In terms of decorativeness, the Chinese apple tree is not inferior to many landscape plants. In spring, the tree attracts the eye with its fragrant pink flowers. In autumn, its branches are strewn with numerous sweet and sour fruits, similar to large berries, suitable for preparing delicious dessert dishes.
Chinese apple tree - description
The plant differs from European varieties in its small fruits and original leaves, shaped like an elongated, pointed leaf plate of a Chinese plum. In its genotypes one can find signs of a real and berry apple tree. Alternative names for interspecific hybrids are plum-leaved apple tree, Raika. Ranetki and decorative crabs, which differ in fruit quality and origin, are often included in this group.
Benefits of the Chinese apple tree:
- Fruiting is fast.
- Abundant yield.
- Decorative.
- Unpretentiousness.
- You can choose a variety of paradise apples with good taste.
- Increased frost resistance.
- The frequency of fruiting is absent or weak.
- Suitable as a drought-resistant and frost-resistant rootstock.
Disadvantages of the Chinese apple tree:
- Many varieties with low consumer qualities.
- The apples fall off quickly.
- The fruits do not last long.
- Grafting with large-fruited varieties does not always give satisfactory results.
What does a Chinese apple tree look like?
Horticultural culture looks decorative on a summer cottage, standing out among the plantings with its original appearance. Externally, true plum-leaved Raika is distinguished from other small-fruited trees by the following characteristics:
- The tree is deciduous.
- Crown height – 3-8 m.
- The color of the shoots is grayish-brown or with a purple tint.
- The color of the buds is red-brown.
- The foliage is pointed, the edges of the plates are jagged.
- It is interesting to watch the Chinese apple tree bloom. The shape of the inflorescences is umbrella-shaped shields up to 8 cm in size. The number of flowers is up to 10 pcs.
- The color of the buds is pink, the petals are white.
- Flowering period is April-May.
- The size of the apples is 2-2.5 cm.
- The color of the fruit is yellow or red.
Chinese apple tree - ripening period
They tried to cross the small-fruited tree with many European varieties. As a result, the plum-leaved apple tree family now includes many high-quality hybrids that differ radically in consumer characteristics. Let's look at examples of Chinese women with completely different ripening periods:
- Golden early
- mid-August. - Saninskaya
- late summer. - Honey
- late summer. - Cream
– ripening in September. - Long
- autumn. - Kerr
- late autumn. - Kandil-Chinese
- late winter. - Borsdorf Chinese
- late winter.
Chinese apple tree - winter hardiness
In comparison with trees of European selection, this species is considered more hardy. The Chinese apple tree grows without problems in Altai, Kazakhstan, the Volga region and the northwestern regions. Plants tolerate cold winters of -30°C and even slightly below. In terms of durability, it is surpassed only by ranetka and apple berry. Chinese velvet, Saninskaya, Late Winter, Chinese mother are good rootstocks for large-fruited varieties that have problems with frost resistance.
Chinese apple tree – taste
It is difficult to classify varieties of plum-leaved Raika as standards, but among them you can find specimens with good characteristics. The Golden early Chinese apple tree has a delicate sweet and sour taste; the fruits of Dolgo and Kerr are famous for their pleasant aroma. In terms of sweetness, small-fruited hybrids Long Sweet and Honey should be ranked first. Apples from the harvest of other Chinese varieties are more sour for fresh consumption, but are good in compotes, preserves, and jams.
History of selection
This variety was obtained by crossing the Domestic and Berry apple trees, and was brought by a gardener to the UK from New Zealand. Over time, the variety became widely known, began to spread in European countries and reached Russia. It got its name due to the similarity of the leaves to the leaves of the Chinese plum. That is why Chinaka is also called “plum leaf apple tree.”
What is the difference between the Chinaka and Ranetka apple trees?
For ordinary fans, these varieties are almost identical in appearance. They differ in origin and taste. Ranetkas include numerous first-generation hybrids obtained by crossing Siberian berry apple trees with Chinese or European varieties. Their small fruits do not exceed a weight of 15 g and a diameter of up to 5 cm. According to the taste characteristics, a real plum-leaved varietal apple tree will be more aromatic and tastier. More sour ranetki are mainly used for processing.
Benefits of ranet wood:
- Suitability for cultivation in Siberia.
- Unpretentiousness.
- Precociousness.
- In terms of the amount of useful substances, Ranetki exceeds European varieties.
Growing regions
Different varieties of Kitayka are distributed in many regions and climatic zones, since each variety has its own level of resistance to frost. In Russia, popular varieties like Kitayka Krasnaya, Golden Early, Honey, Kerr have an average winter hardiness and grow mainly in a temperate continental climate. Therefore, the most suitable regions for them are:
- Central and Central Black Earth;
- Northwestern;
- Volgo-Vyatsky;
- North Caucasus;
- Volga region.
