Apricot - planting and caring for a fruit tree

The motherland of the apricot is the Far East, it is cultivated in many countries, especially with a mild, warm climate. But in domestic conditions, there is a chance to successfully harvest from this plant. Some amateurs experiment by planting a stone in a flower pot. Another option to dilute apricot is planting and caring for it in the open field. In height, it can reach two and a half meters, and the width of the crown - 4.5 m. Apricot is a self-pollinating plant. Therefore, it is enough to plant one sapling, and it will bear abundant fruit if all the requirements for caring for it are met. Most suitable for breeding are stunted varieties.

Planting of apricot in autumn and spring. Saplings should be chosen 2 or 3 years old, grafted on the sink. The earth needs a slightly alkaline, well drained and capable of retaining moisture. The tree grows especially well on sandy loamy or loamy soils. In the autumn months , the ground is prepared for landing. In it, you must make compost or reparted manure. The pit for the seedlings is excavated in such a way that the roots can be placed there, and the root neck remains at the soil level. Then the land must be drowned and watered abundantly.

Moisture is not very fond of apricot, planting and caring for the tree includes regular, but moderate watering, especially it is important in dry weather and during the appearance of ovaries. Do not recommend watering apricot for the winter, excessive moisture can lead to a prolonged vegetation in the fall.

In the spring, weakened plants need additional fertilizing, it is necessary to introduce ammonium nitrate into the soil , thirty grams per square meter is required. The roots of the tree are located in the upper layer of the soil. They need not only moisture. At the end of spring, the entire area occupied by them is mulched with compost or humus, the layer should be 2 to 3 cm thick.

A necessary condition for successful development of apricot is planting and care, pruning young seedlings in early spring. An adult plant does not require frequent thinning of branches. And for a young plant, this operation is necessary for the formation of the crown. The height of the stem should not exceed fifty centimeters. The number of skeletal branches should not be more than five or eight. On average, the seedlings are to be shortened by one third of the length.

If there is an apricot growing in your garden, planting and caring for which is carried out in a shaded area, then, as a result, you may encounter strong thickening and drying up of its branches. From this, flower buds can also suffer, they will grow less and less. Restorative pruning is carried out in the spring. In this case, every 4-6 years, it is necessary to shorten branches that have ceased to bear fruit, their length should exceed fifty centimeters.

Since a very thermophilic plant is apricot, planting and caring for it presuppose protection against frost. To this end, the tree is insulated, low plants are covered with polyethylene film, the boles are stained, they create a shelter. They differ in their increased resistance to the colds of the variety: the son of the red-cheeked, hardy, Rossoshanskiy handsome. In the middle zone of Russia cultivars such varieties as Pineapple, Red-cheeked, Red Partisan and others.