Apple Delicious Red: a description of the variety and photo

Probably, it is difficult to find a person who does not like apples. Someone likes sweet varieties, someone needs a sour taste. Breeders around the world are working on the development of new, more advanced varieties of apple trees. Today we will introduce you to one of such developments - the apple variety Red Delicious.

History of the variety

The name of the variety comes from the words red, which translates as "red", and delicious, which means "delicious." The variety appeared in the United States, during the spontaneous mutation of apple trees Delicious. A branch with red fruits suddenly appeared on the tree. Evaluating this cultivar, breeders of Russia approved the cultivation of it on the Russian territory.

For a long time, the cultivar was cultivated only in the southern regions, but later industrial plantings appeared in the North Caucasus. Today, the industrial plantations of Red Delicious apple trees (photos you can see below) have been significantly reduced, but still the demand for apple and seedlings of this variety is high among amateur gardeners.

During the years of breeding, the variety became the progenitor of many interesting cultivars. For example, on the Crimean experimental station appeared: Flame of Elbrus, Prikubanskoe, Winter Beauty. At the Pomorie Experimental Station, Japanese breeders from free pollination of Red Delicious Eggplant received Orient cultivar, which is distinguished by its amazing fruit qualities.

Apple Red Delicious: description, photo

The average sapling of this variety on the seminal root reaches a height of about six meters, and on the dwarf - rarely exceeds four meters. The crown of this tree undergoes changes during development: up to 7-8 years it is oval or back-pyramidal, from 9-10 years it becomes wide-rounded.

The crown consists of many small, medium-thick, sometimes even branches that extend from the trunk at an angle of 35 to 65 °. Usually they are painted in a reddish color. On them there are uneven-aged fruit formations, short shoots - rings. It is on them on the apple tree Red Delicious and the apples ripen.

Shoots of this apple-tree are of average size, in the nursery they are distinguished by a reddish coloration, which darkens in adult trees. On the surface, shoots are pubescent over the entire surface. Most shoots are straight, but sometimes they are curved in the crown.

Leaves

In size they are average, in the center of the crown are oval in shape, and in the lower and upper parts - more elongated. The top of the leaf is pointed, and the base is slightly rounded. The leaves are dyed green, the surface is smooth and shiny with serrate-crenate edges. The main difference from other cultivars, for example, from the progenitor of this variety - Delicious, is the base of the petiole.

If you look closely, then you will see a scarlet patch near the petiole, which extends to the middle of the plate, along the veinlet.

Flowers

Blossoms the apple tree Red Delicious every year and very abundant. Buds are pink, petals are milky-white, having an oval shape. The petals in the flower are located at a fairly large distance from each other and barely touching the edges. Anthers of stamens and stigmas of pistils are located almost at the same height. Friable flaps - inflorescences, consist of 3-4 flowers.

Fruit

Genus Delicious is an apple tree, a description of which can be found today in all the reference books on gardening. The fruits of this variety are attractive even externally: large, round-conical or conical. They are painted in a rich red color. Their average weight varies from 150 to 220 grams, but the maximum weight can reach 300 grams.

The color of apple fruits Red Delicious covers the entire surface evenly. The skin of the apple is dense and perfectly smooth to the touch, well tolerates mechanical damage. Some gardeners consider it too tight and recommend that the fruits be cleaned before use.

The flesh in the center of the apple is greenish-creamy, and closer to the peel it is greenish. It is crunchy, very juicy, but with prolonged storage it becomes mealy and a certain vat. Apples can be eaten fresh, as well as juices, jams, jams, used as fillings for baking, suitable for drying.

The taste of apples of this variety varies depending on the climatic conditions of the growth of the tree: in dry, warm regions, more sugar is accumulated in them, and their taste is sweet, with a barely perceptible sourness. In cooler areas apples are more acidic, but not less juicy than in the south.

Nutrient content

Red Delicious fruit apple fruit contains 0.38% to 0.65% of acids, sugars - more than 11.5%, 130 mg / 100 g of P-active compounds, 16% of dry substances, about 6.5 mg / 100 g of vitamin FROM.

Planting of seedlings

Planting of apple seedlings Red Delicious is carried out in planting pits. Their depth should be about eighty centimeters, width - seventy. At the base of the pit, drainage (broken brick, pebbles, expanded clay) should be laid in a layer of five centimeters, a layer of nutrient soil should be laid on top: a mixture of peat, river sand and humus in equal proportions.

After planting and compacting the soil, it is necessary to water it at the rate of three buckets for each seedling and cover with humus or peat. Do not deepen the root neck of a young tree - after subsidence, it should be three centimeters above the soil level. After planting, be sure to install a supporting peg and tie a seedling.

Peculiarities of growing

Gardeners from the northern regions note that, for their climate, Red Delicious wood apple has insufficient winter hardiness. Considering this, choosing the site for landing, choose well protected from wind and drafts places, aligned without micro-falls, stagnation of rain or melt water, depressions. This variety does not tolerate excessively moist soils, therefore, at a selected location, groundwater must not exceed two meters.

If your seedling has a dwarfish rootstock, then it has a less developed root system, so groundwater is allowed to lie less than a meter and a half.

Planted seedlings of apple trees Red Delicious is better to spend in the spring though in the southern regions of our country it is possible to do it and in the autumn. Preliminarily, the soil is dug onto the bayonet of the shovel, all the weeds are removed (especially the wheat grass), and three kilograms of humus or overgrown manure, a tablespoon of nitroammophoska, 500 grams of wood ash are introduced into the soil.