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Currently, many varieties of domestic apple trees have been bred for every taste and for any region of growth. But the Melba variety, which is already over a hundred years old, has not been lost among them and is still popular. It fills a niche between summer and autumn varieties of apples. Melba seedlings are grown in many nurseries, they are well bought. Such longevity of the variety speaks of its undoubted merits.
History of creation
In the distant 1898th century, when no one had even heard of the science of genetics, breeders bred varieties based on their own intuition, and most often they simply sowed seeds and selected the most successful plants for propagation. This is how the Melba variety was obtained in the Canadian state of Ottawa. It turned out to be the best among all seedlings obtained from sowing the seeds of Macintosh apples, the flowers of which were freely pollinated. Apparently, the author of the variety was a big fan of opera singing – the variety was named after the great Australian singer Nelly Melba. It happened in XNUMX. Since then, new varieties have been created on the basis of Melba, but their parent is found in almost every garden.
To understand why the Melba apple tree is so popular, reviews of which are almost always positive, look at her photo and give her a full description.
Characteristic of the variety
The height of a tree, as well as its longevity, depends on the rootstock on which it is grafted. On the seed stock – 4 m, on the semi-dwarf – 3 m, and on the dwarf – only 2 m. The apple tree lives, respectively, 45, 20 and 15 years. In the first years of cultivation, the seedling looks more like a columnar apple tree, over time the tree branches, the crown grows, but not in height, but in width and becomes rounded.
The bark of the Melba apple tree is dark brown, sometimes has an orange tint. In young seedlings, the bark has a characteristic sheen and cherry hue. The branches of the Melba variety tree are quite flexible, under the weight of the crop they are able to bend to the very ground. Young shoots are pubescent.
Leaf blades are light green in color, often curved in the shape of an inverted boat, sometimes have a yellowish tint, crenate along the edge. In young trees, they droop a little and fall down.
The Melba apple tree blooms in the early stages, with large flowers with tightly closed petals, which have a light pink color. The buds are white-pink with a not very noticeable purple hue.
The apple tree of the Melba variety is fast-growing, it begins to produce apples for 3-5 years, depending on the stock, dwarfs begin to bear fruit first. The yield increases gradually, reaching a maximum value of 80 kg.
If young apple trees give a good harvest every year, then with age there is a periodicity in fruiting. The older the tree, the more pronounced it is.
Unfortunately, the Melba apple tree is prone to scab, especially in rainy years. The frost resistance of a tree of this variety is average, therefore Melba is not zoned either in the North or in the Urals. This variety is not suitable for growing in the Far East.
Apples of the Melba variety are of medium size, and in young apple trees they are above average. They are quite large – from 140 to full-weight 200 g or more. They have a cone shape with a rounded base at the stem.
Ribbing is almost imperceptible. The color of the skin changes as it matures: at first it is light green, then it becomes yellowish and covered with a waxy coating. Melba apples look very elegant thanks to a bright red striped blush, usually on the side turned towards the sun, diluted with white subcutaneous dots. The stalk is thin, has an average length, attaches well to the apple and rarely breaks off when picking the fruit, which increases the shelf life.
Crispy, fine-grained apple pulp is filled with juice. It has a snow-white color, turning a little green near the skin itself. The taste is very rich, with a balanced content of acids and sugars.
In terms of ripening, the Melba apple tree can be attributed to late summer, but the weather can delay the harvest until the end of September. If you collect fully ripe fruits, they are stored in the refrigerator for about a month, and if you do this a week or 10 days before full maturity, the shelf life can be extended until January. Due to the dense skin, apples can be transported over long distances without damaging the fruit.
But still, they are best consumed fresh, as these fruits are very useful.
Chemical composition
The excellent taste of apples is due to the low content of acids – 0,8%, and considerable sugars – 11%. Vitamins are represented by P active substances – 300 mg per 100 g of pulp and vitamin C – almost 14 mg per 100 g. There are a lot of pectin substances in these apples – up to 10% of the total mass.
