Description of the distinctive features and etymology of the name medlar, tips for growing in the room, recommendations for reproduction, difficulties, types. Medlar (Mespilus) is often called Ezgil, cup or pine tree, eriobotria. This plant is usually attributed to the genus of deciduous representatives of the flora, which are part of the Rosaceae family. There are about 30 varieties in the genus, but the most popular is to grow Japanese or German medlar in indoor conditions. She respects the lands of Southeast Asia and China as her homeland, but since the plant has long been known to mankind (more than a thousand years BC), it has already settled in many tropical and subtropical territories. But even in latitudes with mild winters (in the Crimea, the Caucasus, Asia Minor, the Balkans and Algeria), you can find medlar cultivated in gardens. Also, this plant has won the love of flower growers who are fond of growing exotic plants in their premises.
Its scientific botanical term medlar bears thanks to the Turkish word "musmula", which comes from the Greek word "mousmoulo", they also call the fruits of the plant, and the representative of the flora is called "Mousmoulia" in those lands.
Medlar is a fairly close "relative" of the well-known apple tree (since it belongs to the Yablonev subfamily). In nature, medlar can grow up to 7–8 meters, but if the plant is grown in rooms, then its size is more modest - only a meter and a half. Its trunk is covered with dark gray bark. Adult shoots are distinguished by a grayish-brown bark, but while they are young, their color is reddish-brown.
The foliage of the medlar is large, the surface is glossy, the leaves are rather thick, leathery, there is pubescence on the reverse side. Oval shape, one-piece edge. They are 20–25 cm long and up to 8–9 cm wide. The petiole of the leaf plate is small.
When blooming, aromatic flowers with a snow-white or light yellow tint are formed, attracting bees and wasps. The flowering process occurs in the autumn period (September-October). From the buds, erect panicle inflorescences are collected, crowning the ends of the shoots. In the inflorescence of them are collected about 70-80 pieces.
After pollination in the spring months, fruit is formed. They very much resemble small apples, pear-shaped, rounded or spherical, rather large and fleshy. The fruit is covered with a thin skin, there is a sourness in the taste, but there are notes of strawberry, apple and apricot. The fruits are also collected in the bunch. Some specimens can be up to 6–8 cm in diameter. Inside the fruit there is a juicy pulp surrounding several large seeds. The color of the skin of the fruit of the medlar is quite varied, there are specimens with a yellow, cream or orange tone. The peel from the berry is separated quite easily. The chemical composition of the fruit is very similar to that of an apple, as there is up to 7% malic acid and vitamins A and C, as well as pectins, sugars, potassium, mucus and tannins.
Agrotechnology for growing medlar in room conditions
- Lighting and selection of a place in the room. Best of all would be a medlar on a windowsill in a southern or western direction. But, you will have to carry out additional lighting, since the plant will not have enough light for flowering and fruiting, which occurs in winter and spring. At the end of January, supplementary lighting is gradually stopped.
- Content temperature. Medlar tolerates temperature fluctuations quite firmly, is frost-resistant and, at the age of 4 years, perfectly withstands a decrease in heat to 19 degrees below zero. When the medlar is grown in rooms, then for wintering they are transferred to glazed loggias and balconies, where in winter the temperature does not drop below 2 degrees of frost. In this case, the plant is not watered.
- Watering medlar - this is a special condition, since the plant is moisture-loving. During the growing period, it is recommended to moisten so that the soil in the pot is constantly moistened. Only when the plant is in the dormant period in winter, the substrate is dried a little more, but it is recommended to lay wet sphagnum moss on the surface of the soil. For irrigation, use warm (23-27 degrees) and soft water, well-settled.
- Air humidity. Spraying for medlar are contraindicated due to the abundant pubescence of its parts. In order for the plant to feel comfortable, it is recommended to carry out “shower washes” with warm water. This is necessary as a hygiene measure to remove accumulated dust particles. Also, air humidifiers or just vessels with water are placed next to the medlar.
- Transfer a young medlar is needed every year until five years have passed, then such an operation will be required every 3-4 years. In this case, it is recommended to change the top soil layer in the pot. The new container must have holes in the bottom so that no liquid stagnation occurs. Before laying the substrate, it is necessary to pour a drainage layer of expanded clay, pebbles or broken shards. The soil for the plant is selected with neutral acidity. For seedlings or rooted cuttings of medlar, the substrate is made up of soddy soil, leafy soil, river coarse-grain sand (in a ratio of 1: 2: 0, 5). You can add a little humus to the composition.
