Plum is a very useful and tasty fruit. But in order to get high quality bountiful harvest, you need to try, as the plum requires proper care. From this article, you will learn when to plant seedlings so that they take root, as well as when to plant this tree in your backyard.
The first thing you need to know when growing plums is the timing of its planting. Choosing the right time for landing is half the battle. Plums should be planted in the spring. And it needs to be done early. At the same time, you can plant a seedling in the fall. This is done approximately 1.5-2 months before the soil freezes.
Also, the time when it is possible and necessary to plant a tree is determined by the climatic conditions of the place of growth. In the middle lane, it is recommended to plant a plum in the spring, but autumn is more suitable for the southern regions. Also, slight variations in planting time are possible, based on the type of tree.
But still, experienced gardeners consider spring to be the best time to plant plum seedlings. It is in the spring that the survival rate of seedlings is maximum. The best period for planting is the end of April (20th days) and before the beginning of May (the first 10 days). During the spring planting of seedlings, their roots fall into the heated soil. As a result, the aerial part of the young tree develops normally. In addition, the plum becomes resistant to the conditions of the winter period of growth.
The most important aspect to consider is the choice of a quality and viable seedling. If the seedling is chosen correctly, then the planting will be effective, and in the future you will get a high-quality and plentiful harvest of delicious plums. As you know, you need to plant a plum only with high-quality planting material. A good seedling can be selected based on the following selection criteria:
Such seedlings can not only be planted in the spring in a suitable place in your backyard, but also later transplanted to a new one. When choosing planting material, you should know that plum happens:
Trees can also be
To properly plant or transplant a plum, you need to know certain nuances. Tips for planting and caring for a tree include:
If the seedlings were purchased in the fall, they should be buried for the winter in a trench specially dug for this. The trees are placed in it at an angle and sprinkled with earth on top. Young trees need to be covered with earth for about half the bole. Podzolic soils are typical for our country in most cases. Therefore, in this situation, it is necessary to carry out the liming procedure in order to end up with a strong and healthy tree, as well as a high-quality and tasty harvest.
Correct liming can be carried out according to the following scheme:
In addition, before planting, in the presence of loamy and podzolic soils, pre-planting soil fertilizer is carried out. The following fertilizers should be applied here:
The fertilizer application scheme changes somewhat in the presence of peaty soils. In this situation, preplant fertilizer includes the application of:
In the presence of dressing chernozems, this scheme involves the introduction of:
In this amount, fertilizer should be applied to one pit.
Many gardeners recommend planting together. This will allow for a better planting, since one person will keep the seedling in a level position, and the second will cover it with fertile soil. Taking into account the above tips, you can plant a plum according to all the rules.
After the plum has been planted, important point is proper care. The most important thing is to create the necessary water regime. Water regime for plums in the post-planting period, look like this:
After watering, the ground around the plant is mulched, sprinkled with peat chips and fertilized. You can also sprinkle the ground with fallen leaves.
Also, a prerequisite for care is the application of fertilizers. Top dressing scheme:
In addition, after disembarkation, it is necessary to organize the crown trimming procedure by about 1/3. Be sure to cut the lower branches with a larger grip than the upper ones. Leave extensions on the shoot up to 20-30 cm above the upper side branch.
As you can see, planting and caring for a plum is not a difficult task. Here you just need to follow the recommendations listed above, and everything will work out for you as it should.
It would seem that planting a plum is a very simple and easy process. However, it has its own subtleties and tricks, the observance of which will help you grow a healthy and prolific tree.
Plum is one of the first fruit trees cultivated by man. And this is not surprising, because the branchy graceful tree has rich green foliage. In early spring, it amazes with beautiful flowers and allows you to enjoy an exquisite aroma. Truly, a plum is an adornment of any site. Is it necessary to talk about delicious fruits?
Every gardener tries to plant this tree on his site without fail. And only a few know how to grow a plum from a seed. Let's see how this process happens.
Surprisingly, many summer residents are wondering how to grow a plum from a seed. Why are they interested in this particular tree?
This desire is due to several reasons:
Such factors make people look for ways to grow a plum from a stone.
If you are serious about growing plums from seeds (the photo shows a beautiful tree that you can get), there are a few things to consider.
One of them is the right choice of variety. The tree from which you take the stone must necessarily grow in your climate zone. Only in this case, the seedling will be able to please you with beautiful fruits.
If the parent tree grows in a warm climate, then it is difficult to count on the success of the venture. Most often, a "wild" grows from such planting material. But even if this does not happen, the drain will "freeze". This means that a beautiful plentiful harvest is not to be seen. Therefore, we will consider which varieties are best used so that a plum from the stone appears in your garden.
The following varieties can be grown in the middle lane:
In dry regions, varieties will take root perfectly:
For warm areas suitable species:
This is a question often asked by beginner gardeners. Sometimes such a dilemma arises for experienced specialists. After all, from time to time there is a desire to plant a completely different variety from those that are available on the site.
Initially, we note that 3 ways allow you to get a tree:
The last method is of the greatest interest. However, before considering this method, you should learn about some features:
However, do not rush to despair. Is it possible to grow a plum from a stone that will have excellent characteristics? Experienced breeders say yes. After all, it is from the seeds that new varieties are derived. And maybe you will be the second Michurin.
As you can see, a stone plum may well appear on your site. Even novice gardeners can grow a tree at home.
You just need to listen to the advice of experienced professionals:
Now let's look at how to grow a plum from a seed. Initially, planting material must be prepared.
Such a procedure is as follows:
Having considered the initial stage, which allows us to understand how to grow a plum from a seed, let's move on to the next one.
Now your planting material needs the following activities:
It should be noted that the tree does not need special conditions. If you provide him with the same care as anyone else houseplant, then the plum will quickly please with its sprouts.
If you have provided proper care for the growing plants, then by autumn, medium-sized seedlings will form from your seeds. They can already be planted on the site.
Rest assured that the growing process will take approximately 4 years. And the tree will please with fruits only after 5-6 years. Initially, the plums will be quite small. However, year after year their size will increase.
If you are confused by such a long process, it can be greatly accelerated.
Consider another method on how to grow a plum from a stone at home:
When thinking about how to grow a tree from a plum seed, you need to consider a few more important points:
Now let's talk about soil.
Gardeners, explaining how to grow a plum from a stone, are advised to follow the rules:
Experienced gardeners do not use long preparatory stages. They plant the seeds directly in the open ground.
However, the seed with this approach needs protection. Therefore, mouse poison is laid out around the planting. After all, rodents are very fond of germinated seeds.
Unfortunately, weather conditions cannot be predicted. And, therefore, there is no guarantee that seedlings will appear in the spring. Sometimes the first sprouts sprout from the seeds after 1.5 years.
Plum (lat. Prunus)- a genus of tree-like plants of the Rosaceae family, which includes about 250 species growing in the Northern Hemisphere. Plum is a natural hybrid of cherry plum and blackthorn. Plums were cultivated in ancient Egypt, in the 5th-6th centuries BC. And the Syrians, long before our era, knew how to cook prunes from it, which they traded with other countries. According to legend, the Roman commander Pompey brought plums to Europe from Damascus. In Rome, the best varieties of plums were considered walnut and damask. And during the Crusades, other excellent varieties came to Europe, including Renklod, named after Claude, daughter of Louis XII. View homemade plum, which will be discussed today, comes from the Caucasus.
