Cherries
It is grown everywhere in Crimea, but since ancient times the best cherry orchards have been found in the valleys of the southern slope of the Main Ridge. The best cherries are traditionally considered to be those from the Alushta Valley, Generalskoe, and Malorechenskoe.
Cherries are also good in the Salgir Valley along its entire length - in the vicinity of Perevalnoye, Dobroye, Simferopol, in the Krasnogvardeysky district and up to Prisivashye (Nizhnegorsky district), as well as in the vicinity of Dzhankoy.
Season The supply of these tasty, juicy and nutritious fruits does not last long - from the beginning of June to the second ten days of July, canned cherries have become a rarity, so it is not so easy to really taste them.
Let us list the varieties traditional for Crimea:
May early ripening
. The fruits are large and red. The pulp is medium density, juicy (to the point of wateriness), pleasant taste. Ripens in late May - early June. Suitable only for eating on the spot (and even then, because there are no other varieties).
Napoleon pink . Old Western European variety. The fruits are above average in size, wide-heart-shaped. The color is yellow with a bright blush. The pulp is dense, light yellow, juicy, and has excellent taste. Ripens in June, tolerates transport well, gives good compotes and jam (if you have enough money; prices are always high).
Kara Kerez (Tatar black). Crimean variety. The fruits are medium and above average, round, slightly heart-shaped, dark red. The pulp is medium density, juicy, with an intense dark red color, high taste. It ripens in medium terms, so it is sold at a relatively low price. Transportable, used in fresh, gives excellent compotes, jams and drying.
Francis . Western Europe. The fruits are large, broadly oval, light yellow with an intense pink blush. The pulp is dense, light yellow, juicy, and has a very good taste. It ripens in the mid-late period (“cheap”), is transportable, and produces high-quality compotes.
Drogana (Dragana) yellow . Western Europe. Traditional late-ripening compote variety. The fruits are large, round, yellow. The pulp is pale yellow, dense, juicy, of good taste. By the time Drogana appears on the shelves, prices are usually the lowest, its transportability is excellent, so it is exported in large quantities.
With all our love for Crimea, we will still say that the best cherries in the country are sold in the city Melitopol, and prices there are lower than in Crimea. So if your route from the south leads past this fruit-rich city, save your baskets for it.
Cherry and cherry-cherry
In industrial gardens, its planting is minimal, but in the courtyards (and even more so on the streets in front of houses) of Crimeans it is traditional, they love it for its unpretentiousness and beautiful flowering. It grows practically without care, and therefore without fertilizers or pesticides, this already gives the fruit an important advantage. One or two days of storage give cherries an additional bouquet and weaken the acid. Well, it is generally irreplaceable in jams, which is why they usually take it in buckets. Just make sure that they don’t slip you “goods” from a roadside tree on which lead-containing dust settles.
Cherry season slightly longer than cherry - from June to September (in general, we recommend eating cherries mixed with cherries, they look harmonious together on a dish and complement each other’s taste perfectly). During the long, dry, sunny autumn, cherries calmly wither on the trees until frost, acquiring the famous candy-spicy-drunk taste - “ winter cherry"(it is usually associated with the special sensuality of women aged 45+ when it’s “baby berry again”).
Traditional cherry varieties for Crimea are:
English early
. Cherry-cherry hybrid. The fruits are medium to large, round, red and dark red, attractive in appearance. The pulp is pale pink, juicy, tender, of good taste.
Podbelskaya . Western Europe. The fruits are large (6 g), flat-round, dark red. The pulp is tender, juicy, and has excellent taste. Early-mid ripening.
Anadolskaya . Comes from Asia Minor (Anatolia). Since the word “cherry” is considered Turkish, it was probably from there that it entered Russian culture. But probably - long before the appearance of the Turks in Anatolia. The fruits are medium, round, dark burgundy. The peduncle is long with large stipules. The pulp is burgundy with dark-colored juice, tender, juicy, sweet and sour, of good taste. Ripening later. Used fresh, in compotes, jam, and for drying.
