The apple tree is perhaps the most common garden culture in Russian dachas. Owners of personal backyards appreciate these trees, and for good reason. Apples contain a huge amount of substances useful for the human body, including iron. The fruits are good fresh and processed: they make jam, jam, juices, compotes, marshmallows.
Choosing an apple tree for growing on the site is now not so easy. There are over 10 thousand varieties of this important horticultural crop in the world. Recently, undersized are very popular. They take up little space, but at the same time give a large harvest. It is to them that the columnar apple tree Zhigulevskaya belongs.
Zhigulevskoe is a domestic variety bred at the Samara Experimental Station. It was opened by the Russian breeder S.P. Kedrin, who crossed two varieties - Wagner and Borovinka. The Zhigulevskoe apple variety received great recognition among gardeners, for which it was included in the State Register of Breeding Achievements. Now it is very popular not only in summer cottages, it is planted on an industrial scale, sending fruits for export. It showed itself best of all in the south and in central Russia. It also gives good yields in Siberia, but there it needs to be grown according to the stanza method (trees are buried in the snow).
Apple tree Zhigulevskoe
Plant pollinators nearby
Option Description:
| Apple tree Zhigulevskoe | |
| |
| general characteristics | Vigorous tree up to 5m, bisexual |
| Ripening period | October |
| Taste | Sweet, with a delicate floral scent |
| Fruit | 125-220 g |
| Fruiting | 75-85 kg per tree |
| Winter hardiness | High |
| Pests and diseases | Disease and pest resistance is high |
- Launched at the Samara Experimental Station in the late 40s of the 20th century... Obtained by crossing the varieties Wagner Prizevoy and Borovinka ordinary. It is entered in the state register and recommended for cultivation in the private sector and at agricultural enterprises.
- The height of an adult tree is up to 6 meters and with the same crown diameter... But these days, they are most often sold on semi-dwarf rootstocks and grow no more than 3 meters.
- Fruit ripening depends on the growing region... Usually the harvesting period is from the end of August to the third decade of September, since ripening is extended in time. The apples are firmly attached to the tree and do not fall off even when fully ripe.
- For normal fruiting, the presence of other pollinating varieties nearby is mandatory... The best options were Kutuzovets, Antonovka ordinary, Anise gray, Kuibyshevskoe. For the best performance, it is better that not one, but 2-3 pollinators are nearby, this has a positive effect on the yield of all trees.
- The fruits are large, the average weight usually varies from 130 to 200 g, individual specimens grow much larger... The shape is round or wide-ribbed, the surface is green-yellow, most of it is covered with a blush, which becomes more intense and brighter as it ripens.
- The variety has a high yield - about 250 kg per plant... But such indicators are observed only in an adult tree, young ones give an order of magnitude less. To ensure a good harvest, you need to follow agricultural techniques and form the crown correctly.
- Good taste... Apples are sweet and sour, they become tastier over time, which is why they are most often used for storage. They lie without problems until spring in a dark, cold room, but already 3-4 weeks after laying, the taste becomes better. You can use this option for any workpieces.
- Resistance to diseases and pests is average... In wet years, plants can be affected by scab and other fungal diseases.
Disadvantages of the variety:
- Low frost resistance... This option is recommended to be planted in regions where the frost does not fall below -30 and to be grafted onto winter-hardy rootstocks.
- Dependence of taste on the weather... In a damp and humid summer, apples will not be very tasty.
In the video, the author notes that the variety is not prone to thickening of the crown, which simplifies the work of pruning and shaping.
The origin of the apple variety Zhigulevskoe
The variety was bred in 1936 at an experimental station near Samara. Zhigulevskoe was created by the breeder S.P.Kedrin by crossing the domestic Borovinka apple tree and the American Wagner. The result is seedlings that have grown into trees with outstanding characteristics.
In 1949, the variety entered the state test, and was included in the State Register of Breeding Achievements in 1965. Today, its safety is ensured by the Research Institute of Horticulture and Medicinal Plants "Zhiguli Gardens" (Samara). The variety is recommended for cultivation in the Lower Volga, Central and Central Black Earth regions, Eastern Siberia and the North Caucasus.
Water the seedling for a month
| Stage 1. Purchase a good-quality seedling It is better to choose among several options... The best option is to buy at the nursery so that the selected tree can be dug out of the ground for you. Examine the plant for damage and signs of disease... There should be no broken branches and peeled bark |
| Stage 2. Prepare a site for a tree Find a place well lit by the sun... It is desirable that the groundwater is at least one and a half meters from the surface. Dig a hole at least 60 cm deep and 80 cm in diameter... Distance from the fence - 2 m, from neighboring trees or buildings - not less than 4 m |
| Step 3. Put the nutrient mixture into the pit Mix 10 parts humus with 1 part ash... Add a mineral complex for fruit and dolomite flour if the acidity of the soil is increased. Fill at least 2 buckets into the pit... Smooth out and spill with water. The remains can be mixed with the soil, which will cover the tree. |
| Step 4. Plant the apple tree Position the plant so that the root system is straightened out, and the grafting site is not covered with soil. Cover up roots and compact the soil... Make a small indentation around for moisture accumulation |
| Step 5. Water the seedling After planting, pour out a few buckets of water... Add as moisture is absorbed into the surface. Water once a week for a month... Use 20-30 liters of water |
Planting apple trees
Planting and caring for the Zhigulevskaya apple tree is not much different from other related crops. According to the rules, work is carried out in the fall. Let's dwell on this question:
- They dig a hole 30 days before planting. Its depth is not less than 70 cm, with a diameter of about 100 cm. When digging, the top fertile layer is folded on one side, the remaining soil on the other. Drainage is laid at the bottom of the pit.