However, there are varieties that are characterized by high frost resistance (for example, Kitayka Dolgo, Kolonovidnaya), so they can be grown in the northern region and west-eastern Siberia. There are also varieties that can grow in any climatic conditions, due to their high drought and frost resistance (for example, Paradise China, Monica).
Does Chinese grow well in your region?
Not really
Chinese apple tree varieties
Small-fruited hybrids descended from wild plum-leaved trees are varied in color, ripening time and taste. We invite you to view five popular varieties of Kitayka:
- Chinese Kerr apple tree
- fruits 20-45 g, dark red color, good taste, ripening in September, stored until January. - Chinese golden apple tree
- fruits are amber-yellow, weight 20-40 g, yellowish flesh, sour taste. Ripening is the end of July, apples need to be processed within a week. - China Bellefleur apple tree
- fruits 120-200 g, round-oval apples, light yellow color with striped blush. The taste is sour-sweet with spice, the flesh is tender. Removable ripeness - at the end of September, stored until December. - Chinese Long apple tree
- fruits 11-25 g, the shape of the apples is elongated, the color of the flesh is creamy, the taste is pleasant. Ripening - August-September, shelf life up to 30 days. - Apple tree Chinaka Saninskaya
- fruits 25 g, ribbed, elongated apple shape. The color is yellow with a dark red blush, the taste is 4 points sweet and sour with astringency. Ripening at the end of August, storage until November.
Reviews
Marina, doctor : “We grow Red Chinese, which we love for its unpretentiousness, easy care, and the fact that it does not require pruning. Apples are stored for 2 months. We love to eat it right away and make jam – it turns out very beautiful.”
Elena, accountant : “We have two varieties growing at our dacha - Bellefleur and Zolotaya. Both bloom very beautifully and produce a good harvest. It’s convenient that Zolotaya ripens early – we use its apples to make marshmallows. We store bellefleur until winter, and we also prepare jams and compotes.”
Oksana, auditor : “On the advice of friends, we imprisoned China Kerr, and did not regret it. Firstly, it blooms very beautifully, and it looks very beautiful in the summer. Apples last a long time, so we eat them all fall. I also liked making compotes from it.”
Nikolai, pensioner : “We planted the Golden Chinese plant a long time ago - now every year the apple harvest begins with it. The apples are tasty, the harvests are generally large, but they do not last long. So what we don’t have time to eat right away goes into storage.”
Olga, teacher : “Instead of the old Golden Chinese, they planted the Red one - it is even easier to care for, since it does not need to be pruned. Apples last longer, so we have time to eat enough and prepare compotes for the winter. Both bloomed very beautifully – you can plant them even just for that.”
How to plant a Chinese apple tree in spring?
Two-year or three-year-old seedlings take root better. The tree of paradise is not demanding on the composition of the soil, but it is not advisable to grow it on heavy, acidic and swampy soils. Late or early Chinese apple trees are planted similarly to large-fruited varieties:
- Depending on the volume of the root system, a planting hole is dug up to 80x80x100 cm in size.
- When planting in groups, the distance between Raika seedlings is left up to 6 m.
- The nutrient substrate is made from a mixture of humus, river sand and deciduous soil (3:2:1).
- Add mineral fertilizer to the soil - 250 g of ash, 100 g of potassium fertilizers, 250 g of superphosphate.
- The filled hole is watered and the soil is slightly compacted.
- Planting dates: early October or late September.
- The Chinese apple tree grows best in bright areas or in light partial shade.
The nutritional value
Let’s look at why Chinese apples are valuable, using the example of the two most popular varieties – “Belfleur” and “Kerr”.
Apples of the Kerr variety are medicinal. Firstly, due to the high content of vitamin C in them, fruits prevent the appearance of hypertension. Secondly, they contain enough vitamin P, which is in addition to the previous vitamin. This means that those who love these apples have increased capillary strength. Given their fragility, there is a high risk of subcutaneous, pulmonary, gastric and other hemorrhages.
Although the Bellefleur apple tree is now common only in the south of Russia and the Caucasus, its appearance and taste successfully compete with those of the best southern varieties. Her apples are very large - weighing from 120 to 300 g. Some gardening enthusiasts grew specimens weighing up to half a kilogram for exhibitions.
The excellent taste of Bellefleur apples is due to their high sugar content with a small amount of acids. For example, fruits grown in central Russia contain 11% sugars, 0.7% tartaric acids and 7 mg of ascorbic acid per 100 g.
Chinese apple tree - care
An unpretentious and frost-resistant small-fruited tree tolerates frosty winters well, so special measures in most areas for shelter are not required. All basic procedures during the warm period differ little from caring for simple varieties. Let's look at the main points on how to grow a Chinese apple tree:
- Periodic watering in hot weather without precipitation. It is recommended to pour 30-50 liters of water onto the tree up to 5 times a season.
