Apple variety President (columnar apple)

The President is one of the best domestic varieties of columnar apple, obtained in 1974 at the All-Russian Institute of Selection and Technology of Horticulture and Nursery of the Russian Agricultural Academy (VSTISP, the former Research Zonal Institute of Horticulture of the Non-Black Earth Belt) when crossing two varieties - Vazhak (with a columnar crown) and 'Abundant'. The author of the variety is an outstanding breeder and geneticist, Professor Victor Valerianovich Kichina. The columnar apple tree President was zoned in 2002. Trees of this variety are quite widespread in the homestead and country gardens of Moscow, Samara, Perm and other regions. In general, the President is very promising for the regions of the Black Earth and Non-Black Earth regions.

By the strength of growth, the trees are semi-dwarf, the tallest have a height of just over 2 meters. The crown is distinguished by a rather strong foliage, but also by its compactness and small dimensions (width about 20 cm). In the phase of full fruiting, the size of the annual growth varies from 5 to 10 cm. Fruit formations in the form of ringlets and spears abundantly cover the trunk of the apple tree. The wood is characterized by hardness and rigidity, due to which, even with very abundant harvests, the trees do not bend. The life expectancy of annelids reaches 12-14 years. The root system on young seedlings is quite dense, which contributes to better survival of trees in case of their transplantation. The best time for planting seedlings is spring, the planting pattern is standard: 90 cm - distance between rows, 60 cm - between apple trees.

The distribution of fruits along the entire length of the trunk is uniform, from the ground - at the level of 30 - 40 cm. The shoots are thick, the internodes are shortened. The leaves are long, large, deep dark green in color, with a glossy surface, obovate, flat, crenate at the edges, with medium-length petioles.

Apples are quite large in size, rarely of medium size (the average weight of the fruit is 140 - 250, but not less than 100 g). The shape of the fruit is flattened-rounded, symmetrical. The main color of apples is pale yellow, the integumentary color is expressed on 2/3 of the part or on the entire surface of the fruit in the form of a delicate blush of a violet-red hue. The skin is thin, but rather tight, with a shiny sheen. The peduncles are short, the seed chambers are closed, the axial cavity is absent.

Apples of the President variety have a pleasant sweet and sour taste and a pronounced aroma. The pulp is fine-grained, white, very juicy.

The variety is characterized by a rapid onset of the fruiting period. Annual seedlings bloom intensively already in the year of planting in open ground. Five-year-old trees give 5 to 8 kg of fruit annually. But with good care of apple trees (correct pruning, timely watering, periodic feeding of the soil with organic and mineral fertilizers), the yield can be easily doubled (from 10 to 16 kg per tree). Despite the possible fluctuations in the level of productivity from year to year, the trees of this variety bring crops regularly. It was also noted that the fruits on apple trees are tied during flowering even in very unfavorable weather and in the years when there is no "invasion" from the bees.

The fruits ripen from late August to mid September. Subject to the rules of collection and storage, apples are kept unchanged until the end of December. The minimum shelf life is 1.5 months. Possessing excellent dessert properties, apples are suitable for fresh consumption, as well as for preservation, lopping, processing into dried fruits.

Winter hardiness of the President variety at the level Antonovka ordinary, resistance to various kinds of pests and diseases is quite good. Nevertheless, apple trees require care: spraying before the flowering period, wrapping the lower part of the trunk for the winter to protect against damage to the bark by rodents and additional protection from frost. Especially at a young age, a competent watering regime and annual feeding with "organic" are important for trees. For adult apple trees, the technology of natural farming is suitable for feeding.

Preferred conditions for planting seedlings: sunny places with moist, fertile, well-drained soils (without close occurrence of groundwater).

The main advantages of the columnar variety President are: compactness of trees, decorativeness and good taste of fruits, high productivity and early fruiting, high resistance to frost and diseases, good survival of seedlings during transplantation.