The study resulted in substantiation of drip irrigation rates for apple commercial orchards in the south of Russia. The studied cultivars were ‘Goldspur’ (in the Rostov Region), ‘Gloster’, ‘Golden Delicious’, ‘Jonagold’ (in the Krasnodar territory) planted in 2002. The soils of experiment plots were carbonated ordinary chernozems with heavy loam and light clay texture. The waterings were conducted by the calculated irrigation rate when the soil moisture in the layer of 0-70 cm depleted to 80 % FC (at the control), at the same time the waterings were carried out at decreased by 20 and 40 % rates and increased by 20 % one from calculated control irrigation rate. To maintain irrigation regimes it was required from 5 to 8 vegetative waterings; during different years of the study the total irrigation rate varied from 425 to 1160 m³/ha. The research results in the Rostov region showed that water consumption varied from 620 m³/ha for the period of ‘fruit maturing – branch aging’ to 2200 m³/ha for the period of intensive fruit growth. An averaged for three years the total water consumption of the cultivar ‘Goldspur’ was from 3225 m³/ha at a decreased by 40 % irrigation rate to 3548 m³/ha at an increased by 20 % irrigation rate; for ‘Gloster’ cultivar – from 5215 to 5552 m³/ha respectively. The highest productivity in the commercial orchards was marked at a decreased by 20 % irrigation rate, it was 8.4 t/ha for ‘Golden Delicious’ and 8.8 t/ha for ‘Goldspur’ cultivar.
