The cherry tree is a thermophilic plant. And if you want to plant it on your site, choose a place well illuminated by the sun and protected from the north winds. Cherries should not obscure any other trees. In addition, the sweet cherry does not like sandy soils, as well as places where groundwater is high.
When and how to plant cherries in the spring? The optimal time for planting cherries is before the buds swell in early spring. However, if the air temperature is below 0 ° C, then you can not plant the cherry seedlings, even if you have purchased a winter-hardy variety. Cherries, planted in May, when the buds have already blossomed, will be very sick and bad to take root. In autumn, too, it is not recommended to plant cherries due to the danger of early frosts.
Cherry is a cross-pollinated plant, that is, from pollination with its own pollen, the fruit will not be tied to it. There is an erroneous opinion that a cherry can pollinate a cherry. However, in order to obtain good harvests, it is best to drop 2-3 cherry trees of different varieties at a distance of 4 meters from each other.
Planting and caring for cherries
Acquire cherry seedlings most often in the fall. At this time, their choice is very rich. Both annuals and biennial seedlings are suitable for planting. When buying, be sure to evaluate the root system of seedlings: it must be developed sufficiently. The height of annual saplings should be about 80 cm, and the biennial ones - about one meter. For the winter, the seedlings need to be prikopat.
The place for planting cherry seedlings should be prepared in autumn. The soil on the site must be loose and fertile. When digging a site under the cherry, we introduce fertilizers: manure, overgrown compost and any complex mineral fertilizers. If necessary, the soil is deoxidized with lime. The pit for planting a cherry seedlings in the spring should not be deeper than 60 cm and a diameter of up to 80 cm. First, a planting stake should be hammered into the pit, and then the nutrient mixture consisting of humus, topsoil, potassium sulfate and superphosphate should be filled. The pit is filled by one third, then the mound becomes a mound and sprinkled with soil without fertilizers.
If the roots of the seedlings have dried, soak them in water for 6-7 hours. When planting, the seedling should be placed on a mound and half sprinkled with roots, constantly shaking the seedling so that the earth fills all the voids. Now you need to pour a bucket of water and fill the earth with a seedling completely. In this case, the root collar of the seedling should not be buried, but protrude above the ground by 4-5 cm. When the ground settles, the root collar will be located exactly at the soil level. Knead the ground around the planted tree, make a hole with a roller where you pour out another bucket of water. We mulch the soil around the tree with humus or peat, and we bind the seedling to the cola with twine.
Further care for the planted cherry is in the feeding, which must be carried out to the young tree 2-3 times per season. The best fertilizer is diluted in a proportion of 1: 6 slurry. To this solution
Than to process a sweet cherry in the spring?
In early spring, recurrent frosts with frosts are not uncommon. To protect young cherry seedlings, you should water the tree in the evening and sprinkle the crown with water. If you find a louse on your young cherry, start fighting it immediately. To do this, you can sprinkle the tree with a decoction of wood ash, dandelion, garlic or onions. Destructive for aphids will be spraying wood with sulfuric acid. But when the cherry is damaged by a holey patchiness, sick branches should be cut out, and the tree should be sprinkled with a solution of the drug chorus or fast.
Observing the rules of planting and caring for the cherry in the spring, protecting it from pests, you will soon get an excellent harvest of these delicious berries.