More recently, peach fruit trees could only be found in the southern regions, and not everyone could enjoy the sweet and juicy fruits. Fortunately, with the development of selection, many cultures became more accessible and today many varieties of peaches have been bred, which may well grow not only in the climate of the middle zone, but even in the north.

One of the most prominent representatives of such varieties is Don's frost-resistant peach, which, due to its characteristics and unpretentiousness in care, has gained wide popularity among gardeners.

Description and characteristics of the variety

Donskoy frost-resistant peach has a medium-late ripening period and belongs to medium-tall varieties - the maximum height of the tree does not exceed 3.5–4 m. The crown is compact, not more than 2 m in diameter, the branches are characterized by an average degree of density and branching. The plant does not need shaping and pruning. In the spring and autumn, it only requires the removal of damaged and shrunken branches. Life expectancy is about 20 years.

Drought and frost resistance

Frost resistance is a distinctive feature of this variety - the tree can easily withstand temperature drops to –40 ° С. Moreover, the Don frost-resistant has the ability to recover after freezing in the winter.

However, being a light and heat-loving plant, it has low drought tolerance. The lack of moisture negatively affects the general condition of the tree and the quality and taste characteristics of the fruit. Therefore, systematic plentiful watering is the main condition for growing this variety. Did you know? The homeland of peaches is China, but Persia was considered for a long time, through which this fruit was introduced.

Grade Pollinators

Don's frost-resistant peach is a self-pollinated variety, and therefore does not require planting nearby pollinating neighbors. However, despite the fact that even one tree will produce a good crop, planting several plants next to each other will provide the opportunity for cross-pollination, which will positively affect the final result.

Productivity and fruiting

This variety of peaches is characterized by early maturity and high yield indicators - the tree gives the first fruits in the third or fourth year of growth on the garden plot, and a plant at the age of 10 years can bring 10 buckets of the crop (about 40-50 kg).

Peaches are characterized by yellow color and pink blush on the sides. The average weight is 60–80 g. The pulp is white in color, without veins, dense and juicy, has a characteristic aroma. The taste is sweet, with a slightly pronounced sourness. Taste characteristics are estimated at 4.5–4.6 points out of a possible 5. Peaches Donskoy frost-resistant are versatile and can be used both fresh and in canning.

Disease and pest resistance

The Donskoy frost-resistant variety has a fairly stable immunity to various infectious diseases, including powdery mildew and curly leaves - one of the most common diseases of fruit trees.

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Advantages and disadvantages

• The Donskoy frost-resistant variety has a lot of advantages, among which the most significant are:
• early maturity and high productivity;
• excellent taste characteristics;
• high rates of transportability;
• stable immunity to various diseases;
• self-pollination.

The disadvantages of these peaches are insignificant - low drought tolerance, which can lead to loss of fruit quality in the absence of timely watering, as well as the need to plant several trees at once for cross-pollination.

Landing Features

Proper planting is one of the main requirements in obtaining a healthy tree and, as a result, a rich harvest, and therefore you should carefully adhere to its basic rules.

Optimal timing

Planting peaches, depending on the climatic and weather conditions of the region, can be carried out in spring or autumn. Each season has its own advantages. So, planting in the spring is most suitable for areas with a cold and temperate climate, at a time when the soil has already thawed, but the buds have not yet swelled (usually, late March - early April) - this will allow young trees to take root and easily tolerate winter cold.

Autumn planting is more suitable for the southern regions, which are characterized by long autumn and warm winters - in this case, planting is carried out before the onset of cold weather and will allow the soil to condense during the cold time, and the roots that have sprouted will allow them to develop without any deviations, properly feeding the stem, branches and buds. With the onset of spring, such a tree will begin to actively develop and grow.

Important! Seedlings can be replanted until the onset of extreme heat. However, the root system must be closed.

Choosing the right place

When choosing a place for planting peaches, it should be borne in mind that this is a thermophilic plant that can actively develop only if there is sufficient natural light.

And therefore, the place should be open, sunny, without shading from fences or old trees.

Also, the site should be free of drafts and windiness. The most suitable place will be a small hill or slope, which will protect the tree from the northern winds, and also exclude the possibility of a close run of groundwater.

Selection and preparation of planting material

As planting material for peaches, both seedlings and seedlings are considered:

1. Seedlings - an economical option for growing your own peach. In order to grow it, 2-3 of the strongest and most ripe fruits are selected, seeds are extracted from them, which should be well washed and dried. Further, the seed material is immersed in wet sand or sawdust until germination (about 2–2.5 months). You can speed up the process - for this, the bone, after 30-40 days, is carefully removed from the substrate and sown in the ground (the optimal period for this procedure is early spring, after warming up the soil).
   
   In the event that two or more peaches are planted, the distance between them should be at least 25 cm. It is permissible to sow planting material in the ground in the fall (in October-November, before the first frosts) - if wintering in the soil, the seedlings will require shelter.
2. Saplings - an already developed and grafted young tree is acquired. For planting, one or two year old plants are selected, the height of which should not exceed 1.5 m, and the number of branches - 2–4 pieces. The root and aerial parts of the seedling should not be dry, have signs of rotten formations or any other damage.
   

