The Antonovka apple variety has been one of the most widespread in Russia, Belarus and Ukraine for a long time. AND it owes its appearance for the most part not to breeders, but to amateur gardeners... It belongs to the category of folk selection. You can familiarize yourself with the description and reviews of gardeners about this variety below.
The history of the appearance of the variety
Despite its popularity, Antonovka belongs to those varieties, the occurrence of which is not exactly known. It is believed that she is casual a hybrid of a cultivar with a wild forest apple.
The Antonovka variety is not the result of the work of breeders. He owes his appearance to amateur gardeners.
It is generally accepted that she came from the Kursk or Tula regions... This variety was first described in 1848 by N.I. Krasnoglazov in his work "Rules for fruit growing in open ground, greenhouses, greenhouses."
In 1896 S.V. Batov (who lived in Tula at that time) presented the Tula Antonovka (in other words, "Wind") at the Nizhny Novgorod exhibition. According to him, the apple tree got its name Antonovka from the name of the gardener Anton, who bred it for the first time back in time immemorial. And the name "wind" appeared because of the strong aroma ("spirit") of the fruit.
But at the same time, the Antonovka variety was not described in any of the A.T. Bolotov (and there are only four of them), which contained more than 660 names of varieties of apple and pear. And in 1906, in his book Atlas of Fruits, A.S. Grebnitsky wrote that Antonovka has been divorced for a very long time, but her place of origin is unknown.
To explain these two mismatched facts, there is a theory that Antonovka was still in Bolotov's register, but under a different name... In those days, it was difficult to understand the varieties, there was confusion in their names. The same plant in different regions could be called differently. And Bolotov himself did not exclude such a possibility.
Antonovka was isolated as a separate variety in the 19th century... In the book "Russian Apples" pomologist M.V. Rytov identified and described 17 varieties. And already in 1929 I.V. Michurin mentioned 26 "varieties" of Antonovka. In 1981, published by E.N. Sedov's "Catalog of varieties of apple trees" emphasized that such a large number of varieties appeared due to the popularity of Antonovka among gardeners.
Antonovka varieties: golden, imrus, bogatyr and others
Currently 25 varieties were created on the basis of Antonovka ordinary... Among them are:
- Gold
- Imrus
- Bogatyr
- Warrior memory
- Cherry
- Orlovim
- friendship of Peoples
- March.
Regions of apple tree growth
Today, Antonovka can be found in the Moscow, Bryansk, Ryazan, Oryol, Kursk, Varonezh, Penza, Kaluga, Tula regions of Russia, as well as in Ukraine and Belarus.
Some varieties are grown even in Altai, Urals, Siberia and the Far East..
Description of trees
The Antonovka ordinary tree is vigorous, with an oval crown. Over time, it becomes spherical and spreading. The main branches rise and grow to the sides over the years... This process begins simultaneously with fruiting. Branches and young shoots are covered with brown bark.
The leaves are bright green, oblong, serrated at the edges. During flowering, the inflorescences are large, white or tinged with pink.
Fruiting
Antonovka belongs to the early winter or late autumn varieties. Usually, fruits begin to be harvested in the second half of September.... Antonovka Ordinary is one of the most productive trees. The tree begins to bear fruit in 7-8 years (after budding). On dwarf rootstocks, the first crop can be harvested already 2 years after planting.
Fruiting Antonovka begins on average 7-8 years after planting.
Fruits of Antonovka vulgaris large with a rounded shape. The ribs are strongly pronounced in the lower part. During the ripening period, they are green with a yellow tint. Completely yellow during storage. The pulp itself is light, sweet, with a pronounced sour taste.
Antonovka golden by maturity can even be attributed to summer varieties. Her fruits are sweet and softer. Individual apples can weigh up to 160 grams. And they begin to collect them already at the end of August.
Productivity and harvest time
The number of apples increases as the tree grows. Up to 200 kilograms of fruit can be harvested from a twenty-year-old tree per year (200 c / ha). There were cases when up to 500-1000 kilograms of apples were collected from one Antonovka tree. At first, fruiting is regular. But over time, it becomes periodic (every two years).
The yield from one Antonovka tree per year reaches 150-200 kg.
Antonovka fruits ripen by the end of September - October. The main subtlety is to pick the apples before the first frost, and they will ripen in a cool place. Apples are ready to pick when a yellowish tint appears on their color, but the texture is still firm.
For the fruits to be stored longer, they must be picked manually... If you shake a tree, the apples will fall and hit the ground. And in these places they will begin to deteriorate in the future. Collect the fruits in wooden boxes or baskets, and plastic buckets will do.
Storing apples
The third advantage of the variety is the storage duration, the term of which reaches 3 months. With proper care and treatment, this period can increase to 4 months.