In recent years, Ukraine has managed to inflate sugar prices just during the period of mass ripening of fruits and berries. Cherries are one of the few types of fruits that store well when canned in their own juice. Simply wash the berries and remove the stems. Significantly better quality Fruits and very long shelf life can be obtained by rolling cherries in their own juice without seeds. This produces excellent raw materials for dumplings, pies and pies with cherries. This dessert is especially good in winter and spring when there is a lack of vitamins. Of course, you need to add sugar to these dishes. But the main thing is that cherries in their own juice retain much more vitamins and useful substances than regular canned fruit with sugar.
As for cherries, they are very elegant and tasty mixtures based on cherry jam with lemon slices and peeled kernels walnut and hazelnuts are offered to tourists in Alushta and in trading stalls right next to the trolleybus route. Their prices are high, but as a souvenir they are well worth the money. Autotourists can probably find prices more affordable in central Crimea and the Sivash region. But I’m not sure that they make the same masterpieces there as in Alushta. However, everything good and popular among tourists is now spreading quickly.
Cherries in Crimea are now going through hard times as an agricultural crop. However, for lovers of active tourism, the abundance of abandoned mountain gardens even represents an additional incentive to travel. Wild cherries are somewhat bitter, but wild trees, which have been growing without pesticides for a couple of decades, have a much higher ability to resist diseases and pests.
The fruits on such trees achieve amazing tenderness, so that a certain wild bitterness only makes the bouquet richer and harmonizes well with the sweet juiciness.
One of the abandoned cherry orchards is located near the well-known Red Caves, and there is an even less famous abandoned garden - near the memorial to the heroes of the Alma battle, between the villages of Peschanoe and Uglovoye. However, there are many such gardens.
As for cherries, they grow in huge quantities everywhere on the streets of Crimean cities and along forest paths.
Cherries.
It is grown everywhere in Crimea, but since ancient times the best cherry trees have been grown in the valleys of the southern slope of the Main Ridge. The season of these tasty and nutritious fruits does not last long - from the beginning of June to the second ten days of July, canned cherries have become a rarity, so it is not so easy to really taste them.
Let us list the varieties traditional for Crimea.
May early ripening. The fruits are large and red. The pulp is medium density, juicy (to the point of wateriness), pleasant taste. Ripens in late May - early June. Suitable only for eating on the spot (and even then, because there are no other varieties).
Napoleon pink. Old Western European variety. The fruits are above average in size, wide-heart-shaped. The color is yellow with a bright blush. The pulp is dense, light yellow, juicy, and has excellent taste. Ripens in June, tolerates transport well, produces good compotes and jam (if you have enough money; prices for it are always high).
Kara Kerez (Tatar black). Crimean variety. The fruits are medium and above average, round, slightly heart-shaped, dark red. The pulp is medium density, juicy, with an intense dark red color, high taste. It ripens in medium terms, so it is sold at a relatively low price. Transportable, used fresh, makes excellent compotes, jam and drying.
Francis. Western Europe. The fruits are large, broadly oval, light yellow with an intense pink blush. The pulp is dense, light yellow, juicy, and has a very good taste. It ripens in the mid-late period (“cheap”), is transportable, and produces high-quality compotes.
Drogana yellow. Western Europe. Traditional late-ripening compote variety. The fruits are large, round, yellow. The pulp is pale yellow, dense, juicy, of good taste. By the time Drogana appears on the shelves, prices are usually the lowest, its transportability is excellent, so it is exported in large quantities.
With all our love for Crimea, we will still say that the best cherries in the country are sold in Melitopol, and prices there are lower than in Crimea. So if your route from the south leads past this abundant city, save your baskets for it.
Cherry.
In industrial gardens, its planting is minimal, but in the yards of Crimean residents it is traditional, they love it for its unpretentiousness and beautiful flowering. It grows practically without care, and therefore without fertilizers or pesticides, this already gives the fruit an important advantage. One or two days of storage give cherries an additional bouquet and weaken the acid. Well, it is generally irreplaceable in jams, which is why they usually take it in buckets. Just make sure that they don’t slip you “goods” from a roadside tree on which lead-containing dust settles.
The cherry season is slightly longer than the sweet cherry season - from June to September (in general, we recommend eating cherries mixed with cherries, they look harmonious together on a dish and complement each other’s taste perfectly). Traditional cherry varieties for Crimea are:
English early. Cherry hybrid. The fruits are medium to large, round, red and dark red, attractive in appearance. The pulp is pale pink, juicy, tender, of good taste.
