Pepper is difficult to grow in Russia due to its heat-loving nature. But breeders bred some varieties specifically for cultivation in the middle zone. The Apricot Favorite variety can withstand temperate climates, cold summer nights and regular rains. Even without a greenhouse and expensive fertilizers, it bears fruit and grows well.
Reviews from gardeners and characteristics of the variety will help you decide whether this variety is right for you personally. In most cases the answer will be yes.
General characteristics of the variety
“Apricot Favorite” is an early ripe pepper. It grows well in Russian conditions, although it is thermophilic. To ensure comfortable conditions in the middle zone, it is enough to water the plant with warm water and cover it. It is resistant to night cold with proper care and is very productive. Growers who want to achieve rapid germination and maximum yield should plant peppers in a greenhouse.
“Apricot favorite” got its name due to the apricot hue of ripe fruits. This is a compact plant that does not reach a height of even 50 cm. In a small area you can plant many bushes without compromising the yield.
The plant is generally unpretentious, but requires special feeding if grown for harvest for sale.
Please note: “Apricot Favorite” does not grow well in regions where it is constantly cloudy. Therefore, gardeners from such regions should refuse to purchase the variety or prepare special LEDs for it.
Agrotechnics of cultivation
Sowing seedlings
As you understand, if you have lamps, you can start planting seedlings in February, and then get a harvest earlier. But here it is also important to have a greenhouse or greenhouse. Already in June you will be able to collect peppers from your garden. The dates are looked at in the lunar calendar and preparations for the new sowing begin a couple of weeks in advance. You need to buy seeds - most importantly, fresh ones, soil, cups, stock up on fertilizers based on nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus. The first one is needed for greenery, the second two for fruiting. But make sure that there is no nitrogen in the fertilizing when it’s time for the seedlings to begin to bloom and bear fruit, otherwise they will only grow greener.
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So, a week before the due date, you need to pour boiling water with manganese over the entire soil and let it dry. If you want to make your own, you can mix soil with humus and peat in equal parts. All these components are now sold in packages in stores. You also need to add fertilizer, which will contain a lot of nitrogen for the growth of seedlings. You can also use complex feeding. All fertilizers are sold nowadays, but give preference to environmentally friendly products that will not harm you and do not accumulate in the soil.
Disembarkation dates
The plant is sold in seed form. To grow a seedling, the following components are required:
- growth stimulator;
- potassium permanganate;
- cassettes for seedlings;
- fertilized soil;
- drainage (ceramic balls or other type).
In seedling cassettes, you need to prepare drainage by placing large particles of expanded clay or stone, and sprinkle a sufficient amount of soil on top. Next, you need to prepare the seed for growth. Planting should begin at the end of January or beginning of February. The optimal timing is from January 25 to February 10.
Before planting the plant in a seedling cassette, you need to soak the seed in potassium permanganate. A weak solution or diluted potassium permanganate is enough. One seed can be kept in the substance for no more than a quarter of an hour, then it is washed and placed in a solution of a growth stimulator or a self-made solution with minerals and trace elements. It is necessary to keep the seed in the solution for 11 hours. The last step before planting is to keep the seed moist. It is removed from the growth stimulator, wiped, moistened with plain water and lies in a warm and bright place for 2 days.
Interesting! Soaking seeds in potassium permanganate and a growth stimulant guarantees good productivity of “Favoritka” in the future. If you skip this stage, the yield may decrease by 1.5-2 times.
After planting, the seedlings need to be carefully cared for. You cannot leave plants in a place where there is no light: they will stop growing. Periodically, the sprouts need to be moistened with warm water or gently watered.
Pepper can withstand even the night temperatures of temperate Russia, but it grows only in summer. Therefore, seedlings need to be planted with the onset of warm weather. Usually this is the end of May. If meteorologists predict a cold summer, it is necessary to prepare a special place for the pepper: place wire arches and stretch film over them. Under such a tent, peppers can grow at temperatures up to plus 10 degrees.
Pepper Apricot favorite: description, photos, reviews
Sweet bell pepper is a popular vegetable among gardeners. After all, its fruits are needed for preparing many dishes. Most species originally appeared abroad. But we also liked this delicacy. The vegetable needs proper care, although the harvest is worth the effort. Often from one bush you can collect many fruits that are distinguished by excellent taste and quality.
Disembarkation
Before planting pepper seeds, they need to be prepared; you can start from January 25 to February 10.