Read more about growing plums below.
Plum is a tree up to 15 m high with an ovoid crown, the productive age of which is 10-15 years, but it can live up to a quarter of a century. Early-fruiting varieties begin to bear fruit in the second or third year after planting, late-fruiting varieties - only in the sixth or seventh. The root system of the plum is pivotal, most of the roots lie at a depth of 20-40 cm. The leaves of the plum are simple, short-petiolate, alternate, obovate or elliptical in shape, with a serrated or crenate edge, pubescent from the bottom of the leaf plate. The length of the leaves is from 4 to 10 cm, the width is from 2 to 5. Flower buds give from one to three white flowers with a diameter of 1.5-2 cm.
The fruit of the plum is a purple, yellow, light green, red, or bluish-black drupe with a flattened and pointed stone on both sides. The shape of the fetus can be round or elongated. The genus Plum also includes cherry, almond, apricot and peach fruit trees.
In regions with a cool climate, plums are planted in the spring, in April, before the buds begin to open. In warmer areas, plums can be planted in the fall, in mid-September, so that it has time to take root before frost. But if you purchased plum seedlings later, in October or November, dig them in the garden until spring and cover them with spruce branches from frost, laying them with needles up so that mice do not get to the seedlings. When it snows, throw a snowdrift on the spruce branches. In the spring, as soon as the buds begin to bloom, dig up the seedlings and plant them in a hole prepared in the fall.
If your area has mild winters, you can plant trees in the fall, but you need to prepare the site for planting in advance. Even if you have purchased a seedling of a self-fertile plum, it is still desirable that a pair of plums of a different variety grow nearby - such a neighborhood contributes to consistently high fruiting.
The drain pit is prepared two weeks before planting. Plum grows on any soil except acidic, but the groundwater on the site should lie no higher than one and a half meters deep. Choose a sunny, draft- and cold-wind location for plum trees, facing south, southwest, or west.
Dig the area to the depth of the bayonet and, if the soil is acidic, add a deoxidizer for digging - dolomite flour or ash at the rate of 600-800 g per m². Then dig a hole at least 60 cm deep and about 70 cm in diameter, discarding the top, fertile soil layer in one direction, and the lower, infertile soil in the other. In the bottom of the hole in the center, drive a landing stake so long that it rises above the surface of the site by at least half a meter. Place a mound at the bottom of the hole fertile soil mixed in equal parts with humus or peat.
Now let's talk about the requirements for seedlings. A seedling with a fresh, not overdried root system is considered good. If the roots are slightly weathered, soak them for several hours in water before planting. The plum bark should be undamaged, and the trunk should be in excellent condition. The trunk of the plum should not have bifurcations.
Plum planting in autumn is carried out as follows: a one-year-old seedling is placed on an earthen mound, poured around a peg, its roots are carefully straightened and covered with earth from the top layer of soil mixed with organic fertilizers so that no voids remain. When planting, the root neck of the seedling should be 3-4 cm above the surface level. After planting, water the seedling with two or three buckets of water, and when it is absorbed, the soil will settle and the root neck will be at the level of the surface of the site, mulch the near-stem circle with peat.
Planting a plum in spring differs from autumn only in that, in addition to organic matter, it is necessary to add the entire set of mineral fertilizers to the fertile planting mixture, including nitrogen fertilizers, which are not applied to the soil during autumn planting. The fertile soil layer is mixed with a ratio of 1: 1 with humus or compost, 200-300 g of superphosphate, 40-60 g of potassium salt and 300-400 g of wood ash are added to it, thoroughly mixed and the roots of the seedling are covered with this planting mixture.
Plums are planted at a distance of 3-4 meters from each other. It is best to plant two plum trees at once of varieties that bloom at about the same time. If cherry plum grows nearby, it will be enough as a pollinator. As we already wrote, they carry out spring planting before the start of sap flow.
How to properly care for plums? Planting and caring for a plum will not seem difficult if you know exactly what and when to do: how to fertilize a plum in spring, summer and autumn, how to graft a plum onto a root shoot, and how to process a plum that is sick. For the convenience of perceiving information, we have divided the section "Growing plums" into seasons.
At the very beginning of spring, to attract birds to the garden that will help you fight harmful insects, hang birdhouses on the trees. In mid-March, you can start pruning plums. In April, the soil in the near-trunk circles and row-spacing is dug up with nitrogen fertilizers at the rate of 100-200 g of calcium nitrate or urea for young trees older than one year and 300-400 g for plums that have come into bearing. When digging, try not to damage the roots of the tree: around the trunk itself, dig no deeper than 5-10 cm.
Plum in the spring needs preventive treatment from pests and pathogens that have overwintered in the bark of trees or in the soil of the tree trunk. If the temperature drops to 1 ºC, you will have to burn smoke piles at night, stopping smoking only two hours after sunrise. In dry spring, plums are watered at the rate of 3-6 buckets per tree. At the end of May, the trees are fed with organic matter, and after that the site is mulched with sawdust or peat. Trunk circles are kept clean, regularly removing root shoots.
Plums in the summer, after flowering, need to be fed with organic and mineral fertilizers in the same proportions as in spring. In dry weather, watering is carried out. At the end of summer, the plum begins to bear fruit, so be prepared to harvest and process the crop.
In September, the collection of plums continues, and after that, water-charging irrigation is carried out as a preparation for wintering. If you keep the soil in an area under fallow, it is necessary to dig it up in the trunk circles and in the aisles, while removing and burning the fallen leaves.
How to feed a plum, after harvest, so that she can restore her strength and prepare for the winter and for fruiting next year? Under digging, organic and mineral fertilizers are applied under each tree, carrying out the last feeding in the current year. What it consists of, read in the appropriate section. The stems and bases of the skeletal branches are cleaned of dead bark, lichens and moss, the wounds found are cleaned, they are treated with a solution of copper or iron sulphate, and then with garden pitch. The stems and bases of the branches are whitened with a solution of lime with the addition of copper sulfate, after which the plums are prepared for wintering.
The first preventive treatment of plums is carried out in the spring, before the start of sap flow - in late March or early April. Plums are treated with a solution of 700 g of urea in 10 liters of water. As a result, pests and pathogens that survived after the winter are destroyed, and the plants receive the first nitrogen supplement this year. But if you do not have time to treat the trees with urea before bud break, then you will have to use Fitoverm, Agravertin, Akarin, Iskra-bio or other preparations of a similar action.
After this treatment, spray the trees with a solution of Ecoberin or Zircon to increase the resistance of plants to weather changes and diseases. The same preventive treatments are carried out in October before preparing the plum for wintering.
Such plum watering is considered sufficient, in which the soil is moistened to a depth of 40 cm. During the growing season, depending on the amount of precipitation, the soil around the plums is moistened from 3 to 5 times, pouring under young trees from 4 to 6, and under fruit-bearing up to 10 buckets of water for one watering. In autumn, winter watering is necessarily carried out, charging the soil with moisture until spring and increasing the frost resistance of trees.
