Adaptive potential of apple varieties in the foothill zone of Dagestan

Abstract

The article presents the results of studying the adaptability of apple varieties on the M9 clone rootstock in the agroecological conditions of the southeastern foothill subprovince of Dagestan. The purpose of the research is to identify the adaptive potential of apple varieties for the establishment of intensive type orchards in the zone of commercial horticulture. It is especially important to choose the optimal variant of scion-rootstock combinations of apple trees, which should be distinguished by annual productivity, high commercial quality of fruits and environmental sustainability. The southeastern foothill sub-province has great prospects for the development of commercial horticulture. The most common of the unfavorable environmental factors that negatively affect the vital activity of fruit crops are recurrent cold in spring and early frosts in autumn, when fruit plants are still windy. According to the results of the research, biometric parameters of growth and yield of trees in a young orchard were determined, depending on the type of plantings design. It is noted that at the age of three years, the condition of trees on a 5-point scale is good. The height of trees, depending on the rootstock, compared with the variety Renet Simirenko (control), reached an average of 2.3 to 2.9 m. On dwarf rootstocks of M-9, the diameter of the stem of the Majesti variety was 4.2 cm, the diameter of the Simirenko variety was 3.5 cm. The growth of annual shoots clearly reflects the growth activity of trees with different scion/rootstock combinations. It has been established that dwarf rootstocks provide a weakening effect and allow growing stunted trees with a compact crown, a strong stem and are convenient for care, harvesting. The largest number of fruit formations was observed in the introduced Majesti variety with a planting scheme of 3.0×1.5 on a dwarf rootstock M9(67sh), compared with the control variety of the Renet Simirenko (46pcs).The yield from one tree was 7.1 kg., in the control variety Renet Simirenko — (5.3 kg). When calculated per hectare, the Majesty variety produced 15.7 tons, Renet Simirenko — 11.7 tons.