To begin with, they need to be kept in a weak solution of potassium permanganate for 15 minutes, then washed and placed in a growth stimulator or solution of microelements for 11 hours.
Then you need to wash the seeds again and keep them moist for 2 days. You cannot sow peppers directly into the ground. We are waiting for the seedlings to sprout, and we are already planting them in the open area.
After the sprout has appeared, the plant must be moved to a warm place so that the pepper does not freeze. This vegetable is distinguished by its heat-loving nature. The approximate room temperature is 20 to 25 degrees Celsius. Light is also important; when the room is dark, you need to turn on LED or fluorescent lamps. It should be watered only with warm water.
And already in May you can plant the seedlings in a permanent place. When it is covered with film, then on May 10-20, if the plant is planted in an open area, on May 20-30. If cold snaps are expected, then you should spill the soil around the plants, place arcs over them and cover them with film.
Classification of species
Sweet pepper varieties, like many other crops, can be divided according to their ripening period.
They are divided into:
- Early and super early. After germination, such seeds manage to ripen in 100-120 days. Among this type of seeds there are many good varieties that differ in their quality and taste.
- Average. After the sprouts appear, the fruits can be collected after 120-135 days. What’s interesting is that if you plant them a little earlier than expected, this species will ripen along with the earlier one. If you delay planting a little, you can harvest together with late varieties.
- Late and very late. Only 135-150 days after seed germination, and sometimes even a little later, can the harvest be harvested.
The choice of seeds and variety is perhaps one of the most important stages; if you take the time to do this and choose the appropriate variety, then significantly fewer problems will arise later. But you should select it individually, based on the desired result. Next, I would like to consider one of the most universal types.
Description
Pepper “Apricot Favorite” is an early ripening variety. The favorite takes about 100 days to mature. It will grow well both in open areas and in a greenhouse. The plant itself is not very tall, reaching a maximum of half a meter.
You can plant 5-8 pieces per 1 m². And about 20 fruits grow on one bush, so one cannot help but note their compactness. This is a very sweet and tasty variety, you can eat it in any form, it is suitable for cooking and canning.
The pepper is shaped like a cone. It looks shiny and feels smooth to the touch. When the favorite ripens, the pepper becomes light green, and then bright apricot color. The wall thickness is 7 mm, and the fruit itself weighs on average 150 grams.
In order to quickly get a good harvest, it is permissible to use special plant growth stimulants.
Advantages
- High yield;
- Heavy fleshy fruits;
- Sings quickly;
- Resistant to diseases;
- In cooking, it can be used for a variety of dishes;
- Grows both in greenhouse conditions and in open ground;
- The fruit is very fragrant, pleasant to the taste and looks beautiful;
- He is not afraid of weather conditions.
This is a fairly good option for planting, because in general, many varieties of sweet peppers are incredibly demanding and are susceptible to a large number of diseases; they have to be constantly monitored. But this variety, as mentioned above, cannot be called whimsical; it can grow in any conditions. The main thing is to purchase sufficiently high-quality seeds.
To avoid incidents, it is better to choose trusted companies.
Consumer reviews
Kolokolnikova S., 45 years old, Khabarovsk
My husband bought “Apricot Favorite”, it was recommended in the store. I myself have often heard good reviews. They praised its beautiful appearance and taste.
I am already an experienced summer resident, so I did everything in the usual way: seedlings, then planting. The harvest turned out to be good; I collected approximately 18 fruits from one bush.
The plant does not require particularly meticulous care; no problems have arisen. The vegetable itself is tasty and juicy. I made lecho and everyone really liked it.
Lovtsova I.S., Astrakhan
I decided to buy “apricot favorite” pepper for the first time. I am a supporter of early varieties, somehow it’s more convenient for me. Previously, I mainly bought the “Lumina” variety and was happy with everything, but I was interested in the description.
It was very interesting to try. As a result, I reaped a good harvest, the fruits were tasty and ripened on time.
There wasn’t much fuss, I planted the seedlings, and then watered them, and, of course, I didn’t forget about fertilizers.
Goncharova Anna, 25 years old, Izhevsk
I have never gardened myself; my only experience was helping my mother. I simply did what was asked without thinking. But it so happened that my mother had to leave, and the garden was already planted.
So I had to take care of it myself, but it’s a pity for the work already put in. There were no issues with the “Apricot Favorite” pepper, which cannot be said about other crops. It’s simple: I came twice a week and watered it. Then the bright and tasty fruits ripened.