Podbelskaya. Western Europe. The fruits are large (6 g), flat-round, dark red. The pulp is tender, juicy, and has excellent taste. Early-mid ripening.
Anadolskaya. Comes from Asia Minor (Anatolia). The fruits are medium, round, dark burgundy. The peduncle is long with large stipules. The pulp is burgundy with dark-colored juice, tender, juicy, sweet and sour, of good taste. Ripening later. Used fresh, in compotes, jam, and for drying.
More than 200 types of cherries grow in the gardens of the Crimean peninsula. The most popular varieties are Mayskaya early ripening, Napaleon, Kara Kereza, Francis, and Drogan.
When does the Crimean cherry ripen?
- Variety May early ripening: its fruits are red, large, juicy. They begin to ripen at the end of May, continuing to ripen until the beginning of June, and are the first to appear in the markets of Simferopol. The berries are not suitable for transportation; they must be eaten on the spot.
- Variety Kara Kerez(Crimean Tatar species): was bred in Crimea. The fruits are dark red, medium. Ripening period: June - early July. The harvest takes place over three weeks. First in Koktebel, Alushta, Sudak, then Bakhchisarai, Simferopol. Later - Dzhankoy, Krasnogvardeisky, Nizhnegorsky. Suitable for making compote, jam, and drying. Handles transportation well.
- Variety Francis: Western European species. Its fruits are light yellow, covered with red specks, large, juicy. The weight of one berry is 10-17 grams. Ripens late, late June - first half of July. It has good transportability.
- Variety Drogana: It was brought from Western Europe. Its fruits are yellow, large, round. Ripen at the end of June. The weight of each berry is 6-8 g. They do not tolerate transportation. May be affected by fruit rot.
- Variety Napoleon (Black Prince) It is considered an undeservedly forgotten ancient type of cherry. It was bred by Western European breeding scientists. On the territory former USSR it was grown mainly in the southern regions. The berries are heart-shaped, juicy, ruby in color. Ripens mid-end of June, first ten days of July. Suitable for long hauls
Additional information! Strawberries in Crimea can ripen twice a year. In April, from August until the first cold weather.
When does the Crimean cherry ripen?
Description of the species
Trees begin to bear fruit at 4-5 years of age. The trees are characterized by intensive growth. Adult specimens reach 6 meters in height. The crowns are large in diameter, spreading, spherical. The foliage is dense. The leaves are light green, oval, evenly elongated on both sides. The crops bear fruit abundantly.
Flowering begins in late March - early April (this depends on the region and climate). Each inflorescence consists of 2 - 3 flowers. They are collected mainly on the first 5 buds of young shoots, as well as bouquet branches.
The berries are large (6 - 10 g), dark red or yellow, sweet and sour in taste. Fruit shapes are heart-shaped, round, oval. The pulp is juicy, red, lemon, yellow in color. Fruit different types ripen in late May, mid-late June, early July.
Note! The yield of cherries depends on the variety and climate, on average 30 - 70 kg.
Landing
If you plan to plant a whole cherry orchard, it is better to arrange paired rows. Trees prefer warm sunny places, do not tolerate darkness, high humidity, drafts, soil overgrown with turf, and weeds.
Before planting seedlings, the area is cleared of grass, the soil is dug up, and organic matter. Prepare a deep planting hole. They put it in mineral compounds, humus. Culture will fully grow and develop.
During autumn planting, the root collar must be hilled up. With the arrival of spring, it is opened after the frosts have passed.
Important! The root collar of the trunk should not be buried in the ground. It should rise several centimeters above the soil surface and be located on the south side.
The distance between trees should be 3 - 4 meters, as they grow quite large. They tie the tree trunk to pegs. There must be at least three of them. After planting, the soil is compacted tightly and watered generously.
In the north, in the Central region, it is preferable to plant in Moscow Crimean cherries in the spring.
Care
Cherries in Crimea, as in all southern regions, require frequent watering. Poor soils also require humus supplements. If the soil is clay or sandy, then the plants are fertilized with manure.
Pay attention! After landing, it is better to give the first three years young tree rest, taking only the necessary preventive measures. All other work must be carried out just before fruiting.
Trees need to be watered:
- in May, after the cherry tree has finished flowering, so that the plant is saturated with moisture before fruiting begins;
- during the period when the berries begin to ripen, so that they are beautiful and juicy;
- during drought (abundant watering to a depth of 40 cm);
- in the fall, before the onset of frost.
