Planting dates for apple trees in autumn in central Our Country 

Who does not want to have apple trees on their site? After all, the fruits from their trees are much healthier and tastier. But apple trees need to be properly planted and cared for. To update the garden from time to time, you need to plant new apple tree seedlings. Most often, gardeners do this in the fall. Subject to the rules and terms of planting, the trees take root perfectly and bear fruit in the future.

The fact is that in the fall the root system has time to recover and strengthen in the ground. The correct planting of apple trees in autumn in central Our Country will be discussed in our article.

When to plant apple trees

You can plant apple tree seedlings in central Our Country in a new place in spring or autumn. But gardeners who have been breeding apple trees for more than one year prefer autumn plantings.

What motivates them:

1. Firstly, gardeners save their family’s budget. The assortment of apple tree seedlings in autumn is much larger, and their cost is pleasantly surprising compared to spring.
2. Secondly, it often rains in autumn, and this has a beneficial effect on the rooting of plantings of young apple trees.

But novice gardeners are not always able to navigate in the fall in terms of planting apple trees, as a result, seedlings cannot survive the winter. Isn’t it embarrassing? We will also try to tell about mistakes and ways to overcome them.

Let’s look at the timing of planting apple seedlings in central Our Country in the fall:

1. Gardeners pay attention to various factors. One of them is the beginning of leaf fall and freezing of the soil. It is during this period of autumn that you need to keep up with the restoration of the garden.
2. Work on planting apple trees begins in mid-September. Earlier dates are undesirable due to the long daylight hours and elevated air temperatures. These factors can cause premature awakening, therefore, the apple tree seedling will “work” not to strengthen the root system, but to develop the kidneys. Consequently, in the winter in the middle lane, the newly planted apple tree will leave weakened.
3. But you can’t slow down either. If the average daily temperatures in autumn are negative, then you are already late with the landing.

Features of the autumn technique

1. Young apple trees are planted from September 15 to October 15.
2. Be sure to take into account the climate of the region: the specific timing of the first frosts in the fall. Even in central Our Country, in different regions and regions, the timing of planting apple seedlings varies.
3. Soil temperature is another important point. The dormant period of plants begins in autumn with the beginning of leaf fall. At that time, the apple trees no longer grow, but the roots increase in size, as long as the temperature on the soil is not lower than plus four degrees. Experienced gardeners in their arsenal have special thermometers.

   

Features of the choice of seedlings

Not only the timing of planting must be taken into account when planting a garden in central Our Country in the fall. The choice of planting material is of great importance. Only good seedlings in the future will please with a rich harvest of tasty and fragrant apples.

So, what you need to pay attention to:

1. First of all, you need to decide which varieties of apple trees will grow on your site. Preference is given to released varieties that are already adapted to the conditions of the region. The main classification of apple trees is according to the timing of fruit ripening. They are early, mid-ripening and late-ripening. In central Our Country, varieties of apple trees with late ripening (winter) do not have time to reach technical maturity, so it is better not to purchase seedlings, although they retain their taste and useful properties all winter.
2. The second point, which also cannot be overlooked, is the place where the seedling was purchased. You should not chase cheapness and buy young apple trees from random sellers. Your best bet is to go to your local nursery or garden center. Seedlings in this case will be healthy and strong.

   Apple trees are sold with a closed or open root system. Planting material grown in a special container is more viable. Apple trees have a well-developed root system, therefore, the survival rate is high. In addition, transportation is convenient because the roots do not break off. Checking the viability of the root system of an apple tree is easy. If you turn the pot over and take out the apple seedling, you will see that the roots take up the entire container.

   

   But even here there can be pitfalls. Unscrupulous sellers do not always care about the cleanliness of the soil. And with it they are often brought to the site of the disease.

3. The size of the apple tree seedling is also important. Do not choose overgrown plants. The age of a tree that can take root should be no more than three years. If the seedling is only one year old, then it is easier for him to form a shape. One-year-old apple trees are best purchased with a closed root system. But plants at the age of two or three years, having open roots, will take root better, will not experience stress.
4. You also need to consider what your apple tree will be in a few years. Tall plants produce more fruits, but their care is also very complicated.
5. The method of grafting is also important. If a clonal stock was used, but the apple tree will not be tall. It is determined by the beard on adventitious roots. The first fruits from such plants are harvested two years after planting.