There was a lot of harvest, I collected 2 dozen from each bush.
Krapivina O.V., Novosibirsk
I really liked the favorite and when purchasing it I gave preference to it, since the plant is not prone to disease. Last year I suffered with a black leg, and now I didn’t want to repeat the experience. And, really, no problem, the fruits are tasty, but not very large.
Source: https://fermilon.ru/sad-i-ogorod/ovoshhi/perets-abrikosovaya-favoritka.html
Harvest Features
One bush of “Apricot Favorite” grows up to 20 fruits. At the very beginning of ripening, they are distinguished by a delicate light green color, then they acquire an orange tint. After this they can be torn off.
The fruits ripen within 100 days after seed germination, so the harvest can be harvested from June - July. One fruit weighs about 150 g. Moreover, the thickness of its walls is 7 mm, that is, the core of the fruit is very small, and there is almost no “extra” pulp inside one pepper.
Advice! To ensure that the plant bears more fruit, constantly trim off excess leaves.
On a standard summer cottage plot measuring 6 acres, you can grow several hundred fruits over the summer. The plant is very compact; one bed measuring 1 square meter can produce up to 160 fruits over the summer.
Apricot pepper favorite description photo reviews
The choice of early ripening varieties of sweet pepper is justified, since they can produce high yields even in regions of harsh climate. One of the favorites of many is the Apricot favorite variety, which attracts not only its original name, but also the excellent taste of the fruit and good yield.
Low, compact bushes of this variety are decorated with bright yellow-orange sweet peppers. The picture is amazing, and the fruits are tasty and very juicy. This explains the popularity of the variety in many regions of Russia.
Apricot favorite is an early ripening variety; after about 100 years the fruits reach technical ripeness and can be used for food. For the territories of the North-West, the Urals, and Siberia, this is a real find, since the harvest begins to ripen already in July. Fruiting lasts for a long time, the main thing is not to forget about fertilizing.
The plant is not particularly tall, up to half a meter, with medium foliage. The fruits have the shape of small cones; from 15 to 20 peppers are formed on one bush. The skin is shiny, smooth, and in a state of technical maturity its color is pale light green. When the peppers finally ripen (biological maturity), the skin changes color to a bright apricot color.
The walls of the fruit are thick, fleshy, up to 6-7 mm wide. The fruits, despite the small height of the bushes themselves, are large, weighing up to 130-150 grams. For early ripening varieties the results are impressive.
Apricot peppers are good fresh, in salads, and in all kinds of preparations. You can use them to prepare side dishes and various vegetable dishes.
Apricot favorite pepper: juicy and bright
Pepper is planted by every summer resident who grows vegetables for himself or for sale. It can be called one of the most popular and, in addition, useful crops.
But it is not always the most unpretentious - gardeners know that seedlings often get sick, can stop their growth and produce small fruits.
In order not to get a negative result after all the work, choose good, resistant varieties.
We suggest you read: When to replant blueberries
Rules of care
The plant must be kept under an awning, in a greenhouse or outdoors, but in the southern region. Due to the fact that “Apricot favorite” grows well in artificially created conditions, it can be grown in a heated room anywhere in Russia.
Basic vegetable care includes:
- regular watering with exclusively warm water;
- spraying the stems and leaves as they dry;
- adding growth stimulants to the bud (if a bountiful harvest is necessary);
- trimming the lower leaves to the first fork.
If peppers are grown commercially, they should be planted as freely as possible. The optimal planting frequency is from 5 to 8 bushes per square meter of land.
If you overdo it with a growth stimulator, you will need fishing line and supports to tie up the plants. During the period of active growth and fruiting, it is also advisable to tie up the bushes. If there is a lot of wind and rain in the growing region, a garter is definitely needed, otherwise the bushes will break under the weight of the fruit and due to additional exposure to external factors.
What distinctive properties are rich in “Agapovo” sweet pepper?
This variety of sweet pepper is a variety of medium ripeness.
The entire growing season takes no more than four months. The plant has not very large parameters, but regardless of this, the bush is rich in a variety of leaves.
The leaves are large in size and dark greenish in color. The plant is semi-determinate. The bush grows on average up to 90 cm.
The large size of Agapov pepper has a prism-shaped shape. Waves appear on the surface of the crop. Sweet peppers are smooth to the touch. The arrangement of the fruits on the bush is drooping.
