Riga Dove apple tree: description and characteristics of the variety, selection history with photo

Before planting an apple seedling, a lot of time is spent on choosing the right variety. Each has its own positive and negative sides, they are recommended to be grown in the regions in which they are bred. First of all, it is better to look closely at new varieties of fruit trees. Breeders are trying to create varieties that would have disease resistance, high yields and excellent taste. The Riga Dove apple tree is native to the B altics. It is suitable for growing in Russia and even in the Scandinavian countries.

Description of the Riga Dove apple tree

The variety appeared thanks to the efforts of breeders from Estonia. It is summer, the harvest is collected before the onset of autumn. Trees grow to medium size with dense rounded crowns, with many branches. The leaf plate also corresponds to the average, the shape is elliptical or round, the color is light green.

Apple weight rarely exceeds 110 grams. Mostly light yellow, without integumentary shades. But sometimes, when the fruit has grown for a long time in the sun, small gaps of pink appear on the sides.

Fruit pulp - pale with yellow color, characterized by juiciness and aroma. The taste is sweet-sour. The composition contains sugar - 12.9% and acid - 0.53%.

The yield of each apple tree reaches moderate levels. The fruits are well attached to the stalks, which allows them to hang on the tree for a long time without being afraid of gusts of wind.

Riga Dove is noted for resistance to frost, as well as to infections, diseases and pests.

The history of the creation of the variety

Cultivar descriptions begin with apple breeding data. The Riga Dove turned out thanks to the well-coordinated work of professionals at the breeding station in Estonia. As a result, they have a variety that is suitable for planting on the territory of the Russian Federation and even in some regions of the Scandinavian countries, which indicates a good winter hardiness of the variety.

What are the advantages and disadvantages?

The advantages of the Riga Dove are as follows:

Resistance to cold, excellent he alth of the apple tree throughout the winter period. Not every fruit tree can boast of this. In practice, this variety has established itself as the best among others.
The harvest from one apple tree, which is in adulthood, reaches 160 kg.
No tendency to self-fall. In other words, apples are so well attached to the branches that you do not have to worry at all if the day of harvest is pushed back in time.
Trees are endowed with strong immunity to various diseases, lesions and pests. Breeders have instilled in the variety the ability to resist scab, powdery mildew.

Riga Dove has no downsides.

Key Features

To make a choice, it is worth considering the main characteristics of the variety.

Tree dimensions

Apple trees are characterized by medium height. Their crowns are spreading, lush, rounded. There are a lot of branches.

Ripening dates

Riga Dove has an average flowering time - the end of April - the second decade of May. In bad weather during this period, due to strong winds and rains, the flowers are damaged, which then leads to a decrease in yield.

Fruits become mature in summer. In mid-late August, apples are consumed, no need to stack them and wait for some more time.

Fruit evaluation

Fruits have a light yellow color, the peel is thin. The presence of a delicate pinkish blush depends on the sun's rays on the fetus. The mass of one copy is about 110 g.

Apples have a pleasant sweet and sour taste. Tasters put a firm mark of 4.5 points. They are great for direct use in food, making marmalade, jam, compote.

If the required storage conditions are observed, the Riga Dove lies until December.

Fruiting

The apple tree begins to give a harvest in the fourth year after planting a seedling. The first harvest of fruits is often quite small. But from the next season, the figure is increasing.

The Riga Dove has breaks in fruiting - once every 3-4 years.

Due to the fact that apples hold well on the branches and are not prone to falling off, they retain their wonderful appearance. Fruit is ideal for long-distance transportation.

Winter hardiness

The tree tolerates winter well. Gardeners from regions where strong winds blow should be aware that the apple tree must be thoroughly wrapped up. It is better to use a special covering material. From above it needs to be covered with snow. These manipulations will help keep the tree from freezing and not damage its immune system.

Diseases

As mentioned above, Riga Dove has vaccinated immunity. If you properly care for apple trees, you can forget about diseases. Scab and powdery mildew cause little harm in a particularly rainy season, but timely tree treatment measures will help to avoid these misfortunes. Damaged tissues are able to recover quickly.

Regions of distribution

The variety is recommended for planting in the North-Western, South-Western and South-Eastern parts of our country. It grows well on loamy and podzolic soil, which prevails in the Leningrad region.

Seedlings are placed in areas well lit by the sun, at a distance of 1.5-2 meters from each other.