Fertilization is combined with loosening the soil around the trees. organic fertilizers contribute once every three to four years at the rate of 10-12 kg per m², and mineral - once every 2-3 years, with nitrogen only in the spring, and phosphorus and potash are preferably applied in the fall. In the first and fourth years after planting, 120-180 g of superphosphate, 40-50 g of potassium salt and 60-90 g of ammonium nitrate are added per m² of land for digging. For 5-8 years, this rate is doubled.
Like any other garden trees, adult plum hibernates without shelter. It is only necessary to mulch the trunk circle with peat or humus. Young trees for the winter must either be tied with spruce branches or wrapped in burlap. Do not use artificial covering material for wrapping, because the seedlings will melt under it.
The formation of plum pruning is carried out most often in the spring, before the start of sap flow. Popular is the sparse-tiered form of the crown on a trunk with a height of at least 40 cm. Pruning begins from the second year after planting, since the plum grows intensively in the first years of life. The crown is formed within five years.
In the year of planting, the plum is not pruned, and next spring a lower tier of 5-7 skeletal branches is formed on it at an equal distance from one another, directed in different directions with an angle of departure from the trunk of 45 º. They begin to form a tier, stepping up the trunk from the surface of the plot 45-50 cm, and the branches that grow below this mark are removed. Branches above the trunk, which are at an angle of less than 40º, should also not be left - they can break off during fruiting. Skeletal branches are shortened by a third of the length, and the rest are cut into a ring, leaving no stumps. The conductor is shortened so that the height of a one-year-old tree is 1.5-1.8 cm.
In the third year, the conductor is shortened 30-40 cm above the upper branch - this measure is necessary in order for the conductor to grow straight. The growths of the continuation of the branches, which are extended by more than 60 cm, are cut to a third or a quarter of the length, and the side shoots up to 15 cm are cut into a bud oriented downwards. Skeletal branches of the second order are formed at a distance of 50 cm from the trunk, the distance between the skeletal branches of the second order, located on the skeletal branch of the first order, must be at least 30 cm.
In the fourth year, the guide is cut so that it is 6 buds longer than the skeletal branches. The conductor is trimmed until it reaches a height of 2.5 m, after which only a new growth is removed annually. Responsibly treat the formation of the top, removing all improperly growing shoots in time: the plum crown should have a pyramidal shape, therefore, with the entry into fruiting, the conductor is cut off at the level of the upper lateral skeletal branch. Last year's increments are shortened to stimulate the development of new increments next year.
After four years, when the crown as a whole is formed, pruning stimulates the growth of new fruit branches, which give the bulk of the crop. The fruits are obtained on young fruit wood of two to three years of age. Four-year-old branches that yielded last year are pruned. If this is done systematically, then a total rejuvenating pruning of an aging tree will not have to be done.
Pruning is carried out with sharp tools, all cuts are treated with garden pitch.
Spring is the best time to prune plums, and the best time is late March or early April. They do it in the spring sanitary pruning branches broken and frostbitten during the winter and form a plum crown. The formation of tiers provides for such an event as bending branches: the skeletal branch of the plum is tied with twine and pulled down from the trunk at an angle of 50-60 º so that it does not form an arc when deflected. The lower end of the twine is fixed at the base of the trunk. Rubber is placed under the attachment of the twine to a branch or trunk so as not to injure the bark of the tree. Bending back the branches of the plum allows you to speed up the entry of the tree into fruiting by 2-3 years. If the procedure is carried out later than in April, then its result will affect only next year.
Since the young plum grows intensively and tends to thicken the crown, its formation is carried out as needed throughout the growing season. The best time for summer pruning is the end of June. Lateral shoots of the youngest trees are shortened by 20 cm, premature shoots by 15 cm. The central conductor is not cut in summer. At this time, the branches frostbitten in winter are already clearly visible - they are cut to a healthy tissue. Remove and shoots thickening the crown.
Autumn sanitary pruning is carried out after the leaves fall - from about mid-September. Remove dry, diseased and broken branches, shorten the central conductor if it is too long during the growing season. Then cut out fast-growing shoots and shoots-competitors, thickening the crown. Cut branches and shoots must be burned. This pruning is relevant for areas with warm, mild winters, in cooler areas, it is better to postpone pruning to spring.
Plum is propagated by seeds, shoots, green or root cuttings and grafting, but vegetative methods propagation is much easier and more reliable than seed. We'll tell you how to grow plums from cuttings And from bone, how to use root processes for propagating plums, and we will also introduce you to all methods of grafting plums - by bud, budding, cuttings, into a split and behind the bark.
This is the fastest and easiest way to propagate a crop that produces abundant root shoots. Since you still have to remove root suckers that clog the tree's trunk circle, why not try to grow a new tree out of them? Select a developed offspring at a distance from the plum, dig out its root and cut it off from the mother plant at a distance of 20 cm from the stem. Dig up the sprout, and in order not to introduce an infection, treat the cut of the root with garden pitch and plant the sprout on permanent place. If the plum does not yet have large, developed offspring, and you dug up a thin twig, plant it for a year in a nursery for growing.
This method may be useful to you to grow a rootstock for varietal grafting. The bone is wrapped in gauze or cloth and placed in the refrigerator from mid-autumn to early March for stratification. In March, the bone is planted in a pot. When it sprouts, they take care of it, as they usually take care of seedlings - water and feed. In the autumn, when the seedling grows up, it is planted for growing in a greenhouse or in a school, and in a year it will be ready for planting in a permanent place and for grafting a varietal plum.
This method of reproduction is Lately is becoming increasingly popular with hobby gardeners as it gives fast results and has a high survival rate of young plants. However, not all varieties of plums are able to take root, and you need to choose for cuttings those that tend to form abundant root shoots.
Cuttings are carried out in June, during the period of active growth of shoots. Cuttings 30-40 cm long are taken on a cloudy day from young plants, put them in water, trim the lower part of the shoot with a sharp tool, also removing bottom sheet and leaving only half of the petiole from it, and the upper cut on the handle is made immediately above the third leaf. After that, the cuttings are tied and their lower ends are lowered overnight by 1.5 cm into the Heteroauxin solution.
Since rooting should take place in greenhouse conditions, build a mini-greenhouse for cuttings. Place a mixture of peat in half with sand in a container, pour a layer of sand 1 cm thick on top, pour the substrate and compact it slightly. The cuttings are deepened to the petiole of the removed leaf at an angle of 45 º at a distance of 5-7 cm from each other, the gap between the rows is kept within 5 cm. The planted cuttings are covered with a transparent dome and placed in a bright place, shading if necessary from direct sunlight. The cuttings are watered through a divider, a month after planting, fertilizing is carried out with a solution of 30 g of nitrogen fertilizer in 10 liters of water or a weak solution of slurry.
Once the cuttings take root, the dome is removed. To save the cuttings until spring, they are dug up at the end of September, their roots are covered with wet moss, wrapped in foil and sent for storage in a barn or placed in a trench dug in the garden, and covered with sawdust, moss or fallen leaves from above. In the spring, the cuttings are planted in the ground and grown for two years before being planted in a permanent place.
