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If you decide to lay a new garden on your site or are thinking about whether you can afford another apple tree, then it makes sense to pay attention to a rather new and promising variety of apple trees - Elena. Of course, it is difficult to pass by a variety with such a popular female name in the past for those gardeners who have a family member with that name. But Elena's apple tree can also interest other gardeners with many of its characteristics.
In this article, you can find both a description of the Elena apple variety and a photo of its fruits, as well as reviews of people who planted it on their site.
History of origin and description of the variety
The apple variety Elena was obtained by the Belarusian breeders Semashko E.V., Marudo G.M. and Kozlovskaya Z.A. as a result of a hybrid crossing of the Early Sweet and Discovery varieties. Both original varieties are summer ripening varieties and are characterized by excellent taste ratings. The Elena variety obtained as a result of their crossing took from them the best indicators of taste and even surpassed them in terms of aroma and juiciness of the fruit. This variety was bred at the Institute of Fruit Growing of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus in 2000, and a year later it was transferred to state trials. In Russia, the Elena apple tree appeared a few years later, and only in 2007 was it officially entered into the State Register with recommendations for growing in the Central and Northwestern Districts.
The trees of the Elena variety are distinguished by medium vigor, rather short and compact. They can be attributed to the group of semi-dwarfs. They usually grow in height up to three meters. The crown is not very thick and has a pyramidal-oval shape. Shoots are thick, rounded, with dark red bark, well-pubescent.
The leaves are elliptical, medium in size, dark green in color with a grayish bloom on the underside. The branches are abundantly covered with foliage, especially at the edges.
Fragrant white flowers cover the whole tree in the early stages - in late April - early May. The fruits of this variety are formed mainly on ringlets of simple and complex species.
According to the ripening time, the Elena apple variety belongs to one of the earliest summer apples. Its fruits ripen even a week earlier than the White filling apples. The variety is rather fast-growing, that is, it begins to bear fruit already in the second year after planting.
The apple tree Elena enters into full force of its fruiting approximately 5-6 years after planting. Its yield is recognized as quite satisfactory - up to 25 tons of apples are obtained from one hectare of industrial plantings.
The variety is self-pollinated, that is, it does not need additional pollinators for fruiting - apple trees of other varieties growing nearby. This can be especially convenient for small backyards where the owners have the desire and ability to plant only one small tree.
The Elena apple variety is distinguished by a really high resistance to frost, even long-term. The cold is not terrible for her. Therefore, you can try to grow this apple variety even in the harsh northern conditions.
Disease resistance, particularly scab, is average.
Fruit characteristics
The fruits of the Elena apple tree are characterized by the following characteristics:
- Apples have a traditional flat-round shape.
- The size of the apples themselves is not very large, the average weight of the fruit is about 120 grams. In years when there are not very many apples on the tree, their weight can increase up to 150 grams.
- The fruits are very even in size. Apples of the same harvest practically do not differ from each other.
- The main color of apples is light green, but more than half of the fruit is usually a blurred blush of a bright dark pink hue. Numerous subcutaneous light points of rather large sizes are clearly visible.
- The skin is smooth, medium in density, at the same time retains the structure of the apple well and does not affect the taste at all.
- The pulp is medium in density, fine-grained, juicy, whitish-green in color with small pink inclusions when fully ripe. Apples contain up to 13.2% dry matter.
- Apples are sweet in taste, practically without acidity, dessert with a good apple aroma. The tasting score is 4.8 points out of five. Fruits contain up to 10.8% sugars, 6.8 mg of ascorbic acid per 100 g of pulp and 0.78% of pectin substances.
- Marketability and transportability are relatively high. Apples are stored under normal conditions for several weeks. Then the palatability deteriorates sharply. Therefore, they are ideal for juices, compotes and preserves.
Advantages and disadvantages of the variety
Despite the fact that the Elena apple tree is a rather young variety, many gardeners consider it promising for cultivation and gladly settle it in their gardens. The Elena variety has many advantages:
- Small size of trees, from which it is convenient to collect fruits and which are easy to care for.
- Very early maturity and early maturity - the harvest can begin as early as the second year after planting.
- High resistance to frost and other unfavorable conditions allows you to grow the Elena apple tree even in the Urals and Siberia.
- Like many modern varieties, it is distinguished by the regularity of fruiting - annually.
- Delicious and beautiful fruits.
The apple tree Elena also has some drawbacks, without which, probably, not a single fruit variety can do:
- The fruits are not stored for very long and lose their taste rather quickly.
- Remaining uncleared on the branches, it crumbles or overripe, reducing its characteristics of the fruit.
Growing features
In general, Elena's apple tree care is not much different from other varieties of apple trees. You just need to remember some of the nuances associated with the characteristics of the variety.
- Since Elena's apple tree can be attributed to a semi-dwarf variety, for planting it you need to choose a place where groundwater comes no closer than 2.5 meters to the surface for the full development of roots.
- Since trees of this variety are prone to overloading with ovaries and fruits, it is advisable to ration the ovaries after flowering.
- It is better to eat fruits directly from the tree and regularly collect them and process them into compotes, juices, etc.
Testimonials
The apple tree Elena has already managed to fall in love with gardeners for its resistance to frost, dessert taste and early ripeness.
Conclusion
The Elena apple tree is a good choice for a private garden and small backyards due to its compactness, early maturity and good apple taste.
