Contents
- History of breeding
- Description of the apple tree Royalty with photo
- Characteristic of the variety
- Advantages and disadvantages
- How to plant an apple tree Royalty
- Apple tree care Royalty
- Propagation of ornamental apple tree Royalty
- Photo of a decorative apple tree Royalty in landscape design
- Conclusion
- Reviews of gardeners about the ornamental apple tree Royalty
The Royalty apple tree is an ornamental variety with bright red leaves and large, fragrant flowers. The trees have a rounded, graceful crown. The variety is characterized by high winter hardiness, so the crop can be grown in almost any region.
History of breeding
Royalty is a group of varieties of ornamental apple trees, which are bred on the basis of the Nedzetsky variety, which grows in the countries of Central Asia. It is distinguished by leaves of a purple hue and rather large flowers of red color. The fruits are inedible, so they are used exclusively for decorative purposes. It is not included in the register of breeding achievements, but it is known to many gardeners due to the original leaf color and attractive crown shape.
Several subspecies of the Royalty series are known:
- Pendula – with a columnar crown and hanging branches (like a willow). The foliage is not a classic purple hue, but dark green, with slight impurities of purple. The flowers are pink tones, not dark red.
- Hybrid apple tree Royalty Red purple. The foliage is bright, crimson, looks very beautiful. The tree is especially attractive in late spring, when pinkish-red flowers appear en masse.
- Royalty Beauty – a tree with weeping branches (droop from the trunk to the ground). The foliage is purple, the flowers are originally purple-red in color.
Description of the apple tree Royalty with photo
The Royalty apple tree is an ornamental tree with red leaves and colorful flowers. The description contains characteristics such as color, leaf shape, fruit features, as well as tree parameters – all of which are described below.
The height and diameter of the crown of the apple tree Royalty
The trees are quite tall, they can grow up to 4-5 and even 6 meters. But the growth rate of the Royalty apple tree is small – they reach a similar height only at the age of 14-15 years, and by the age of 10 they grow only up to 3-4 meters.
The crown of the Royalty apple tree is quite compact, then in an adult tree it becomes very wide, with a diameter of 4-5 m. The shape is oval, symmetrical, can be spherical.
Leaves
Most varieties of Royalty apple trees are red-leaved. The leaves are narrowed, the surface shines in the sun. The shape is oval or ovoid, oblong, length is from 8 to 12 cm. The color is crimson, purple, with dark purple hues. Interestingly, by autumn it becomes less intense.
When the trees are completely leafy, the leaf blades turn purple only from below, and on the outside they are dark green. And thanks to this, the Royalty apple tree looks no less attractive.
The tree is decorative with red leaves.
Flowering is plentiful, begins in the first decade of May and lasts 12-15 days. At this time, the trees look especially beautiful. If it is too hot outside, the petals will quickly fade in the sun and fade. Then flowering is reduced to four days.
The buds are large, the inflorescences of the Royalty apple tree are dark red or pink, depending on the variety. They are quite large, reaching a diameter of 3,5 cm. The aroma is pronounced. Peduncles white tomentose, thin.
Fruit
The fruits of the Royalty apple tree are formed in early September. They are small, almost like cherries. The shape is oblong-oval, the color is dark red, the wax coating is gray. The taste is bitter-spicy, specific. They are not eaten, but sometimes an apple cider alcoholic drink is prepared on their basis.
Characteristic of the variety
Among the characteristics of the Royalty ornamental apple tree, winter hardiness is of particular importance, since it determines in which regions it can be grown. Disease resistance also matters – all these parameters are described below.
Frost resistance
The frost resistance of the Royalty apple tree is very high – it can withstand even harsh winters, while in extreme frosts some of the shoots may die. The plant also has good resistance to drought and strong winds.
Growing regions
Due to its high winter hardiness, the Royalty apple tree can be grown in almost all regions of Our Country, including the Urals, Siberia and the Far East. The tree tolerates gas pollution well, so it can be grown even in urban conditions near roads and industrial facilities.
Disease resistance
The Royalty apple tree has good immunity to almost all diseases – its resistance is higher than that of crops with edible fruits. Infection with bacterial and fungal infections is not excluded. Therefore, it is necessary to observe the norm of watering and carry out preventive treatments with fungicides.