Root cuttings are cut in spring or autumn from shoots located at a distance of at least a meter from the mother tree. First, shoots are dug out along with the roots, and then cuttings up to 15 cm long and about 1.5 cm in diameter are cut from them. If it is autumn in the yard, put the cuttings in a box, sprinkle them with sand and store at a temperature of 0-2 ºC until spring. Root cuttings are planted in early May in the same way as green ones: at an angle, at a distance of up to 10 cm from each other and under a transparent cap. All further actions are carried out in the same way and at the same time as when propagating plums with green cuttings.
To carry out the propagation of plums by the method of grafting, two components are needed - a graft and a stock. The rootstock can be grown from the seed itself, or the root offspring of an adult plum can be used as this, which is dug up, separated from the mother plant and planted. As a raw material for the stock, you can use the root growth of such varieties of plums as Skorospelka red, Moskovskaya, Renklod kolkhozny, Ugorka, Eurasia 21 - they are quite winter-hardy. You can graft varietal grafts on the stock of cherry plum, thorn, blackthorn or felt cherry.
Kidney vaccination. The rootstock is watered abundantly to increase sap flow, which will make it easy to separate the bark from the wood. The bole is wiped with a damp cloth or sponge, and all leaves are removed from the scion, leaving only the remains of petioles half a centimeter long. On the stock, 4 cm above the root neck, a T-shaped incision is made with a budding knife, and the cut bark is bent. A bud with a strip of bark 3 cm long and half a centimeter wide is cut from a varietal scion, inserted into a T-shaped cut with wood to wood, the bark is pressed tightly and the grafting site is tied with a grafting film, tape or a piece of polyethylene, without covering the bud with a film.
Budding for example. If the weather is dry and the bark does not bend well, use the butt budding method. An incision in the bark 7 cm long is made on the stock with a thin layer of wood captured. At the cutting, an oblique lower cut is made of the same length as on the stock, but with a ledge immediately below the bud, which is inserted under the bark of the stock with wood to wood, after which the grafting site is tied with budding film or polyethylene so that the scion bud remains open. After three weeks, the film is removed, and the upper part of the rootstock in early spring they are cut or cut off, leaving a spike about 15 cm long above the kidney. It is possible to bud with two kidneys, placing one at a height of 4 cm above the surface of the site, and the second 7 cm above the first.
Grafting cuttings. In summer or spring, plum cuttings are grafted. Make an oblique cut on the rootstock 2.5 cm long and 1.5 cm deep, capturing the wood. On a fresh varietal cutting, make an oblique cut of the same length and insert it into the notch on the stock with a cut to the outgoing part of the split. Wrap the grafting site with budding film and monitor the condition of the cutting: when you are sure that it has taken root, you can remove the film.
Split grafting. Cut off the rootstock stem, make a 3 cm deep split in the center of the cut, make two lower cuts on the handle to make a wedge, insert this wedge into the stock split and wrap the grafting site with film and polyethylene.
Bark vaccination. During the period of active sap flow, when the bark lags well behind the wood, two or three cuts of the bark are made from top to bottom from the saw cut of the rootstock trunk, the bark is bent in these places and a varietal stalk cut obliquely with three buds is inserted into each split with three buds cut to the stock wood, after which the place vaccinations are fixed with a film, tape or electrical tape.
The “split” and “behind the bark” method implies the possibility of grafting several scions on one rootstock - the number of grafted varietal cuttings depends on the thickness of the rootstock. The film is removed in a month.
Unfortunately, there are many diseases that can affect a plum tree. Some diseases are common to all stone fruits, and some plums are more likely to get sick. Plum in the garden is affected by clasterosporia or perforated spotting, moniliosis or gray rot, gommosis or gum disease, rust, fruit rot, coccomycosis, sooty fungus, root cancer, marsupial disease and milky sheen.
Clusterosporiasis- a fungal disease that can affect leaves and branches, and plum blossom risks buds and flowers. The disease begins with the appearance on the plum leaves of brown spots with a darker border, turning first into ulcers, and then into holes. The fruits are affected to the very bone and become ugly. The disease progresses in rainy weather.
Control measures. Thin out the crown regularly, avoiding its thickening. In autumn, after leaf fall, remove and burn all the leaves, and dig up the soil in the area. Remove and destroy all affected parts of the plant. 2-3 weeks after flowering, treat the plum with a one percent solution of Bordeaux liquid or a solution of copper oxychloride at the rate of 30-40 g per 10 liters of water.
Moniliosis- also a fungal disease that affects flowers, fruits, leaves, ovaries and branches of fruit trees. The fruits become brown and soft, gray pillows with fungus spores form on them. The disease is activated in the spring, it develops especially quickly in rainy weather.
Control measures. Collect and destroy all affected fruits, remove dead branches. Before flowering, treat the trees with Nitrafen, iron or copper sulphate, or one percent Bordeaux liquid. Immediately after flowering, carry out a second treatment with Bordeaux liquid or a solution of drugs such as Phthalan, Cuprozan, Captan, copper oxychloride or other fungicides.
Gommosis (gum disease) can appear on any stone fruit tree. The affected plant begins to secrete a colorless or yellowish drying resin from wounds on the bark. Branches that flow with gum dry and die. This phenomenon occurs from sunburn, damage to the bark and wood, as well as from excess moisture and nitrogen in the soil. The most dangerous gum disease is in the cold season, and more often it affects trees weakened by excessive pruning or pests. Bark impregnated with gum becomes a favorable environment for the development of bacteria that cause cancer of the trunk and branches. With a strong gum disease, the plum dries and dies.
Control measures. Do not allow mechanical damage to the trunk and branches of the plum, and if they appear, immediately clean the wound and disinfect it with a one percent solution of copper sulfate, and then treat it with petralatum. Severely affected branches should be cut down. The dead bark on the trunk is cleaned off, and the wound under it is rubbed three times with an interval of 10 minutes with horse sorrel leaves, after which it is covered with garden pitch.
Rust- also a fungal disease. It affects plum leaves and is especially active in July: convex red or brown spots appear on the upper side of the leaf plate, gradually increasing in size. Sick trees become weak, their winter hardiness decreases, and the leaves fall prematurely.
Control measures. Remove fallen leaves from the site in a timely manner, before flowering, treat the plum with a solution of 40 g of copper oxychloride in 5 liters of water, spending 3 liters per tree. After harvesting, the affected plum is treated with one percent Bordeaux liquid.
fruit rot affects both stone fruit and pome trees - cherry, apricot, quince, peach, apple tree, pear and others. The first signs of the disease can be seen in mid-July, during the period of fruit filling: first, brown spots appear on them, which gradually increase, then grayish pads with fungus spores appear on the fruits, located in concentric circles.
Control measures. Affected fruits are collected and destroyed, but try not to touch healthy fruits at the same time, so as not to transfer pathogens to them. Treat the plum with 1% Bordeaux liquid.
coccomycosis- one of the most dangerous fungal diseases that affect not only leaves, but sometimes fruits and young shoots. In mid-summer, red-brown or purple-violet spots can be found on the surface of the leaves, which grow over time, merging with each other. On the underside of diseased leaves, a light pink coating of fungal spores forms. As a result of the disease, the cold resistance of the plum decreases, the leaves turn yellow, turn brown and fall off, and the fruits stop developing, become watery, and then dry up.
