Pears "Just Maria" - a gift to the world from the Belarusian breeders.
It belongs to the elite group of varieties, and is almost the best among dessert ones.
Many people call this wonderful plant "Santa Maria" for unpretentiousness in care and a wonderful harvest with amazing taste qualities.
Breeding history
Pear “Just Maria” is a relatively new variety of Belarusian origin. Bred in 2010 on the basis of the Institute for Fruit Growing by a group of breeders: MG Myalik, O.A. Yakimovich and G.A. Alekseeva. Variety “Just Maria” was the result of crossing the hybrid variety 6/89 100 and Oil Ro, known for its taste qualities. 
The creation of the variety "Just Maria" was preceded by a long selection work. Initially, the plants were placed in the so-called selection garden, where in the fifth year they gave the first crop. Then they were selected copies of the characteristics of their winter hardiness, fruiting and the quality of the fruits themselves. These characteristics were decisive in creating the variety "Just Maria." Already in 2003, he fell into the category of elite varieties, having established himself as a positive description.
Initially, the variety was named Maria, as you might think, in honor of its creator and lead breeder, Maria Grigorievna Myalik. However, soon this type of pears was modestly renamed “Simply Maria” - this time after the name of the television series popular at that time.
Did you know? Before tobacco appeared on the continent, Europeans used dried pear leaves for smoking.
Tree description
Trees varieties "Just Maria" fall under the description as a plant of medium height. They reach three meters in height.. These pears have a crown of average thickness up to two and a half meters in diameter, pyramidal shape. 
The tree reaches its maximum size by ten years. The branches depart from the trunk almost at a right angle, directed upwards. Leaves have an oval shape without chipping.
Important! The crown of the tree should not be too narrow. To do this, you need to pull down overly vertical branches and leave them on for a year.
Fruit Description
Fruits of the variety "Just Maria" are quite large in size - each pear can reach up to two hundred grams in weight. Fruits have a rounded, pot-bellied pear-shaped shape with a relatively short and thick stem. The surface of the fruit should be smooth and smooth, the skin - soft and thin, slightly glossy.
Reaching maturity, pears acquire a golden color and pronounced subcutaneous points of green. As ripening fruits are covered with a pleasant blush. The flesh is pale yellow, medium-grained and not too dense. 
In addition to the external description, mention should be made of the exceptional taste qualities of the “Just Maria” variety. It is characterized by rich sweetness, juiciness and rich aroma. Tasters awarded the “Simply Maria” variety with an estimate of 4.8 on a five-point scale in terms of taste characteristics. The sugar content in these pears reaches 80%.
This means that "Just Maria" is able to produce a crop with positive product characteristics, even in adverse climatic or agrotechnical conditions.
Did you know? In China, pear trees are considered a symbol of immortality. And to see this plant broken or dead is a bad omen.
Lighting Requirements
"Just Mary", like many other pears, is a very thermophilic plant and also needs warmth. In order to satisfy these needs, trees of this variety should be planted on an open, elevated site. Even more light and heat can be provided by planting a plant on the south or southwest side of the garden. However, despite all these desirable requirements, “Just Maria” refers to fruit plants that easily tolerate a slight shading. 
Soil requirements
Despite the fact that the pear "Just Maria" loves moisture and requires regular watering, it can destroy the presence of groundwater. Therefore, it is necessary to take into account that they should not be close to the surface where the trees will be planted. The soil itself is required neutral, easily aerated.
"Just Maria" is able to tolerate excessively or insufficiently acidic soil. But at the same time, it is very sensitive to alkaline reactions. As a fertilizer, the variety “Just Maria” responds well to nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium.
Important! If the conditions for growing plants leave much to be desired and nothing can be done about it, grafts can be grafted onto the skeleton or shtammer.
Pollination
The vast majority of pear plants are self-productive. This means that they are not able to pollinate themselves. Therefore, you can not even ask the question "Is the pear of a self-fruited" Just Maria "?".
Of course no. This problem can be solved if pollinators of other varieties are planted next to pears for cross-pollination. The most important thing is the coincidence of the flowering period. Such varieties as Dushes and Koschia are well suited. The best is the memory of Yakovlev.
Did you know? The ancient Greeks used pears as a cure for seasickness. And also they brought these juicy sweet fruits as a gift to their gods.
Fruiting
This variety begins to bear fruit in the third or fourth year after planting. The harvest period begins in October-November. However, one of the special characteristics of this variety is that the fruits should not be fully mature. This will increase the duration of their storage. Fruiting grade "Just Maria" refers to the mixed type.
Yield
Productivity varieties "Just Maria" is considered relatively average for pear plants. With proper care and favorable conditions from one tree you can get up to forty kilograms of delicious sweet pears. 
When choosing plants for the garden, familiarize yourself with the peculiarities of care and characteristics of pears in memory of Yakovlev, Forest Beauty, Duchess, Ussurian, Talgar Beauty, Bergamot, Lada, Chizhovskaya, Century, Hera, Tenderness, Petrovskaya, Krasulya.
Transportability and storage
As mentioned above, simply Maria pears are harvested before they reach full maturity. It happens because ripe fruit becomes extremely soft and subject to mechanical damage. This is due to the juiciness of the fruit and the softness of their skin. That is why they should be left to ripen in a cool room, thereby extending the possibility of using the product. Transportation should also be carried out when pears have not yet acquired their inherent tenderness and fragility.
Disease and pest resistance
First of all, the variety “Just Maria” describes its resistance to diseases such as septoriosis, scab and bacterial cancer.
However, this does not mean that plants do not require prophylaxis. All these diseases have a fungal nature. The focus of such diseases are usually fallen leaves, in which there are fungal spores. 
This once again reminds of the need to maintain order and cleanliness in the garden and on the plot next to it. To prevent these diseases in spring and autumn, it is necessary to process trees with fungicides, maintain site hygiene and prevent damage to the bark.
In autumn, rodents become the main pest for garden trees. It should be reliably protected from them a tree trunk. To do this, it can be wrapped in various dense materials, but it is important that they allow oxygen to flow to the plant. You can also install cylindrical fences around the tree.
Among the pests of a pear, it should be noted aphid, leaf-worm, hawthorn, gall midge, sawflies, mites, moths, tstern-eaters, scale insects.
Drought tolerance
Pear "Just Mary" requires not so much regular, how much abundant watering. They suffer drought poorly, especially in the summer, when they especially need moisture. To prevent the plants from drying out, watering is required four or five times a season. And this requires not only young, but also adult trees. Each plant takes up to thirty liters of fluid. After each watering, the ground around the tree must be loosened. 
Winter hardiness
"Just Maria" has outstanding frost resistance. Trees are able to fully recover even after partial freezing in the winter. It also tolerates temperature drops from minus to plus in transitional seasons. So we can safely say that winter hardiness is one of the main quality characteristics of the variety “Just Maria”.
Important! When grafting on quince "Simply Maria" loses its frost-resistant properties.
Fruit use
Pears "Just Maria" are among the best dessert varieties. In addition to eating raw, the taste of this type is also perfectly preserved during temperature processing. Therefore, "Simply Maria" is also suitable for making jam, using in baking and other dishes, as well as for making compote. 
Advantages and disadvantages
Summing up, you should determine all the pros and cons of the variety "Just Maria".
pros
- excellent taste;
- resistance to a number of fungal diseases;
- frost resistance;
- fast ripening until fruiting;
- compact size of the tree;
- large fruits.
Minuses
- average yields relative to other varieties;
- fruits tend to shrink with increasing crop volumes.
