Siebold walnut or ylanthus leaf is not as popular as walnut. And only some gardeners plant this variety on personal plots. But in vain, because this tree, with a minimum of attention, bears fruit well, besides it looks attractive and calmly tolerates even severe frosts.
Description
Siebold Walnut is a deciduous tree, reaching 20 meters in height. In the natural environment, it can be found in the mountain, coniferous and deciduous forests of Japan, South Korea, as well as in Sakhalin and the Far East. The species prefers to grow in small groups or singly. Since the natural range of the species is constantly decreasing, Siebold walnut is listed in the Red Book.
A straight tree trunk reaches one meter in diameter. It has a gray-green bark, covered with longitudinal cracks. The branches are smooth with a yellowish gray tint. They are covered with leaves on long brown petioles. An ovoid-shaped leaf plate with pointed tips. Their length reaches 60 cm and a width of 40 cm. They are painted green, with the lower part being lighter than the upper.
At the end of spring, the tree begins to bloom. At this time, in the axils of the leaves and on the tips of the shoots appear earrings collected in hands of 18–22 pcs. After them, fruits are formed - rounded or oval drupes, reaching 2–4 cm in length. They are covered with a hard, thin shell with a smooth surface. The kernels ripening by the beginning of autumn have excellent taste and high fat content (65%).
Siebold nut begins to bear fruit only in the 8th year of life. But this drawback is offset by the longevity of the tree, which lives up to 300 years. In addition to delicious nuts, this culture is appreciated for the high technical characteristics of wood, widely used in furniture production.
Also, the variety is characterized by increased frost resistance, which makes it possible to grow Siebold walnut in the Moscow Region, Central and Northern regions. But in the south the tree feels uncomfortable, as it suffers greatly from drought and heat. Nevertheless, here too, culture takes root and bears fruit, but not as abundantly as in the North.
Breeding
The culture is propagated by seeds, cuttings and grafting. But the first method is the easiest and most affordable. Therefore, we dwell on it. Start breeding in the fall, immediately after harvesting. Germination of seeds of this nut reaches 30–70%. However, to increase the likelihood of sprouts, pre-soak the grains in warm water for 24 hours. And before planting, scarify the fruits.
For a plant, choose a well-lit area with nutritious and loose soil. Be sure to prepare a place for planting in advance. To do this, dig the soil to a depth in the bayonet of a shovel and clear the soil of weeds and their rhizomes.
If in the future you will transplant seedlings to another place, then at a depth of 0.5 meters below the soil surface, lay sheets of slate or galvanized metal. This is necessary to prevent the growth of roots in depth. And then, when transplanting, seedlings will not suffer much.
Zibold walnut cultivation
Deepen the fruits horizontally into the holes, to a depth of 7–9 cm, in groups of 4–5 pieces. Be sure to pull up the net from above or install other rodent protection.
Shoots will appear only next summer. First, the plant will release a whitish root, from which the stem is subsequently formed. Such shoots like to peck birds, so they need to be protected from feathered pests. Do not remove the cover from the net until the plants are sufficiently strong.
Do not forget to periodically moisten and loosen the soil, as well as remove weeds. Before winter, be sure to provide shelter for the seedlings. It is possible to transplant young Siebold nuts for 3-4 years.
Planting seedlings
For mature plants, choose open, lighted areas. But if there is no choice, then the tree will take root in the shade. Siebold walnut does not impose special requirements on the ground; moreover, it calmly tolerates the lowland. Therefore, there will be no problems with choosing a site.
But remember that an adult tree has a sprawling crown, and no less extensive root system. So consider this feature before landing. If you plant several trees, then keep a distance of 5 meters between them.
Start transplanting in the spring when the air temperature is kept within +10 ° C. Then the trees will have time to take root in the cold. For plants, dig a hole with dimensions in which the roots of the culture fit freely. In fertile soil, there is enough pit with a diameter of 50-60 cm. If the soil is far from ideal, dig a hole with a size of 1 * 1 meter.
Mix the resulting earth with turf, sand and humus. And add some wood ash to the mixture. In this substrate, the seedling will be as comfortable as possible. How to plant a tree:
- A day before transplanting a seedling, be sure to water it. Pour a 10-cm layer of drainage into the bottom of the recess. For these purposes, use broken brick, expanded clay, crushed stone.
- Cover the drain with a layer of substrate and place a seedling on it.
- Next carefully drive in a peg to which you will tie a tree.
- Spread the roots of the plant and cover the voids with soil. The root neck of the tree should be flush with the ground.
- Tamp the soil and form a watering ditch around the seedling. Moisturize through the ground.
When the moisture is absorbed, be sure to mulch the trunk circle with sawdust, peat or hay. Such a layer will help retain moisture to the plant, and also prevent the appearance of a crust on the soil, which blocks the access of oxygen to the roots.
Plant care
Siebold walnut, the photo of which is given in the article, cannot be called a moody plant. Nevertheless, for the tree to bear fruit, it needs to create comfortable conditions. Plant care includes the following activities:
- periodic watering;
- loosening and weeding;
- top dressing;
- pruning
- prevention of diseases and pests.
Young trees will need to create shelter for the winter.
Watering
Siebold Walnut is a hygrophilous plant. Therefore, in the hot season, regularly water the crop, if the summer was dry, then moisten the soil at least 2 times a month. Pour 3-4 buckets of water under each tree. Cancel mid-August watering. But if there was a dry autumn, then spend one irrigation before the cold. This will facilitate the wintering of culture.
After each watering, be sure to loosen and weed the soil. Such procedures will improve air access to the roots and protect the plant from pests and diseases that live in weeds. If you want to simplify the care of the plant, then sprinkle the trunk circle with mulch. Thanks to this layer, the need for loosening and weeding will disappear by itself. In addition, after mulching, you need to water the plants less often.
Top dressing
Feed the Siebold nut twice a season. First feed in the spring. At this time, use nitrogen fertilizers, which must be dug into the soil to a depth of 4 cm. 10-15 g of preparations are sufficient for each tree. Be sure to moisten the soil before top dressing.
Apply fertilizer a second time in the fall. At this time, it is useful to feed the culture with phosphorus-potassium compounds and organics.
Pruning
Every spring, carry out a sanitary pruning of the Siebold nut. During the event, cut out all damaged, diseased and frostbitten shoots. If you cut large branches, then be sure to treat the places of cuts with garden var.
Inspect the tree regularly in summer. If there are signs of diseases that cannot be dealt with in the usual way, then do not wait for the next spring, but immediately cut out the heavily damaged branches. Otherwise, the disease will spread to healthy shoots, and the tree will die.
Winter preparations
Siebold Walnut is a frost-resistant plant. But young seedlings of this species may not tolerate winter, so they need to be prepared for the cold season. To do this, wrap the tree with burlap, lutrasil or other covering material. Mulch the trunk circle with a thick layer of rotted manure.
Planting and caring for the Siebold walnut will not cause you much trouble. Provide the culture with minimal attention, and it will certainly thank the fast growth and good harvest of tasty and healthy fruits.