The stalk of the crop is not depressed. The culture has up to four nests. The weight of one pepper is about 125 grams. The wall can be up to 9 mm thick. The culture has a very pleasant aroma and tastes good.
The pepper is very juicy and meaty. The color of the fruit during the growing season is dark green. When fully ripe, the pepper turns red. Sweet pepper of this variety contains the following components: dry matter 6.42%, sugar 3.62%, ascorbic acid 206.4 mg per 100 g. raw matter.
The yield of Agapov pepper is 9.3-10.4 kilograms per square meter.
The positive characteristics of Agapovsky pepper are listed below:
- Agapovsky pepper is a variety of medium ripeness.
- The commercial qualities of Agapov pepper are very high.
- A positive quality is the excellent yield of the crop.
- No diseases are scary for this variety of pepper.
- Very good taste and pleasant aroma are good characteristics.
- Agapovsky pepper is used in various culinary directions.
- The compactness of the plant is a good indicator.
The disadvantages of this culture include:
- The plant needs good lighting. If this condition is not met, the ovaries and buds may fall off, and the bush itself may completely wither.
- The crop needs good watering; without this, the plant will wither.
Advantages and disadvantages of the variety
“Apricot Favorite” is very unpretentious compared to more heat-loving varieties of pepper. This is one of the few varieties that grows not only in the south of the country, but in the central and eastern parts. This is the main advantage of the variety.
Other advantages of this vegetable:
- Early ripening. One of the few vegetables that produce a harvest already at the beginning of summer.
- Fruitful. From a small summer cottage or a standard greenhouse, you can harvest such a volume that the average family will have enough fruit for a year.
- High taste qualities. The pepper is neither bitter nor too sweet, so it complements any dish well.
- Large size and large volume of “useful” pulp. There is practically no need to cut out the core with seeds from the Apricot Favorite.
There are also a few disadvantages:
- Requires constant lighting. In cloudy regions the plant will be very difficult to grow. In open spaces, you will have to install battery-powered lights that will illuminate the space of the beds on rainy days.
- Does not tolerate cold water. The roots of the plant may die if you regularly water the pepper with cold liquid. For the same reason, it should not be purchased by gardeners who live in cold, rainy areas. In case of frequent downpours, it is necessary to build an awning for vegetables.
The plant has a lot of advantages, but there are also some disadvantages. Thanks to this, the variety is in demand among amateur gardeners and even professional vegetable growers. In the special conditions of vegetable farms, this vegetable grows and bears fruit very well, so it is regularly purchased in large quantities for farms.
The next crop we will consider is the Atlant pepper.
This variety is very popular among gardeners. The culture belongs to the early ripening varieties.
The growing season is no more than one hundred and thirty days. So you can try already ripe fruits quite early. The culture is semi-standard, not particularly spreading and covered with a large number of leaves. The height of the bush is average.
The fruits are very large, weighing up to 150 grams. During ripening, the vegetable acquires a light green color, and when fully ripe, it becomes red.
Atlant pepper has an oblong cone shape. Its length varies between 26 cm. The pulp is very aromatic and juicy, the thickness of which is 6-8 mm. The fruit has clearly visible waves.
The yield is quite high and ranges from 3 to 5 kg per square meter.
General positive characteristics that the Atlant sweet pepper boasts:
- The ability to store pepper for a long time is a good indicator.
- The fruit has an excellent presentation and is of good quality.
- The culture resists various diseases, and in particular the tobacco mosaic virus.
- The crop is characterized by high productivity.
- A positive quality is the large size of the fruit.
- The culture does not require careful care.
- Pepper "Atlant" is a very popular variety.
- The plant belongs to the early ripening varieties.
- Housewives can use this pepper for various purposes.
- Pepper can be transported over long distances.
- The crop is cultivated in open and closed conditions.
- Pepper has excellent taste characteristics.
It’s also interesting to read about pepper varieties for the Moscow region
Application
The main purpose of the “Apricot Favorite”, or more precisely, the fruits of this plant, is to be eaten. The vegetable does not have any special medicinal effects, but it has a pleasant taste and contains a lot of healthy liquid. The fruits can be eaten in hot weather as part of vegetable salads, and in colder seasons, frozen peppers can be used for stuffing.
The fruits of the “Apricot Favorite” variety, produced domestically and abroad, are purchased by grocery stores and public catering outlets.
For reference: “Favoritka” is the third most popular type of domestically produced pepper, according to purchases for stores and restaurants.