- Then a wooden stake is fired and driven into the center of the planting pit. There should be 50 cm of support above the surface. After planting, an apple tree seedling is tied to it.
- The removed topsoil is mixed with a bucket of manure, 800 grams of wood ash and 1 kg of nitroammofoska. This nutrition for the Zhigulevskaya apple variety, according to experts and gardeners' reviews, is enough for three years. Pour part of the soil mixture onto the bottom of the pit with a tubercle.
- The seedling is placed on a tubercle. The peg should be in the south. Spread the root system and lightly sprinkle it with earth. The root collar should rise 5 cm above the ground.
- An apple tree seedling Zhigulevskoye is wrapped with a gasket and tied to a support with a figure eight, the soil is poured and watered. You will need about four buckets of water.
Comment! If several apple seedlings of this variety are planted, then a distance of at least 2.5 meters is left between them.
Feed regularly
| Stage 1. Process the near-trunk circle Loosen the surface around the trunk to a depth of 10 cm... Remove weeds and sod. If the trees grow in a row as in the photo, you can process the whole strip. Mulch the soil with peat or humus... Just spread a layer 3-5 cm thick |
| Step 2. Water as needed Pour 3 to 10 buckets under a tree, depending on its size... The water should be warm. Carry out work if there was no rain for 10 days or more |
| Stage 3. Feed 3 times per season Fertilize for the first time in early spring... The second - when the ovaries are formed, the third - after the leaves fall. Use mineral complexes or organics... Ideally, alternate between different options. |
| Stage 4. Form the crown correctly In the early years, follow the pattern... This is how the correct crown is laid, which will be easy to care for in the future. Next, carry out sanitary pruning in the spring... Also cut off all shoots growing against the direction of the branches and thickening the crown |
| Stage 5. Harvest on time Collect unripe fruits for storage... Fold neatly into boxes. Use ripe apples fresh or in harvesting... They are stored for no more than one and a half months. |
Purpose of the harvest
Appointment Zhigulevsky apples - table, that is, fresh consumption. For storage, send only whole fruits; for this, put them in boxes or baskets with the stalks up. It is better to separate the layers with paper or shavings. Keep apples in a dark and cool room at a temperature of –1 ... + 1 ° C. The maximum shelf life of the Zhigulevskoye variety is until the New Year.
To prevent the apples from rotting, it is better to separate them with paper, shavings or straw.
Of course, such an abundance of fruits that this apple tree gives cannot be eaten even for the entire storage period. Surplus crops will have to be sold, distributed or processed into juices, dried fruits, mashed potatoes and other winter preparations.
Diseases and pests
| Scab Signs: dark spots on leaves and fruits. Reduce tree growth and spoil apples. Prevention and control: treatment in the spring with Topaz. Spraying after flowering with a solution of colloidal sulfur |
| Apple mite Signs: small red insects at the ends of leaves and shoots. They hibernate in the folds of the bark. Prevention and control: removal of old flaking bark, whitewashing of the trunk. Sprinkling with Dicofol solution in spring |
Pollination
The apple tree "Zhigulevskoe" is self-infertile variety, that is, to set fruits, it needs cross-pollination with pollen from another apple variety.
It is recommended to plant the Zhigulevskoe apple variety next to such varieties as "Kuibyshevskoe", "Antonovka ordinary", "Spartak", "Northern Sinap", "Skryzhapel", "Kutuzovets" and "Anis gray".
Important! The highest quality insect pollination is possible only if the distance between the apple tree and the pollinating varieties is no more than 50 m.
Gardeners reviews
Vitaly, Tver
Apples of the Zhigulevskoye variety during storage significantly improve the taste to "honey". Zhigulevskoe ripens in the last decade of September.
Natalia, Moscow
Zhigulevskoye was also at the former dacha. Awesome beauty large red fruits with bright yellow pulp. How to the exhibition! Delicious, juicy. But the tree must be formed, as it likes to give branches with an acute angle of departure, fraught with breaks.
Rootstocks
The Zhigulevskoe variety can grow on several types of rootstocks:
- Dwarf - the fruits are no different from the classic subspecies of the variety.But, the plant reaches a height of only 2m and its fruiting begins earlier.
- Semi-dwarf - the growth rate is indistinguishable from vigorous, but only in the first few years of life.
- Columnar - looks like a dwarf seedling, but the branching of the crown is practically absent. Bears fruit for 3-4 years. Life expectancy is short - 10 years.
