The Friendship grape variety is perfect for those gardeners who are tired of fighting pests and plant diseases in their area. With good taste data, it also has good resistance to the negative effects of the external environment, so with moderate care you will always get a plentiful harvest. What you need to know about the characteristics of the variety and how to grow it in open soil - this will be discussed in this article.

Breeding History and Breeding Region

Variety Druzhba - a joint brainchild of Russian breeders VNIIViV them. Potapenko and Bulgarian winegrowers NIIIViVa. Varieties Villan Blanc, Misket Kailyshki and Muscat of Hamburg were taken as parent forms. After appropriate tests, the new variety was recommended for cultivation in different regions of Russia, although in the northern parts, with more severe winters, it will have to be covered. This grape was included in the State Register of Selection Achievements in 2002.

Did you know? One of the oldest vineyards in the world is located in Slovenia, in the city of Maribor. It is there that grape bushes about 400 years old grow, from which they receive raw materials for 100 small bottles of wine annually.

Description and characteristics of the grape variety Druzhba

With a careful study of the appearance and productive characteristics of Druzhba grapes, it is easy to notice that the variety has a considerable number of advantages, which are primarily expressed in a fairly high yield and taste characteristics of berries.

Description of berries

The cylindrical bunch of grapes consists of medium-sized round berries. Each of them has a mass of 4 g, with a diameter of not more than 2 cm. The color of the fruit is amber-green, with slightly whitish shades that are clearly visible in sunlight. The peel is thin, but dense enough, due to which the variety tolerates transportation well. The flesh hidden under it is fleshy and at the same time juicy, which only increases the taste characteristics of grapes. At the end of the ripening period (approximately in September), the sugar content of the fruits reaches 19–21%, and the acidity ranges from 6.5–7.5 g / l.

Taste characteristics

The taste of fleshy and very juicy pulp can be called harmonious, because Friendship grapes combine tender sweet notes with a subtle sourness and a delicate muscat smell. The peel on the fruit is relatively thin, so it is practically not noticeable in the process of eating grapes.

Important! Despite its high taste, grape clusters of the Druzhba variety are not large in size, which is why the plant is not often planted for sale in natural markets. More attractive in this regard will be the varieties of Red Honey or Arcadia, the weight of the brushes of which often reaches 1–2 kg.

Productivity

The described variety belongs to varieties of early ripening, therefore, in the regions of the middle zone, the first crop can be harvested already in mid or late August. If the shoots are overloaded with grape brushes, then the berries ripen a little later, especially if the plant grows in the northern regions. Each bush shows a fairly high yield, which on average reaches 60–80%. In general, for the entire growing season from 1 ha, at least 150–180 centners of fruits can be collected. The weight of one bunch is 300-350 g.

Disease resistance

Compared with other popular grape varieties, Friendship is really characterized by good resistance to fungal ailments, in particular to downy mildew and mildew, which are more common than other diseases on plants. However, in some regions, the likelihood of developing these diseases is still high, which is why experienced winegrowers recommend that the vineyards be treated with appropriate chemicals, for example, Polyram.

Frost resistance

Grapes of this variety can be wintered without shelter, but this is only if the temperature in the street does not drop below –23 ... –24 ° C. Further lowering is likely to cause cracking of the vine, due to which the shoots will no longer be able to give a good harvest next year. Vineyards in the central regions of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine should not worry about this, but gardeners of the northern territories should better take care of the appropriate shelter of bushes for the winter.

Did you know? Among the most expensive grape varieties, one cannot fail to single out a variety of Japanese selection Ruby Roman, for one brush of which wealthy people laid out more than $ 8, 000.

Grape application

Many winegrowers do not unreasonably consider the Druzhba variety a true standard of muscat, which determines the area of ​​use of grape fruits. This is really a universal variety, which has good dining and technical qualities. Thanks to this, the grape clusters are excellent both for fresh use and for the preparation of high-quality nutmeg drinks: wines (dessert and table variety), sparkling champagne. Tasters evaluate the resulting wine with fairly high marks: 8.6 points for a dry variety and at least 9.4 points for sparkling champagne. In addition, if you believe the reviews of summer residents, Friendship grapes can produce good juice, which, if desired, can be closed in jars.

Advantages and disadvantages of grapes Friendship

• Speaking about the advantages of the variety, first of all, it is worth recalling such qualities:
• early ripening;
• high resistance to diseases and pests;
• good nutmeg taste.

In addition, there is also a decreased interest on the part of wasps, due to which most of the crop remains intact by these insects. As for the shortcomings of the cultivation of the described grapes, one cannot but say about the relatively small clusters and the need for shelter for the winter in certain regions.

