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There are varieties of apple trees that have been grown in Russia for a long time. The taste of their apples is remembered by more than one generation. One of the best is the White filling apple tree. Her poured apples are practically the first to open the season. The variety is an achievement of national selection, It was first described in the book of the practitioner-gardener Krasnoglazov "Rules of Fruit Growing", which appeared in 1848. But in Bolotov's works devoted to fruit crops, there is no mention of this variety. Consequently, this apple variety began to spread actively in the first half of the 19th century. One of its most detailed descriptions is given in the Atlas of the fruits of A.S. Gribnitsky
IV Michurin considered it to be the most hardy local Russian variety and, on its basis, bred the famous Kitayka golden early. But there are still disputes about the origin of the White filling apple variety.
Origin of the variety
Many believe that White filling first appeared in the Baltics, but most likely this variety is Russian and comes from the Volga region, where it has been found for a long time. Its other names are Bel, Dolgostebelka, Pudovshchina. But the Papirovka variety, very similar to the White filling, really came to us from the Baltic coast in the second half of the 19th century. This is evidenced by its name, which is translated from Polish as "paper apple".
Recently, authoritative reference books do not distinguish between these varieties of apple trees, but back in the 30s of the last century they were described separately.
If you look closely, you can find many differences between them. Let's see how the White filling apple tree and Papirovka apple tree differ. To do this, we will compose a detailed apple variety description White filling, compare with Papirovka, look at the photo and read the reviews.
Description of apple variety White filling
The variety is very durable, there are trees that live for more than 70 years and continue to yield, however, not very large apples. The apple tree grows well in the middle lane and to the north, without freezing even in frosty winters.
Only the conditions of Eastern Siberia, the Northern Urals and the Far East are not suitable for him. But even there it can be bred in stanza form.
The apple tree variety White filling is of medium size, it grows up to 5 m in height. It has a rounded crown. The bark of the tree is light gray. Leaves are ovoid, green, more pubescent below. Their petioles are longer than those of other varieties of apple trees, hence one of the names of the variety - Dolgostebelka.
Apple blossoms White filling in medium terms. The flowers are white, rather large, saucer-shaped, sometimes the petals have a slight pink tint.
For this apple variety to produce a good harvest, it needs pollinators to bloom at the same time. As a rule, these are also early varieties: Medunitsa, Early scarlet, Candy, Cypress, Golden Kitayka, Early Grushovka and Moscow Grushovka, Melba.
Late summer and autumn varieties are also suitable: Lead, Glory to the winners, Zhigulevskoe. White filling is also pollinated quite well with Antonovka, a classic Russian winter apple variety, planted next to it.
The main advantage of an apple tree is its fruit. White filling is no exception. These delicious apples are loved by everyone who has tasted them.High tasting score - 4.7 points is a confirmation of excellent taste. The shape of the apples is round-conical.
Their size depends on the age of the tree: the older it is, the smaller the fruits. Young apple trees will delight you with apples weighing up to 200 g. In an adult tree, the average weight of fruits is about 100 g. The color of apples changes as they ripen: at first they are greenish, then they turn white, and after hanging a little, they are filled with juice and practically shine through in the light. Apples of the White filling variety ripen from the last decade of July to the second decade of August, depending on the region of cultivation. The ripening of apples is uneven, which allows them to be harvested gradually. And this is very good, since the thin skin and delicate pulp do not allow them to be stored for more than a week, and with the slightest damage, they will become unusable in 3 days.
The taste of apples strongly depends on the degree of ripeness. In slightly unripe fruits, it is sweet and sour, gradually the sugar content increases, and the taste becomes dessert, with a barely perceptible acidity. Apples filled with juice are delicious. When cut, the juice is even poured out of the seed chamber.
The harvest of apples in mature trees is quite large and can be up to 80 kg, and with good care - up to 200 kg, the first apples can be harvested already 4 years after planting a 2-year-old tree in the garden. With age, the fruiting of the apple tree becomes periodic.
This apple variety cannot be called a marketable one, it is completely unsuitable for transportation, and one of the best for a family garden. The White filling apple tree has only one serious drawback - a strong scab attack, especially in a rainy summer. That is why it should not be planted in the lowlands or where there is no sun for most of the day. It is very good if the crown of the tree is ventilated - there will be less dampness.
Now let's compare this variety with Papirovka. For convenience, we will summarize the main indicators in a table.
