Apple tree (Malus domestica) SARMĪTE

Apple (Malus domestica) - Variety 'Sarmīte' (syn. H-7-03-17)

'Sarmīte' is an excellent late winter variety that was officially applied for registration in 2024. It represents an ideal choice not only for commercial orchards but, thanks to its exceptionally high disease resistance, it is predestined for organic (BIO) cultivation and home gardens. From an agrotechnical point of view, its greatest triumph is the ability to self-thin its fruits, which saves growers a huge amount of manual labor and guarantees an annual harvest.

Apple (Malus domestica) 'Sarmīte'

From an agrotechnical point of view, its greatest triumph is the ability to self-thin its fruits, which saves growers a huge amount of manual labor and guarantees an annual harvest.

Main advantages of the variety:

• Excellent storability (6-7 months, up to April).
• Top disease resistance (scab, fruit rots, apple canker) – ideal for organic (BIO) growing.
• Self-thinning of fruits (saves labor and prevents alternate bearing).
• Regular, annual yields.
• Firm flesh and very good sweet-tart taste.

Origin and Breeding

• Status: Application for official registration submitted in 2024.
• Origin: Latvia, Dārzkopības institūts - Dobele (LatHort).
• Genetics (Crossing): Created by a targeted cross between the American breeding 'Co-op 7' and the Latvian hybrid AMD-12-15-15 ('Andris').

Detailed variety description: Plant

• Vigor and training: The tree has a medium to strong vigor. However, the crown is very easy to train and maintain.
• Rootstock: Breeders explicitly recommend growing this variety on weakly growing (dwarfing) rootstocks. This ensures not only growth control, but the fruits also color better and ripen earlier on a smaller tree.
• Yield and self-thinning (Key feature): The tree bears very well and annually (does not suffer from alternate bearing). A huge advantage is that the fruits can self-thin. The tree is thus not overloaded, and the grower does not have to perform costly fruit thinning.

Fruits and Flavor Profile

• Appearance and size: Fruits are medium to large. The base color is covered with a pinkish to red flushed striping.
• Color specificity: In cold summers, the cover color can be somewhat matte.
• Texture and firmness: The flesh is very firm. At harvest, it reaches a firmness of 9.3 kg/cm², which guarantees excellent resistance during harvest and transport.
• Taste and biochemistry: The taste is very good, harmoniously sweet-tart (subacid).
  • Sugar content (Brix): 14°
  • Acids: 0.7%
  • Polyphenols (antioxidants): 104 mg / 100 g

Cultivation properties and agrotechnics

• Ripening and storage:
  • Harvest time: It is a late variety. Harvested in the first half of October.
  • Storability (Key feature): Excellent. Under normal conditions, fruits can be easily stored for 6 to 7 months (until April) while maintaining their quality.
• Resistance and requirements (Ideal for BIO growing):
  • Diseases: The variety stands out with a top health status.
    • It has high polygenic resistance to apple scab (meaning the resistance is durable and not based on just one gene that the pathogen could easily overcome).
    • Does not suffer from fruit rots.
    • No occurrence of apple canker has been recorded.

Drawbacks of the variety:

• In colder years, fruit coloration can be less attractive (matte).
• Growing on dwarfing rootstocks is recommended to achieve optimal color and ripeness.