Many knowledgeable gardeners must plant winter apples on their plots. This is because - late ripe apple trees have a lot more advantages compared to summer varieties. For example, they can be eaten throughout the winter period, until spring. In the countries of the former USSR, many varieties of winter apple trees have been created, and the Athlete is spread throughout Russia, the one who grew this tree will forever become his fan. It was created as a late winter variety, for this reason the harvest of such apples ripenes, retaining its unusual flavor until the last month of spring.
This is a strong-growing apple tree, young trees are shortly extinct to a height of 4.5-5 meters. A conical or round crown is sprawling, but rather rare, can span up to 6 m in diameter. This is due to the special growth of the branches - the most powerful branches located below are growing from the trunk almost at right angles. And at the top of the crown branches extend from the trunk at an angle of 45 degrees. Buds on a branch tightly pressed to wood, leaves are oval, dark green, with thick plates. The apple tree blossoms amicably, at this time the tree is almost completely covered with a white-pink cloud. This apple tree variety is early-growing, you can take the first fruits from it in just 4-5 years.
Apples resemble other winter varieties, both in appearance and in taste. They are small (in weight they reach 120-150 gr.), But there are specimens of large mass exceeding 200 g. Apples in the Bogatyr variety are round, slightly beveled to the cup, with a wide place on the tail, ribs are clearly visible on the fruits. The fruits of this variety begin to be harvested when they acquire a yellow-green color, during winter storage they turn yellow gradually. Sometimes a blush appears on the fruit (visible in the form of reddish stripes on the side that the sun illuminated). The apples are not juicy, but of a pleasant taste and very fragrant.
Pros and cons of the apple variety Bogatyr
If we examine in detail the characteristics of this apple tree, we can see that this variety has no special flaws, and there are no significant advantages that would put it far ahead of other varieties. Reviews about it in different forums are most often positive or neutral, practically there are no negative ones. These are very tasty apples, they have excellent keeping quality (all winter varieties can be stored much longer than summer varieties) and, excellent transportability. Apples of this variety can lie for about 200 days, without deterioration in taste. The main trump card of the apple-tree Bogatyr is high productivity, at least 50 kg of apples can be removed from an adult tree over 10 years old, 75-90 kg of fruits are obtained from people over 15 years old. The plant resists scab well.
This apple tree grows well in various regions, except the most northern regions of the country, since in this case the obstacle is insufficient resistance to low temperatures. The minuses of this apple tree include the weak color of the apples (when the apples are still harvested greenish).
Since this is a winter variety, its fruits are mainly used fresh. They lie in a good warehouse for a very long time, for this reason they are laid for storage and begin to be used as food closer to spring. But the fruits of this apple tree can be used in another way - they make beautiful, tasty jam and juice.
When to collect the apple variety Bogatyr
Terms of technical ripeness for this variety begin in the first decade of October, but it is not advisable to harvest early, because any apples during storage they are reduced in size. These apples are fully ripened by the last days of December, and, for example, Antonovka by this time already has become much worse, the flesh of the apple is getting dark, and becoming loose.
With timely harvesting, Bogatyr’s apples can safely lie in the storehouse until spring, and under optimal storage conditions and longer, the good thing is that they do not lose the quality of the fruits, crunch remains and aroma does not disappear. The commercial quality of apples of this variety at harvest is estimated at 90%, and among them about 60% of the premium crop. On average, the mass of fruits is about 160 g; the mass of individual apples can reach 390 g.
When budding a seedling of the apple variety Bogatyr, the first apples can be obtained at the age of a tree of 7 years. You can get a good harvest of apples from a tree for 9 years, they can reach 50 kg under good conditions, about 80 kg of fruits are harvested from old trees older than 15 years. A stable crop is harvested from this variety every year, although it may slightly decrease in adverse seasons.
Planting apple trees in a permanent place
Trees are planted both in spring and in autumn, but this must be done before the cold weather. For the rapid development of a seedling, you need to choose a place for it on a small hill. If the site of raw and groundwater is close, then think twice whether it is worth planting trees, because of excess moisture, they can die.
For planting a seedling, a large pit is prepared in advance, digging it with a depth of about 0.8 m, and 1 m wide. But remember that this is a spreading and tall variety, trees must be placed at a decent distance from other trees.
While small seedlings are developing, the free space between them can be planted with other crops. For example, you can plant vegetables, but you can not plant corn or sunflower which greatly deplete the soil and can obscure young trees. If the soil is heavy and contains little air, it is advisable to mix it with coarse sand, humus or peat. They will increase the air capacity of the soil, help the root system breathe, and moisture will not stagnate. In the spring, while the buds will bloom on the shoots, it is necessary to treat the seedling from pests.
How to care for an apple tree
After planting a seedling, it is imperative to pick off all the buds that may appear, the plant is still too young and weak, this operation will help the seedling to form a powerful root system. In the next 2 years, you need to remove half of the ovaries when they grow to 2 cm in diameter. This is called rationing, after this operation the apples will grow tastier and larger, and the tree will become lighter, prepare for the winter period.
The tree must be watered 4 times a month, pouring 2 liters per day, 10 liters per apple tree. Watering at the end of summer is of great importance after the fruits gain mass and a new crop begins to be laid.
Plants need to be watered according to weather conditions, the last time it is done in August, otherwise the shoots will outgrow and the wood will not have time to ripen before the cold, and unripe shoots will die in winter. The apple tree withstands frosts well, but it is still advisable to help the tree anyway; for this, cover the trunk circle with peat or humus.
The Bogatyr apple variety is not afraid of scab, but the plant often suffers from powdery mildew. Outwardly, it looks like grains of white color. Timely fight against this disease is the key to a high and high-quality apple crop.
