduction of nitrogen during feeding. The external factors that caused the culture to be injured are too aggressive the sun, an abnormal decrease in temperature in winter and acidic soil.
All this can be corrected, and the wounds treated with copper sulfate (1% solution), and then "close" the wound with garden var. Due to excessive watering or prolonged rains, fungal diseases can be affected. Fusarium, brown spotting affects the green parts of the plant, flowers and fruit ovaries, threatening the crop.
Read more on how to grow an apricot tree from seed.
You can fight diseases with the help of antifungal fungicides, for example, Vitaros, by spraying with a solution prepared in a ratio of 2 ml / 1 liter of water. Against aphids and leafworms that destroy foliage and flowers of a plant, a wide-spectrum insecticide Agravertin is used. The solution is prepared on a water basis in a proportion of 6 ml / 1 liter of water.
Cold preparation
In preparation for the winter of young trees, it is imperative to insulate the trunk. To do this, they wrap it with fir branches, other improvised material (cardboard, nylon stockings). Mature trees have already formed a dense bark resistant to low temperatures, but the root system must be covered. The trunk circle is mulched with a thick layer up to 25 cm, and then covered with agrospan.
Important! A film or roofing material should not be used to cover the trunk: these tissues do not allow air to pass through, which leads to diaper rash.
Harvesting and storage of crops
Apricots are harvested on a clear sunny day, the fruits must be dry, otherwise they will not be stored. If transportation or storage is expected, the fruits must be technically ripe, this will protect them from damage. Apricot must be ripe for immediate fresh consumption or processing. Store the crop in a cool place at temperatures up to + 15 ° C, permissible humidity - 70%.
