Description and characteristics of the Solnyshko apple tree, planting and care rules
Apple tree of the popular variety Solnyshko of late ripening. She is loved and planted on their plots by amateur gardeners. Bunches of yellow-red apples on the branches of a small tree look great. To get a high yield, you do not need special care for the seedlings. The apple tree is planted not only singly in private gardens, but also on an industrial scale. The Solnyshko apple tree is included in the register of elite varieties for its beautiful and numerous fruits.
The history of apple breeding Solnyshko
A new generation of apple trees was bred from the seeds of a wild tree at the beginning of the 80s by the employees of the All-Russian Research Institute - V. Zhdanov and Z. Serova. A young tree at the end of the sixth year of growth surprised with a high yield of beautiful and tasty fruits. The new variety has appeared on the farms of many amateur gardeners in Russia.
Advantages and disadvantages of the variety
The Solnyshko variety has positive and negative sides. The benefits include:
- winter hardiness;
- ease of care;
- decorativeness during flowering;
- yield and keeping quality of fruits;
- good survival rate of cuttings.
The disadvantages include the timing of the return of the crop, shedding of fruits long before ripening in a dry summer or in a season of high humidity.
Main characteristics
The Sun Apple tree is distinguished by its compactness. In addition to this type of tree, there are dwarf and semi-dwarf varieties; on dwarf rootstocks, which grow up to 2 meters in height, bear fruit after 4 years. The Orlovskoe Solnyshko variety was bred by selection. It has the same characteristics and qualities.
External description
The crown of the tree is round in shape, branches are spreading - in the fall, under the weight of ripe fruits, they lean to the ground. In the spring they are covered with a cap of lilac flowers.
Tree height
The tree grows up to 4 meters high. The bark on the trunk is dark brown, polished. Branches in the form of large arcs extend from the trunk.
Crown width
Large and small branches diverge by 3.5 meters. Shoots and buds are fleecy, placed on short internodes.
Size and shape of leaves and flowers
On short petioles there are dark green shiny leaves with a sharp twisted tip.On dense stalks, 3-5 pale pink buds bloom, which cover the crown with a lilac veil.
Who is the pollinator variety
To pollinate the self-fertile Sun, you will need other varieties of apple trees, such as: Antonovka, Moscow pear, Imrus, White filling, Orlik, Dream, In Memory of a Warrior.
Early maturity
After planting, the tree develops six years before the first harvest.
Yield
About 200 kg of apples are harvested by gardeners from apple trees, and in horticultural farms per hectare of plantings - 100-120 centners.
Fruit tasting
The fruit has a sweet taste with pronounced acidity. Apples receive 4.3 points on a five-point tasting scale.
With regards to the chemical composition, 100 g of pulp contains:
- 7.9% sugar;
- 0.86% titratable acid;
- 7.2 mg ascorbic acid;
- 100 mg of P-active compounds.
Frost resistant
The variety is not afraid of cold weather - it can withstand frosts down to -40 °. At lower rates, only the upper parts of young shoots and the buds on them are affected.
Exposure to infections and pests
The Solnyshko variety has a high scab resistance. Copper mites, mites, and moths cause significant harm, therefore, preventive treatments are required.
Tree lifespan
The tree develops and bears fruit from 7 to 35 years. The first harvest gives at a young age, starting from 30 years, the yield gradually decreases.
Ripening and fruiting period
Flowers bloom in mid-May. One inflorescence contains 3-6 fleecy buds. The tree gives its first harvest at the end of the sixth year of development.
Start
After pollination, the fruits are tied, poured and ripen by September.
The timing of fruit ripening
Full ripening of apples occurs at the end of September, but full flavor quality is revealed after a month of ripening. Excellent qualities and presentation are kept for 5-6 months.
Collecting and using apples
Apple trees are harvested in late September and early October. In an unfavorable season, part of the crop falls off until the time of full ripening. Experienced gardeners remove part of the crop to regulate fruit flow; the removed part is used for winter blanks.
Harvested carefully, without touching the adjacent branches with apple clusters. The fruits are placed in clean cardboard boxes, replacing each row with paper, at a distance from each other. The harvested crop is stored in a cool dark place at temperatures up to +8 °. If the boxes are dropped into the basement for storage, they cannot be placed next to the potatoes - this reduces the taste of apples, shortens the shelf life.
Regularity of fruiting
Apple varieties bear fruit well, but the yield depends on the amount of ovary, fertilization applied, and the age of the tree. Experienced gardeners remove some of the flowers from young and old trees in the spring for a regular yield.
Features of growing varieties in the regions
The variety Solnyshko has been zoned in three regions: the Central and Volga Federal Districts, on the Lower Volga. Characteristics and winter hardiness allow the Sun to develop and bear fruit in the Urals, in the Moscow region, in the Leningrad region. In a rainy summer, it is required to drain water from the trunk circle.
Planting and caring for a seedling in the garden
A young tree is planted in a permanent place in the fall, a month before frost, or in early spring. The place is chosen sunny, without a close occurrence of groundwater.
How to choose a healthy seedling
A two-year-old seedling is suitable for planting. The root of the seedling should have a good lobe beard, without damage. The trunk of the tree is a solid color, with shiny bark, without affected areas. Several leaves are kept at the top of the branch. They should be dense, free from visible infections and insects.
Landing dates
In the spring, the seedling is planted in early April, before the buds swell, or in the fall, in September-October, before the leaves completely shatter, a month before the cold weather.
Technology and circuits
A pit for planting is prepared in advance, its depth is 60 cm, diameter is 60-80. The top layer is 20 cm, laid on one side, the bottom layer on the other. Broken bricks and wood waste for drainage are poured at the bottom of the pit. The upper layer of the excavated earth is mixed with rotted manure (3: 1), supplemented with ash and mineral fertilizer. The fertilized soil is poured into the hole up to half and left for 2-3 weeks.
Before planting, an apple tree seedling is immersed to the root collar in water with the addition of 200 ml of manure infusion for 3 hours.
After saturation of the root with water, the seedling is lowered onto a mound formed in the planting pit. Next to the tree, a support is installed for tying the trunk, the hole is filled with the remaining soil, tamped. The graft is placed 4 cm above the soil so that after subsidence it will level with the ground level. The trunk is fixed on a support, the pit is filled with water. Trees are placed at a distance of 4-6 meters from each other.
Agrotechnics
To get a decent harvest, the seedling needs proper care: watering, loosening the soil, fertilizing, pruning, adjusting the density of the crown and ovary, treating diseases and insects.
Watering and fertilizing
In the hot summer, the tree is regularly watered, and in the rainy season, water is diverted from the trunk circle. A year after planting, in the spring it is watered with infusion of chicken droppings, nitrogen-containing compounds, in the summer, after watering, superphosphate, nitroammophoska are applied, in the fall - mineral fertilizers, for the winter the trunk circle is covered with rotted manure.
Pruning and shaping the crown
The first year, the shoot is cut by 1/3 for the lateral branches to grow. In subsequent years, the damaged branches growing inward are cut out, and also the crown is formed.
Seasonal processing
Plants are treated against pests and diseases by spraying with a solution of copper sulfate with the addition of an infusion of laundry soap, dry mustard powder. After flowering, the apple tree is treated with drugs such as Topaz, Hom.
Shelter for the winter
The Solnyshko variety is winter-hardy, so only young seedlings require covering the trunk circle with rotted manure with a layer height of 15 cm and spraying the crown with a superphosphate solution (30 g per 1 liter of water).
