Description and characteristics of the Melitopol dessert cherry variety, planting and care
Many amateur gardeners grow cherry trees on their property. They do not require special care, and the harvest for their needs is sufficient. One of the favorite varieties can be called Melitopol dessert cherry - a large-fruited hybrid with pleasant taste. Jams are made from berries, compotes are boiled, and eaten raw or frozen for use in the winter.
Description of the variety
Cherry Melitopol dessert was created by Ukrainian breeders of the All-Russian Research Institute named after IV Michurin. It grows successfully in southern Europe. She has a consistently high yield. This cherry needs the neighborhood of other pollinators. They can be representatives of other cherry varieties.
Ripening terms
Such a fruit tree gives its first harvest already in the 4th season after planting the seedling in the ground. If a three-year-old seedling is planted in the soil, then the crop is harvested for 3 years of cultivation.
This is an early ripening cherry. Under favorable conditions, the harvest begins in the last week of June.
Appearance
The cherries planted on the garden plot bear fruit, and also create the necessary shade in the summer, covering it from the sun's rays. The Melitopol dessert cherry hybrid is no exception.
Wood
The cherry tree of Melitopol dessert is strong and tall. It grows up to 4 meters in height. He has a voluminous, spreading crown of a rounded shape. During the flowering period, it is covered with white flowers with a pleasant smell.
Fruit
Fruiting in this variety is abundant. Up to 50 kilograms of cherries can be harvested from one adult tree. The berries appear on thin, one-year branches. The fruits of this hybrid are round, rather large, with a barely noticeable groove. The weight of one berry is about 9 grams (usually 6-8), but the inside is relatively small, it is easily separated from the pulp.
The skin is tender, with a bright shine. The pulp is very sweet, combined with a wine tint, has a light red color. When biting, a kind of sourness is felt. According to expert tasting assessments, the indicator of this variety is 4.75 points when evaluated on a 5-point scale.
Favorable growing conditions
This hybrid is not picky about care. It successfully tolerates dry weather and dry winds. It does not die during severe frosts in winter and temperature drops in spring. It is optimal to choose for cherry trees that side on the site that is protected from winds, and where there is no stagnation of groundwater.The soil can be loamy, neutral and light.
Disease resistance
Melitopol dessert cherry successfully resists some diseases that other cherry trees are susceptible to: moniliosis and coccomycosis.
Features of planting and care
For cherry seedlings to take root, it is better to plant them in the autumn, after the foliage has fallen off. Being in the resting stage, they can more easily tolerate the transplanting process.
Rooting is also successful when planted with green cuttings. The rooting rate is up to 70%. Already during the first year after planting the seedling in the soil, it begins to form a crown.
Fertilizer
Organic fertilizers are applied under the planted tree once every 2 years. In the autumn, they carry out mandatory fertilizing with mineral fertilizers.
Pruning
This cherry tree, like other fruit trees, requires timely pruning:
- Removal of shriveled branches.
- Pruning damaged shoots.
- Removal of unnecessary branches for thinning or crown formation.
This procedure is done 2-3 times a year. It helps to increase fruiting.
Watering
For young trees, regular irrigation is required. The soil is watered with enough water so that it gets wet to a depth of about 50 centimeters. During the first month after planting the tree, watering is carried out after 3 days. The amount of water should be about 10 liters per tree.
If at this time dry weather is established, then the amount of irrigation water should be increased by about 2 times. An adult tree needs watering after the flowering period has passed to ensure that the berries are flowing.
Soil mulching
To minimize moisture evaporation through the surface soil layer, the soil, next to the young seedling, is mulched. As a mulch, use tree bark, coniferous needles or other organic matter. The thickness of the mulch layer in the area of the trunk circle should be about 7-10 centimeters.
Loosening the soil
It is necessary to loosen the root zone to a shallow depth so as not to harm the root system. Be sure to remove the weed so that it does not interfere with the growth of the cherry.
If you do not observe the above conditions for growing a young cherry tree, then the percentage of plant survival can be significantly reduced.
