Plum Volzhskaya Beauty

Plum is one of the most popular and widespread fruit plants grown in our country. Of course, this means that the variety of existing species and varieties of this plant is simply enormous, and therefore in this article we invite you to get acquainted with one of the best varieties existing at the moment - this is the Volzhskaya krasavitsa plum.

Of course, the Volzhskaya krasavitsa plum variety got its name for a reason, but we will talk about the decorative and taste qualities of this variety a little later. Now it should be noted that gardeners liked it so much, primarily due to how well this plum feels in cold conditions, as well as its yield and, of course, its taste.

Plum Volzhskaya beauty: description of the variety and its distinctive features

In the photo: plum Volzhskaya Krasavitsa

Plum Volzhskaya krasavitsa is a hybrid variety that was bred quite a long time ago. For plums, the venerable age of the variety is a rather rare phenomenon, since most of the best species are only about forty to fifty years old. Nevertheless, the object of our discussion at the moment is a variety that was created in the nineteenth century and, at the same time, still enjoys considerable popularity.

As the maternal varieties, on the basis of which the Volzhskaya krasavitsa plum was created, such trees as Renkloda Bove and Skorospelka krasnaya were taken. By themselves, they are not particularly popular and their excellent qualities. Nevertheless, a remarkable scientist named E.P. Finaev was able to reveal the talents of these two varieties and combine them in such a way that the result is a tree that unites all their advantages and overrides all their disadvantages.

As already mentioned, among the positive features of the Volzhskaya beauty plum variety, one can single out an amazing yield and excellent quality of fruits. Also, we must not forget about winter hardiness and the fact that the harvest ripens quite early - in the summer, which opens up a huge range of opportunities for traders.

Peculiarities We have listed the Volzhskaya krasavitsa plum varieties that distinguish it from others in this list so that you immediately have an idea of ​​which tree we will be dealing with in this article.

First of all, one cannot fail to mention that plum tree Volga beauty - very vigorous and large, especially when compared to other plum varieties. In height, it may well reach from six to seven meters.

Crown near the plum, the Volga beauty has a very regular pyramidal shape, which is almost ideal for any tree. The fact is that it is with this crown shape that absolutely all leaves are equally involved in the process of photosynthesis and are equally energetic.

Bark the tree is rather smooth and painted in a gray-brownish tint. Escapes near the plum, the Volga beauty is short, but strong and rather wide, which allows the crop to hold on to them tightly.

Concerning leaves, they are quite large and wide. In shape, they most resemble an egg, which is slightly tapered from the tip side and very strongly tapered from the cutting side. So, in some ways, the leaves even resemble drops. Itself sheet plate covered with countless wrinkles or veins.Her color is quite uniform and varies from light green to dark green (depending on the age of the plant and on other conditions).

The surface of the leaves, despite their wrinkles, is quite matte and pleasant to the touch. You can even say that there is a small layer of cannon on them. At the edges, the leaf plates are slightly serrated, and the petioles, thanks to which the leaves are attached to the branches, are quite thick and strong, which prevents the plant from losing too much foliage during strong winds.

Nevertheless, we, gardeners, of course, are not interested in branches and leaves, but fruit trees with which it will reward us for good care and proper cultivation. So, the fruits of this tree will definitely not disappoint you and will even turn out to be a pleasant surprise when you first harvest.

Plum Volga beauty: photo of the variety

Weight One plum fruit of the Volga beauty reaches about thirty-five grams, which is an extremely good result for a plum. Them form, nevertheless, it is a little different from the fruits of plum trees you are used to. Most often it is slightly elongated and flattened. The abdominal suture is also very pronounced, which is simply not visible in some varieties with smaller fruits.

Peduncles the fruits are very thick, like the petioles of the leaves, and therefore you should definitely not worry that they will fall off prematurely. Speaking about the external qualities of the fruits, it should be noted that they have an amazing presentation.