In the summer, it can suffer from the invasion of leafworms, aphids, spider mites and other pests. Periodically, trees should be inspected and treated with insecticides or folk remedies.
Advantages and disadvantages
The Royalty apple tree is very attractive in appearance, and its decorative effect is preserved not only during flowering, but also until the first frost. This is a beautiful tree with a compact crown and crimson, bright red leaves. The culture is unpretentious, it can be grown in almost all regions.
One of the advantages of the variety is large, fragrant flowers.
Pros:
- high decorativeness throughout the season;
- undemanding to care;
- high winter hardiness;
- drought tolerance;
- excellent immunity to diseases, pests.
Cons:
- weak growth rates;
- fruits are poisonous.
How to plant an apple tree Royalty
Planting an apple tree Royalty can be planned for both spring and autumn. In the first case, you need to be in time from the end of March to mid-April, and in the second – from the last ten days of September to the 20th of October. The place is chosen in advance. It should be well lit and dry (lowlands are excluded). Trees are not afraid of the wind, so they can be placed in an open area. If the place is shady, the seedling will grow unevenly, the crown will begin to deform, and the foliage will turn dark green, losing a beautiful purple hue.
The soil is first dug up, compost or humus is added in a bucket per square meter. For cultivation, light loamy soil with a neutral pH = 6-7 is optimal. If it is dense, it is required to close up sawdust or sand up to 5 kg per 1 m2.
When landing, they act like this:
- Several pits are formed with a depth of 50 cm and a diameter of 80 cm.
- Put a peg in the center.
- Lay a layer of small stones.
- Sprinkle with soil, ram so that the root collar remains 7 cm above ground level.
- Tied to a peg with a rope.
- Watered and after a few days mulched with sawdust, needles, straw or other materials.
The interval between the pits depends on the purpose of planting the Royalty apple tree. If you plan to make an alley or a hedge, the distance is selected from 3 to 5 m. With a single landing, you need to leave from 10 to 15 m.
Apple tree care Royalty
The Royalty variety is unpretentious, so there will be no special difficulties with care. The basic rules of agricultural technology are as follows:
- Watering is given moderately, spending a bucket of water on young seedlings, and 20-30 liters on adults. The soil should remain only slightly moist. For this, the trunk circle is mulched.
- Periodically, the soil is loosened, if necessary, weeds are removed.
- In early April, the trees are watered with a solution of ammonium nitrate or urea (20 g per 10 l). When the Royalty apple tree blooms and forms buds, it should be watered with a solution of superphosphate (40 g per 10 l) and potassium sulfate (25 g per 10 l).
Even minimal care allows you to get a beautiful, densely leafy tree.
How to form an apple tree Royalty
Crown pruning in the early years must be done very carefully, because if you often remove a lot of branches, the Royalty apple tree will grow even more slowly. It is permissible to carry out a sanitary haircut in early spring, removing all dried, frozen and broken branches. The rest of the crown will form independently. It will be necessary to remove only those shoots that clearly protrude beyond the general contour or thicken the crown.
Propagation of ornamental apple tree Royalty
The Royalty purple apple tree can be propagated in two main ways:
- Cuttings – in early autumn, young annual cuttings are taken, cut at an angle, placed in wet sand and stored in the basement. In the middle of spring, they are transplanted into a container with fertile soil, watered regularly, covered with a jar. At the end of summer they are transferred to open ground.
- You can grow an apple tree Royalty and from seeds. They are planted in March for seedlings, create greenhouse conditions, constantly moisten the soil. Then the seedlings dive and grow for another year at home, and next spring they are transferred to open ground. This is a rarer method, since it is laborious, and besides, individual signs of parent plants may not be preserved in seedlings.
Photo of a decorative apple tree Royalty in landscape design
Decorative apple tree Royalti can be used both in single plantings and in compositions with other crops. It is used to decorate city squares, parks, planted next to the house, gazebo, on the coast of a country pond. Based on dense planting, alleys and hedges are formed. Below are a few options for using the plant in garden design:
- Against the background of the lawn.
- Next to the road.
- Landing in the form of an alley.
- Hedge option.
Conclusion
The Royalty apple tree is one of the best ornamental crops for compositions and single plantings. This unpretentious tree with beautiful red leaves and purple flowers is used to create alleys, hedges. It grows even on infertile soils, does not need special care.
Reviews of gardeners about the ornamental apple tree Royalty