It is necessary to regularly loosen the soil to a depth of no more than 7 cm. It is better to do this after each watering of the plant. You can sow green manure in the tree trunk circle. They will crowd out weeds and additionally feed the cherries.
Trees are fed throughout the season. They use peat, humus, and a diluted aqueous infusion of chicken droppings or manure.
Pay attention! After picking the berries, be sure to fertilize the plants with potassium-phosphorus substances. This will have a beneficial effect on the formation of fruit buds next year.
Pruning is carried out annually. Annual shoots are shortened by a fifth of the trunk. The growing shoots are cut inwards, forming a beautiful crown. Sick, old, damaged, dry branches are also removed. After the work, the sections are filled with garden varnish.
Diseases, pests
Cherry trees can be attacked by the cherry fly. It can destroy 70% of the crop. Control measures:
- dig up the soil;
- irrigate the tree with a soap solution;
- During the flowering season, all kinds of traps, vessels filled with sweet liquid, and sticky tapes are attached to the branches.
Sometimes crops are harmed by cherry weevils, aphids, and caterpillars. In this case, 2 weeks after the flowering period, it is treated with the drug Aktelik, Aktar, Enzhno.
Occasionally, plants are affected by coccomycosis, rot, and other fungal diseases. To combat them, the drug Horus is used.
Protection from diseases
Prevention
In the spring, sanitary pruning of branches is carried out, weeds and fallen leaves are burned, the tree trunk area is dug up, the trees are sprayed with copper sulfate or Bordeaux mixture, and the trunks are whitened with lime. The same procedures must be carried out in October - November.
All varieties of cherries certainly deserve the attention of gardeners. Despite some requirements for growing conditions, the crops in general have proven themselves very well.
Every traveler who arrives on the Crimean peninsula must certainly taste the local fruits and berries that grow in Crimea and which are also very healthy.
Crimean persimmon
May. In Crimea, towards the end of May, strawberries and cherries appear (in Crimea, the very popular varieties Kara Kerez, Mike, Drogana yellow, Napoleon and Frants). Eating cherries helps maintain skin elasticity and prevents aging. You need to buy ripe berries with green, strong stalks.
June. The harvest of cherries continues (a lot of them ripen in the middle of the month), mulberries ripen (appears in mid-June and are harvested until mid-July), cherries (varieties Podbelskaya, Anadolskaya and English) and cherry plums, apricots ripen at the end of June (the popular variety Krasnoshchekiy), nectarines and peaches. Crimean peaches are very tasty and aromatic, and mulberries help cleanse and rejuvenate the skin. When purchasing, focus on the color intensity of the fruit.
July. The most generous month for various fruits. A lot of peaches are ripening (the Veteran variety has excellent taste), nectarines and cherry plums, dogwoods, figs (the first harvest is being harvested) and grapes are appearing. The cherry harvest is harvested until mid-July, and cherries are still sold. Apples (early varieties White Naliv and Stark Erliest) and plums (very common varieties Renkloda Altana and Eric) appear at the end of the month. Figs are very tasty and healthy; they normalize cholesterol and sugar levels.
August. The month is very rich in fruits. Grapes continue to ripen (fourteen table and six canned varieties are grown on the Crimean Peninsula), figs (the second harvest is harvested from the beginning of August and ends in mid-September), peaches and nectarines. A lot of melons and watermelons, pears and apples are ripening.
September. Jujube ripens, persimmons and quinces appear, and the harvest of grapes, figs, melons and watermelons continues. Quince strengthens the human immune system. Delicious jam and jelly are prepared from its fruits. Persimmon fruits must have dry stalks and not be damaged.
October. Figs, quince, persimmon, grapes, kiwi and jujube continue to ripen, and pomegranate ripens at the end of the month. Buy pomegranates with intense red skin without blemishes. The peel may be a little dry. Eating kiwi berries strengthens the immune system, prevents urolithiasis, stabilizes blood pressure and normalizes digestion. Jujube fruits have a lot of beneficial properties.
November. Persimmon, jujube, medlar and feijoa are on sale. Medlar normalizes the digestion process. Jam, juices and jellies are prepared from its fruits.
