Apple tree Red Delicious: description, photos, reviews

Content

1 Characteristics of the variety
- 1.1 Advantages and disadvantages
2 Proper agricultural technology
- 2.1 How to plant a tree
- 2.2 How to care for a tree
3 Review of the variety
4 Conclusion

The incredibly popular variety of Red Delicious apples appeared by chance: on a tree with green fruits, one of the shoots suddenly began to produce fruits of a rich red color. This random mutation was evaluated by breeders and developed into a separate variety, Red Delicious, which means “red” and “delicious” in English. The apple tree variety was selected in America, where Red Delicios is the most widespread and in demand to this day, but in Russia these apples are loved and often grown.

Description of the apple variety Red Delicious, photos and reviews about it can be found in this article. Here we will talk about all the advantages and disadvantages of American apple trees, as well as how they need to be grown in the middle zone.

Characteristics of the variety

At first it was believed that Red Delicious could only grow normally in a southern climate. Only years later did gardeners realize that the most important feature of the variety is its unpretentiousness: this apple tree practically does not care what soil it is planted on and what weather prevails in the region

Attention! Red Delicious fruits best in dry climates with hot daytime temperatures and cool nighttime temperatures. Therefore, the apple tree is perfect for growing in Moscow region and other regions of Russia.

Detailed description of the Red Delicious variety:

apple tree with winter ripening - fruits are harvested from late September to late October;
trees are medium-sized, can reach a maximum of five and a half meters in height (on a dwarf rootstock - 4 meters);
the crown of a young apple tree is oval, older trees become flattened and spherical;
Red Delicious blooms very beautifully, there are always a lot of inflorescences on the shoots, they are large, painted in a pinkish tint;
the branches are of medium thickness, there are many shoots, all of them are well branched - the crown of the apple tree is dense;
the leaves on apple trees are large, dark green, their edges are jagged;
When ripe, the fruits are colored deep red;
apple sizes from medium to large – 100-300 grams;
greenish apples with a pronounced raspberry blush may occur;
the taste of the fruits of the Red Delicious variety is sweet and sour;
the flesh is light green, juicy, very aromatic, crispy;
The peel on apples is rough, thanks to this they are well stored and can be transported over long distances;
the taste characteristics of the Red Delicious variety are very high, this is the reason for such a wide distribution of apples;
Disease resistance in Delicious is weak: young apple trees are often affected by scab, the core of the fruit can rot, and the pulp can become infected with glassiness;
apple trees are immune to fire blight and powdery mildew;
Fruiting begins in the fifth or sixth year after planting (on a dwarf rootstock a year earlier);
frost resistance is average;
the yield is very high - about 150 kg from a ten-year-old tree;
Delicious needs pollinators; for the Red variety the following are suitable: Golden, Idared, Fuji, Gloucester, Everest, Gala and other varieties with suitable flowering periods;
Delicious apples are suitable for fresh consumption; they can also be processed, canned or dried.

Important! Red Delicious apples are very nutritious, containing healthy acids, fruit sugars, and vitamins. All these substances can remain in fruits for several months.

Gardeners from different regions may notice some differences in the taste of Red Delicious fruits. The fact is that apples grown on dry soils in warm climates contain more sugar than acid; their taste is rated by tasters as sweet and sour. In cooler, more humid climates, the fruit becomes sweet and sour.

Advantages and disadvantages

The Red Delicious apple tree is a frequent visitor to the household plots and dachas of Russians. Several decades ago, this variety was cultivated on an industrial scale; hectares of orchards were planted with trees. Today, the demand for seedlings has dropped significantly, but private gardeners do not change the Red Delicious variety, still distinguishing it from the rest.

The reason for this popularity is considered to be the strengths of the variety:

presentation of apples;
possibility of long-term storage of fruits;
resistance of apples to mechanical damage;
high productivity of Delicious;
suitability for growing in difficult climates;
unpretentiousness to the composition of the soil;
excellent taste;
average resistance to frost;
immunity to some dangerous diseases.

Red Delicious also has disadvantages, such as:

poor resistance to scab, rot and glassiness;
low adaptive capabilities, which complicates the cultivation of the Delicious variety;
not very frost-resistant - in cold regions it is recommended to cover trees for the winter.

Attention! Despite some shortcomings, the Red Delicious apple variety is one of the most popular not only in Russia, but throughout the world.

