Apple tree Grushovka Moscow: description, characteristics, yield

Description and characteristics

“Grushovka Moskovskaya” refers to summer early varieties of apples – its fruits ripen by mid-August, and since ripening does not occur simultaneously, the harvest period is delayed until the end of the month. Pear apples have a very bright sweet and sour taste and a wonderful aroma, but only while they are fresh. The shelf life of the fruit is quite short – a maximum of 1 month. After this time, the pulp becomes loose and loses its taste, so apples should be consumed or processed as soon as possible.

The short shelf life is perhaps the only drawback of the variety, because its other characteristics are very high. So, apple trees have good winter hardiness (they can survive temperatures of -50 ° C without problems). Disease resistance is average – they can be affected by a fungus, but this disadvantage is compensated by the ability to quickly recover. Trees of this variety are particularly durable – an apple tree can live for more than 50 years without a decrease in yield.

The fruiting of the apple tree “Grushovka Moskovskaya” begins quite early, at 3–4 years of age, and already in the first year it impresses with its yield – up to 10 kg of apples are removed from one young tree. The overall yield of the variety is high, but it appears periodically (after a year). In a productive year, about 180 kg of fruit can be obtained from an adult tree. The variety is not grown for commercial purposes, since it is not stored well and is poorly transported, however, it is in good standing with gardeners and summer residents, due to its unpretentiousness and good yield.

The Grushovka apple tree itself is barren – it needs a pollinator with the appropriate characteristics to form an ovary. It must be a main variety, not a hybrid. It is also important that the timing of the flowering of both apple trees coincide, and that the pollinating variety is adapted to a particular area.

The high own characteristics of “Grushovka” contributed to the fact that it was used as a stock for breeding new varieties, such as “Siberian Souvenir”, “Pear early”.

Appearance

The apple tree of the Grushovka Moskovskaya variety is distinguished by its large (6–8 m in height) size and dense, well-branched crown. A characteristic feature of the crown is that it constantly changes its description. While the tree is young, the crown retains a pyramidal shape, but becomes more spreading with age. By the age of 10, the tree already has a rounded, almost spherical crown with drooping branches. In all periods of life, the density of the crown remains very dense.

The bark of the apple tree has an original brown color with an orange or yellowish tint, and young shoots, as well as seedlings, are more intensely colored (almost dark cherry). The branches are smooth, round in cross section, with multiple annulus, which are much darker in color than the branches and slightly pubescent. The leaves are large, elongated, elliptical, with small notches along the edge. The color of the leaves is green, sometimes with a slight yellowness. Mature leaves are smooth, with stipules; young leaves are pubescent. The buds are pale pink, after flowering they become white with a slight pinkish tinge.

The fruits of “Grushovka” are small or medium in size (60–100 g), in good conditions they can gain a maximum weight of 120 g. The peel of apples is thin, smooth, with a slight shiny bloom. The color of the fruit is particularly multicolored: from greenish-yellow to rich yellow, and even reddish in color with all sorts of strokes, specks covering one side of the apple. The pulp of ripe fruits is creamy or slightly yellowish, sometimes with red patches, darkens when overripe and becomes friable.

Video “Grushovka Moscow”

This review will introduce you to the Moscow Pear apple variety.

History of variety breeding

The Grushovka Moskovskaya variety has been known for more than two hundred years and it is believed that it was obtained by natural selection – that is, it was formed in the process of nomadism in the territories of the Black Earth Region, the Urals, and even Siberia, because it endured severe winters well. During its history, which is reckoned for centuries, it has been improved by the efforts of the people even before the well-known biologist A. Bolotov undertook to write a description for the variety.

The name of the variety comes from the fact that the crown of a young tree, as it seemed to the biologist, was similar in shape to a pear, and the clarification “Moscow” was added to distinguish it from the previously existing variety “Grushovka Nemetskaya”, which at that time was widely cultivated in the West.