The shelf life of Antonovka fruits is more than 90 days. And it depends on the area where the tree grows. Fruits harvested in the southern regions are stored on average for two to four weeks less.
A special feature is that the storage time depends on the region of growth. Thus, apples harvested in the northern regions can be stored easily for four months. Moreover, over time, their taste only improves. But the fruits from the southern regions deteriorate faster.
Advantages and disadvantages of the variety
Among the main advantages of Antonovka are the following:
- Good adaptability to different regions
- High yield
- Disease resistance and frost
- High marketability of fruits
- Unrepeatable taste and aroma
- Apples can be consumed fresh, soaked and after processing
- The fruits have a number of beneficial properties, are good antioxidants.
Like all plants, Antonovka has its drawbacks:
- Fruiting is periodic
- Fruits of not all varieties are stored for a long time.
Pollination
Antonovka is a self-fertile tree, that is, it needs pollinators. Best suited for these purposes:
- Pepin saffron
- Welsey
- Autumn striped
- Anises.
Landing
In most of Russia, Antonovka is planted until the end of October... Plants planted later may not have time to take root. If a spring planting is planned, then the best time for it is the end of April. In this case, it is better to prepare the place for the seedling in the fall.
Loam and sandy loam are most suitable for planting. The water level must be at least 3 meters.
A hole is prepared with a size of about 1 meter in diameter and up to 80 cm in depth. This is done a few weeks before planting. This will help the seedling to root more easily, allowing the tree to bear fruit earlier.
During planting, turf is laid at the bottom of the hole and is well watered. A peg is inserted, the length of which is higher than the soil level. A fertile layer of soil with fertilizers (mineral and organic) up to 20 cm high is poured from above. Then the seedling is lowered and covered with earth. In this case, you need to be careful with the roots so as not to damage them. To ensure that all nutrients reach the roots, all leaves are removed from the seedling.
In no case should the root collar be buried. When the seedling is almost completely covered, it must be pulled up a little. Due to this, the root collar will rise slightly above ground level, and there will be no air between the roots. The seedling is tied to a peg. Then the soil is watered abundantly, mulched. In the first month or two, watered weekly.
The seedlings of Antonovka are planted at a distance of more than 1 meter from each other.
Care
Antonovka grows well even on scarce lands, where gardening problems usually arise. But naturally, they need proper care.
For better fruiting, trees need moisture. But on soils with excess moisture or, conversely, on arid soils, Antonovka gives a lower yield.
After heavy rainfall, the soil near the tree needs aeration.... This can be done with an ordinary pitchfork or a metal rod, simply by piercing the ground to a depth of 30 cm. During periods of drought and high temperatures, once a week Antonovka must be watered abundantly.
In the first year of life, proper care is especially important for seedlings. It includes a few simple steps:
- Top dressing fertilizers
- Protection from diseases and pests
- Loosening the soil trunk circle and weed removal
- Timely watering
- Correct pruning.
Another important process is mulching. For more mature plants, the near-stem circle can be sown with green manure.
Fertilization
For better fruiting, the apple tree must be fed 4 times a year:
- 1 top dressing... In the spring, until flowering, Antonovka is fed with urea in the amount of 50-500 g, depending on the size and age of the tree. Fertilizers are spread over the soil under the tree crown.
- 2 feeding... With the appearance of flowers, potash and phosphorus fertilizers, slurry and urea are applied.
- 3 feeding carried out with nitrogen fertilizers during the ripening of the fruit.
- 4 top dressing after harvest. Potassium and phosphorus are added.
Pruning and shaping the crown
Simultaneously with feeding in the spring it is necessary to trim the crown... This is done a couple of weeks before the start of the growing season. At the same time, dry and damaged branches, wild shoots are removed, the crown is thinned.
Protection against diseases and pests
Antonovka, like all plants, requires protection from pests and diseases.
It is possible to kill up to 90% of pests on a tree by treatment with poisons in the period until the flowers appear.
To do this, use malofos 0.1% or rovikurt 0.1%. A little later, when the kidneys appear, use Bordeaux liquid 3%. Her, only in a concentration of 1%, is used to combat diseases during the shedding of petals. For the same purpose, copper oxychloride 0.4% is also used. All pesticide treatments are best done in the evening, before sunset.... Night processing is allowed if there is no dew. Fallen leaves are collected and burned.
Caterpillars and weevils that appear on trees are collected by hand and exterminated. Wasps will help from insect pests. Umbrella plants (for example, dill) planted next to the apple tree will help attract them to the tree.
Unique taste and aroma, frost resistance, long shelf life - these are the main characteristics that attract gardeners... Despite the emergence of new selection varieties of apple trees, Antonovka is still one of the most popular and beloved varieties.