On the basis of Melba, new varieties were bred, practically not inferior to her in taste, but not having her shortcomings:
- early scarlet;
- Cherished;
- Red early;
- Prima – resistant to scab at the gene level.
Clones were also isolated, i.e., those that changed the genotype of the apple tree. This usually happens for a number of reasons that are not always possible to guess. If during the vegetative propagation of such trees the main characteristics are preserved, they can be called a variety. Thus received the Daughter of Melba and the Red Melba or Melba ed.
Description of the apple variety Melba red
The crown of the Melba red apple tree has a vertically oval shape. Apples are one-dimensional, round, gain weight up to 200 g. Greenish-white skin is completely covered with a bright blush with pronounced white dots.
The flesh of the apple is quite juicy, greenish, the taste is somewhat sour than that of Melba, but this variety is more frost-resistant and less affected by scab.
An apple tree of any variety must be properly planted. The distance between the trees during planting depends on the rootstock: for dwarfs it can be 3×3 m, for semi-dwarfs – 4,5×4,5m, for apple trees on a seed stock – 6x6m. At this distance, the trees will have a sufficient feeding area, they will receive the required amount of sunlight.
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Melba apple tree seedlings are easy to purchase, they are sold in almost any nursery, they are easy to write out in online stores.
Terms of planting
This tree can be planted both in spring and autumn. The most important thing is that at the time of landing it is at rest. In autumn, the leaves on the apple tree should no longer be, and in the spring, her buds have not yet burst. Autumn planting is carried out a month before the onset of real frosts. In each region, the timing will be different, since winter comes at different times. A month is needed for the young tree to take root and prepare for winter frosts.
In the spring, young Melba trees are planted before the start of sap flow, so that by the time the buds open and the onset of heat, the roots have already begun to work, nourishing the aerial part.
Preparing the planting hole and seedlings
Melba apple tree seedlings are sold with a closed root system – grown in a container and with open roots. In both cases there are pluses and minuses. In the first case, it is not possible to control the state of the root system, but if the seedling is grown in a container initially, the survival rate will be 100%, and at any time of the year, except for winter. In the second case, the condition of the roots is clearly visible, but improper storage can destroy the apple seedling, and it will not take root. Before planting, they inspect the roots, cut off all damaged and rotten ones, be sure to sprinkle the wounds with crushed charcoal.
With dried roots, soaking the root system for 24 hours in water with a root formation stimulator helps to revive the seedling.
Spring and autumn planting of apple trees is carried out in different ways, but in any season they dig a hole 0,80×0,80 m in size, and at least a month before planting, so that the earth settles well. The place for an apple tree needs a sunny, protected from the winds.
Not suitable for planting an apple tree Melba is a place in a lowland and where the groundwater level is high. In such places, it is permissible to plant an apple tree on a dwarf rootstock, but not in a pit, but in a mound. For an apple tree, light permeable loams or sandy loamy soils with sufficient humus content and a neutral reaction are needed.
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In autumn, the planting pit is filled only with humus mixed with the top layer of soil taken out of the pit in a ratio of 1: 1. It is permissible to add a 0,5-liter jar of wood ash to the soil. Fertilizers can be sprinkled on top of the soil after planting. In spring, with melt water, they will go to the roots, and in autumn they are not needed so as not to provoke untimely growth of shoots.
A mound of earth is poured at the bottom of the pit, where an apple tree seedling is placed, spreading the roots well, pour 10 liters of water, cover it with earth so that the root neck is flush with the edge of the pit or slightly higher, it cannot be deepened. Leaving bare roots is also unacceptable.
During the spring planting of fertilizer – 150 g of superphosphate and potassium salt are embedded in the topsoil. At the end of the landing, they make a side of the earth around the trunk circle and, having previously compacted the earth, pour another 10 liters of water. Be sure to mulch the trunk circle.
In a one-year-old seedling of an apple tree, the central shoot is cut off by 1/3, in a two-year-old one, the side branches are also pinched.
A young tree needs protection from rodents in winter during autumn planting and timely watering once a week – during spring.
There are varieties of apple trees that will always be in demand. Melba is one of them, she should be in every garden.