Color plums are very deep purple, and also on their surface here and there are scattered small accents of pink and even purple tones, which only emphasize the excellent qualities of the fruit.

Pulp plum, which is the most important part of absolutely any fruit, is moderately hard and sweet and sour. The balance of tastes is so well maintained that fans of any pears, both sweet and sour, will definitely like this variety.

The color of the flesh can be described as yellowish red. However, the juice, which is abundantly released when biting, does not possess this color. A very pleasant bonus for many, and especially for those who are going to make jam or compote from the Volzhskaya Krasavitsa plum, will be that the bone is separated from the pulp without any problems.

However, the best way to describe the quality of these fruits will help us public grade: a huge number of independent experimenters, as well as professional gardeners who were previously unfamiliar with this variety, rate its taste at four and a half points on a five-point scale.

At the same time, the external qualities of these fruits are assessed by the same people at four and eight tenths on a five-point scale, which, of course, will really please those who grow fruits for sale. Well, and, of course, do not forget about other features of the variety, which are no less important and which you, however, have already heard about.

First of all, it is - of course, frost resistance, which ensured the variety at least a third of its popularity in our country, since only thanks to it it was able to rise above other incredibly high-quality varieties, which, nevertheless, are not able to survive in our cold.

Also, one cannot fail to note the distinctive drought resistance, which allows this variety to be effective and fertile even when the sun is scorching like maddened throughout the summer, and there is not even a hint of a little rain.

What are the pros and cons of the plum variety Volzhskaya Krasavitsa

Plum Volga beauty: photo of the variety

We interviewed many gardeners who had experience with this variety of plums, and based on their reports, we have compiled a list that briefly and clearly describes almost all the strengths and weaknesses of this variety.

Advantages:

• Annual fruiting, practically independent of any weather factors.
• Quite early ripening dates, which sometimes come even at the very beginning of August.
• Early maturity. This characteristic is incredibly important, for the most part for those gardeners who absolutely don't like to wait. Fortunately for them, the tree becomes capable of producing crops by the fourth or fifth year of life, despite its rather impressive dimensions.
• High resistance to diseases such as numerous rot. It is these diseases that are most often a real disaster for any gardener, especially during very heavy rains.
• Also, the tree perfectly resists all kinds of insects and parasites, which attack plums no less often.
• And finally: the already mentioned frost resistance and drought resistance.

Flaws:

• The first and one of the most significant drawbacks is the tendency of the tree fruit to crack, which occurs especially quickly in high humidity environments.
• Of course, the huge size of the trees can also play into the hands of gardeners. First of all, they, of course, greatly complicate the harvesting process itself.
• Tree seedlings suffer greatly during long transportation and transportation, which is their huge disadvantage.

Plum Volzhskaya Beauty: landing and its features

To begin with, it should be mentioned that together with the Volzhskaya Krasavitsa plum, you will not have to plant any pollinators, which greatly facilitates the gardener's work and allows you to fully concentrate on one tree.

Nevertheless, the presence of pollinators of the Volga beauty plum still helps a lot when growing the crop: it not only turns out to be more abundant, but also of better quality. In the end, the choice is yours: to pollinate or not to pollinate.

If you nevertheless decide that pollinators for the Volga beauty plum are needed, then varieties such as Zhiguli, Early ripening red or Peaceful. They perfectly pollinate the Volzhskaya Krasavitsa plum, and at the same time they themselves can serve as sources of additional harvest.

How to choose a landing site

In order to choose a site in your possession, where the tree will be as comfortable and pleasant as possible, you will have to find a place where, first of all, there will be no drafts. Plum Volga beauty very much dislikes them, and therefore, whenever possible, you should try to avoid them with all your might.

Also, of course, like any other plant, the Volzhskaya Krasavitsa plum requires a large amount of sunlight, without which its growth will not be so fast and effective. Therefore, when choosing a meta, you should also take care that the tree, when it grows, does not obscure the shadow from any buildings or large fences. It is also highly discouraged to choose areas with uneven terrain.