- Care. If the shape of a bush is required, then on the sprout of a young medlar, after three weeks, it is necessary to pinch the tops of the shoots. But when you want to see her in the form of a tree, then pinching is not carried out. They resort to molding if a period of one and a half years has passed from planting, in this case, pinching of the branches is required, otherwise the medlar will be greatly extended in height.
- Fertilizers it is recommended to apply in winter, as the plant not only blooms, but also bears fruit, but only very rarely. However, during the active growing season, additional preparations will be required. A mullein solution is used, which is diluted with water in a ratio of 1:10 (occasionally 1: 8). The frequency of feeding is once every 14 days.
Recommendations for self-breeding medlar
It is known about three methods of propagation of medlar: seed, with the help of a stone and a cuttings.
Medlar has an amazing ability to renew, so it is very easy to cut. For blanks for cuttings, semi-lignified shoots of last year's growth are used, the length of the blanks should be 15–20 cm. It is recommended to cut the leaves in half. You can wait for the roots to appear both by planting the cuttings in the substrate, and by placing them in water. In any case, it is recommended to wrap the container with thick black paper or cloth, since darkness will contribute to the formation of roots.
If the planting goes into the soil, then it should be composed of equal parts of peat and sand. Planting is carried out to a depth of 4–5 cm. After that, it is necessary to thoroughly moisten the soil. In any case, the cuttings should be wrapped in polyethylene or placed under a cut plastic bottle - this will create conditions for a mini-greenhouse with high humidity. The container with cuttings is placed in a warm place, where the heat indicators will fluctuate between 20-25 degrees.
After 1, 5–2 months, the cuttings develop root shoots and are transplanted into a separate container with a substrate suitable for the medlar for further growth. If the plant is grown from a cutting, then it will begin to bear fruit 4–5 years after the cutting is rooted.
When reproduction takes place with the help of a bone (this applies mainly to the variety of Japanese medlar or loqua), then it is necessary to remove the bone from the fetus and subject it to scarification, that is, it is processed with a file or sandpaper. Then it is soaked in warm water for a day. If the fruit is purchased, then a little potassium permanganate is stirred in the water, so that it becomes a slightly pink hue.
After the specified time, disembarkation takes place in a previously prepared container. Holes are made in the bottom of such a pot to drain excess water. A companion is a composition of peat and sand (1: 1). The soil should be watered abundantly so that the liquid pours out of the drainage holes. The bone should be planted to a depth of 2-3 cm. Place one bone at a time in the pot. The container is covered with a piece of glass or plastic wrap and placed in a warm place with a heat reading of 20-25 degrees.
Caring for such a planting will require daily airing and spraying the surface of the soil, if it has dried out from a finely dispersed spray gun so that the earth does not erode. Seedlings are visible after a month. As soon as the sprouts become older, the pot is removed to a more shaded place, devoid of direct sunlight. The temperature during subsequent care should not fall below 18 units.
When 3-4 real leaves bloom on the sprout, it is recommended to take the young medlar to the balcony so that the plant hardens. Such seedlings will begin to bloom three years after planting, and after 4 years you can see the fruits.
The seed method is recognized as the most effective, since all the properties of the maternal medlar in the new plant will be reproduced. This method is used for breeding the German medlar. The fruit must be cut and the seeds removed. They need to be put in a growth stimulant solution for a couple of hours. When this time has passed, the seeds are planted in pots of 5–6 pieces, deepening by 3–4 cm. The volume of the pot should be 1, 5–2 liters. The substrate is sandy-peat, after planting it is required to thoroughly moisten. You will need to create the conditions for a mini-greenhouse, covering the pot with plastic wrap or a piece of glass. It is only important not to forget to carry out daily airing of crops and, if necessary, watering the soil if it has dried out.
When 40–45 days have passed, you can see the first shoots. In this case, the shelter is removed. When 3 leaf plates are formed (after 3 weeks), the loquat sprouts are picked in separate containers, by the transfer method, since the root system of the seedlings is characterized by increased fragility.
Difficulties (diseases and pests) when growing medlar at home
If there is a violation of the conditions of detention, then the plant begins to be affected by aphids, scale insects, spider mites, or mealybugs. To combat these pests, the medlar leaves and stems are wiped with special solutions:
- soap, in a 10 liter bucket, dissolve 300 grams of laundry soap, then insist it for several hours, then filter it and you can spray or wipe the leaf plates;
- oil - when 4–5 drops of rosemary oil are dissolved in a liter jar of water;
- an alcohol solution, in the role of which is a pharmacy alcoholic tincture of calendula.