Control measures. Destroy fallen leaves, dig up the soil in autumn, after harvesting, treat the plum with a solution of 30-40 g of copper oxychloride in 10 liters of water or one percent Bordeaux liquid.
sooty fungus manifested by black bloom on plum leaves. It can be easily erased. This plaque makes it difficult for light and oxygen to reach the plant cells, which makes photosynthesis difficult.
Control measures. Find out the cause of the blackening. It may be excessive soil moisture or crown thickening. Eliminate the cause, and only after that treat the drain with a copper-soap solution (5 g of copper sulfate and 150 g of soap in 10 liters of water). blue vitriol can be replaced with Bordeaux liquid or copper chloride.
marsupial disease also caused by a fungus. It appears after the flowering of the plum, affecting and disfiguring its fruits: they grow, do not form stones, and are covered with a powdery-wax coating containing spores of the fungus.
Control measures. Cut out branches affected by the fungus in a timely manner so that the disease does not spread to healthy parts of the plum. Harvest diseased fruits and burn them. During the period when plum buds acquire a pinkish hue and immediately after flowering, treat the tree with one percent Bordeaux liquid.
root cancer manifested by growths on the roots and root neck of the plum, caused by bacteria living in the soil that have penetrated the roots through cracks and wounds. An adult plum stops growing, seedlings do not take root and die. The disease progresses in drought, especially in neutral and slightly alkaline soil.
Control measures. Do not plant seedlings in places where cancer-affected plants have previously been found. garden tools treat with a solution of formalin or chloramine. If growths are found on the roots, remove them, and disinfect the root system with a one percent solution of copper sulphate.
milky shine- a widespread dangerous disease that affects many fruit crops and leads to the death of trees. The leaves of the affected plant become silvery white, holes form in them, the leaf tissue dies off, the bark of the tree darkens. Most often, the disease destroys young trees frozen in winter.
Control measures. When preparing the garden for winter, treat the stems and bases of skeletal branches with a solution of lime. In early spring, carry out preventive treatment of trees from fungal diseases with urea - this will simultaneously strengthen the immunity of the plum to diseases and nourish the plant with nitrogen. Remove and burn affected branches and shoots.
In addition to the diseases described, the plum can suffer from brown spot, witch's broom, mushroom burn, dwarfism, mosaic disease, smallpox and dying off of branches.
Enemies among insects in plum trees also abound. The most active among them are hawthorn, cherry shoot moth, cherry slimy sawfly, golden tail, plum and apple codling moth, ringed silkworm, plum pollinated aphid and apple comma-shaped scale insect.
Apple comma-shaped shield creeps along the bark of trees, sticks to the shoots and young branches and freezes, covered with a shield. Trees occupied by scale insects are depleted and die.
Control measures. During the period of dormant buds, treat the trees and soil in the near-trunk circles with Nitrafen (200-300 g per 10 liters of water), and immediately after flowering, the plum should be treated with a ten percent solution of Karbofos.
Plum pollinated aphid very common in gardens. It damages blackthorn, peach, almond, apricot and plum, lives in huge colonies, covering the underside of the leaves with a thick layer, which causes them to curl up and dry, and the affected fruits begin to rot. In addition, aphid excrement is a favorable environment for soot fungus.
Control measures. The treatment of plums from aphids of this species is as follows: in early spring, trees are treated with Nitrafen, and at the time of bud opening and after flowering, with a ten percent solution of Karbofos or Benzophosphate. Make sure that there is no growth around the tree root growth.
Apple codling moth. The caterpillars of this butterfly feed on fruits, eating out the seeds, and mask the moves made with food waste glued together with cobwebs.
Control measures. Collect and destroy prematurely fallen fruits, clean and disinfect the bark, two weeks after flowering, treat the tree with a 2% solution of Chlorophos or a 3% solution of Karbofos.
hawthorn- a large butterfly with a wingspan of about 7 cm. Its caterpillar covered with thick hairs reaches a length of 45 cm and is decorated along the back with two yellow-brown stripes that stand out against a black background. It feeds on the upper side of plum leaves, as well as its buds and flowers, exposing branches, and sometimes the tree completely.
Control measures. Remove from trees and destroy hawthorn nests, collect and destroy caterpillars. In late April or early May, when the caterpillars leave their nests, and in the summer after flowering, treat the plum with a one percent solution of Aktellik, Corsair or Ambush.
cherry shoot moth damages stone fruit crops. Its caterpillar eats away plum buds, buds and rosettes of leaves, makes passages in green shoots.
Control measures. Loosen and dig up the soil on the site regularly. Before the start of sap flow, treat the trees and the soil under them with a two to three percent solution of Nitrafen, and during the period of bud swelling, spray the plum with a ten percent solution of Karbofos.
Cherry slimy sawfly- a widespread pest that damages trees such as cherry, sweet cherry, quince, pear, plum and hawthorn. Dangerous sawfly larvae, gnawing leaves from the upper side.
Control measures. It is necessary to loosen and dig up the soil on the site, and in the case of massive occupation of the plum by sawflies, it is best to treat it with a ten percent solution of Karbofos or Trichlormetaphos-3.
plum codling moth dangerous not only for plums, but also for peach, apricot, blackthorn and cherry plum. One butterfly lays up to 40 eggs in green fruits, and the caterpillars that appear from them eat away the pulp of the fruits, come out of them and crawl away to wintering places. Drops of gum appear on spoiled fruits, they acquire a purple hue and fall off.
Control measures. The caterpillars must be harvested by hand, and the plum during the appearance of the caterpillars, and then after another two weeks, they are treated with a ten percent solution of Benzophosphate or Karbofos.
ringed silkworm- night butterfly. Its caterpillar eats the leaves and buds of trees, weaving spider web nests in the forks of the branches.
Control measures. Remove all winter nests from the plum, destroy the oviposition, and treat the tree during bud break and at the time the caterpillars appear with infusions chamomile, tobacco or wormwood. From biological preparations good results are obtained by processing trees with Antobacterin or Dendrobacellin in accordance with the instructions.
Goldentail- a white butterfly with a wingspan of up to 5 cm. Its greenish caterpillars feed on the pulp of leaves from the upper side of the plate and, with the help of cobwebs, make nests from the remains of the leaves, in which they hibernate.
Control measures. Winter nests are destroyed, and trees are treated with a three percent solution of Karbofos before flowering.
In addition to the described pests, from time to time the plum has to be saved from the apple-plantain aphid, apple glass case, black plum sawfly, fruit striped moth, plum gall mite, peeled moth, downy silkworm, subbark leafworm, fruit moth, gypsy moth, mining moth, red apple mite, goose, winter moth, western unpaired bark beetle, sapwood, pear pipeworm, eastern codling moth and brown fruit mite. Before you process a plum for pests, try to determine what kind of insect you are dealing with.
Growth is the desire of a tree to self-preserve, which is quite natural for any living organism. Most often, the growth of shoots is activated during injuries - damage to the bark or cutting branches. Another reason for the abundant growth of root shoots may be a mismatch between the rootstock and the scion. In any case, the intensive growth of root shoots is a sign of unhealthy plum. The growth spoils the aesthetics of the garden, weakens the tree and reduces its ability to produce a high yield, so it must be removed. Determine and eliminate the cause of the appearance of the shoots, otherwise the growth of the shoots will not stop.