As you can see, at any time, with the exception of late winter and early spring, some fruits grow in Crimea. To make this review more visual, the site’s editors decided to put it in a table.
| May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December |
| Green peas Strawberry |
Raspberry Strawberry Tomatoes Cherry plum Cherries |
Melons Watermelons Seeds Figs Nectarines Peaches Raspberry Strawberry |
Apples Watermelons Melons Grape Pears Peaches Nectarines Tomatoes |
Watermelons Melons |
When you go on vacation to the sea, you always expect to see fruit in your diet. This desire also applies to holidays on the Crimean Peninsula. Of course, there are fruits that are offered to tourists regardless of the time of year, and imported exotic ones can often be seen on tables in hotel restaurants not only in high season. But the fruits that you eat during their ripening period are much tastier. It is at such a time that the fruits are juicy, filled with the warmth of the hot Crimean sun.
Where to buy fruit
The best option is the market. Moreover, it is better to choose sellers not those who have a wide variety of fruits, but some grandmother who probably sells fruits grown in her own garden. The taste will be excellent, because everything is grown without chemicals and other inorganic fertilizers. Such fruits can also be bought in villages, traveling along the roads of Crimea, when containers with them are located right at the gates and fences of personal plots.
Of course, they are also sold in supermarkets, shops and street stalls. However, these are not always local, grown under the southern Crimean sun. Fruits are brought to the peninsula from other countries, including exotic and familiar ones (for example, bananas).
And in hotel restaurants, those grown on the fertile Crimean soil are not always served for breakfast, lunch or dinner, so it is better to stock up on fruit yourself. Hotels do not allow you to bring food into your rooms, including fruits and berries, but, as people say, you can, if you are careful. If you are staying in a private house, then there is hardly anything that will prevent you from fully enjoying the taste of the local gifts of nature.
Fruit seasons
May
- Strawberries (early season)
- Gooseberries (early season)
The tourist season begins in July, but from mid-May you can enjoy the first strawberry harvest. Next, the gooseberries begin to ripen. But you shouldn’t expect a large number of berries at this time; rather, these will be so-called glass portions.
June
- Cherry (early season)
- Cherries
- Raspberries (early season)
- Apricot
- Strawberries
On the first summer month It's the height of the strawberry season. These berries are said to be tastier and healthiest in the morning and straight from the garden. Strawberries are already in abundance. Sweet cherries begin to ripen, then cherries. And if the frosts did not damage the trees too much, then in the last days of June the first apricots appear on the shelves.
July
- Strawberries
- Apricot
- Peach
- Cherries
- Apples
- Dogwood (early season)
- Grape
- Figs
This is where there is freedom for lovers of fruits and berries. July adds grapes, apples, dogwoods and figs to the diet. Moreover, early varieties of apples produce delicious juicy fruits already at the beginning of the month. Cherries stay on the shelves until the second ten days of the month, but before buying them you should make sure that there are no small worms in the berries - just break one (as a rule, sellers allow you to do this without problems). Peaches are appearing on the shelves. And it is best to buy figs from the branch.
August
- Watermelon
- Peaches
- Grape
- Pears
- Raspberry
It's time to enjoy watermelons, which in August will delight you with excellent taste qualities. There will be no place on the table without peaches, which have a short season in Crimea - only July and August. Raspberries are ripening, filled with the warmth of the sun's rays.
September
- Grape
- Apples
It's time to try a somewhat exotic fruit for our latitudes - quince, although in Crimea it is often found in household plots.
October
- Pomegranate
- Raspberry
- Medlar
Raspberries, having taken a month's break, returned to the tables again. And the berries are no less juicy and tasty than in the summer. It's also time to harvest the pomegranates. And the medlar fruits begin to ripen.
November
- Medlar
- Raspberry
IN last month In the fall, when the high season has long ended, the forests of the mountainous regions of Crimea are filled with sweet and sour medlar juice. You can still enjoy raspberries, but this is only if someone treats you: you can no longer find them on sale.
Most fruits and berries (gooseberries, dogwoods, cherries, watermelons, grapes, etc.) ripen already in September, and only some acquire their optimal flavor later. Late varieties of apples and pears will delight you not only in autumn, but also in winter. There are also fruits that, even out of season, do not lose their taste and aroma. For example, grapes. In winter, of course, it will be delivered from other countries, but this is not at all a reason to refuse the delicacy.
