ASSESSMENT OF THE LARGE-FRUITED FRUIT OF THE APPLE TREE ON THE LOWER TERRACE OF THE VS. M. KRUTOVSKY BOTANICAL GARDEN

Abstract

With the development of horticulture in the Siberian regions, cultivation and introduction of breeding developments, the demand and requirements for varieties have changed. Insufficient winter hardiness in critical winter periods, moral aging of varieties and minimal fruit weight indicate the need for further development and improvement of the assortment by creating new varieties based on the assessment of the existing assortment, which will help to increase the production of environmentally safe fruits and preserve the productivity of apple plantations in the harsh conditions of Siberia. The paper presents an assessment of apple fruits of different maturation periods growing on the lower terrace of the Vs. M. Krutovsky Botanical garden in the period from 2018 to 2020 according to the following biometric characteristics of large fruit: height, diameter, weight of fruits. As a result of the conducted observations, a significant variability in the size of apple fruits was revealed, depending on the varietal affiliation and the year of fruiting. Varieties and individual genotypes of different maturation periods growing on the territory of the lower terrace of the Botanical Garden with the maximum weight and size of fruits were selected: Antonovka vulgaris, Bely naliv, Bismarck, Krasnoyarsk Siberian, Papirovka, St. Petersburg summer, which shows a positive result under the influence of the features of the Siberian summer, namely, the insufficiency of the length of the frost- free period and the sum of positive temperatures, in a sharply continental climate. The studies also included an assessment of the taste qualities of fruits. Breeders of Siberia have created varieties whose fruits are similar in size to those of European varieties. Their high winter hardiness in the regions where breeding was carried out was confirmed in the climate conditions of the research area.