It is not so easy to get the juicy and sweet fruits of such a southern tree as apricot in the Urals. Growing it in harsh climatic conditions requires compliance with a number of certain rules.
Growing Features
The life expectancy of apricot in the Ural region is quite short and is no more than 20 years. Of these, the period of productive fruiting accounts for a maximum of half this period. Therefore, to ensure the annual supply of these solar fruits, it is necessary to plant new trees periodically on the site where apricots are grown. Not all varieties can withstand the winter cold, when frosts reach 30-40 degrees.
A landing site should be chosen for this heat-loving culture, sunny, inaccessible to the cold northerly winds. Then, with good care, apricots in the Urals can give a good harvest.
Their varieties should be selected according to the climatic characteristics of this region. Apricot does not claim to soil with high fertility. It can grow in clay areas. Only light sandy soils are not suitable for him.
Selection of seedlings
Of great importance for the future harvest is the choice of high-quality planting material. It is best to take well-developed seedlings of the first year of growth. When purchasing them, one should pay attention to the absence of thorns that are characteristic only of wild-growing varieties.
Branches of cultivated species must be necessarily thick, with a small spike that forms at the site of vaccination. Do not take seedlings with signs of freezing of the root system or a dried aerial part. The likelihood that such plants take root is practically absent.
Planting seedlings
Usually, an apricot is planted in the Urals in the spring, then over the summer period the tree will grow stronger and better prepare for winter. It is recommended to dig a planting hole in the fall so that the soil settles. Its dimensions should be such that the root system of the seedling fits easily, usually they make a depth of about half a meter, and the diameter is not less than 70 centimeters.
Planting apricot in the Urals (it is recommended to grow it with mandatory consideration of all requirements) is necessary, observing the distance between the seedlings of at least five meters. The soil mixture should consist of several components. This is usually peat, clay, sand with a small addition of manure and lime flour. It is good to add a mixture of superphosphate and ash (500 g and 2 kg, respectively).
In the center of the landing pit, a peg is driven in, which is necessary for the future garter of the tree, around which a hill of soil mixture is poured. Before this, a drainage layer is necessarily laid, which can serve as gravel or small pebbles. Then the seedling is placed in a pit, while its roots are carefully straightened and covered with earth. Before planting, they are dipped in soil mash. The root neck should not be deeply buried, it should be about 4 centimeters higher than the soil level. The plant is tied up and properly watered on the periphery with water.
Apricot Care
In the Urals, it has significant differences. You have to start taking care of a young seedling from the very first days of planting. The time of spring thaws is the most dangerous period for plants. When melting a large amount of snow, it is possible to fill the root neck, which can cause it to warm up and lead to the death of the tree. Therefore, care includes the mandatory mulching of the soil and the removal of excess water.
In the future, apricot needs timely watering, top dressing and pruning. This drought tolerant plant does not require much water. More frequent watering is required only during fruit setting and ripening.
Top dressing
Apricots are fertilized in the Urals depending on age. Growing without fertilizing in this climate zone is impossible, but their excess can adversely affect the development of the plant. Resistance to diseases decreases, the process of fruit ripening slows down, and shoots grow rapidly.
Upon reaching the age of two, plants require up to 15 kg of organic fertilizers with the addition of superphosphate (130 g), ammonium nitrate (50 g) and potassium chloride (50 g). For a plant whose age is 4–5 years, the amount of these components must be increased by 2 times, for an 8-year-old - by 3 times, etc. It has a very beneficial effect on apricot potassium, increasing productivity, improving the taste of fruits and affecting their size.
Seasonal work
Planting apricots in the Urals requires the implementation of certain work related to plant care, which depend on the time of year. In autumn, this thermophilic tree needs to be prepared for frost, creating conditions suitable for wintering. If this is not done, the plant may die. Ruberoid or roofing material is wrapped around a tree, securing it with wire or rope. Such a "fur coat" will protect the plant in winter from temperature extremes and from severe frosts.
After harvesting, the lower part of the trunk must be whitened so that the tree does not turn into a wintering place for insect pests. Pre-winter whitewashing ensures that various insects do not settle in the bark.
Pruning
Growing apricots in the Urals, the varieties of which yield a high yield under these conditions, is impossible without pruning. This procedure is carried out in the spring. Branches growing inside the crown are removed.
