Selected in the USA as a red-fruited clone of the Delicious variety. Recommended by the State Register of Varieties for use in the North Caucasus region. Until recently, it was widely represented in industrial plantations of southern Russia. It is rarely found in new plantings.
Medium-sized tree. The crown is oval or inversely pyramidal in young trees, round or broadly round in fruiting trees, formed by medium-strength branches with numerous multi-aged buds, on which fruiting is mainly concentrated.
Branches are medium-sized, red-brown, strongly hairy, straight or slightly curved. Leaves are medium-sized, elongated-oval, with a rounded base and moderately pointed apex, green, glossy, leaf margins finely toothed. Distinguished from Delicious by the presence of red coloring on the underside of the petiole, extending to the middle of the leaf along the vein.
Fruits differ from the main variety by intense dark-red blush covering the entire fruit surface and red coloration of the pedicel on fruits exposed to sunlight.
In the conditions of the Krasnodar region, fruits accumulate dry matter — 15.5%, 9.5-11.8% sugars, 0.38-0.65% acids, 5.5-6.5 mg/100g ascorbic acid, P-active substances — 130 mg/100 g.
Fruits are harvested at the end of September and stored until April. During storage, fruits are often damaged by bitter spot disease.
Fruit ripening is medium, yield and quality of fruits depend on growing conditions. Winter hardiness is medium, susceptible to significant damage from scab.
Advantages of the variety: high commercial and consumer qualities of fruits.
Disadvantages of the variety: insufficient adaptability to growing conditions, fruit damage by bitter spot disease during storage.
With the involvement of Red Delicious at the Crimean Fruit Research Station, several new varieties were developed, including Winter Beauty, Flame of Elbrus, Prigubansky, included in the State Register. In Japan, at the Aomori Fruit Research Station, the variety Orient (Red Delicious — self-pollinating) was developed.