After the acquisition, the roots of the seedlings are wrapped with wet gauze, and on top with a plastic bag - this will protect the fragile plant from injury during transportation, as well as from the negative effects of temperature changes and humidity. After the seedling is delivered to the place, it should not be immediately deployed - it is better to leave it in this form for 3-4 days, after removing small shoots that require moisture.

Important! Growing seedlings is a more economical way, but does not guarantee varietal traits in the future tree and its fruits.

Many experienced gardeners acquire seedlings in the autumn period, since it was at this time that a wide selection of planting material and more reasonable prices were provided. The question arises: how to protect seedlings from winter frosts, as well as rodent invasions and save them until spring?

There are several ways to solve this problem:

1. A large container, the size of which depends on the root system and the number of seedlings purchased, is filled with wet sand and young trees are planted to a depth of about 50 cm. The container is placed in a cool, dry room (for example, a cellar) with air temperature from 0 ° to + 5 ° С . Such conditions will allow the plant to calmly wait for spring.
2. If there is no possibility to use the cellar, you can use a dig - for this, a small trench (40-50 cm deep) is excavated on the site, the south side of which is formed at an angle of 50, while the north side remains steep. Seedlings are laid in a prepared ditch, while the crowns are facing south. Plant roots are covered with moist soil, carefully tamped and moistened abundantly. From above, the prikop is covered with spruce branches, which will become warming and shelter from the cold, and also protect the seedlings from the invasion of rodents.
   

A few days before planting, the seedling is soaked for 1 day in water at room temperature with the addition of a growth stimulator.

Important! Before planting, it is recommended to pour paraffin on the stem of the seedling - this will protect the tree trunk from the invasion of pests, rodents, as well as the negative effects of sunlight.

Landing technology

The landing pit for peach is pre-prepared in the fall, which gives time to evenly sag and moisten the soil. The soil from the pit is initially divided into two parts - the top layer (about 30 cm), more fertile, mixed with organic matter, which use 1 bucket of humus and 1 glass of ash.

Further, the landing process consists of several stages:

1. The bottom of the landing pit is laid out with broken brick or rubble (layer thickness of about 15 cm) - such materials will act as drainage.
2. A peg (to a depth of about 20-30 cm) is clogged to the bottom of the pit, which will become a support for an unstable young tree. Then the pit is filled with a mixture of soil and fertilizers, and after that - with earth from the lower layer. The result is a low embankment.
3. The root system of the plant is carefully inspected: all damaged fragments are removed, if the root has dried out a little, it is immersed in water for several hours, and immediately before planting it is dipped in a solution with manure.
4. The sapling is gently shaken to straighten the rhizome, and set with one hand on the prepared mound, and the other is sprinkled with earth and poured 10 liters of water. After the root system is completely covered with soil and carefully tamped.
5. The plant is firmly tied to a peg and once again watered with 1 bucket of water. A trunk hole is formed around the perimeter.
6. After all the manipulations, the near-stem soil is mulched with the help of sawdust.

Peach Care Features

As well as the process of selection, preparation and planting of peach seedlings, nursing procedures have their own nuances, which will have a significant impact on the growth and development of the tree, as well as on the formation of the future crop.

Watering

Watering peaches implies adhering to the “golden mean” - these fruit trees are quite drought tolerant, but in the absence of regular watering, the quality of the fruit will significantly decrease. One of the most common mistakes gardeners make is frequent watering in small doses - such a system of soil moisture is fundamentally wrong, because water only feeds the top layer of the soil, causing air exchange disturbance and improper root system development (the roots branch in the top soil layer and burn out in the sun).

Did you know? In China, peach is considered a symbol of wealth, prosperity and prosperity.

You need to know that the soil of the trunk circle must be moistened not less than 50 cm. Immediately after planting, seedlings will require frequent watering - every 2-3 weeks. With strong prolonged heat, the amount of watering increases and can become weekly.

Adult plants are watered less often:

• the first time - during or after flowering;
• the second time - during the ripening period of peaches;
• the third time - in the autumn, in preparation for winter.

In the spring-summer period, the volume of water under one tree varies between 30-60 liters. This indicator will depend on air temperature, as well as the amount and frequency of precipitation. Autumn watering involves deeper hydration, and therefore about 8 buckets of water will be required under one root - this procedure protects the soil from freezing and increases the overall winter hardiness of the plant.

In the summer heat, at high temperatures, it is highly recommended not to water the trees with cold water (for example, from a well or a well) - it is better if it warms up in the sun during the day.

Top dressing

Fertilizing is an important stage of agricultural activities, as it positively affects the growth and development of plants, as well as the quality of the future crop.

During the year, top dressing is carried out three times, along with watering, after which the soil of the trunk circle is mulched:

• with the first watering, urea (150-200 g), superphosphate (300-400 g), potassium sulfate (100-120 g) are introduced;
• the second time, in the middle of summer, potash and phosphorus fertilizers are used;
• the third top dressing is introduced in the fall and consists of organic matter (a solution of mullein or chicken droppings).

