There is no official information on the Blufrey plum variety in Russia. He is better known in America and Europe (including Ukraine and Belarus), where he earned great popularity. We will familiarize the gardener in detail with the features of this variety and the rules of its agricultural technology.
Grade description
Blueberry plum (sometimes spelled Blue Free) is a fairly famous American variety. In the Russian Federation, the variety was not included in the State Register, therefore, the description will use information from various unofficial sources, including from the sites of online stores and nurseries, as well as reviews by gardeners. There is information about the cultivation of varieties by gardeners in central Russia, the Crimea and the North Caucasus region. Saplings are offered for sale by nurseries of the Crimea, Belgorod, Ukraine, Belarus. Information on the industrial cultivation of varieties in Russia was not found. In Ukraine, the variety is more widespread. Some sources even claim that it was included in the Register of Plant Varieties of Ukraine, but in fact it is currently not there.
So, according to nursery information, the variety was obtained in America by crossing the famous American variety Stanley (Stanley) and the no less famous English variety President. As a result of selection, Bluefrey received:
- A tree with great growth power. Some sources claim that it grows to seven meters, although other sources speak of a two-meter height (perhaps this depends on the stock on which the variety is grafted). The crown is high, oval, sparse, branches extend from the trunk at sufficiently large angles. Fruits on bouquet branches.
- High frost and winter hardiness, including fruit buds.
- Medium immunity to major fungal diseases. Tolerance to shark ("smallpox plum").
- Insufficient drought tolerance.
- Good early maturity - comes into bearing three to four years after planting. It reaches maximum productivity by ten years.
- High and regular productivity - up to 100 kg per tree.
- Excellent keeping and transportability of fruits.
Bluefruit plum fruits, as befits an American variety, are large - their average weight is 70-75 grams, and in some sources the weight is 80-90 grams. But there are reviews of gardeners whose fruit sizes are more modest - only 30-40 grams. With a large yield, the plum needs to normalize the yield, because often the branches do not withstand the load and break. In addition, it is possible (and necessary) to apply supports for loaded branches during the ripening period. This is especially true for young trees whose shoots have not yet reached a large thickness and strength.
The shape of the fruit is often oval, slightly elongated, but can be spherical. The color of ripening plums is blue, with a thick waxy coating of whitish color. When fully ripened, the color becomes blue-black with rare subcutaneous dots. The pulp is dense, but tender. Its color is yellow or yellow-green; the section does not darken.
The fruit ripening period is the end of September - October. It is not worth rushing to eat fruits - the longer they hang on the tree, the more they will pick up sweets.
It should be noted that after harvesting the fruits continue to ripen - they reach maximum juiciness and honey sweetness in about a week.
The taste is dessert, sweet with a pleasant acidity. Tasting score - 4.5 points (according to one of the nurseries). In the refrigerator, the fruits are well stored for three months, so they are in high demand by the New Year holidays. Plums are stored frozen for up to six months without a noticeable loss in quality. The purpose of the fruit is universal.
In addition to consuming fresh Bluffrey fruits, they are also used to produce high-quality prunes.
In addition to consuming fresh Bluffrey fruits, they are also used to produce high quality prunes
It is noted that the variety is self-fertile, but to increase the number of ovaries it is recommended to use pollinators:
- Anna Shpet;
- Opal;
- Stanley
- The president;
- Diana;
- Express;
- Valor
- Believe and some others.
The best yield results are given by cultivation with such pollinators as Stanley, Express, President.
//asprus.ru/blog/sovremennyj-sortiment-slivy/
Video: Overview of the fruiting three-year-old Bluefruit Plum Orchard
Planting Blueberry plum
The rules for planting Blufrey plums are the same as for plums of any kind. For beginning gardeners, we briefly recall the main points of this process step by step:
- Choose a landing date. As usual, for the southern regions, it is preferable to plant seedlings in the fall after the end of leaf fall, but about a month before the onset of cold weather. In the more northern regions, this is best done in early spring before the onset of sap flow (before the swelling of the kidneys).
