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Fruit trees require special preparation before the winter cold, because frost can destroy them forever.
To protect the trees, you need to know what the preparation of apple trees for winter is. This article is devoted to this issue, having studied which it will not be difficult for anyone to perform the necessary procedures with their garden.
preliminaries
To determine whether the preparation of the apple tree for winter in the fall has passed, you need to assess the condition of the tree by external signs.
The apple tree is ready for the cold if:
- The tree fell in time;
- Young shoots are stiff;
- The growth of the tree has stopped.
If this did not happen or this process is moving too slowly, you need to help the apple tree.
To figure out how to prepare apple trees for winter, you need to dwell on several parameters. The first thing to think about is a good feeding of fruit trees in the fall.
Fertilize:
- potassium.
- Phosphorus.
Fertilizers are poured into the ground in the root areas, but the most effective way is to irrigate the crown itself in early autumn. This can be done using complex fertilizer, which contains two necessary elements. Top dressing in the garden is done once a year, processing the entire area under the garden.
It is known that the root system of the tree can withstand up to 15 degrees below zero. It is clear that such temperatures do not happen under snow, but in its absence, it is quite likely. Do not rush to get upset, because everything can be fixed if you notice the lag in the development of the apple tree in time in the spring and properly care for it.
Cleaning the bark and cleaning the site
It is very important to carry out the necessary care for the apple tree in the fall, preparing for the winter will help to better survive in the cold and frost.
It will be necessary to try hard, because preparing apple trees for winter means a lot.
So, first you need to cover the areas around the tree. Then we begin to carefully peel off the bark that is lagging behind the tree. This is necessary in order to protect the tree from parasites – insects living in the cracks between the bark. In addition, all diseases penetrate into the middle of the apple tree through the same slits. You need to remove the bark in small areas, after putting on gloves and goggles to protect yourself from small chips. Only mature fruit trees require cleaning, the preparation of young apple trees for winter does not require the removal of the upper ball.
It will be necessary to collect all the chips and pieces so that no disease or bacteria can spread to the entire garden.
This is followed by whitewashing of fruit trees. This is done in order to kill all microorganisms, as well as to protect them from the influence of natural factors (sunlight, frost). Many summer residents ignore this rule, but if the tree is not prepared, the chances of surviving the winter are greatly reduced.
tree hardening
If you know how to properly prepare apple trees for winter, the trees will easily survive it. Hardening is a very important stage, because gardens suffer the most from sudden changes in temperature. To perform this kind of work, you need to remove a ball of earth 5 cm high around the trunk and place it in a warm place before the onset of frost. This is how the apple tree prepares for winter in the fall, when the temperature is still not too low. When removing a small layer of soil from the root system, a gradual adaptation to the cold occurs.
Caring for an apple tree in the fall, preparing for winter will not work without mulching. It is carried out using any bulk material that is available. Such work is best done in November. Young apple trees need slightly different care. They are mulched with a layer of peat up to 5 cm thick. This is done in order to protect young trees from frost, especially if they come before snow appears.
Autumn watering apple trees
An equally important factor in the successful wintering of fruit trees is sufficient root moisture. Therefore, the preparation of young apple trees for winter in equal measure, like perennial trees, requires abundant watering. The amount of water depends on the maturity of the tree. For young seedlings, 40-50 liters will be enough, while an adult apple tree requires up to 200 liters of water to moisten. You need to water the root areas, which should be dug up by this time. Water must be poured in several passes so that the earth has time to soak with moisture. In no case should water be allowed to flow only along the tree trunk, because the main task is to moisten the young roots for the winter.
Protection against rodents
Preparing apple trees for winter has one more stage – measures to protect against rodents. To protect trees from mice and similar animals, you can wrap the trunk with protective materials.
It can be:
- Mulching paper;
- Mirror;
- Ruberoid;
- Cane;
- Sunflower stem.
The main thing is to know how to do it correctly: it is necessary that the material fits snugly against the tree trunk.
It is very important to do this procedure in time, because if you wrap the barrel in advance, you can even harm it. Therefore, you need to know how to properly prepare apple trees for winter, so as not to reduce their winter hardiness. It is required to remove the wrapping material in time in early spring, otherwise the apple tree may pick up other diseases.
Spraying trees before wintering
This procedure is considered, as a rule, a measure of prevention, rather than the fight against diseases, but nevertheless, you should not skip this stage.
The best time for her is October. Trees are sprayed to control the fungus. It would be ideal to spray apple trees after the leaves fall, when the solution can get in sufficient quantities precisely on the trunk and branches, where the disease usually manifests itself. Trees are treated with copper sulphate.
To prepare the solution you need:
- 10 l. water;
- 250-300 gr. vitriol.
First, the substance is diluted in a small amount of hot water, and then it is diluted in the rest of the liquid.
This procedure is carried out before whitewashing with lime and before protection from rodents. Before preparing young seedlings for winter, you need to reduce the concentration of the solution.
Wrapping up for the winter
As a rule, this is the preparation of apple seedlings for winter. But sometimes skilled summer residents thus protect all fruit trees that do not tolerate frost well.
You can hide in several ways:
- Trampling the snow around the apple tree.
- With the help of shields knocked down from small boards.
- Spruce spruce branches.
It is very important to protect apple seedlings from frost, because their bark is not yet as strong and winter-hardy as that of a mature tree.
To make shields for wintering trees on your own, you need quite a bit – just a few dozen small boards and roofing material. We knock the boards tightly together and fit them with roofing material or roofing felt. Then we cover the trees with a shield. Without such preparation of young seedlings for winter, it will be very difficult to keep them until spring.
Features of the preparation of young animals
Since young trees are not yet very hardy, they are prepared for the cold in a slightly different way.
You need to familiarize yourself with how to prepare young apple trees for winter:
- It is best to wrap each of them with paper or burlap, because their bark is still too soft.
- A layer of peat or sawdust should be made much thicker than for a mature tree.
- In no case should the preparation of apple tree seedlings, namely the whitewashing of trunks, be done with lime. Saplings are whitewashed with chalk or garden whitewash.
- Only winter-hardy varieties can be planted, otherwise they will not survive the frost.
These are the basic requirements that a summer resident must follow before preparing apple tree seedlings for winter.
It is advisable to help your trees overwinter. After all, not all apple trees can independently resist frost and cold weather. And, believe me, they will thank you with a good harvest in the fall. The main thing is to do everything according to the recommendations of experts in this matter, so as not to harm your garden.