Pruning well stimulates the growth of new shoots, which are more fertile. It is on them that the bulk of apricots are formed. In addition, the risk of tree overload is excluded. Pruning the crown allows you to adjust and shape it in the right direction so that a huge tree does not grow with a handful of fruits on the top of the head.
Typically, the crown is formed according to the sparse-tier type, when the branches are spaced at an interval of 35-40 cm. The most abundant fruiting occurs on shoots that are 2-3 years old. Old branches are recommended to be removed on time. But too intense pruning should not get carried away. This can lead to lower yields.
Pests
There are many pests that can infect apricot. In the Urals, the cultivation of this tree is also not without their participation. The main one is aphid, capable of weakening the plant and ruining the crop. To combat this pest, spraying a tree with infusion of tobacco, dandelion and ash is used. But mechanical cleaning will be much more effective.
The caterpillar of the butterfly hawthorn is another pest that often settles on apricot.
The most dangerous is the appearance on the plant of black goldfish. Only one larva of this insect, which manages to penetrate the root system, is capable of destroying the entire tree. The main method of dealing with it is to spray the plant with Bordeaux fluid. The procedure is performed in the fall when the leaves fall.
Disease
It is worthwhile to thoroughly study all possible plant diseases and preventive measures before planting an apricot. In the spring, sharp fluctuations in temperature occur in the Urals, which makes trees too susceptible to various diseases caused by fungi and bacteria. The most common of these is moniliosis. The causative agents of this disease that have fallen on the flowers lead to its drying and, advancing into the branches, affect all shoots. If measures are not taken in time, you can lose up to 80% of the crop. All infected fruits and other parts of the plant should be removed immediately and the tree sprayed with Bordeaux fluid.
No less dangerous disease is klyastkerosporiosis (perforated spotting). First, small spots appear on the leaves with a purple border at the edges, which gradually turn into holes. On the fruit, such spots form scabs. Bordeaux liquid is also used for treatment, spraying swollen buds in spring and tree branches after falling leaves in autumn.
Verticillaceous wilting can lead to drying out of the whole tree. The lower leaves turn yellow, fall and, once in the ground, infect the roots of the plant.
Any disease is easier to prevent, so you should pay more attention to prevention. To do this, it is necessary to burn all infected parts of the plant, to make a sufficient amount of nitrogen fertilizers and to prevent overmoistening of the soil.
Observing all the rules of agricultural technology and carefully looking at the trees in order to help in time, in general, it is easy to get a healthy apricot in the Urals. Growing, photos of damaged plants and methods of treatment, proper pruning - all this must be carefully studied so that later harvesting can bring only positive emotions.
Root neck heating
With the advent of spring, the water that appears on the surface of the soil, sometimes freezing, then thawing again, causes the death of cambial cells. A tree with a rooted root of the neck can actively bloom, but after a few weeks it slowly dies. This is the most common cause of apricot death in the Urals.
In order to prevent warming, already after the appearance of the first snow, the necessary work is carried out. To do this, they shovel snow from the root collar by 20-30 cm so that the ground freezes. Apricot root system is quite resistant to frost. In March, this procedure is repeated, additionally digging grooves to drain melt water.
Recommended Apricot Varieties
In the Urals, it is better to use for planting varieties specially bred for this region. When planting, some of them require for pollination the presence on the site of a tree of another variety. Kichiginsky, Piquant, Snezhinsky - the most famous apricots in the Southern Urals. In addition to them, there are other varieties suitable for growing in cold climates.
They are resistant to low temperatures, a short summer does not interfere with the ripening of fruits that taste little different from their southern counterparts.
- Amur is a winter-hardy and drought-resistant variety with high productivity, which sometimes reaches 40 kg. Fruits weighing 30 g are covered with yellow ruddy skin. A tree of medium height, with a rounded shape.
- Khabarovsky - a tree with a spreading crown, productivity is quite high (up to 35 kg). Fruits with pale yellow skin and the same color flesh ripen in late July and early August.
- Seraph - gives a regular yield of about 30 kg, ripening in late July. This is one of the earliest varieties. The pulp is creamy, sweet and sour in taste.
These are the most popular apricots in the Urals. Varieties Minusinsky rosy and Minusinsky amber are recognized as the most winter-hardy. Siberian Baikalov is not inferior to them.
All of the above varieties have passed the necessary tests and are recommended for planting in the Ural region.