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There is a great variety of grape varieties, among them there are table and wine grapes, as well as for universal purposes. In our article we will talk about the variety from which the most delicious white wine is obtained - the Citron Magaracha grape. Although the berries themselves are no less tasty.
Citron grapes Magaracha (description of the variety, photos, reviews of gardeners are presented below) has attracted winegrowers from various regions of Russia in recent years. Many are interested in whether it is possible to cultivate the vine in areas of risky farming. Let's try to deal with this issue.
Historical information
Citron grape of Maharach of Russian origin. Gardeners need to thank the Crimean Institute of Wine and Grapes Magarach. In the 70s of the last century, scientists crossed two varieties - Madeleine Angevin, technical breeding form Magarach 124-66-26 and Novoukrainsky early table grapes.
The result was achieved for a long time, a titanic work was done, but the effect pleased not only the creators, but also the gardeners. The description of the new variety Citronny Magaracha is fully true. The scale of its cultivation continues to increase at the present time.
Since in the 90s Crimea became part of Ukraine, the registration procedure was carried out in the new state. The variety has been admitted to industrial cultivation in Ukraine since 2002.
Variety properties
Citronny Magaracha is a grape variety for technical purposes. It is used to prepare white aromatic wines of the highest quality.
Krasnodar Territory, Rostov Region, Stavropol Territory and the North Caucasus - these are the regions where Citron grapes are grown on an industrial scale and on private plots.
Now let's move on to the description of the variety, and the photo will confirm our words.
Features of the bush
As a rule, the bushes are medium-sized or vigorous. Leaves are medium, rounded. There are three or five blades. The upper surface of the leaf plate is smooth; there are no hairs on the lower side either.
The flowers are bisexual, there is no need to plant pollinating grapes. Fruit set is almost 100%, so there are no peas.
Bunches and berries
Conical or cylindro-conical clusters are of medium density. Weight from 300 to 400 grams. The berries are medium, more round, weighing from 5 to 7 grams. Fruits are yellow or yellow-green in color with a whitish bloom.
The skin is firm but not thick. The berries themselves are juicy with a harmonious, pronounced aftertaste of nutmeg and citron. There are oval seeds, but there are not many of them, only 3 or 4 pieces.
Benefits of the variety
The popularity of grapes is given by the following characteristic features of the variety:
- Stable yield: when grown on an industrial scale up to 200 centners per hectare. And about 9 kg are collected from one bush.
- Susceptibility to diseases such as mildew, powdery mildew, gray mold is low. Resistance to phylloxera is average.
- The variety is winter-hardy, it feels good at -25 degrees, therefore, the cultivation of Citron Magarach grapes in the Moscow region is quite realistic, the main thing is to properly cover the bushes for the winter.
- Citron ripens in 120-130 days.
- The berries are sweet, the sugar fluctuates around 23 g / cm3, and the acidity is around 8 g / l.
Variety Citronny on a private plot:
Using
Champagne is also made from this variety. These are the amber notes of the wine in the photo below.
Kishmish variety Citronny
There is another grape with a similar name - Citron Kishmish. It ripens earlier than Magarach, technical ripeness occurs in 110-115 days.
Grape Kishmish Citron has bisexual flowers. Bunches practically without peas, cylindrical conical, medium density.
White fruits are oval or oval-ovate. They are not too large, up to 4 grams, but there are many of them in a bunch, so it reaches a weight of 1 kg 200 grams. There are no seeds in the berries, although soft rudiments may occur. Look at the photo below, one berry the size of a five-kopeck coin.
Characteristic
Citron Kishmish grape is also an excellent raw material for making dessert and table wines, no less tasty fresh.
The bushes are vigorous, rooted. Pruning should be medium to 8 buds. Resistance to diseases such as mildew and powdery mildew is estimated at 3 - 3.5 points. The variety is frost-resistant, tolerates a drop in temperature to -21 degrees.
Features of planting and care
- To get good harvests of Magarach Citron grapes, you need to think about proper planting. The place should be sunny and protected from the cold northerly wind. It is best to plant bushes in a private area on the south or southeast side of the buildings.
- For the Magaracha Citron variety, a fertile, drained soil is required. Watering should be abundant, but the water should not stagnate, otherwise the roots will begin to rot.
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Before planting, lime or wood ash is added to loamy soil. Re-feeding is carried out after a year. The planting pit should be voluminous, at least 60 cm deep, so that the roots are spacious. When planting, you need to pay to the root collar, it should be deepened by 5 cm. Landings are spilled abundantly. The step between the seedlings is about 2 meters.
- They feed the bushes of grapes in the spring, bring in rotted manure. Until the flowers have bloomed, you need to water. Watering is not recommended during flowering and pouring of bunches: the bushes drop flowers, the berries crack.
- Grapes of the Citron Magaracha variety do not need to be overloaded with unnecessary branches, it is picky about timely pruning. As a rule, the bushes are formed in the form of a four-arm fan, and the sleeves themselves are cut into 8-10 buds. On a bush for abundant fruiting, no more than 30 eyes are left. All work is carried out in the fall after the leaves are dropped and the vines are ripe. Shoots and shoots that bear fruit, and those that are directed to the middle of the bush, are subject to pruning.
- It is not worth relying on the fact that, according to the description and characteristics, the Magaracha Citron variety is resistant to grape diseases. Especially if you still have bushes of other varieties. Preventive treatments are necessarily carried out several times during the growing season.
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In addition to diseases, the grapes of Magarach Citron and Kishmish Citron are threatened by wasps and birds. They really like sweet berries. It is recommended to cover the plantings with a net or hide each bunch in a bag, as in the photo below.
- And the last thing. After processing, feeding and pruning, the vine is covered for the winter when temperatures drop (-5 - -10 degrees).
