Kentish Red, Early Richmond
An old English variety, widely grown in Western Europe, little known in Russia. According to many morphological and biological characteristics, it is a plum-cherry hybrid. Included in the State Register for the Central Black Earth and Lower Volga regions; registered since 1947.
A strongly growing tree; in its youth the crown is pyramidal, reaching 4 m in height by age 10, then becomes rounded. The main branches are upward-sloping, emerging from the trunk at angles of 45-60°, with dark brown coloration with a grayish tint. Shoots are slightly curved, gray-brown. Leaves are above-average or large (106 x 48 mm), oval, dark green, matte, slightly folded along the main vein; margins smooth with fine doubly-serrated teeth; apex gradually pointed, base broad-angled; petiole 18-25 mm long, up to 2 mm thick; glands greenish-yellow, located 1-2 on the petiole near the base of the leaf blade; small, awl-shaped, falling stipules. Flowers in clusters of 2-4, 26-28 mm in size, bowl-shaped; petals 9 x 7 mm, broadly oval, with a split apex, overlapping each other; stigma 6 mm, located below the anthers; stamens 7-10 mm; calyx cup-shaped, green with anthocyanin tint on the sun-facing side; pedicel 23-32 mm. Fruit set is mixed, the majority of the crop forms on cluster branches.
Fruit medium-sized - 19.3 x 19.5 x 17.0 mm, weighing 2.5-3.0 g, round, slightly compressed vertically, dark red, with a rounded apex and narrow, fine indentation; flesh tender, dark red, sweet-tart, good flavor, juice red. In the Krasnodar region, the flesh contains: dry matter - 16.5%, sugars - 11.8%, free acids - 1.4%, ascorbic acid - 4.8 mg per 100 g of fresh weight. Stone 8 x 6 x 5 mm, weighing 0.2 g, constitutes 8.4% of the fruit's mass, light brown, broadly oval, with a pointed apex, sharp dorsal and weakly developed ventral sutures, easily separates from the flesh. Peduncle 40-45 mm, 1 mm thick, moderately firmly attached to the fruit. Fruit are of universal use, suitable for high-quality jam production.
Plants begin to bear fruit late - on the 5th-6th year after planting. Regarding flowering and ripening, it belongs to early varieties, fruits ripen 20 days earlier than the 'Lyubskaya' plum. Partially self-fertile; best pollinators are 'Vladimirskaya' and 'Griot Ostgheim'. Productivity is average, at 8-10 years old 15-18 kg per tree, in favorable years during full fruiting reaching 30-40 kg. Winter hardiness is good in normal winters; in severe (-27.4°C) conditions, shoot damage may be 1.4 points, generative buds up to 30%. Shows moderate field resistance to coccomycosis, in some years infection level reaches 4 points.
The 'Kentish' variety is of interest primarily for amateur gardening in central and southern fruit-growing regions of Russia.
Advantages of the variety: dark red, high-quality fruit.
Disadvantages: small fruit size, becoming more evident with tree age; late fruiting onset and insufficient cold resistance.
