Growing Pears In The Northwest. Promising Pear Varieties

2024 Author: Sebastian Paterson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:47

Pear - food of the gods

South Ural pear varieties are mastered in the North-West of Russia. It is known that the pear culture arose a long time ago: mentions of it date back to the Stone Age - more than 4000 years ago. The first center for the formation of pear species is considered to be East Asia, where this process proceeded with the domestication of wild species of this culture. It is believed that in China this happened 3000 years before the new era.

The Greeks began to grow pears 100 years before the new era on the Crimean peninsula. Homer called its fruits the food of the gods. From the Greeks and Romans, the pear culture passed to more northern countries: France, Belgium, England, Germany, and from Europe to America (XVI century). Pears were brought to Kievan Rus in the 11th century, where they were grown in monastic and princely gardens along with other fruit crops.

Compared to apples, pears taste sweeter because they contain less acids. There is such an indicator in evaluating fruits as the ratio of sugar to acid. In pears this figure is the highest and reaches 35. Indeed, the best varieties have excellent taste and are usually used for dessert. Perfect compotes, jams, juices, wine, dried fruits, etc. are obtained from pears.

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Pear fruits contain biologically active substances that are very important for human health: arbutin and chlorogenic acid. Arbutin is a therapeutic and prophylactic agent for diseases of the kidneys and urinary bladder, and chlorogenic acid prevents diseases of the liver, gallbladder and biliary tract. It has long been used in folk medicine as a fixing, diuretic, disinfectant, antipyretic and antitussive agent.

In the North-West region, the pear grows well and bears fruit in the Kaliningrad, Pskov and Novgorod regions. The Leningrad region is the most northern area of its distribution, especially in the Vyborg and Priozersky regions, where it is rarely found in gardens. Most often, pear trees can be found in the gardens of the Luga, Lomonosov, Vsevolozhsky, Gatchinsky and Kingiseppsky regions, which are ancient centers of northern fruit growing. Before the harsh winter of 1939/40. there were giant pear trees reaching 10-12 m in height with a trunk diameter of more than 50 cm.

However, the zoned assortment of pears here consisted mainly of old Russian varieties of folk selection, adapted to the climatic conditions of these areas, but having fruits of average or below average size, mainly of mediocre or satisfactory taste (Bessemyanka, Tonkovotka, Dulia Novgorodskaya, Bergamot autumn). Later, varieties with good taste were included in the zoning here - Bere Lutga - an Estonian folk selection; Bere Oktyabrya - a variety of I. V. Michurin, Lyubimitsa Yakovlev - a variety bred by P. N. Yakovlev in the TsGL im. IV Michurina and others.

In subsequent years, the zoning included Moscow varieties obtained by V. A. The varieties Lada and Chizhovskaya, bred at the Moscow Agricultural Academy named after V. I. KA Timiryazev, which are in great demand among amateur gardeners. In the past five years, the Pushkin fruit and berry nursery "NPTs Agrotechnology" has attracted pear varieties from the South Ural NIIPOK (Research Institute of Fruit and Vegetable and Potato Growing) - Krasnobokaya, Dekabrinka, Skazochnaya, Krasulia and Vekovaya in the North-West.

The trees entered the fruiting season in the fourth year after planting. On a well-prepared soil filled with organic and mineral fertilizers, the seedlings took root well, had a strong progressive growth every year, and by the age of five, young trees reached a height of 2.5 m.

The characteristics of the varieties presented by the Yuzhno-Uralsky NIIPOK and given below in this publication fully correspond to those under the conditions of growing these varieties in the Leningrad region, as can be judged already by the first fruiting of young trees in the Pushkin fruit and berry nursery.

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Century - the variety was obtained at the Chelyabinsk breeding station. Michurin. Medium-sized tree, highly winter-resistant. Fruits are regular pear-shaped, large. The pulp is white, very juicy, sweet and sour, with a score of 4.6 points. The fruits ripen at the end of September and are stored for up to a month. In terms of taste, the variety belongs to dessert. It is consumed mainly fresh.

Dekabrinka- the variety was obtained at the Chelyabinsk breeding station. Michurin. The authors of the variety are E. A. Falkenberg and others. The variety is distinguished by high winter hardiness and high yield. Trees begin to bear fruit in the fifth year after planting in the garden as annuals, the harvest grows rapidly, in the fourth year of fruiting, 36.6 kg were obtained from the tree. Fruiting is even, regular. The fruits are large enough (up to 120 g), beautiful, with a dark red blush, highly marketable, the pulp is white, juicy, fine-grained, aromatic, very good taste. The fruits are stored for 1 to 3 months. Under good storage conditions, they can lie until November-December. Under the conditions of the Southern Urals, fruits ripen by the end of the second decade of September. The main purpose of the fruit is fresh consumption. Drought resistance of the variety is average, resistance to major pests and diseases is high.

Red-sided- the variety was bred by E. A. Falkenberg and others at the Chelyabinsk breeding station. Michurin. The authors consider this variety to be an undoubted selection success: it combines in the best possible form the high winter hardiness of the Ussuri pear with a good fruit taste typical of Western European varieties. The advantages of the variety are complemented by the restrained growth of the tree, beautiful high-quality fruits. At a young age, the tree has a strong progressive growth, with the onset of fruiting, the growth dies down sharply and the tree is formed low. It begins to bear fruit for 4-5 years, rapidly increasing the yield. The average yield for the first five years of fruiting was 25.5 kg per tree, at a tree age of 10 years - 40 kg per tree. The data on keeping quality are contradictory: the fruits lie from mid-October to mid-December, which depends on the state of maturity at the time of harvest. The main purpose of the variety is fresh consumption, the tasting score is 4.5-4.9 points.

Krasulia - a variety bred at the Chelyabinsk breeding station named after Michurin. The tree is medium-sized with a rounded dense crown, highly winter-resistant, medium-yielding. Enters fruiting season 4-5 years after planting. Fruits weighing 90-110 g, irregular, oval-flattened, yellow-green with a dark red blush, very attractive. Ripen in the first half of August, stored for a short time, 10-12 days.

The pulp of the fruit is creamy, friable, fine-grained, very juicy, rich in taste with spice, estimated at 4.7 points. This is the best-tasting summer variety. Used for fresh consumption, juicing and pear honey. State variety testing is underway.

Fabulous - the variety obtained in the South Ural Research Institute of Fruit and Potato Growing. The trees are quite winter-hardy, tall, have a pronounced ability to quickly recover after extreme winters, and are resistant to diseases and pests. The variety is fast-growing, begins to bear fruit 4-5 years after planting. The first two years the harvest is small, then it grows rapidly. Fruiting annually, without periodicity. The fruits on the tree are held firmly.

The fruits are large, beautiful, with a good dessert taste, ripen at the end of summer, when ripe, they externally change little, so you need to monitor the harvest time. By the beginning of ripening, they become very juicy and tasty, but the pulp remains firm, at this time they should be removed. The fruits are stored for no more than 10 days, then the pulp turns brown. The fruits of this variety are intended for fresh consumption and juicing.

The main advantages of the variety are high winter hardiness, resistance to major diseases and pests. The main disadvantage is a tall tree, which makes harvesting difficult. The variety is undergoing state variety testing. For the third year already, these varieties have been successfully multiplied and grown in the Pushkin fruit and berry nursery. Seedlings are planted in plastic containers with a closed root system, which is convenient for transporting them to any distance and planting in the garden during the entire summer-autumn period.