Behaviour of some apple selections in Kyustendil, Bulgaria

The selection of new apple cultivars is focused on high and stаble yield, fruit quality, tolerance to biotic and abiotic stress. As а result of the breeding activity during the last 10-20 years at the Institute of Agriculture - Kyustendil many new apple progenies were obtained to increase the genetic bases for breeding. This article presents some biological (time of flowering and ripening, fruit bearing habit, productivity, suitable pollinators) and qualitative characteristics (fruit weight and size, storage attitude) of five apple selections, pre-selected as commercially promising. The trees were grafted on MM106 rootstock and planted in the spring of 2007 at 4.5×2.5 m. Data were collected for 4 years during a full bearing period (2014-2017). In the studied selections, average yield tree^‑1 ranged from 15.0 to 48.5 kg, fruit weight from 119.6 to 228.5 g, ripening date was from September 18 to 29, the fruit have long storage period - 90-140 days under non-controlled conditions. Тhe selections produce fruit mainly on two-year old fruiting wood, on spurs and weak twigs. '1/5' (Malus robusta×'Liberty') was found as the most promising under agroclimatic conditions of Kyustendil region.