As for the seed stock, it is determined by the main root and lateral roots. On each side root, small roots that perform a suction function are clearly visible. Usually strong and tall apple trees grow on such a stock. But they begin to bear fruit late. You will have to wait for the first apples for less than six days.

So, we talked about the timing of planting and the rules for choosing apple seedlings in central Our Country, and now we turn to the issue of planting.

Features of planting apple trees in autumn

Fruit trees do not grow well in waterlogged soils containing a large amount of gravel. They like light soils with good aeration. Attention should also be paid to the occurrence of groundwater. They should be no higher than two meters. Apple trees are planted at a distance of at least three meters, so that the overgrown trees do not touch each other with their crowns. As for row spacing, it is better to stick to a step of six meters.

Digging a landing pit

If you decide to plant apple trees in the fall on a site in central Our Country, then you need to decide on the time for digging a hole. As a rule, it is prepared 30 days before planting, so that the soil has time to settle. The pit should be round in shape with a diameter of about a meter and a depth of at least 0,7 meters. The width of the bottom and upper part of the recess is made the same in size.

When digging a hole, the soil is laid out on two sides. Fertile soil is put into one, and the soil that you will take out from below is put into the other.

As soon as you dig a hole, immediately drive in a strong peg with a thickness of at least five centimeters in the center, to which the stem of an apple tree seedling is tied. Since the stake will be in the ground and exposed to moisture, it will begin to rot over time. The peg should be 40 centimeters higher than the pit.

If the seedling has a closed root system, then support is not needed.

Backfilling the pit

To plant an apple tree in central Our Country and in other regions, you need to prepare the right soil. To the land selected from above, we add peat, humus, compost or manure, as well as organic fertilizers.

We mix the soil with nutritional supplements. We pour drainage at the bottom of the pit: medium-sized pebbles. They are necessary to maintain water balance. But if your soil is sandy, then stones will not help. In this case, a water-retaining layer is needed. To do this, use clay or silt.

Then we load the pit with a fertile composition to make a slide in the center. Before planting an apple tree, the earth will settle. The soil selected from the bottom of the pit is scattered between the rows to make a comb for irrigation.

Rules for planting a seedling

When the time comes for planting seedlings with an open root system, the soil in the planting pit will already have time to settle. After inspecting the apple tree and cutting off brown or damaged roots, we make a recess in the pit, and a slide in the center.

1. We place the apple tree seedling on a hill, straighten the roots. An important point – the support should be on the south side of the plant. Make sure that the root neck and the grafting site do not sink into the ground, but rise above it at a height of 5 cm. Beginning gardeners may not understand what is at stake. So, the root collar is called the point where the green bark turns brown. If this place is underground, then the apple tree will lag behind in growth in the future, therefore, this will adversely affect fruiting. Sometimes the apple tree dies because of this.

   

2. When planting seedlings with a closed root system, they dig a hole in proportion to the size of the pot and cover it with fertile soil with nutritional supplements, without damaging the soil woven by the roots.

   

   Make sure that the horse neck is not closed.

3. Regardless of what kind of root system the plant has, after the first falling asleep of the roots with earth, water is poured into the pit. She pushes the earth down, the voids between the roots are filled. This continues until the hole is filled to the top. In total, when planting an apple tree in a hole, you need to pour at least four buckets of water.
4. When the pit is filled, the earth is rammed, and the young plant is tied to a support. The rope is not pulled tightly, because the tree will grow.

Care after landing

Whether your seedling takes root or not depends on the gardener:

1. Firstly, good luck awaits you if the dates for planting the apple tree were met, and the seedling itself was healthy. As we have already said, in central Our Country this is September 15 – October 15.
2. Secondly, after careful spilling of the seedling, mulching is carried out.

To do this, use humus or peat. If it does not rain constantly in autumn, it is required to water the planted plants at least once a week. You don’t need to feel sorry for the water, but you don’t need to bring it to the state of a swamp either.

Useful tips from Oktyabrina Ganichkina:

Conclusion

As you can see, planting apple seedlings in autumn, not only in central Our Country, requires certain knowledge and skills. Before you get started, re-read the article, watch the video. All together will help you to cope with the planned business. After all, the garden on the site is not only delicious apples, but also the joint work of the whole family in caring for apple trees planted in autumn.