Diseases and pests of the variety

Donskoy peaches have a stable immunity to many diseases, however, improper care or weather conditions can cause the development of the disease.

We recommend that you familiarize yourself with the methods of controlling pests and diseases of peaches.

And therefore, knowledge of the main signs and methods of struggle will help to avoid undesirable consequences:

1. Kleasterosporiasis (hole blotch) is a common disease of fruit trees and can affect both individual sections and the entire plant. At the initial stage, the foci of fungal infection appear as small brown spots, with a diameter of not more than 5 mm, on the foliage of the tree, which, in just 2-3 days, dry out, thereby destroying the deciduous cover. On the fruits, this disease is present in the form of dark red spots and also leads to the complete drying of the peaches and their subsidence. The first signs are a signal to remove all affected fragments and treat the tree with Bordeaux fluid (scheme: 2 times, with an interval of 10 days).
   

2. Powdery mildew is a fungus that affects both foliage and young shoots and fruits. With such a disease, on the tree you can notice areas covered with white plaque, which, after a few days, take the form of dark spots. Affected plant fragments begin to lag significantly behind in development and eventually die. At the same time, spores of the fungus are quickly carried by the wind throughout the site, and feel especially comfortable in conditions of steady heat. As a treatment, all affected parts should be removed not only from the tree, but also from the site, and the treatment of peaches after flowering with systemic fungicidal and insecticidal preparations will be prevention.
   

3. Curliness is a disease that first affects the foliage, changing its usual color to purple. During the first week after the disease, the back side of the foliage is covered with a gray coating, which causes them to curl and fall. The disease continues to progress, but already on the shoots. The result of kinkiness is a sharp reduction and decrease in crop quality. In order to avoid the development of this disease, in the fall the fruit tree is treated with preparations containing copper.
   

4. Cytosporosis is a fungal disease, the defeat of which is directed to the bark of a tree. Dark spots and smudges form throughout the trunk, the color of the bark changes to dark brown, and the tops of shoots massively dry. As a prevention of peaches, systematic pruning, watering and treatment of wounds are considered. The disease is treated by removing all infected fragments from the site and treating it with Bordeaux fluid according to the scheme: in spring, before foliage and in autumn, after falling off.
   

5. Fruit rot (moniliosis) - manifests itself in the form of small dark spots on the fruits, which in just a few days can lead to blackening of the whole peach and its decay. In the fight against this disease, the removal of all affected fragments and subsequent treatment with fungicidal preparations is used.
   

In addition to diseases, peach fruit trees are also often attacked by pests, ignoring which can lead to a deterioration in the quality and quantity of the crop and even death of the tree:

1. Weevils are insects whose damage affects the buds, buds, inflorescences and young foliage. As a fight and prevention, chemical treatment, removal of pest-affected areas and whitewashing of the trunk are used.
   

2. Aphids are pests that, eating the juice of young leaves and shoots, lead to their complete destruction. Fighting insects is possible with the help of pesticides, as well as folk remedies (for example, infusion of laundry soap and tobacco).
   

3. Fruit moth - the caterpillars of these insects feed on the foliage of the tree and can lead to its complete destruction. The treatment consists in the use of chemical treatment or alternative methods of pest control - 2 cups of wood ash are infused in 3 liters of water during the day. After 24 hours, soap chips and 40 ml of vinegar are added to the solution. The whole mixture is poured into a 10 liter bucket and topped up with water. Processing of such solutions is carried out in two stages: the first time in the middle of spring, the second after flowering.
   

4. Mites - pests, eating plant juice, provoke a delay in development, drying of shoots and a significant decrease in yield. As a preventive measure, it is necessary to adhere to all the basic rules of care procedures, in particular, to whitewash and prune the tree systematically. It also requires treatment with a wide range of insecticaricidal drugs and hunting belts, superimposed above the tree trunk.
   

Important! Affected plant fragments should not only be removed, but also burned - in this way, you can guaranteed to get rid of the infection on the site.

Harvesting and storage of crops

Персики являются косточковыми культурами, которые имеют достаточно непродолжительный срок хранения из-за потери влаги и увядания. Максимальный период, в который персики могут храниться без потери товарного вида и вкусовых качеств — 1, 5 месяца. В этих целях, плоды собирают на этапе полной спелости, но твёрдыми и плотными.

Далее, весь урожай проходит отбраковку — все плоды, имеющие повреждения или признаки заболевания, откладываются. Хранятся персики в деревянных ящиках, при этом каждый плод завёрнут в тонкую бумагу, либо в любой ёмкости с ячеистой прокладкой. Оптимальный температурный режим — 0°С.

Читайте также основные правила утепления персикового дерева на зиму.

Приступая к выращиванию персиков на своём участке, может показаться, что процесс этот будет слишком трудоёмкий и времязатратный. Однако, все не так сложно — стоит лишь запомнить основные правила уходовых процедур и выполнять их систематически и вовремя. Наградой за потраченные усилия станет богатый урожай сладких и ароматных плодов.