Where did you first start? plant apricots, exactly unknown. The fruit tree grew in both the Caucasus and Asia several millennia BC. The fruits of the stone fruit tree came to Greece with the soldiers of Alexander the Great and began to be grown in gardens. During this period, many varieties of apricots were created by crossing; Olympus, which is one of them, pleases with its stable yield. Orange and yellow fruits are rich in vitamins and various microelements. When consumed, the immune system is strengthened and the thyroid gland begins to function better.
History of origin
The selection of the Olympus apricot was carried out by specialists from the Nikitsky Botanical Garden, located near Yalta. By crossing 2 varieties of the plant in the fifties of the last century, a vigorous tree was created, which inherited its power from the Hardy apricot, and received resistance to drought and the sweet taste of the fruit from Yerevan. The variety is cultivated on the Crimean Peninsula. Fruits do not deteriorate during transportation, do not lose their presentation, are stored for a long time, and are grown by gardeners and summer residents.
Description of the variety
The tall Olympus apricot tree forms a spreading, rounded crown. The breeders who created this stone fruit crop tried to adapt the variety to unfavorable climate conditions - to Siberian frosts, lack of rain, sudden temperature changes, and pest invasions.
Olympus is not afraid of drought, tolerates light frosts, and is resistant to some pathogens of fungal diseases, but pollinators that have the same growing season must be planted next to the tree.
Fruit color
The first fruit usually appears on the tree when it is 3 years old, although the plant blooms earlier. Ripe fruits differ:
- large size;
- beautiful golden skin;
- gentle blush;
- oval shape.
The dense pulp has a rich orange color. A small bone is easily separated from it.
Taste of the fruit
The ovary is formed on last year's growths and spurs. One apricot weighs about 70 g. The fruit is rich in:
- organic acids;
- vitamin C and pectin;
- sugars and carotene.
Apricots make excellent compotes, jams, and both adults and children love to enjoy them fresh. The pulp of the fruit has a pleasant sweet and sour taste and a garden aroma.
Ripening time
Fruits of the Olympus variety in the Crimea, in the steppe part of Ukraine, are filled with juice and ripen in July; there are years when they are collected at the beginning of the month, but more often after the 15th. The tree produces a stable harvest, but if you carefully read the description of the variety, it becomes clear that it needs to be pruned every year, otherwise the fruits will become smaller.
Olympus is planted not only by summer residents, but also by farmers, for whom it is important that apricots tolerate transportation well and do not rot for a long time.
Features of cultivation
A tall tree takes root normally and produces fruit for decades if favorable conditions are created for it. Apricots love sun and warmth, light fertile soil, and respond positively to fertilizing.
Choosing a landing site
Olympus, like other varieties and hybrids, will not grow in lowlands, where melt and rainwater collects and cold air persists for a long time. Apricots need to be grown on a small hill or at the base of a slope. The sun's rays should hit the tree all day, and it also needs to be protected from the north wind.
The seedling should not be placed in a place where nightshade and stone fruit crops were cultivated. The tree does not take root on acidic and clayey soils. In the first option, the area is limed; in the other case, the soil is diluted with humus, peat, and sand.
Landing
It is possible to grow Olympus from a seed only in Crimea and Ukraine, since it was bred for this area. Summer residents and gardeners who cultivate this variety of apricot cut cuttings from the strongest shoots and place them in water in which a growth stimulator is diluted.
When buying ready-made seedlings, you need to check whether they have double buds and whether the buds are covered with thorns. Having dug a hole to a depth of 60 cm, what do you do in advance:
- Small pebbles or expanded clay are placed on the bottom.
- The ditch is filled with peat and soil, leaving a small mound on top.
- Plant the tree no earlier than 10 days later, when the ground has settled a little. The root neck is left above the soil surface.
- A young apricot is tied to a support.
Having compacted the soil in the tree trunk circle, pour 3 buckets of water. Organic matter and mineral fertilizers are added when preparing the pit.
Care
After 3–4 years, the tree will be pleased with its first fruits if you constantly take care of it. You need to take the time to trim the branches, shape the crown, moisten and loosen the soil under the apricot, and feed the plant with nutrients.
Watering
Although Olympus tolerates long droughts, juicy and large fruits ripen only when the tree has enough moisture. In the first years, the seedling is watered with warm water, making shallow grooves.
Preparing for winter
Before the onset of cold weather, the trunk of a young tree is wrapped in pine needles or durable material so that it is not damaged by hares, mice and other rodents. Fallen leaves and blackened fruits are raked and burned.
Apricots can be buried in soil for the winter, sprinkled with peat, straw or sawdust, but this is not done in the southern regions, since there are no severe frosts there.
Advantages and disadvantages of the variety
Olympus is valued for its high yield, excellent taste of fruits, which can be transported over long distances without worrying that they will lose their presentation. The variety is suitable for cultivation on a large scale and for summer cottages. Apricot is not afraid of drought and is rarely affected by fungi and viruses.
The disadvantages of Olympus include the need for annual pruning; without this procedure, small fruits ripen.
Diseases and prevention
Damp and cold weather promotes the activation of fungi, which, multiplying quickly, harm not only one tree, but can also destroy the entire garden. Although Olympus is resistant to a number of diseases, the plant cannot cope on its own:
- with gray rot;
- cytosporosis;
- vertical wilting.
To prevent the proliferation of pathogens, leaves and mummified fruits are raked, removed from the site and burned. In early spring and September, trees are sprayed with copper sulfate or Bordeaux mixture to prevent fungal diseases.
