Apple Royalty

The Royalty-free decorative apple tree is a real decoration of any area. Similar to the Japanese sakura, this apple tree is actively used in landscape design, gaining more and more admirers every year. The peculiarities of this culture should be known to those who plan to refine and modify their site without large financial costs.

The Royalty apple tree was bred by Russian breeders several decades ago. The base variety for the creation was the Nedzwiecki apple tree, and this is one of the most popular varieties in Europe. The work took a long time, but the result was a variety with excellent decorative characteristics. The Royalty apple tree has several more names, but of them, perhaps, only Malus hybride Royalty should be distinguished (by the way, in English the word royalty means “royal power”, and this definition fits this variety perfectly).

Royalty is a medium-sized tree. The culture grows up to 4-6 meters. Young subspecies have a compact crown, but with age it becomes wide-oval, spreading. In diameter, such a crown will be 4 meters, which will look very impressive.

The Royalties have alternate leaves, the shape resembles an oval. The foliage is distinguished by its high and unique decorative characteristics. When it is just blooming, the gardener can see a juicy purple-red tone; in the summer months, the color changes to greenish-red and acquires a special glossy shine. With the onset of autumn, the foliage turns brownish-red. It is worth noting that the leaves adhere very tightly to the tree, so they fall very late, allowing gardeners to admire their beauty until the last.

The Royalties have thin, light brown branches. When the tree begins to bloom, it is strewn with large, simple flowers up to 4 centimeters in diameter. They are very rich in color: purple or ruby ​​red.

The peculiarity of the Royalty is its decorative effect. Gardeners and landscape designers of European countries argue that the Nedzvetsky apple tree, which served as a parent variety, has practically no equal in beauty. Anyone who sees the Royalties will be able to confirm the same.

In addition to being spectacular, there are other benefits:

• the variety is frost-resistant and wind-resistant;

• the plant does not die from severe drought;

• can be grown in many regions;

• rarely exposed to insects.

As for the cons, we highlight the following:

• the culture is difficult to recover after formative pruning, and it is impossible to do without such a procedure;

• growth is rather slow;

• fruits are not eaten due to their low taste;

• low scab resistance.

Royalty apples ripen by mid-September, at the same time the removable ripeness of the fruit begins.Such an apple tree does not begin to bear fruit immediately: the first harvest can only be expected after 5-6 years.

Royalty is a rather tenacious and unpretentious variety, and it can be grown almost everywhere, except in very cold regions. However, the apple tree shows especially high decorative indicators in places such as the middle zone of Russia, the Crimea, the North Caucasus.

It is worth noting that Harvesting Royalties are not grown. This is an ornamental tree, and it is meant for something else. The fruits can be harvested, in good years it will be about 10-15 kilograms. But in fact, rarely does a gardener harvest this particular crop.

The royalties produce small fruits that resemble sweet cherries. Their shape is slightly oblong, and the color is purple or dark red. There is a gray waxy bloom.

Apples taste bitter, tart, unpleasant. They cannot be eaten raw, since even a small amount of fruit will provoke an upset stomach. However, some gardeners have found a use for the fruit. You can get good wine and jam from them. Apples also look interesting as a culinary decor. The main thing is to subject them to heat treatment.

Royalty belongs to medium-sized apple varieties. Growing is not very difficult. Culture loves light, but light partial shade is acceptable. Apple trees are not planted near large trees or residential buildings. The soil should be well-drained, fresh loamy or rich sandy loam. It is better to avoid the proximity of groundwater.

Royalties can be planted in spring or autumn. If it's spring, choose the end of March, if it's autumn, around November. It is important to consider that when planting in autumn, organic fertilizers should not be added to the hole, as is often done when planting other crops. They can provoke the rapid growth of the apple tree, which is completely unnecessary in winter.

Royalty does not like excessive moisture, so the apple tree should be watered only when the soil is completely dry. If there is a lot of rain, watering is recommended to be halved. It will be useful to combine the supply of liquid with digging, but it should be superficial. But the weeds will have to be removed regularly.

When growing Royalties, such an important stage as pruning should not be overlooked. Sanitary will be required. Anything that does not correspond to a healthy appearance should be removed. Trees over 10 years old may need anti-aging pruning. During it, from 2 to 3 age branches are removed. As for the formative, its features remain at the discretion of the gardener himself. You can form a crown like a bonsai, or give it a different shape. Many form avenues or hedges from apple trees.

The Royalty is a self-fertile variety. Even if there are no pollinating varieties on the site, the fruits on the crop will still grow on time. But if you wish, you can plant other apple trees:

• Laletino;

• Ranetka Purple;

• Skalepovka.

Royalty does not require any special fertilizing, the fertilization scheme is standard for all apple trees:

• before flowering, give ammonium nitrate, potassium sulfate and ammonium sulfate;

• during flowering, the apple tree will need nitrogen (organic);

• after flowering, use nitroammofosku, sodium humate or urea solution.

Royalty has good frost resistance. In the Crimea and the middle lane, even young apple trees do not harbor. However, in the northern regions, shelter is necessary. The trunk circle will first have to be mulched with natural materials. Top of the apple tree is covered with agrofibre or material of a similar quality.

It is also important to do the following:

• whitewash the trunks;

• protect with a metal mesh from mice;

• when the first snow appears, form a snowdrift.

The apple tree of the described variety rarely gets sick, but it is not immune from scab. Such a disease is treated with fungicides, and treatment should be started as early as possible. For the rest, gardeners do not have to worry. With properly carried out preventive treatments, the tree is unlikely to get sick. But the birds, attracted by the sight of the fruit, can fly. If you do not want to lose the decorative characteristics of the culture, you can install bird repellents.