Comparative table of varieties White filling and Papirovka
| White filling | Folding |
Resistance to frost and sunburn | Frost resistance is high, only slightly affected by sunburn | Medium frost resistance, severely affected by sunburn |
The power of growth | Average | Average |
Crown shape | Rounded | Pyramidal at first, then rounded |
Fruit weight and shape | Average weight: 80-100g, in young apple trees up to 200, rounded-conical shape | Average weight 80-100 g, round-conical shape, often conical ribbed with a well-visible longitudinal seam |
Ripening dates in the middle lane | August 10-25 | August 5-12 |
Tendency to fall off | Only fruits affected by the moth fall | In dry years, the fruits fall off quite hard. |
Disease resistance | Scab is severely affected | Scab is moderately affected, black cancer is affected |
The table shows that these apple varieties have differences. However, not everything is so simple here. Varietal characteristics of an apple tree strongly depend on the place and growing conditions. Therefore, many varieties have local clones with properties that differ from the original variety. The large growing area of the apple tree White filling makes the appearance of various deviations from varietal traits very likely, especially if they are fixed in several generations, propagated vegetatively. Most likely, all the variety of forms and clones hiding under the common names White filling and Papirovka is caused precisely by these reasons.
Chemical composition and benefits
This apple variety is rich in pectin substances - up to 10% by weight of apples. The balanced composition of sugars, the share of which is 9%, and acids, of which only 0.9%, forms the unforgettable taste of apples White filling. But the greatest wealth of these fruits is a very high content of vitamin C - 21.8 mg for every 100 g of pulp. It is enough to eat only 3 apples to get the daily intake of ascorbic acid. It is a pity that the time of consumption of these fresh apples is very short.But they make wonderful compotes and fragrant jam of amber color. The absence of bright coloring pigments allows these fruits to be used in the nutrition of young children, since they are not allergic to them.
In order to feast on these delicious preparations in winter, trees need to be properly looked after. Apple trees are planted White filling both in autumn and spring. Seedlings at the time of planting should be in a dormant state. When planting an apple tree in autumn, it will take a month for rooting before the onset of frost and freezing of the soil. Based on this, determine the timing of planting.
Planting pit preparation
This variety of apple trees is very tenacious and will grow almost everywhere, but a good harvest of large fruits can be obtained only if the following conditions are met:
- there should be no high standing groundwater on the site;
- the soil should be light in texture, highly nutritious, preferably loamy or sandy loam;
- the water on the site should not stagnate, therefore, it is not worth planting the White filling in the lowland;
- the apple tree should be well lit by the sun;
- this variety does not tolerate drought, so there should be enough moisture in the soil.
A planting hole 0.8 m deep and of the same diameter is dug in advance, at least a month before planting. If it is carried out in the fall, it is enough to fill the pit with humus mixed with the topsoil in a 1: 1 ratio. It is good to add 0.5 liters of ash there.
Attention! Fertilizer - 150 g each of potassium salt and superphosphate, sprinkle the soil in the trunk circle after planting.
When planting in spring, fertilizers are applied to the last portion of the soil, which is sprinkled on the seedling. A peg is placed in the planting hole to tie up the planted young tree.
Planting an apple tree
A young apple tree with an open root system is prepared for planting: the roots are revised and the damaged ones are cut off, the cuts are treated with crushed coal, soaked in water for 24 hours so that the seedling is saturated with moisture.
Pour the prepared soil into the pit so that a mound is formed, pour 10 liters of water, set the apple tree, carefully straightening the roots. The rest of the earth is covered, sometimes shaking the seedling slightly to remove air bubbles from the soil. Add the soil, mixed with fertilizers, and pour another 10 liters of water.
The soil in the near-trunk circle is compacted and mulched.
Care of young apple trees
At first, until the roots take root, a young tree needs watering every week - at least a bucket per seedling. In the future, watering is carried out as needed, preventing the soil from drying out.
Immediately after planting, the central shoot of a one-year-old apple tree seedling is shortened by 1/3, and in a two-year-old - and lateral branches. In the future, annual pruning will be required. Don't forget about crop rationing. To do this, pluck out some of the flowers, otherwise the apples will be small.
Top dressing should be carried out several times during the growing season so that the apple trees do not experience nutritional deficiencies. In the spring and until mid-July, the apple tree needs 2-3-fold feeding with full complex fertilizer, preferably in a soluble form, in order to add it when watering. In the fall, you need to limit yourself only to potash and phosphorus fertilizers, but additionally mulch the trunk circle with humus. Young trees need protection from hares; for this, the apple tree trunks are wrapped with any available material that allows air to pass through.
Apple tree White filling requires mandatory treatment against scab. Before bud break, copper-containing preparations and fungicides are used. It is best to use whey during flowering.
In the fall, apple trees are prophylactically treated with copper-containing preparations or fungicides, but only after the end of leaf fall. This should be done at positive temperatures.
If you follow all the rules for caring for trees, you will be assured of a large harvest of tasty and healthy apples.
