Apple variety Bratchud (Brother of the Chudny)

Bratchud (Brother of the Chudny) is an apple tree with the fruits of the winter ripening period, bred at the South Ural Research Institute of Horticulture and Potato Growing (Chelyabinsk) through crossing the Vydubetskaya weeping variety with a complex hybrid form (11−20−12 x Ural winter). The authorship belongs to the Ural breeders: M.A. Mazunin, N.F. Mazunina and V.I. Putyatin. The variety has been released since 2002. First of all, Bratchud is recommended for cultivation in the regions of the Urals and Siberia, but, in general, it is suitable for all zones of gardening in Russia.

Photo by: Firudin Gasimov, Chelyabinsk

Trees belong to natural dwarfs, the crown has a flat-round shape. In fact, these are not just stunted trees, but natural stlanes (like other varieties of Mazunin's selection). On a seed stock, trees grow up to 2.7 m, when using vegetatively propagated clonal rootstocks, trees do not exceed 1.5 - 2 m in height, the crown diameter is about 2.5 - 3 m. The bark on the trunk and main branches has a pronounced dark -brown color. Fruiting is concentrated on all types of fruit wood and on last year's increments.

Shoots are not thick, colored greenish-brown. The leaves are large and rich in dark green color, the leaf shape is oblong-rounded, there is slight pubescence, the edges are coarsely serrated.

The fruits of the Bratchud apple tree often grow to medium sizes (the average apple weight is 140 - 160 g, the smallest weigh at least 110 - 125 g), much less often - to a large size (weighing up to 200 - 250 g), oblong-rounded, with noticeable ribbing. A distinctive feature of the variety is the presence of a characteristic shovchik on the side of the fruit (a strip passes). The peel on the apples is dry, smooth, without wax bloom, with a glossy sheen. The fruits are greenish-yellow in color, with a diffuse reddish-purple blush present on most of the fruit surface. The stalks are thick, medium in length, set at right angles.

The pulp of ripe fruits is white (in unripe - with green), coarse-grained consistency, not very juicy, excellent sweet and sour taste. In terms of chemical composition, apples contain: soluble solids (14.1%), the amount of sugars (10.2%), titratable acids (0.4%), ascorbic acid (18.8 mg / 100 g), pectin substances ( 1.5% wet weight). Fruits of universal use: fresh consumption, technological processing (preserves, jams, jelly, compotes, juices, fruit wines, jellies, mousses).

Photo by: Firudin Gasimov, Chelyabinsk

The variety has a mid-winter ripening period, the period of removable maturity falls on the end of September. Apples lie without problems until the end of January - February. The general storage period for fruits is very long - up to 4 - 5 months (an average of 140 days). The transportability is very high.

The following varieties are recognized as the best pollinators for the Brother Chudny apple tree: Grounded, Snowdrop, Wonderful, Sokolovskoe.

The early maturation of the variety is good, fruiting begins from the 3rd - 4th year after grafting. Trees bear fruit regularly. The yield is high (up to 120 kg of fruits from one tree). Winter hardiness is also high. Scab resistance is average: in epiphytotic years, the susceptibility to fungal diseases can reach 2 points.

The main advantages of the Bratchud apple tree are: trees - natural dwarfs (convenience in harvesting), high productivity, high commercial and consumer qualities of fruits.

A significant disadvantage is the susceptibility to scab in epiphytotic years. In addition, with dry air and prolonged high temperatures in the summer, the quality of the fruit deteriorates.

In breeding work, this variety is used on the basis of a naturally undersized apple tree.