Proper agricultural technology

Reviews from gardeners indicate that the yield indicators of the Delicious variety are highly dependent on the growing conditions of apple trees. Reds winter apples will be tasty and large if all the rules for planting seedlings were followed, and subsequently the trees were properly cared for.

Important! The Royal Red Delicious apple tree is one of the many varieties of the variety; recommendations for its cultivation and care are practically the same. The fruits of this variety are shown in the photo below.

How to plant a tree

The gardener must take into account the low frost resistance of Delicious, so for planting an apple tree it is better to choose a place protected from the cold wind, located on a small hill. The variety does not like high humidity, so groundwater should lie no closer than two meters to the surface.

Advice! In cold regions of the country, it is better to plant an apple tree in the spring; in milder climates, Delicious will tolerate autumn planting well.

In advance, the soil in the selected area is dug up using a shovel, about five kilograms of humus or rotted cow manure are added, half a kilogram of wood ash and a tablespoon of nitroammophoska are added.

The planting hole must correspond to the size of the root system of the seedlings. Usually, for Red Delicious apple trees, holes are prepared about 80 cm deep and 70 cm wide. Drainage (broken brick, expanded clay, pebbles or something similar) is poured into the bottom of the hole. Then comes a nutrient layer consisting of peat, river sand and humus.

Planting a seedling is carried out as usual:

A seedling is placed in the prepared hole.
Straighten the roots of the apple tree.
Sprinkle the root system with dry soil.
Lightly shake the seedling several times so that there are no voids between the roots.
After planting, the root collar of the apple tree should be several centimeters above ground level.
Water each seedling with two or three buckets of water.
The soil around the apple tree is mulched with several centimeters of peat or humus.

Advice! Immediately after planting, you need to install a peg near the apple tree seedling so that it keeps the tree from tilting.

How to care for a tree

Good care is the key to a great harvest. All gardeners know this, so they do not save time and effort by paying enough attention to their orchard. Here's how to care for a Red Delicious apple tree:

Loosen the soil or mulch it with organic material to prevent the soil from drying out and causing weed. When the tree gets stronger (3-5 years after planting), the grass or lawn around the trunk can simply be mowed.
You need to water the Delicious apple tree 5-6 times a season, pouring 2-3 buckets of water under each tree. Watering is especially important during dry periods and in spring, when the apple tree is actively growing shoots and forming ovaries.
Fertilizing is very important for this variety. The apple tree needs to be fed several times a season, using mineral fertilizers: in the spring - a tablespoon of nitroammophoska at the root, during the flowering period - 300 grams of ash in the tree trunk, when the fruits begin to ripen - potassium salt and superphosphate, diluted in water for irrigation. In the fall, the gardener can add organic matter.
Apple trees are pruned regularly. In Red Delicious, from the fourth year of life, shoots that grow deep are removed, the crown is thinned, and dry and diseased branches are cut out.
Preventive treatment of apple trees against scab, rot and other diseases characteristic of the variety is mandatory. Spraying must be done before the apple trees bloom.
Young apple trees need to be insulated before the onset of winter. In the northern regions, it is recommended to highly graft seedlings onto winter-hardy rootstocks of local varieties.

Apple picking begins in mid-September. You don’t have to rush to collect, since the fruits of Delicious are well preserved on the branches. The harvest should be stored in a cool and dark place with a constant temperature and low humidity.

Review of the variety

Viktor Nikolaevich

I have long wanted to have an “American” apple tree in my garden, but I could not decide on the variety, because there are a lot of them. I heard that the flowers of such apple trees often fall off at the slightest drop in temperature, and in our region there are recurrent frosts almost every year. In the end I chose the variety apple trees Red Delicious, mainly due to its late ripening and, accordingly, late flowering. I grafted the seedling onto a local variety with good winter hardiness. The tree began to bear fruit in its fifth year, and about 20 kg of apples were harvested. The fruits are tasty, juicy, aromatic, but during long-term storage the pulp becomes soft and dry. In general, I am pleased with the Delicious apple tree; every year it pleases with stable harvests.

Conclusion

Planting and caring for the American Delicious apple tree is no different from ordinary, local varieties. For variety, you can plant this variety in your garden, but you should not forget to care for the tree: water, feed, insulate.

The gardener must remember that the Delicious apple tree is partially self-fertile: its pollen is only 20% effective, so the tree definitely needs pollinators.