Therefore, if there is an area on your site where there are practically no hillocks and depressions, and it also corresponds to all the previous points, then you can safely give it to the Volzhskaya Krasavitsa drain.

How do I choose my pick up time?

In fact, there are two ways to plant not only the Volga beauty plum variety, but also almost any other plant. You can do this in the fall or in the spring. Nevertheless, the second option is much more preferable, especially if you are a beginner gardener who is just learning to handle plants and does not know all the intricacies of working with them. However, spring takes three whole months, which is quite a long period of time.

Which month to choose for planting, to be sure that it is ideal for the plum. In fact, there are simply no specific dates. However, there are instructions to help you determine this date yourself.

In order to choose when to plant the Volga Beauty plum, you will need to wait four to five days after the weather has calmed down.If, after this time, return frosts do not come, then you can immediately dig a hole and plant a seedling in it after a week. However, you must carry out all these procedures rather quickly, and in no case should you delay with them.

Otherwise, the stage of active flow of juices will begin, and you definitely need to plant the plant before it begins. Otherwise, it will not develop normally. Nevertheless, if you are confident in your abilities and know for sure that you can cope with the autumn planting, then we can only wish you good luck.

Plum Volzhskaya Beauty. Choosing a seedling

Plum Volga beauty: photo of the variety

As you probably know, it is in planting that at least half of the success of the future plant lies, and therefore it is in this procedure that you should put maximum effort into it. However, no planting will go well if you choose the wrong planting material.

That is why, when choosing a seedling, you need to be very careful and be sure to pay attention to those criteria, which we list below:

• First of all, you should pay attention to the age of the seedling: it should be at least one, but not more than two years old.
• You should also look at the size of the planting material: if it is below a meter or half meter, then you should not waste your time on it, since this either means that the seedling is definitely less than a year old, or that it was poorly looked after. None of the options suits you anyway.
• The thickness of the trunk should be about one to one and a half centimeters, and the height of the trunk of the plant should reach about half a meter - sixty centimeters.
• The length of the shoots varies between annual and biennial plants. If we are talking about a one-year-old seedling, then their length should reach about twenty centimeters, and for two-year-olds - about thirty.
• The diameter of the trunk ten centimeters from the inoculation site should be about one and a half centimeters.
• There should be at least three roots, and preferably about four. The total length of the root system should be approximately twenty-five centimeters. It is equally important to ensure that the roots are not damaged.
• You should also make sure that you are not deceived and sold you an ordinary wild plum under the guise of the Volzhskaya Krasavitsa variety. In order to prevent this from happening, you need to carefully study how the seedlings differ from one another, and, of course, buy planting material exclusively in proven places.

Once you buy the planting material, you will need to take care that the root system does not dry out on the way home. To do this, use a damp cloth, which you must have with you.

Also, unlike some other garden trees, it is very undesirable to store this plum variety outside the ground before planting, and therefore, if you are not yet ready to settle the plant in its new home, you should dig it somewhere on your site.

To do this, you need to dig a hole about half a meter deep (you can even a little less). The seedling is placed there, but a little unevenly, and in an inclined position. After that, the root system and part of the trunk are covered with earth, which is not strongly compacted, so that the plant can be easily dug out later.

Plum Volzhskaya Beauty - how to plant

Of course, after you have chosen the time, place and planting material itself, you have only one thing to do: directly plant the seedling where it will live, grow and bear fruit in the future.

