Plum 'Ksenia'

Developed: by selecting seedlings from open pollination of the cultivar Krasny Shar.

Plum or cherry-plum Ksenia – a mid-season plum cultivar (mid-August). Bred at the Siberian Research Institute of Horticulture named after M.A. Lisavenko in the mountain zone of Altai (village Chemal) by breeder M.N. Matyunin. Seeded in 1975. Accepted for state variety testing in 1998. Included in the registry in 2005. Recommended for the West Siberian region.

It is a medium-vigour tree with a panicle-shaped crown. Fruits form on spur shoots. Branch bark smooth, dark gray. Shoots thick, slightly arched, glabrous, light brown, with numerous lenticels. Vegetative buds are conical, fruiting buds round.

Leaves reach up to 12 cm long and 5.5 cm wide, dark green, obovate, with a cuneate base or an acute tip. The leaf blade is wrinkled, glossy, slightly boat-shaped, pubescent on the underside, with a wavy serrated margin. Petiole anthocyanin-colored, of medium length.

Flowers cup-shaped, medium-sized, white. The cultivar is self-sterile. Best pollinator: Alaya Zarya

Fruits are large, reaching 34.6 g, oval, nearly round. The ventral suture and cavity are moderately pronounced. Ground color yellow, overcolor burgundy-red. Flesh fibrous, sweet-sour, whitish-yellow, of pleasant taste. Taste score 4.6 points. Stone oval, medium-sized, separates well from the flesh. Pedicel short, detaches well from the fruit. Begins fruiting in the 3rd–4th year after planting. Yield is high, but bearing is irregular.

Frost hardiness: winter hardiness of fruit buds and the tree is satisfactory.

Site: grows well on elevated, well-lit sites. Soil light or medium, pH 4.5-7.5.

Planting: same as for the common plum.

Care: requires increased moisture or regular watering.

Pruning: requires formative pruning when young; during full fruiting – rejuvenation pruning.

Diseases and pests: susceptible to wet rot. Disease resistance average.

Use: fruits are transportable, consumed fresh and also suitable for canning. Fruits contain: up to 15.6% soluble solids, up to 10.3% sugars, up to 1.2% acids, up to 8.9 mg/100 g ascorbic acid, up to 12.0 mg/100 g R-active compounds. The cultivar is promising for breeding diploid plums and for creating hybrid cherry-plum cultivars.