The easiest way is to cut the shoots with a pruner, but before cutting the shoot, it must be dug up to the very root and cut off at the place where it departs from the root of the mother plant, after which the hole should be covered with earth and trampled down.
Gardeners are sometimes very superstitious, and this is the recommendation we found on one forum: so that the root shoots never grow back, you need to destroy it only on such days: April 3, June 22 and July 30. Use this recommendation and share the results with us.
Varieties and hybrids of four types of plums grow in our gardens - domestic plum, blackthorn plum, American plum (including Canadian plum) and Chinese plum. But most often, gardeners prefer home plum varieties, which are also divided into four subspecies: thorns, renklods, mirabelles and Hungarians.
By maturity, plum varieties are divided into early, mid-season and late. Among the varieties, there are also winter-hardy and non-winter-hardy varieties, drought-resistant and moisture-loving, self-fertile and self-fertile.
There are so many plum varieties that you can always choose for each region some of the most successful and adapted ones. In areas with mild warm winters plentiful and long-bearing plum is a quite common phenomenon, but for the climate of the Moscow region, the requirements for fruit trees are special. The main problem in choosing varieties for the middle lane is the low winter hardiness of fruit crops. But thanks to the tireless work of breeders, today there are plum varieties that can be fearlessly grown in the Moscow region and even in more northern regions. So, the best plum for the Moscow region:
In addition to the varieties described, the following plum varieties grow well and bear fruit on the territory of the Moscow Region: Dashenka, Peresvet, Eurasia-43, Zagorsk, Kantemirovskaya, Yellow large, In memory of Finaev, Large new, ELSE-R, Skorospelka new, Tula black, Volgograd seedling, Morning , Early yellow, Volga beauty, Sissy, Red ball, Egg blue and others.
Early varieties include plums that ripen from late July to the end of the first decade of August. They are represented by:
Of interest to gardeners may be such early varieties plums, like Renklod early, Kuban early, Red ball, Golden ball, Hungarian July, Hungarian Wangenheim, Monfort, Early, Sapa, Early ripening red, Summer thorn, Kliman, Nadezhda, Zarechnaya early, Early fruiting, Kyrgyz excellent, Ball, Kuban comet, Early pink, Morning and others.
Mid-season varieties of plums ripen from August 10 to September 10. These varieties include:
Such are popular mid-season varieties, like Memory of Vavilov, Duce, Beauty of Orlovshchina, Kuban legend, Donetsk Hungarian, Belarusian Hungarian, Bogatyrskaya, Vetraz, Svetlana Primorskaya, Voloshka and others.
From late-ripening varieties, ripening from the second decade of September, the most popular in amateur gardening are:
In addition to the varieties described, such late-ripening plums are popular: Vishen, Primorskaya plentiful, Svetlana, Krasnomyasaya, Canadian vision, Hungarian Pulkovskaya, Valor, Timiryazev's memory, Golden drop, Prunes 4-39 TSHA, Renklod Michurinsky, Anna Shpet, Winter Red, Winter white, Moscow Hungarian, Autumn Ternosliv, October Hungarian, Tambov Ternosliv, Dubovsky Ternosliv, Finaev's Memory, Large-fruited Tern and others.
As for such concepts as self-fertility or self-fertility, they are rather conditional and inconsistent, since the same plum variety, depending on the agro-climatic zone and growing conditions, can be self-fertile, self-fertile, and partially self-fertile. Moreover, the same tree may be self-fertile in the current year, and pollinators may be required for its fruiting in the next year. Partially self-infertile varieties - those that can bear fruit on their own, however, if pollinators are present on the site, their yield increases significantly.
In addition to excellent taste, plum fruits have healing properties. They are saturated with vitamins, minerals and other substances necessary for the human body. The composition of the pulp includes proteins, carbohydrates, dietary fiber, free organic acids, potassium, sodium, calcium, magnesium, fluorine, provitamin A, vitamins B1, B2, B6, PP, C and E.
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Plum is one of the most common fruit crops, which can reach 10 meters in height. It is believed that the plum we are used to is the result of a natural crossing of blackthorn and cherry plum. Modern scientists have bred many hybrids that differ in the shape of the fruit and the fruiting period.
You will find complete information on planting, growing and caring for plums in the article. We have described in detail the basic rules and features of growing fruit crops, and selected photos and videos that will help novice gardeners grow a fertile tree.
The care and cultivation of plums largely depends on the variety of the crop. Species with oblong fruits are called Hungarian, and round plums are called renklods. As a rule, it is grown on low-stem, semi-stem and high standard forms Oh. The crown can be shaped like a fan or pyramid. Palmette or cordon is not suitable for this culture.
Figure 1. Popular plum varieties: 1 - Voronezh Hungarian, 2 - Volga beauty, 3 - Eurasia-21, 4 - Record Common varieties include(picture 1):
Figure 2. Varieties of plums: 1 - kolkhoz renklod, 2 - early ripening red, 3 - tarry, 4 - Tula black A separate type is the blackthorn, which is characterized by low growth and high endurance. It has a characteristic tart taste and blue-black color. There are other types of thorns different colors(for example, damascene or mirabelle). Similar to plum and cherry plum, which is often used as a rootstock.
For cultivation, powerful soils with a high ability to retain moisture are chosen. The soil around the tree is regularly cleared of weeds, but it is not recommended to loosen frequently, as this promotes the formation of root shoots.
Figure 3. Recommendations for choosing a place for planting a crop To get a regular harvest, plant the crop in a frost-protected area, and for high-quality ripening, it must be well lit. Varieties intended for processing can also be planted in shaded areas. If a tree is planned to be planted against a wall, it is better to choose a southern or western direction, and only thorns can be planted against eastern or even northern walls. Figure 3 shows recommendations for planting plums in relation to other trees, shrubs, buildings and fences. From the video you will learn practical recommendations for choosing a place and planting plum seedlings.
The selection of seedlings is focused on the size of the garden. For small areas, the semi-dwarf rootstock St. Julian A is suitable. There are also popular rootstocks of cherry plum B and Brompton, but for most gardens on household plots they are too high.
Figure 4. Seedlings of different quality and age If it is planned to grow a low or high stem form, as well as a tree with a fan crown, buys a partially formed seedling. Only one-year-old seedlings are suitable for crown formation in the form of a dwarf pyramid. Figure 4 shows seedlings of various ages and qualities.
At the beginning of autumn, all perennial weeds are removed in the area where the plum will be placed. Before planting, bone meal and mineral fertilizers are applied, and if the soil is too light, it is supplemented with rotted manure or compost.
Plum is planted during the dormant period of the root system, that is, in spring or autumn. But if the seedling was grown in a separate pot or tub, planting can be done in the summer. Landing recommendations are as follows (Figure 5):
Figure 5. Recommendations for planting seedlings Supports - necessary condition cultivation for the first five years. However, if the tree is planted in an open area that is not protected from the winds, the supports are left for a longer period. High standard forms require additional supports with a horizontal bridge.
Growing a plum seedling from a stone is a very laborious process that requires certain rules to be observed. You will learn how to plant a plum from a stone correctly in this section.
First of all, you need to choose the right planting material. It is better to collect seeds from local varieties of trees, as imported fruits will not take root in the new climate. For cultivation, pick ripe soft fruits. Their bones will germinate much faster.