Outdoor and greenhouse cultivation

Wherever you are going to grow Friendship grapes, in any place this process will have common characteristics of planting and further care. In order not to be mistaken in the actions performed, it is important to study their detailed description.

Important! The procedure for sheltering the grapes should be performed no earlier than 2-3 weeks before the expected frost, otherwise the prematurely covered plant will decay or the eyes that are no longer needed will appear on it.

Planting seedlings

Having decided to plant a grape seedling in your area, you should first of all pay due attention to choosing a suitable place. In the case of the described variety, an important role in this matter is played by the level of illumination and the relatively high temperature, but the composition of the soil will not be so important. The main requirement for the soil is good water permeability (without stagnation of moisture).

If the likelihood of stagnation still exists, then you will have to take care of a good drainage layer in the landing hole. Its preparation for planting, as well as the preparation of the entire site, is carried out according to the generally accepted scheme: in autumn, all plant debris must be removed from the site, dig a hole of 70 × 70 × 70 in size and lay a drainage layer about 15 cm thick on the bottom.

In addition, in autumn, it is useful to put fertilizer in a pit prepared from a small amount of dug soil, 1 bucket of humus, 1 liter of ash, 200 g of superphosphate and 150 g of potassium nitrate. During the winter, all these substances should be well absorbed into the ground, and with the advent of spring, it remains only to add clean soil to the hole, occupying about 1/3 of the depth of the pit.

A day before the alleged planting of grape seedlings, Friendship should be examined again and removed wilted or broken roots. If possible, you can lower the rhizome into the Kornevin solution, which will speed up the process of adaptation of the seedling in a new place. The further landing process consists of the following steps.

1. Pour a small amount of soil into the previously prepared hole, but so that a small hill forms in the upper part of the embankment.
2. Place a seedling on a raised platform and carefully spread its roots.
3. Based on the quality of the soil mixture used, add about 1 bucket of water to the hole, fill it with soil and lightly compact the ground.
4. Mulch the soil around the trunk with peat or manure.

So that the grapes do not break and go into active growth, it is useful to tie it to a support, which must be placed at a distance of 30-40 cm from the trunk of a seedling. When growing several grape bushes at once, the next plant should be planted no closer than 1.5 m from the previous one.

Video: planting grape seedlings

Variety Care Features

Immediately after planting, it is better to leave the seedling alone for a while, because moisture and nutrients that were introduced into the soil earlier should be enough for it to quickly adapt to a new place. In a week, when the earth dries well, it will be possible to repeat watering, spending at least 2 buckets of defended water on each bush. After soaking it, be sure to loosen the ground in the near-stem circle and remove the weeds. The regularity of subsequent irrigation is determined based on the condition of the soil.

Find out in more detail how to properly feed the grapes in the fall.

Fertilizers for the Druzhba variety should be applied to the soil at least 3 times a season:

1. In the spring, before flowering, the plant needs to be fed with a mixture of chicken droppings and superphosphate (60 g of overripe droppings and 20 g of superphosphate are taken for 10 liters of water).
2. One and a half weeks after the previous top dressing, along with irrigation into the ground, introduce “Nitroammofosku”.
3. With the beginning of fruiting, either use Nitroammofoska again, or choose another fertilizer, but always with a high content of phosphorus and potassium.

As for the pruning of the vine, in the first 3 years it is only sanitary in nature, that is, all dried and damaged branches must be removed from the bush. Starting from the 4th year after transplantation, you can proceed to the forming pruning so that no more than 35 eyes remain on the bush, that is, 6-8 buds should remain on one shoot. For the garter of the vine, a 2-meter trellis is usually used, which will allow the mount to be moved as the shoots grow.

Pest Prevention and Frost Protection

Despite the high resistance to diseases and pests, Druzhba grapes still need certain preventive measures that will further reduce the risk of problems. In addition to meeting the requirements for care, it is advisable to treat the bushes with chemical compounds twice a year: for the first time, spray the grapes in early spring, and the second time to process the grapes after the harvest.

See also if grapes can cause allergies and how they manifest.

For this purpose, you can use Bordeaux mixture (50-100 g per 10 liters of water), a solution of colloidal sulfur (80-100 g per 10 liters) or preparations like Ridomil, Quadrice or Polychoma (you can take 50– 80 g per 10 l). Also, do not forget about the timely weeding of row-spacings and the removal of damaged shoots and leaves, which in some cases become a refuge for pathogens. In the northern regions, with severe winters, in November, the vine is removed from the supports and covered with polyethylene or lapnik.