This rubbing is performed with a break of 2-3 days until the pests and their waste products disappear. If such funds do not help, then treatment is carried out with an insecticidal and acaricidal preparation.
If root rot or fungal disease has begun, treatment with a fungicidal preparation will be required.
Facts to note about medlar
The dormant period for the medlar begins in winter. And even when the variety of medlar in the Japanese winter seems to be in a "dormant" state, but still it forms flowers, and it produces fruits. Unlike many plants, which during the period of winter dormancy it is advisable not to disturb with top dressing, but here the situation is different - it is necessary to apply fertilizers.
In the Germanic medlar variety, the fruits are formed on the branches of last year, so the cut is done at least once every two years. If this is done more often, then the crown will be more beautiful, but the number of flowers and yield will decrease.
The plant has multiple medicinal properties and has long been used in folk medicine to cure chills and fever, and also helps to eliminate toxins from the body, and increases the vitality of the body.
Types of medlar
- German medlar (Mespilus germanica) - a fruit-bearing tree. The specific epithet came from the fact that the plant was brought by the Romans to the lands of Germany from South-West Asia and areas in the southeast of European lands. It needs mild winters and warm summers to grow comfortably. In nature, it can reach a height of 8 m, but in rooms with branches it reaches 1–1, 5 m. The color of the foliage is dark green, about 8–15 cm long and up to 3–4 cm wide. the color changes to reddish. The flowers are five-dimensional, the color of the petals is white, the flowering process is like late spring. Fruits in small, rounded, but laterally flattened fruits, reminiscent of a reddish-brown apple. In diameter, they reach 2–3 cm, sepals are non-falling, unfolded. The fruits are at first hard to the touch with a sour taste, but if you store them for a long time or freeze them a little, they can be eaten. Then you can feast on the German medlar, since the taste of the fruit becomes sweet, and the pulp becomes soft, and the skin is rather wrinkled and the fruit is greatly reduced in volume.
- Japanese medlar (Eriobotrya japonica) also bears the name of Japanese Eriobotria, you can often hear how it is called Lokvoy or Shesek. Despite the natural height of 8 meters in the rooms, the plant will not rise above 1 m. Inflorescences and shoots have a reddish-gray tomentose pubescence. The foliage of this variety is whole-edged, oval in shape. The length of the leaf plate can reach 25 cm with a width of 7–8 cm. Above it is glossy, leathery, pubescent on the underside. It can be both sessile and on short petioles. The resulting flowers are collected in erect panicle inflorescences, which are formed at the ends of the shoots. The size of flowers reaches 1–2 cm. Corolla with 5 petals, painted in white or yellowish color. There are a couple or three units of bars. The number of stamens reaches 20–40 with yellowish-red anthers. There is pubescence outside. Flowering occurs in September-October. The fruits take a pear-shaped or spherical shape, inside there can be 1-5 seeds, surrounded by soft fleshy pulp. Fruits are also collected in the brush.
- Gray medlar (Mespilus canescens) or Stern's medlar (Stern's medlar), which is a large deciduous shrub or a small tree, which in natural conditions can reach 8 meters. The shape of the leaf plate is elliptical, the color is deep dark green. Their length varies from 7–12 cm with a width of up to 3–4 cm. Flowers with five petals in a corolla, snow-white in color, are formed in the spring. Fruits in the form of small apples, which can vary in diameter about 2-3 cm. The color of their skin is red, the surface is leathery.
For home cultivation, the following varieties are common:
- Champagne, the fruits have a pubescence with a bright yellow tinge, the pulp is creamy, has a delicate taste and a delicate pleasant aroma.
- "Morozko" an excellent variety for growing in rooms and greenhouses, the fruits are small, fragrant with a reddish-brown skin, there is no tart taste.
- "Tanaka" forms fruits of an orange-yellowish color with a pear-shaped shape. The average weight of the fetus ranges from 50–85 grams. The pulp has a pink tone with a sweet and sour taste.
- "Premer" - this variety has a juicy pulp, there is a slight sourness, the skin is colored with an orange-yellow color scheme.
- "Silas" can tie bright orange fruits, each weighing more than 80 grams. The taste is very similar to apricot.
For more details on how to grow a medlar from a bone, see below:
