Types of almonds: description of the best varieties, planting and care rules with photos

The almond is known to everyone. But since it grows in the south, the inhabitants of the northern regions have little idea of the tree that feeds us with useful fruits. Little is known about the types of almonds, only to those who grow the crop.

General description of the plant

Although it is known about 3 varieties of almonds: sweet, bitter and thin-walled, but there are many plant varieties, and they have their own characteristics, differences. You can try to grow hardy almonds, which are successfully cultivated in areas with moderately cold winters.

What all types of culture have in common is that it is:

• has the shape of a tree up to 5-6 meters tall or shrub;
• blooms before leaves appear;
• covered with solitary white or pinkish buds from April to May;
• in June-July or September, it bears fruit with drupes, pubescent with green or gray pile.

Inside the drupe is a nut, which is an oval, fingernail-like seed. It is a valuable product containing many trace elements, vitamins, substances that have a positive effect on the human body.

Almond Varieties

Breeders have worked on ordinary almonds and bred varieties that, in addition to nutritional value, are highly decorative. You can choose the variety of almonds, the description of which will tell you what exactly it should be grown in the garden.

Sweet dream

Short almond bushes reach a height of 1.5 meters. The plant belongs to a variety of steppe bean. Attention is drawn to the reddish bark of the stems and the spherical crown. Planting culture looks beautiful when the shrub is covered with bright pink flowers with a diameter of 2 centimeters. A variety of bean tree blooms in the 3rd year of life, and bears fruit in the 5th. Flowering begins in May and lasts 2 weeks.

The advantage of growing almonds is that they:

• frost resistant;
• tolerates drought well;
• undemanding to the composition of the soil;
• can grow in partial shade.

Shrub needs top dressing and abundant moisture without stagnant water.

Victoria

This type of almond is suitable for the steppe regions. Srednerosly shrub grows successfully during periods of heat, drought. But it also tolerates frosts below 20 degrees well. The plant is suitable for the design of the site, and for obtaining delicious fruits. After 5-6 years, you can collect almond drupes to eat nuts.

Three-bladed

Extremely ornamental bush not intended for fruiting. Even before the foliage appears, the almond blossoms begin. The diameter of the corolla is about 2 centimeters. Flowers are arranged in pairs. The color range of buds ranges from white-pink to lavender, lilac. The dark green leaves bloom later, they are three-lobed. In order for the flowering to be lush, the shoots are pruned. For 2-3 weeks, a lush cloud with a pleasant smell will decorate the site.

The species is characterized by resistance to frost, drought, disease.

Coastal

Almond tree reaches a height of 2-3 meters. In the 4-6th year of growth, rich harvests of sweet nuts are obtained. Up to 13 kilograms of a useful oily product are collected from 1 adult tree. Tasters rate the taste of nuts at 4.6 points.

Almonds can be grown anywhere: they endure low temperatures and prolonged drought.

When planting, it is worth placing trees with female and male flowers nearby, otherwise few ovaries will form. The variety prefers fertile soils, lit places.

White sail

Decorative shrub grows up to 3 meters tall. In early May, the crown is covered with snow-white flowers. Small inflorescences form a fragrant hat, pleasing with its beauty from 14 to 20 days. The almond variety is zoned in the southern regions. He tolerates drought well.

For a variety of culture, comfortable conditions are created so that cold winds do not act on the bushes. Almonds do not like sudden changes in temperature.

Anyuta

As a low-growing variety of the bean tree, the variety is used in landscape design as a hedge. Straight shoots reach a height of up to 1.5 meters. Bushes tolerate drought well, winter cold.

In May, bright pink flowers appear on the branches with a diameter of more than 2 centimeters. At the end of summer, fruits with a sweet nut inside appear. Almonds are valued for their unpretentiousness in care, undemanding to growing conditions.

Dream

Almond was created as a kind of steppe bean. Spreading shoots of the plant form the shape of a shrub a meter high. Thanks to the spherical crown, culture is used to solve landscape design problems. Bush differs:

• large, deep pink flowers;
• long narrow gray-green leaves;
• medium sized fruit, slightly hairy.

Buds form before leaves in May and fruits ripen in July.

Amaretto

Amaretto almond is meant for temperate latitudes, as it can survive low temperatures of minus 30 degrees. An adult tree reaches a height of 3 meters, has a spreading crown. Almonds are grown for a sweet nut crop. With good care, up to 15 kilograms of a dessert product can be obtained from a tree. Each fruit reaches a mass of 4 grams.

The disadvantages of the variety include self-fertility. Therefore, Praline trees are planted nearby for pollination. The plant bears fruit well in lighted places, without shade, fertile soils. The advantage of a tree is that little growth is formed on it, hence the rich harvests. The plant develops without damage in regions with cold winters up to 35 degrees below zero.

Michurin

The winter-hardy type of almond was bred by Michurin. He gave life to other varieties of plants resistant to severe winter cold. Although the undersized shrub bears fruit with edible drupes, its main purpose is decorative. Lush bushes blooming for 2-3 weeks are used for hedges, decorating the background of flower beds. The important thing is that the shrub grows best in lighted areas.

California

One of the common varieties of almonds is California. In America, it is the most popular nut crop. Varieties of different maturation periods have been bred. They are famous for their delicious oily large and medium sized nuts. Some of them are wrinkled, others have a smooth surface. Use the product for making desserts, drinks, in the cosmetics industry.

Dessert

A variety of medium ripening begins flowering in early May, when the plant has reached the 3rd year of life. It is a culture of a tall tree with a spreading crown and hanging down the ends of the branches.

Fruits appear in September. Inside the shell is an easily detachable nut. It has a dessert taste and aroma. The advantages of culture include the fact that the plant:

• tolerates frost;
• gives up to 15 kilograms of nuts;
• has strong immunity to fungal and viral infections;
• Tends to form binuclear nuts.

For fruiting, a tree needs pollinators, which are planted at a distance of 2-3 meters.

Almond Volgograd

This type of almond has decorative qualities. It is suitable for steppe arid regions. Variety Volgograd is valued for unpretentiousness. Shrub in late April begins to bloom with pink buds. The leaves of the variety are narrow, gray-green. The bean tree bears fruit at the end of summer.

Foros

The hybrid has a dessert purpose, so it is different:

• high yields;
• large fruits with easily peelable shells;
• medium maturity.

Almond grows in the form of a tree with a dense crown. In May it is covered with a pink cloud of flowers. Then narrow leaves of dark green color appear. Fruit is harvested in September. The Foros variety has many advantages, but it is adapted for cultivation in the North Caucasus region, Crimea.

Pralines

Almond blooms later than other varieties, when the threat of return frosts has passed. The plant belongs to medium height. The crown is broadly oval, of medium density. Praline fruits are large, weighing from 3 to 6 grams. Nuts are distinguished by a sweet, oily taste, pleasant aroma. They separate easily from soft shells.

Pink Flamingo

Short-growing beaver is interesting with bright pink small double flowers. They completely cover the shoots, so that the bush becomes a decoration of the site for about 2-3 weeks. Bushes are used in single groups, hedges.

Pink mist

The beauty of blossoming almonds fascinates for a long time. In the sun, flowering lasts longer than in the shade. Delicate shoots covered with large flowers create a festive mood in the country from May to April.

Georgian

The walnut shrub is cultivated in the Caucasus. The Georgian type of almond is suitable for breeding work. Its positive qualities: unpretentiousness, frost resistance, strong immunity - are used to create new varieties. In addition to high decorativeness, the plant bears fruit. But it does not differ in high yields.

Ledebour's almonds

High prevalence of the hybrid in the Altai Territory. The climate and weather conditions are favorable for the cultivation of an ornamental species. It blooms in April, and the petals fly around in 3 weeks. Large dark green leaves form a lush crown.

Petunnikova

This type of almond bush is cultivated in the gardens of Central Asia. Upright shoots grow, forming a dense crown of a spherical type. Small dark pink buds appear on brownish branches. They last 2 weeks. The leaves are lanceolate, dark green, have a sharp point at the end and notches along the edges. The fruits ripen in September. They are small, covered with an orange shell.

Antique

The variety of almonds of the Crimean selection was bred by the originator A. Richter. The tree grows up to 3 meters. It has a wide crown. The fruits appear in September-October. The drupes are large, weighing up to 4 grams. The kernels are easily separated from the shell. Yields increase every year, reaching a peak in the 9th year of the tree's life. You can collect up to 5 kilograms of dry fruits from a plant. Almonds need pollinators to bear fruit. It is better to choose the variety Delon, Ayan. Cultivated in the south.

Spicy

Nikitsky Botanical Garden of Crimea offers almonds:

• in the form of a vigorous tree with a wide dense crown;
• begins to bear fruit in the 4th year of life;
• ripening in mid-September;
• frost resistant;
• with yields of 12 kilograms per tree.

The fruits have a soft and thin shell, the kernels are sweet, oily.

How to grow

You can get a good harvest of almonds or grow an ornamental bush if you follow the rules for planting a crop. Select only one-year-old seedlings. Planting is carried out in spring or autumn. For temperate areas, early March is best. It is preferable to choose a site with good lighting, closed from the wind, drafts.

Planting pits are prepared in advance. Their dimensions correspond to 50 x 70 x 70 centimeters. The distance depends on the varieties of almonds that are chosen for planting. Trees need a gap of 5-6 meters, bushes - 2-3 meters.

The soil on the site should be neutral in acidity, fertile. The land on the site is mixed with humus, peat, a small amount of sand.

The seedling is placed in the center of the hole, a peg is driven in next to it. Sprinkle the roots with soil so that the basal neck is 5-6 centimeters above the surface of the earth. After compacting the near-stem circle, water and mulch the soil around the seedling.

Almond care

For better fruiting, the culture needs:

1. Feed. In the spring, the introduction of ammonium nitrate or manure is suitable. Potassium-phosphorus fertilizers are needed in autumn.
2. Water. It is necessary to constantly monitor the condition of the soil around the tree. As soon as the soil begins to dry out, water it. 1 plant needs 10 liters of water.
3. Cut. Sick and damaged branches are cut in the spring. After flowering, annual shoots are shortened.
4. Prepare for winter. In autumn, pinch the ends of the branches, removing the apical buds. Standard types are covered with non-woven material, spruce branches.

Caring for a plant is easy. Decorative species well tolerate bad weather, cold. Fruit bearing can only be planted in the south.

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