The bone is cleaned of pulp, washed thoroughly and laid out to dry on the windowsill. After that, you need to get the seed itself from the bone. To do this, the upper hard shell is split with nutcrackers (Figure 6).
Note: Before planting, be sure to check the germination of seeds. They are dipped into a glass of water. Quality seeds will fall to the bottom, while bad seeds will float on the surface.
Proper planting of a seed tree begins with the process of seed stratification (germination at low temperature). best time the end of November is considered to be held. During the winter, the seeds will have time to germinate, and the seedlings will get stronger before the spring transplant into the ground.
To germinate a plum seed, you need to do the following:
Figure 6. Growing a seedling from a stone Only those seeds that have formed roots during the period of storage in the refrigerator can be planted in the ground. Such seeds will later turn into seedlings and mature trees.
It should be borne in mind that at least five years will pass from the moment of preparation and stratification of seeds and the receipt of an adult tree. In addition, a self-grown seedling from a seed does not bring a very plentiful harvest in the first year of fruiting. However, with proper care, the crop yield will be quite high (Figure 7).
Figure 7. Germination of seeds for growing a seedling After the appearance of the first sprouts, they carefully monitor that the tree trunk is formed evenly. Young shoots formed in autumn are pinched for better wintering of the crop. For the winter, the shoots are insulated and covered with mulch.
Only after the formation of a strong trunk and several side branches with shoots do they begin to form a crown. To do this, pruning is carried out, removing excess and weak shoots.
You can grow a plum not only from the seed, but also by cuttings. To do this, in mid-June, you need to cut young green cuttings. The length of one branch is approximately 20-30 cm. Cutting is best done in the morning in cool weather so that the tree does not experience unnecessary stress. Harvested twigs are immediately placed in water for germination (Figure 8).
Figure 8. Preparing cuttings for planting It will be better if a few leaves remain on the handle. Such shoots will take root much faster and turn into a full-fledged tree.
If you are interested in how to properly plant a plum from a cutting in the spring, you need to consider that special growth stimulants will help speed up the formation of roots. Such preparations are used instead of ordinary water for the germination of cuttings.
You can take any growth stimulator, but it must be diluted with water to reduce the concentration of the drug. It is enough to immerse the cuttings in liquid for 18 hours, and after that they can be moved to a container with clean water.
The author of the video will tell you how to properly harvest and root green culture cuttings.
Grown cuttings are transplanted into open ground according to certain rules. First prepare the soil. To do this, a layer of peat is poured onto the bed, and a layer of sand is on top. Immediately before planting, watering is carried out with water mixed with mineral supplements (Figure 9).
Figure 9. The procedure for planting cuttings in open ground The distance between the cuttings should be no more than 7 cm, and the depth of the hole should be about 3 cm. From above, the bed is covered with a film or a shelter is built like a greenhouse. Watering is carried out several times a day, and the shelter is removed after about a month.
Young seedlings easily get sunburn, so even after removing the shelter, it is recommended to lightly shade them.
The grown seedlings are transplanted to a permanent place after the formation of several side branches (about a year later). A garden bed for plums is fertilized with rotted manure and mineral fertilizers in a few months.
It is advisable to plant a plum in open ground in the spring, until the buds open. In a warm climate, autumn planting is also allowed, in September. Before the onset of cold weather, the seedling will have time to take root and grow stronger.
Plum care in spring, summer and autumn includes standard activities for fruit trees. For each season there are certain activities (Figure 10):
Figure 10. Plum care in spring, summer and autumn In winter, it is advisable to cover the trunks with a covering material and lay them around the bait for rodents. This will help protect the tree from pest damage.
High yields are only possible if the young tree is properly cared for. To do this, water it regularly, fertilize it and protect it from pests and diseases.
At the beginning of spring, they are introduced into the soil complex fertilizers and ammonium sulfate. However, if the site has acidic soil, it is replaced with lime-ammonium nitrate. Additionally, the trees are mulched, spreading fertilizers in a layer up to 5 cm so that they do not touch the trunk (Figure 11).
Figure 11. Caring for plum seedlings: 1 - fertilizer, 2 - mulching, 3 - watering in dry and hot weather plums are watered every 10 days throughout the growing season. 2.5 liters of water are needed per square meter of area. Excessive irregular watering adversely affects the quality of the fruit: they may crack.
Regardless of where the plum grows, it is protected from spring frosts. To do this, use burlap or mesh, covering the tree for the night during the flowering period.
Plums begin to bloom very early, especially those growing near the walls. Due to the lack of insects, pollination is carried out by hand, transferring pollen from male flowers to female ones. To do this, you can use a cotton swab or a soft brush. Guidelines for hand pollination are shown in Figure 12.
Figure 12. Procedure for hand pollination Most species of thorns and cherry plums are capable of self-pollination. In addition, there are similar types of plums, so they can be planted singly.
The plum is freed from excess fruits only after the formation of the stone and only if they greatly burden the branches. If thinning is carried out earlier, the tree will bear fruit defectively.
As a rule, the first thinning is carried out when the fruits reach the size walnut, and the second - when they become twice as large.
Figure 13. Fruit thinning process It is important that plums should not be plucked when thinning, as this can damage the stalk. Cut them with scissors or secateurs (Figure 13).
To prevent the branches from breaking, they are equipped with additional support. Supports are driven into the ground around the tree at an angle. At their top there should be forks wrapped in burlap. Branches with a lot of fruit can also be tied to the top of a nearby stake. Types of supports for mature trees and seedlings are shown in Figure 14.
Note: Ripe fruits are plucked along with the stalks. Moreover, this process is carried out in several stages, since ripening occurs unevenly.
Figure 14. Types of supports for seedlings and mature trees Plums are not intended for long-term storage. The maximum allowable period is 2-3 weeks, but in this case, the fruits are removed slightly unripe and stored in a cool, dry place. For storage, they are usually preserved in the form of jams and compotes, as well as dried and frozen.
Experienced gardeners recommend spring preventive treatment with drugs against diseases and pests. Spraying is carried out in early spring, before the start of sap flow. During the summer, watering is carried out periodically if natural precipitation is not enough.
Note: In the process of preparing the tree for wintering, winter watering is additionally carried out, which provides the seedling with the necessary moisture in winter.
Top dressing is one of the main stages of care. Fertilization is combined with loosening so that nutrients get into the root system faster.
Plums are best fertilized with mineral fertilizers. Organics are applied only once every 3-4 years, using rotted manure or compost for this. Nitrogen fertilizers are best applied in the fall to promote crop growth. Phosphorus and potassium are added in the fall to prepare the seedling for winter.
An adult culture for the winter can be left without shelter, covering only with mulch trunk circles. Young seedlings must be covered with mulch or spruce branches. You can wrap the tree with burlap, but not with synthetic material, because under it the culture will begin to rot.
In no case should the plum be cut in winter, as this increases the risk of a milky sheen. In any case, the trimming points must be covered up.
The trimming of all standard forms is the same. The only difference is that an annual seedling for semi- and high-stem forms is cut less than for low-stem ones.