- Treating the crown with insecticides against insects. The drugs are suitable: Fitoverm, Iskra, Fufanon, Intavir, Aktara,
- Not all varieties are equally resistant to scab and other infections. In unfavorable years, Kitayka requires spraying with fungicides - “Horus”, copper sulfate, “HOM”, “Fitosporin”.
- If there is a risk of damage to the trunk by rodents in the fall, the trees are wrapped underneath with metal mesh, roofing felt, or plastic.
- Autumn whitewashing of the trunk and skeletal branches with lime.
- Loosening the standard circle and removing weeds.
- Fertilizing the tree trunk circle with complex preparations - nitroammophoska 30-40 g or organic matter (humus, herbal infusion).
Chinese apple tree pruning scheme
The main goal of annual thinning of branches is to obtain a healthy, translucent and orderly crown. Any variety of paradise apples during the dormant period before the start of the growing season for normal development requires the following care:
- Removing dried and damaged branches.
- Cutting out growth growing inside the crown.
- Pruning diseased growth.
- Thinning out crossing and rubbing shoots.
- Removal of low and vertically growing branches on mature trees.
- Formation of the crown according to the chosen type - round, spreading, weeping, pyramidal.
Chinese apple tree - how to propagate?
The main ways to obtain high-quality seedlings of the fruit Raika are grafting or sowing seeds. In the second case, parental properties are not always preserved, and fruiting will have to wait longer (up to 5-12 years). Apple tree seeds are sown using the following technology:
- Remove the seeds from the fruit.
- Rinse and dry the material.
- Soak the seeds in warm water with the addition of a stimulant (Epin or analogues).
- Place the seeds in a substrate of damp sawdust and sand.
- Place the container in the refrigerator or basement for 60-90 days.
- When sprouts appear, transplant the seedlings into boxes with soil or into a container.
- Planting depth is up to 2 cm, intervals between seedlings are 20 cm.
It is easier to graft a good variety of Chinese apple tree onto a suitable seedling. Plum-leaved trees are not compatible with all types of rootstocks. On Antonovka and Papirovka, the rayka scion does not take root well. It grows well with Melba and Pepin saffron. Practice shows that the best option for grafting is another seedling of a small-fruited apple tree growing in the area. In the absence of such material, it is better to use varieties whose parents include Chinese.
Features of fruiting
A small apple tree already at the beginning of autumn is completely covered with small ruddy fruits and looks very elegant. Among the fruiting features of the red Chinese plant are:
- rather late flowering periods, when stable warm weather sets in and the flowering period is short, no more than 7 days;
- uneven ripening of fruits and their good attachment to the branches; they are even left for the winter as decoration or food for birds;
- an abundant harvest of small raspberry berries, which are universal in terms of use;
- late ripening of fruits, at the end of September the fruits are ready for picking;
- The average shelf life, like autumn varieties, is up to 2 months.
Fruitful columnar variety Kitayka red.
Why doesn't the Chinese apple tree bloom?
An unpretentious tree grows well in almost any area. Even after a frosty winter, with normal care, the Chinese apple tree is always in bloom and produces an excellent harvest. Let's consider the reasons why Raika does not form flowering buds:
- Freezing of Kitayka buds is observed in the harshest regions of Siberia; only ranetki, regionalized selected forms or berry apple trees survive here.
- The tree is very young - flowering in the most early-fruiting Raika is observed in 3-4 years.
- Poor development of the seedling due to improper planting (excessive deepening of the root collar) or root disease.
- Excessive application of nitrogen fertilizers.
- Errors were made during pruning (generative buds were removed).
Why doesn't the Chinese apple tree bear fruit?
Most of the reasons for the absence of a full-fledged ovary on a tree coincide with the negative circumstances described in the previous section. Let's add a few more nuances regarding cases when the common Chinese apple tree blooms, but does not produce fruit:
- Flowering of the tree occurs in unfavorable weather conditions - endless rains or severe cold prevent insects from flying out.
- The flowers of the Chinese apple tree are damaged by return frosts.
- Dropping of the ovary due to lack of moisture during the hot period.
- Damage to flower buds by insects - treatment with insecticides, the use of catching belts or traps helps.
Chinese apple tree in landscape design
In terms of beauty in a garden plot, a well-groomed Raika is not inferior to many exotic crops. In cold regions, the elegant ornamental Chinese apple tree will successfully replace flowering tall shrubs in May-June. By the end of summer and autumn, productive plants bring the pleasure of contemplating a lush crown strewn with small reddish or golden fruits. Examples of using Chinese in landscape design:
- Blooming paradise apple tree in a flowerbed.
- Fruit-bearing Raika near the house.
- Yellow-fruited Chinese on the lawn.
- Decorative apple trees among flowers.
