Slate apple trees
The cultivation of fruit trees in the form of stlanets has long been used at experimental gardening stations in Vologda, Kostroma, Kirov, Novgorod, Yekaterinburg, Chelyabinsk and throughout Siberia. And he’s great for the mid lane

There are few apple trees suitable for growing in the cold regions of Our Country. And they are mostly summer or autumn, and besides, with small and sour fruits. Large and winter varieties lack frost resistance for such conditions. What can we say about pears, apricots and peaches! Meanwhile, all these sissies may well grow in harsh conditions if the trees are formed in the form of stlanets.

Advantages of slate apple trees

  • Stlansy do not freeze in cold winters. Even if there is no snow on the site, a low tree is easy to cover.
  • The root system of the stalks is very shallow. Such trees can be planted in areas with high groundwater levels.
  • Stlansy quickly come into fruition – most varieties yield crops already in the 2nd – 3rd year after planting.
  • Apple trees grown as stubble are not affected by scab (1) and they almost never have wormy apples.
  • Apples do not fall to the ground from a great height and do not break.
  • Such trees do not obscure the site.

Formation of slate apple trees

It is easy to grow a fruit tree in the form of a stlan. To do this, young plants are planted at an angle of 30 – 40 °. The distance between the trees is 4 – 6 m.

When the seedlings take root, they are carefully bent to the ground, so that about 15–20 cm are left to the soil surface, and pinned with wooden hooks.

In July, one shoot, located closest to the bend of the stem, is very carefully folded in the opposite direction. Thus, the stlanz will have two main shoulders. The remaining branches are also bent down, evenly placing them above the ground, and pinned with hooks. So that the shoots are not damaged, it is better to first drive a hook into the ground, and then carefully bring the shoot under it.

In autumn, young stlanets are covered with potato tops, peat or sawdust (2), and with the onset of winter they are covered with the first snow.

For the 2nd – 3rd years, the same operation is performed – the shoots needed to form the crown are bent and pinned, and the excess ones are cut out. They always do it in July. If you bend the branch earlier, its top will begin to stretch upward. And if later, flower buds will not be laid and there will be no harvest next year.

As a result, each shoulder should have 3-4 skeletal branches (3) at a distance of 25-30 cm from each other. It is better to form them from shoots grown from lateral buds. All tops that grow upwards and are not needed for laying skeletal branches must be cut off, or even better, plucked while they are small.

In the 4th – 5th years, the crown of the stlanets begins to thicken, so it must be thinned out every spring. In a well-formed stalk, the branches and leaves should completely cover the entire surface of the soil, but only in one layer. Such a tree should not have two shoots one above the other.

Caring for slate apple trees

In the spring, slingshots are placed under all the branches of the stlantsa so that they do not break under the weight of the crop. And in winter, the shoots are lowered to the ground and pressed down with poles or boards.

In snowless winters, stlanets are covered with tops, sawdust or straw. In the spring, the shelter is removed.

So that the stlans do not suffer from sunburn, their trunks must be whitened annually – in the fall.

Popular questions and answers

We talked about slate apple trees with agronomist-breeder Svetlana Mikhailova.

What varieties can be formed in the form of slates?

In fact, any, but it is better to choose undersized ones – it is easier to “accustom” them to horizontal growth. Powerful tall apple trees will persistently strive up, build up a lot of tops and you will have to spend a lot of time pruning and crown formation.

Where to plant slate apple trees?

The apple trees from which you are going to form a slate are best planted on an elevated place. At least on level ground. Lowlands for such trees are not the best option, because in spring cold air accumulates there and frosts occur more often. For tall trees, such a place is not scary, but the flower buds of the stlanets are close to the ground and frosts can kill them.

Are there any problems with the care of the slate apple tree?

Any form of crown has its advantages and disadvantages, and slates are no exception.

Of the benefits – it is easier to harvest the fruits and easier to process from diseases and pests, because the crown is within reach.

Minus – a plot with such apple trees is difficult to weed, because you can’t crawl under them with either a scythe or a trimmer. Weeds will have to be removed manually, climbing into the thick of the crown, which is very difficult.

Sources of

  1. Nikhaychik G.Yu., Kalinina I.P. Culture of European varieties of apple trees in slate form in the conditions of the Altai Territory // Bulletin of the Altai State Agrarian University No. 4 (42), 2008

    https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/kultura-evropeyskih-sortov-yabloni-v-stlantsevoy-forme-v-usloviyah-altayskogo-kraya

  2. Dubrova P.F., Egorov V.I., Kamshilov N.A., Koroleva N.I. et al. Gardener’s Handbook, ed. Second // State publishing house of agricultural literature, Moscow, 1955 – 606 p.
  3. Bratilova N.P., Gerasimova O.A. Chronological variability of apple phytomass grown in slate form in the suburban area of ​​Krasnoyarsk // Forestry journal No. 4, 2020

    https://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/hronograficheskaya-izmenchivost-fitomassy-yabloni-vyraschivaemoy-v-stlantsevoy-forme-v-prigorodnoy-zone-krasnoyarska

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