Pruning is carried out according to the following algorithm(picture 15):
Figure 15. Pruning a seedling depending on age In the future, the plum bears fruit well without annual pruning. It may be required only for low-growing species. But dry, damaged branches still have to be removed, as well as regularly thin out the crown if it becomes too thick.
When forming a crown-fan, in the first year, a one-year-old seedling is shortened to a length of 60 cm above the soil (Figure 16). Below this boundary, two branches should be located, directed in opposite directions. All other shoots are shortened to one kidney.
Figure 16. Pruning a tree with a fan crown At the beginning of summer, the central conductor is directed vertically, and the side branches are directed in opposite directions, tying them to the wire. When the lateral processes reach a length of 50 cm, the central conductor is removed. To stimulate the growth of new shoots, in the second year, branches extending to the side are shortened. Later, several strong shoots are selected on each of them and also tied to a support. In the future, the procedure is repeated to stimulate the growth of shoots.
Figure 17. Formation of a pyramidal plum crown Figure 17 shows detailed diagram pruning plums with a pyramidal shape of the crown. The video provides practical advice experienced gardeners by pruning plums.
Autumn planting is permissible only in regions with a mild climate. If your area has cold winters, planting will have to be delayed until spring, as young crops will not have time to take root and may die from frost.
For autumn planting it is also necessary to prepare the site in advance: free it from weeds, fertilize and carry out deep digging.
The pit for planting begins to be prepared about two weeks before the seedling is transferred to the ground (Figure 18). The soil can be any, but it is advisable not to choose areas with a close location ground water. Excess moisture can cause root rot and seedling death.
Figure 18. Planting pattern in autumn It is better to choose a site sunny, with protection from cold wind and drafts. Acidic soil is additionally limed.
An important role in planting is played not only by the correct choice of location and soil preparation. No less important is the choice of seedlings. His root system must be fresh, without signs of any damage, dryness or decay.
Note: If the roots of the planting material are slightly dry, it can be lowered into water for several hours.
Landing is best done in a mound, poured around a supporting peg. After planting, the seedling is watered abundantly, and when the moisture is absorbed, the soil is slightly compacted and an additional layer of soil is added.
Plum care in the spring includes pest control. Great harm fruit buds and ripe fruits are applied by birds, so it is advisable to cover the tree with a special net. In addition, it is affected by aphids and red fruit mites. To combat them, spraying with nitrofen is used (Figure 19).
Figure 19. The main plum pests: 1 - aphid, 2 - red spider mite, 3 - plum sawfly If leaf-eating caterpillars appear, spray with karbofos. The same remedy is used to combat the plum sawfly.
When a milky sheen is detected, the diseased branch is cut to the place where healthy wood begins. Sections are covered immediately. If the tree is affected by bacterial cancer, diseased branches are cut and burned, and sprayed with Bordeaux liquid. Fruits infected with brown rot are also subject to destruction (Figure 20).
Figure 20. Plum diseases: 1 - milky sheen, 2 - bacterial cancer, 3 - brown fruit rot In order for fruit trees in garden plots not only to grow, but also to bring tasty fruits rich in vitamins and microelements, you need to grow them correctly. Plum requires special care, so experienced gardeners strictly adhere to the basic rules for planting and caring for a tree.
For the tree to bring good harvest, residents of the middle lane should choose plums with a short or medium ripeness period. Trees that are resistant to frost, drought and disease are highly valued. Many gardeners opt for the following varieties:
These plums are also called early or fruitful. The described varieties tolerate long-distance transportation well, so they are planted in different parts of the world.
Having decided on the variety, gardeners must decide how to plant the plum. Plum planting in the ground is done in three ways: from the stone, cuttings and processes of the roots.
Of greatest interest is the process of growing plums from the stone. But this method of planting requires the most labor and time.
If you are going to grow a plum from a stone, pay attention to the following nuances:
If you decide to plant a plum from the stone, you must follow simple recommendations:
Prior to boarding, preparations: harden the seeds by placing them in the refrigerator for a day. It is necessary to set the temperature + 2 degrees. Then the bones are placed in a damp cloth and left for six months. The fabric with seeds needs to be moistened periodically. When the seeds swell and crack, it is necessary to plant them in the ground. The soil must be well moistened. After planting, the plum needs top dressing and good watering.
When choosing a plum seedling, be sure to pay attention to the following factors:
A tree with open roots should be well examined, its condition and size of the roots should be assessed, if the appearance of the seedling does not meet the above criteria, it is better to refuse to plant it.
Seedlings with a closed root system are already rooted in the ground, therefore they have a clod of soil, which does not allow assessing the size and condition of the root. In this case, it is difficult to make the right choice, since the actual state of the germ can only be assessed by its appearance.
Plum must be planted at strictly defined times: before the buds swell in spring or at the end of September.
Plum is a capricious tree, so the landing site should be treated with special attention. It grows on any suburban area, but it cannot be guaranteed that the plant will definitely bear fruit. The most favorable for planting plums are sunny places on the hills, well protected from the winds. It is preferable to land on a site near the fence from its northern part, in such conditions the seedling will be protected from cold gusts of wind and will have access to the sun from the south side.
It is necessary to plant the plum in fertile soil, preferably with a sandy or loamy composition, in addition, the tree gives a good harvest on alkaline soil. The landing pit should be made about half a meter deep and no more than 1 meter wide. Transplantation is carried out in moist soil, but care must be taken that there is no stagnant water in this place.
The distance between seedlings depends on the plum variety. For trees that spread widely, it is necessary to provide a free space of about 3 meters. If the variety is with a small crown, then the distance should be made smaller.
A plum tree does not need inorganic fertilizers; humus diluted in water in a ratio of 1: 2 will be an ideal top dressing for it. After planting, the fruit tree needs abundant watering with heated water. Plum is a plant loving warmth and light, so when choosing a landing site, you need to pay special attention to these factors.
The plum tree is moisture-loving, so drying out is very detrimental to it. In hot weather, watering should be done once a week: 6 buckets of water for an adult tree and 4 buckets for a young one. A signal of a lack of moisture will be cracks covering the fruit. But it must be remembered that excessive watering is harmful to plums. With an excess of moisture, the leaves of the tree turn yellow and the top dies off.
In winter, you need to make sure that the snow around the seedling is no higher than 60 cm, excess cover must be removed.
Since plum trees can be planted in spring and autumn, gardeners need to determine the most favorable period for themselves.
Each season has its pros and cons to consider.
Spring planting is preferred. For planting, you should choose stronger annual seedlings..
In the spring, the plum should be planted in warm ground, immediately after the buds swell. This is usually done in early April. If this time is missed, you can land a little later, in the spring this will not be such a serious mistake as in the fall.
Planting pits are prepared in the fall, they are dug out with a diameter and a width of 60 cm. If a tree is planted in a cultivated area, it must be dug up by 1–2 bayonets of a shovel within a radius of 1.5 meters near the landing site.
The place under the tree is prepared in advance - it should be sunny and high, humus with earth is poured into the hole in a ratio of 1: 1, a wooden stake or a straight stick is placed in the center of the recess, and then a seedling is tied to this support so that the rope does not press on the bark . When planting, the upper part of the root adjacent to the trunk is left 5 cm above ground level, after a while the soil will settle, and the roots will be on the same level with it. This is done so that the trunk does not begin to rot.