- We prepare the landing pit in advance - at least two to three weeks before landing. If planting is planned for spring, then it is better to prepare a hole in the fall. Its dimensions should be approximately 0.8 m in depth and the same in diameter. To fill the pit, nutrient soil is required, which is prepared by mixing in equal amounts of chernozem, humus, peat and coarse river sand. There are other options at the discretion of the gardener.
Landing pit filled with nutrient soil
- A few hours before planting, the roots of the seedling should be soaked in a solution of the root stimulant (Heteroauxin, Kornevin, Zircon, etc.) in order to more quickly and better plant survival.
- Then we plant the plant as usual - well spreading the roots and ramming the soil layer by layer when backfilling. At the same time, we make sure that the root neck eventually turns out to be at the level of the soil or a couple of centimeters higher.
Plum is planted in the same way as any fruit tree
- After backfilling and the formation of a near-stem circle, water the soil abundantly until the watering hole is completely filled. After absorbing water, repeat watering twice more.
- We make the first pruning of a young tree by shortening the central conductor to a level of 0.8 - 1.1 m. If there are branches on the seedling, then we halve them.
Features of cultivation and subtleties of care
Blueberry plum is quite unpretentious in the care and this care has almost no varietal features. Just briefly give some nuances of agricultural technology, which need to be paid more attention:
- Due to the insufficient drought tolerance, in arid regions, plum should be watered more often, making sure that the soil in the trunk circle is constantly moistened to a depth of 30-40 cm.This is especially true in the spring, as well as during the growth and ripening of fruits. . A month before harvesting, watering is stopped, and in the late autumn, pre-winter water-loading irrigation is carried out.
The spindle-shaped bluffrey plum formation is often used in industrial gardens.
- After reaching the age of ten, anti-aging pruning will be required.
- As mentioned above, do not harvest prematurely. This should be done as late as possible so that the fruits ripen better.
Diseases and pests: the main types and solutions to the problem
Since the variety is little susceptible to disease and pest attack, when grown it is possible to refuse the use of chemicals without special need. The usual preventative measures are quite enough:
- Collection and disposal of fallen leaves in the fall.
- Late autumn deep digging of the soil.
- Sanitary pruning (removal of dry, diseased and damaged branches).
- Lime whitewash of trunks and skeletal branches.
- Installation of hunting belts.
- Preventive treatments with biological products (optional). It is possible to use Fitosporin-M biofungicide for spraying, since it contains humic acids and such treatments will simultaneously be foliar top dressings. The processing interval is two to three weeks. Their number is not regulated.
If, nevertheless, an infection occurs with any disease or a pest attacks, then it will be necessary to act on the situation, taking adequate measures, which we will not dwell on.
Gardeners reviews
Bluffrey is higher quality and more winter hardy than Stanley. Bluffrey (disadvantage: with the allowed thickening of the tree, many fruits rub against each other in the wind and rot locally in heaps - without spraying).
Dim, Minsk
//forum.prihoz.ru/viewtopic.php?t=1266&start=1470
Blufrey planted, having read the characteristics of the variety: self-fertile, early-growing, suitable for prunes, etc. For four years of vegetation, it never bloomed. Branches wildebeest, I do a nip.
Nikaaienn, Belgorod Region
//forum.vinograd.info/showthread.php?t=12897
Comparative winter hardiness: the old Hungarian Italian variety has a loss of 1-year growth, bloomed weakly. Bluefri - in perfect order.
Dim
//forum.prihoz.ru/search.php?keywords=web + bluff
The plum is late, large, tasty, the stone leaves well. It was the first fruiting - until it got sick, I didn’t try to dry it.
damada
//www.sadiba.com.ua/forum/archive/index.php/t-2362-p-3.html
A very worthy variety of Blufrey plum is not popular enough among gardeners in the Russian Federation, although it deserves attention. Due to its high consumer qualities and unpretentiousness in care, it can be confidently recommended for cultivation both in personal plots and in farm gardens for commercial use.