In order for this procedure to go smoothly and you get a healthy plant, you must follow the following instructions:

• We dig a hole to a depth of about half a meter. Its width should be a little over a meter.
• Now you have not only a hole, but also a pile of soil that was dug out of it.We will mix this soil with such preparations as compost in the amount of fifteen kilograms, wood ash in the amount of about half a kilo, as well as with a dose of potassium chloride, which is approximately fifty grams.
• You will also need to place a small stake in the center of the hole to support the plant.
• Now you need to fill the hole with the resulting soil a little. Approximately two-thirds of the volume of the pit should be filled up.
• Also, the backfilled soil should take the form of a small hill, on which we will subsequently plant our seedling. To do this, we need to place it in such a way that the root collar is about five centimeters above the soil level.
• At the same time, the roots of the seedling, which will be in the hole, should be evenly distributed along the impromptu slide that we created for them.
• Also, do not forget about the peg that we drove into the hole in advance. In order to achieve the maximum efficiency of the seedling, it should be placed strictly north of this peg.
• Now that the seedling is in its place, it is mono to cover the rest of the hole with earth. At the same time, this time we lightly compact the soil so that the seedling is held firmly and firmly in the soil. Of course, we put the peg for a reason, and therefore the seedling must be tied to it in order to ensure correct and uniform growth.

Now that everything is ready, it remains to carry out only a couple of additional procedures: first of all, it is necessary to dig a small circular groove around the trunk (at a distance of forty centimeters - half a meter from itself). After that, it would also not hurt to carry out the mulching procedure, which will allow to retain moisture in the soil with much greater efficiency, and also protect plants from weeds and some creeping insects.

Ordinary manure can be used as mulch. Lighter materials such as sawdust or humus can also be used.

Important! If you are going to grow a plum with a pollinator, then you will have to make sure that this same pollinator is not too far from the plant being grown. The optimal distance from the Volzhskaya Krasavitsa plum to the pollinator is about three meters, and therefore, when planning planting, you will have to think about the fact that together with one plant you will also have to plant a second one, which also needs a place.

Plum care Volzhskaya beauty

Plum Volga beauty: photo of the variety

Plum Volzhskaya Beauty is not whimsical. In fact, caring for this plum variety is not too difficult and painstaking process. The most important thing is the frequency and regularity of both watering and dressing. Also, of course, one should not forget about other procedures, such as loosening and weeding the soil, as well as removing weeds.

Watering and loosening the soil

First of all, so that you understand what goals are in front of you, we will mention that the soil around the tree must constantly be in a more or less loose state. It also implies that there should never be too many weeds around it.

If we are talking about summer maintenance, which is the most frequent and intensive, it is necessary to loosen the soil to a depth of about ten centimeters. This is done regularly: after absolutely every watering.

Autumn: digging to take place at twice the depth. However, it happens much more rarely, since watering is carried out less often. In addition, such a depth is very important because it is on it that all kinds of pests usually hibernate, from which it is vital to get rid of. Otherwise, they will definitely make themselves felt next year.

As for watering, it is certainly one of the most important care procedures, however, as you already know, the plant tolerates a lack of moisture very well and, in principle, is quite moisture resistant. Nevertheless, despite the fact that a person can live for three days without water, on the second day he will feel extremely bad.

The situation with the plum is similar: Although it can live without water for quite a long time, it will definitely not be good for it. Therefore, the tree needs to be watered very abundantly about five times throughout the growing season. At the same time, before the irrigation procedure itself, a small ditch is dug around the trunk, the depth of which should not exceed ten centimeters.

After watering, the entire circle outlined by this very ditch should be slightly sprinkled with fresh soil, as well as a solid layer of mulch. This way you can be sure that most of the water will not evaporate due to the scorching sun. As for the volume of water that you will have to use directly: you will need quite a lot of it. However, these numbers are variable and depend on when the watering is carried out.

In fact, the most voluminous is the last watering, which is carried out in late September - early October. Roughly speaking, this is the only watering you will do before the tree hibernates.

And in order for it to easily survive this period, it will need about one hundred and fifty - two hundred and fifty liters of water. All other irrigations are carried out with significantly smaller volumes of water, which start with half a hundred liters and end with eighty liters, depending on the age and size of the tree.

