Description
Yalta #5 is a rare jujube from the celebrated Nikitsky Botanic Garden near Yalta, on the Crimean Peninsula, one of the numbered Yalta selections brought to the United States from the same breeding program that gave growers Black Sea, Coco, and Massandra. The Nikitsky collection was selected for fruit quality and dependable cropping, which is what draws jujube collectors to the Yalta series.
Like every jujube, or Chinese date, it is enjoyed two ways: picked crisp and apple-sweet straight off the tree, or left to wrinkle and turn deep brown for a chewy, date-like sweetness. The tree itself is small, tough, and forgiving, drought-tolerant and nearly pest-free once established, and it begins bearing young.
This is a jujube for the collector building out the full Yalta series, prized as much for its Nikitsky pedigree as for the easy, reliable nature every jujube shares. Give it heat and full sun, the two things a jujube most wants, and it rewards you with sweet, crisp fruit.
Overview
- Rare Yalta-series jujube from the Nikitsky Botanic Garden near Yalta, Crimea.
- From the same collection as Black Sea, Coco, and Massandra.
- Sweet, crisp Chinese date, good fresh off the tree or dried.
- Self-fertile and easy, bearing young on a small, tough tree.
- Drought-tolerant and nearly pest-free once established.
Growing Details
Latin Name: Ziziphus jujuba ‘Yalta #5’
Primary Use: Fresh eating and drying
Site and Soil: Half day to full day of sun; well-drained soil
Chill Requirement: Low chill; exact requirements not well defined
Hardiness: USDA Zone 5-10
Rootstock: Grafted onto jujube rootstock
Bearing Age: Often fruits immediately; grafted trees may produce in their first season
Size at Maturity: Typically maintained at 10 to 15 ft tall and wide with pruning
Bloom Time: Late spring to early summer
Ripening Time: Late summer to fall; timing varies by region
Fruit: A sweet, crisp Chinese date, good fresh or left to wrinkle and dry
Pollination: Self-fertile; improved yield with another jujube planted within 20 to 30 feet
Pests & Diseases: Generally low pressure; routine orchard hygiene recommended
Yield: Reliable once established
Additional Notes
- Grower’s Insight: Give any jujube the hottest, sunniest spot you have, because heat is what finishes and sweetens the fruit; the Nikitsky Yalta selections were chosen for dependable crops, and Yalta #5 rewards a warm, open site.
- Regional Insight: Jujubes thrive across the warm-summer South and the interior and desert West, and the cold-tolerant Yalta selections stretch the range into cooler gardens than most jujubes accept; everywhere, they still want summer heat to ripen well.
- Explore more in our collection: Jujube Trees
