White honey plum is a high-yielding variety that is very popular among gardeners and consumers for its unpretentiousness in growing, delicate honey aroma of fruits and their excellent taste.
The beginning of this variety was laid by breeder Taranenko Liliya Ivanovna, who worked all her life at the Artyomovskaya experimental nursery station of the UA UAAN and was awarded the title of Honored Agronomist of Ukraine.
Plum Honey white: grade description
Honey plum - a fairly tall tree that can grow up to 5-7 meters. Accordingly, the area occupied by such a culture is large. The nearest trees can be located from the plum at a distance of 3-5 meters.
Plum variety Honey white is characterized by a not very thickened crown, which does not affect its productivity at all. Fruits are oval in shape, covered with a yellow transparent skin with a wax coating. When ripe, a specific orange blush appears.
The mass of one plum ranges from 30 to 50 grams. The pulp has a rich yellow color; it tastes pleasantly sweet, not sugary, with a subtle shade of acidity. The bones are medium sized, rounded.
Grade Benefits
Characterized by high resistance to drought and frost, White honey plum is widespread throughout Ukraine and beyond. Such a culture is successfully grown in the northern regions of Russia, which, undoubtedly, is an important advantage of the variety.
Also, the positive qualities of the honey beauty, according to many gardeners who managed to fall in love with this fruit tree, include:
- universality of the use of fruits;
- early ripening;
- dessert flavor;
- large size plums;
- high transportability;
- resistance to adverse external factors.
As pollinators for Plum Honey, which is a self-infertile crop, the varieties Vengerka Donetskaya and Renklod Karbysheva are most suitable.
White honey plum: planting features
The tree should be planted in a well-lit area, without the proximity of groundwater. Most preferred are sandy and clay soils. It is preliminary recommended to prepare a landing pit. Its width should be approximately 70 cm and a depth of 50-60 cm.
With a spring planting made before the buds open, the pit must be prepared in October; in the fall, which is best planned for mid-October, a couple of weeks before the event. Properly planted White honey plum in a few years will please its owners with active growth and high yield of fruits.
Prune pruning
An important element of plum care is the pruning necessary to form a crown, as well as remove old and damaged branches. This procedure should be performed 3 times a year. In young trees, spring pruning is carried out in late March - early April. In the first year after planting, the central branch should be shortened to 1.5 meters, and side shoots should be removed at a level of 50 cm from the soil surface.
In June, the lateral processes should be cut again, this time to a length of 20 centimeters. In autumn, the tree should be rid of damaged and dry branches.
Upon reaching the age of 15, the tree should be completely rejuvenated by removing old and dry branches.
Watering frequency
White honey plum (the photo does not fully convey all the charm of this plant), like any garden crop, needs regular watering, which is recommended:
- at the end of flowering;
- 2-3 weeks after the formation of the ovary;
- 2-3 weeks after the previous watering;
- when ripening fruits;
- after harvesting;
- in preparation for winter (September-October).
The average water consumption per tree is 20-25 liters. After autumn moistening of the soil, mulching with manure or peat should be done to a thickness of 10-15 cm.
Honey plum dressing
Feeding activities aimed at improving development and increasing yields are also one of the important factors in caring for a fruit tree. White plum honey needs to be fed since the second year of planting. In early May, urea diluted at the rate of 6 tbsp. tablespoons per 30 liters of water.
In the first half of June, the drain should be fertilized with nitrophos (at the rate of 9 tbsp.spoons per 30 liters of water). In mid-August in the same volume of water should be dissolved in 2 tbsp. tablespoons of potassium sulfate and superphosphate.
For fruiting trees, the feeding schedule is slightly different. The first time the trees should be fertilized before flowering. In 30 liters of water, dilute 6 tbsp. tablespoons of urea and potassium sulfate.
The following dressing is carried out in the process of fruit ripening. Nutrient solution - 6 tbsp. urea, 9 tbsp. tablespoons nitrofoski and 30 liters of water. The same composition should feed the tree after harvesting.
Winter preparations
Before the onset of winter cold, it is important to provide protection to the tree, despite its natural cold resistance. The trunk and skeletal branches need to be whitewashed, and the stem and the bases of the skeletal branches must be wrapped in burlap or paper.
Plum White honey, a description, a photo of which is familiar to many gardeners, is an early ripe variety. Ripening occurs in the last decade of July - early August. One tree per season can produce about 35 kilograms of high-quality, aromatic fruits.
To preserve the freshness and good transportability of the crop, the collection of plums should be done only in dry weather, since fruits that have gained moisture will not be stored for a long time. It is not recommended to collect fruits after rain, watering or in the morning, when dew drops remain on their peel.
Diseases and Pests
Of the pests, the variety can be affected by a plum sawfly, codling moth, spotted scabby aphid, aphids, weevil, gnawing passages in the fruits and causing drying of the leaves, dying off sections of the bark. Against such insects, the use of "Chlorophos", "Karbofos", "Nitrafen" is effective.
From diseases Honey plum can be affected by hole blotch, fruit rot, rust, which significantly reduce the yield of the tree and lower the quality of the fruit. You can save a tree using Bordeaux liquid, copper chloroxide, copper sulfate.
Harvest Features
Harvesting should begin with the lower branches, gradually moving towards the center. To remove drains from the upper tiers, it is recommended to use the stairs. Do not shake the plums on the ground. When falling, the fruits can get damaged, which significantly shortens their shelf life.
It is recommended to store the plum in wooden boxes at an air temperature of 0 ... +2 ° C and an air humidity of 85-90%. Honey plum retains its palatability and presentation for about 2 months.
White honey plum, the description of which encourages you to acquire this variety in your own summer cottage, is most often used fresh. Also ripe aromatic fruits are tasty in compotes, juices, jams, sauces, marmalades and as a filling for baking.