Top dressing

Of course, in order for the Volzhskaya Krasavitsa plum to grow and develop normally, it is not enough just to water it well. To do this, you will also have to take care of good fertilization for your plum, and therefore it is very important to closely follow the fertilizing schedule.

If you want your plant to give you exceptionally good, large and juicy fruits, you need to make sure that it receives all the organic and mineral substances it may need.

Disputes about which fertilizers are better here: organic or mineral are absolutely inappropriate, because the plum tree will need all these substances to form really good fruits, and therefore we strongly recommend that you combine fertilizers, so that you can ensure maximum benefit for your tree.

There should be six dressings in total: about the same as watering:

• The first is carried out even before the beginning of flowering;
• The second is directly during this process.
• The third top dressing is carried out when the flowering has completely come to its end;
• Fourth - two weeks after that.
• Fifth - in the first half of June;
• Sixth - at the very end of September - early October (together with the last watering).

Plum pruning Volga beauty

Many gardeners are completely undeservedly afraid of pruning, and their fear is quite justified. This procedure involves direct harm to the tree. Of course, it will bring some concern. However, if you do it correctly and follow the instructions, your tree is absolutely safe. By the way, the very first pruning should be carried out immediately after planting the seedling in the ground.

The scheme for pruning plums Volzhskaya beauty is as follows:

• For a one-year-old seedling, which still does not have a crown at all, it is necessary to completely remove the entire aerial part up to seventy centimeters above the ground level.
• In the event that the crown still managed to form, then only the central shoot is shortened by the same length.
• Nevertheless, you need to carefully ensure that it does not turn out to be too low: at least twenty centimeters it should rise above all other branches.
• As for two-year-old shoots, they have exactly the same procedure according to slightly different rules: you will need to cut absolutely all side shoots by a third of their length, and the main one is shortened in the same way as for a one-year-old seedling.
• In the event that the main shoot is observed not in a single copy, both of them are shortened in exactly the same way as the side branches.

Pruning the crown of the plum The Volga beauty is simply necessary if you want exceptionally strong and good shoots to develop and grow. If pruning is not carried out at all, then in the end, when the Volga Beauty plum begins to bear fruit, a huge number of branches simply will not take part in this process, and therefore the yield will be less.

However, the post-planting pruning is not the only one you will ever have to do. After it, a large number of preventive and formative pruning is carried out.

They are held at the beginning and at the end of the season according to the following rules:

• First of all, you need to understand what kind of structure your tree should have.
• It should be formed from three rows.
• The first of these rows should be about sixty centimeters above the surface. At this level there should be about three to four good, formed branches, which should extend from the trunk at an angle of about forty-five to fifty degrees. They should also grow in different directions and not intersect with each other.
• The next row is formed a year later at a distance of the same sixty centimeters, but not from the ground, but from the very first row. Only two shoots will be enough on it. You need to choose them according to the same criteria as in the previous year.
• But the third tier is formed by only one branch. Its distance from the second tier should be about fifty centimeters. All other shoots forming on this layer should be removed.

Now that the crown is fully formed, it is necessary to remove all branches that do not play any role and serve only as thickeners.

Autumn the same pruning is preventive, since it does not have the goal of forming a crown, but is only needed in order to remove all diseased, gnawed by insects or simply broken branches. It is carried out in October along with the last watering.

Absolutely all growths, in addition to removing incapacitated branches, are shortened by about twenty centimeters. It is also necessary to remove overly old branches as they are mostly useless. Also, do not forget that pruning is, as we have already said, direct harm to the plant, and therefore you must fully control this process and ensure that all cut points are treated with garden varnish.

It is necessary to use exclusively high-quality instruments, since otherwise you can make sloppy, scarred cuts that will heal much longer, and through them the infection can penetrate inside. Therefore, trimming knives or pruning shears must be very well sharpened, and your hands must be firm and precise.

