Characteristics of the new Bulgarian plum cultivar 'Ostromila'

The new Bulgarian plum cultivar 'Ostromila', recognized in 2014, has been obtained as a result of a plum breeding program aimed to resistance to Plum pox virus. The cultivar was obtained by conventional hybridization from parental combination 'Pacific' × 'Serdica 2'. The tree of 'Ostromila' is medium vigorous, a spur-bearing type. Flowering is late and abundant. Fruits are large, 38-40 g, the average dimensions being 43.4×39.5×36.4 mm, ovate in shape. They ripen in the middle of August, about 10 days earlier than the fruits of 'Stanley'. The skin is violet-blue in colour, covered with a dense silvery wax coating. The fruit flesh is golden-yellow, homogeneous in texture, with medium firmness, medium juiciness, a good sweet taste, pleasant acidity and moderate aroma. The stone is medium large, elliptic in shape, non-adherent, located in a small cavity. The cultivar 'Ostromila' is highly fertile and fruits regularly and abundantly. The fruits possess an excellent sensory profile and are suitable for fresh consumption and for processing. The cultivar is resistant to Plum pox virus and tolerant to shot-hole [Stigmina carpophila (Lev.) M. B. Ellis]. Damages caused by leaf aphids (Aphididae), plum fruit moth (Cydia funebrana Treitschke), oriental fruit moth (Cydia molesta Busck) and black plum sawflies (Hoplocampa minuta Christ.) were not observed.