In the 1947th century, “Grushovka” spread to North America, where it was presented at an exhibition in Chicago. In XNUMX, the variety was included in the State Register of the Northern Regions. Now these apple trees are grown everywhere in the Federation, Belarus, Kazakhstan and a number of other European countries. In the process of adaptation to various growing conditions, the apple trees “Grushovki” acquired a creeping form in which they are presented in the southern regions.

Peculiarities of growing

As already noted, the Grushovka apple tree is quite unpretentious, but it requires certain conditions for high yields:

• the tree loves sunny and calm areas (hills). In the right place, the fruits ripen faster, have a brighter color and sweet taste;
• stagnant moisture is bad for the condition of the tree and contributes to the development of fungal diseases. To prevent this from happening, it is necessary to lay a drainage layer in the landing pit;
• the most suitable for an apple tree is considered to be slightly acidic soddy, sandy loam and chernozem soil;
• you can plant a tree in spring (second half of April) and autumn (late September – early October);
• given the large dimensions of the tree, the planting hole should be dug 70-80 cm deep and at least 1 m wide;
• from fertilizers, the tree prefers organic matter – humus, compost is laid on the bottom of the pit before planting;
• after planting, the seedling is tied to a long peg that acts as a support.

Caring for an apple tree consists of watering, top dressing and crown formation. The tree should be watered along the perimeter in specially dug recesses. In hot weather, watering can be done by sprinkling, but care must be taken that the leaves are completely dry. The formation of the crown implies the laying of a bole and cutting the tops of the shoots by 10–12 cm. This measure allows you to form strong skeletal branches and increase productivity in the future.

You need to feed the apple tree 3-4 times per season. The first top dressing is carried out at the end of April, fertilizers (urea 500 g and humus 5–6 buckets) are scattered around the trunk of an apple tree. The second time, fertilizers are applied before flowering (superphosphate 50 g, potassium sulfate 40 g) is diluted in 10 liters of water. The consumption of the solution for 1 tree is approximately 40 liters. During the ripening period of apples, nitrophoska (50 g), sodium humate are added under the tree. The last top dressing is carried out in the fall: superphosphate and potassium salt (300 g each) are scattered around the tree.

Fighting diseases and pests

Variety “Grushovka” has an average immunity to diseases, however, periodically and to a small extent, apple trees can be affected by fungal spores: scab, powdery mildew, fruit rot.

Too high crown density contributes to diseases, due to which shade and humidity are created. To prevent this from happening, trees are treated with special preparations – fungicides.

Preventive spraying of apple trees is carried out twice: in early spring, during bud break, and then again, after flowering. From powdery mildew and scab, solutions of Bordeaux mixture, copper oxychloride, as well as preparations Horus, Skor are effective. For the prevention and control of fruit rot, you can use the drug Fundazol.

To prevent apple trees from getting sick, preventive measures should be taken in a timely manner:

• regularly prune – remove old, shrunken and damaged branches;
• before planting an apple tree, keep the ground “fallow” for at least 2 years;
• timely spray trees with disinfectant and medicinal solutions;
• in autumn, carefully collect and burn fallen leaves, as spores of fungi from the leaves enter the soil and successfully winter there.

As for pests, the most frequent guests of the apple tree are: aphids, apple moth, codling moth, apple flower beetle and other insects. The most dangerous are aphids and moths. Aphids spread very quickly through the tree and feed on its juices, which leads to drying and falling of leaves. Moth caterpillars also suck juices from leaves and shoots, gnawing them, which has an equally sad outcome.

For pest control, spraying with the same Bordeaux liquid, copper sulphate, and soda solution is used. If insects were noticed late and managed to multiply, insecticides are used (Chlorophos, Karbofos, Nitrofen).

Also, don’t forget about rodents. In winter, the bark of apple trees is often gnawed by hares, mice and other pests. Whitewashing the trunks helps to prevent this phenomenon. The procedure must be done in late autumn. Many gardeners wrap their trunks with covering material (fiberglass, roofing felt) to protect their trunks. If the tree is small, then it is necessary to press the branches to the trunk, and wrap the seedling with it.

Video “Apple Pests”

This video will introduce you to apple tree pests and activities to help protect your garden from them.