Biological characteristics of plum (Prunus domestica, P. × rossica) and cherry plum (P. cerasifera) cultivars of the northern foothills of the Northwestern Caucasus

Abstract

Introduction. Intensive and high quality care of a garden and efficient harvesting require the use high‑yielding fruit trees with low growth vigor. The selection of trees with such qualities that facilitate harvesting and help to reduce losses, increase the number of trees per unit area and fruit yield, is important for the Republic of Adygea. No studies of this kind have ever been conducted here before. Material and research methods. The study involved 31 samples of common plum (Prunus domestica L.), 12 samples of cherry plum (P. cerasifera Ehrh.) and one sample of Russian plum (P. × rossica Eremin) from the collection of the N. I. Vavilov All‑Russian Institute of Plant Genetic Resources (VIR) maintained in the Republic of Adygea in the collection garden of the Maykop Experiment Station, a branch of VIR. These samples differ by their origin, ripening period, and demonstrate high taste qualities. Quantitative characters of the crown of ten‑year old trees were analyzed in a morphometric study. Results. Cultivar differences were established for the tree height, stem diameter, crown diameter, area of the crown projection, crown volume, fruit productivity, and ripening time. The identified common plum cultivars with different maturity periods, the smallest crown volume and high productivity are the early ‘Renklod Altana̕ (11.7 m³), the mid‑ripening ‘Vascova’ (8.9 m³) and the late ripening cultivars ‘Vengerka italianskaya’ (6.3 m³) and ‘Anna Shpet’ (K) (6.4 m³). The selected cultivars of common plum are also characterized by the smallest values of tree height, and of the crown diameter and projection area. Among the cherry plums characterized by moderate tree vigor, different ripening dates, the smallest crown volume and high yield, the selected cultivars were ‘Samaya rannaya’ (7.4 m³), ‘Shuntukskaya 11’ (11.0 m³), mid‑ripening ‘Klyukovka’ (7.4 m³) and the late ripening ‘Nalchikskaya krupnaya’ (9.6 m³). The identified plum and cherry plum cultivars can be used in agricultural production and in breeding programs.