Preparing for winter

Plum Volga beauty: photo of the variety

Despite the fact that Volzhskaya Krasavitsa plum is indeed a very winter-hardy variety, this does not mean that it does not need to be prepared for winter at all. This procedure is just as necessary as watering or feeding. It will not only allow the plant to endure the winter much more comfortably, but also help it recover with less effort by next spring.

First of all, mention should be made of whitewash, since it is a relatively simple and at the same time effective way to protect plums from the winter cold.

Also, in order to prepare for the winter correctly, you should:

• Completely clear the area around the tree trunk so that there are no weeds.
• It is also necessary to weed the entire area so that no insects can lay in the ground until next spring.
• The stem and some branches are very carefully treated with whitewashing, as this greatly helps to prevent the occurrence of unpleasant parasites and insects. However, before whitening the plant, absolutely all dried or dead bark must be removed from it.
• In the event that during removal the living tissue of the plant was at least slightly affected, it will be necessary to immediately process this place with garden varnish, since otherwise an infection can get into the plant.

Now that everything is ready for the whitewashing procedure, you will need to take a paint brush and, directly, the paint, which will be used for this procedure. The paint is prepared as follows: one part of lime and one part of chicken manure is mixed with eight parts of water, and one fifth of copper sulfate will also need to be added.

Important! Young trees that have not yet begun to bear fruit should not be whitewashed. Instead, it is best to wrap them in agrofibre or a special cloth.

Diseases and pests of the plum Volga beauty

As we said at the beginning, the Volga beauty plum copes with diseases quite well. This is especially true for ailments such as rot. However, this does not mean at all that this plant is one hundred percent protected from any kind of attack by bacteria or viruses, and therefore you should be on the lookout and always watch for the appearance of painful signs.

The most frequent diseases manifested in this plant are the following: fruit rot, pockets, coccomycosis, sooty fungus and root cancer. The best thing is not to wait for them to appear and start devouring your tree, but to try to defeat them even before that, using various preventive and protective measures.

Nevertheless, if the disease nevertheless made itself felt, it is certainly necessary to fight it. For this, drugs such as Bordeaux mixture and copper sulfate solution are most often used. You can also use soapy water to prevent the disease from returning as soon as possible.

In addition, we strongly advise you to get rid of absolutely all infected parts: even those that fell on the ground. Thus, you can be completely sure that the disease will not reappear.

However, in addition to diseases, the plant can also be attacked by numerous insects, it is sometimes quite problematic to defend against which methods of prevention are sometimes quite problematic.

Insects, in which plum is one of their favorite delicacies - plum sawfly, thickened leg, false shield and aphid... All of them are perfectly destroyed by insecticides, and in some cases it will be possible to overcome them even with ordinary soapy water, unless, of course, there are too many insects.

However, the most important thing is to detect the threat in time, since the plant is quite large and constantly monitoring all the branches is another task. However, you can still carry out preventive sprays with the same insecticides that will completely prevent the appearance of insects.

Harvesting and storage

Plum Volga beauty: photo of the variety

When talking about harvesting and storage, mention should also be made of its quantity. The fact is that it differs depending on the age of the tree. If we are talking about what is about to enter the fruiting phase, then the amount of harvest will be approximately equal to ten kilograms, and older trees (from ten to twelve years old) can bring both fifteen and thirty kilograms, depending on the quality of care plant.

Fruits are stored for a short time, but they can be used to make preserves, jams or compotes. However, if you still want to store your plums for a longer period, you can freeze them.

At the temperature of the freezer, they will be kept in perfect condition for a considerable time.

Conclusion

Plum Volzhskaya Krasavitsa is a truly wonderful fruit plant that can not only decorate your garden, but also bring you a huge amount of tasty, large and beautiful fruits. While caring for this plant can be difficult at times, it can bring you many rewarding experiences and can also help you improve your gardening skills.

We hope our article will help you with this, as well as the fact that you will not have any problems when growing Volga beauty plums. It remains only to wish you good luck.