In a rare garden you will not find a pear - a luxurious fruit tree with a spreading crown, decorative foliage and delicious fruits, considered a kind of symbol of prosperity and prosperity.
The predecessor, or rather, the uterine basis of many cultivars decorating the estates, was an ordinary pear, or wild. This representative of the pink family, common in nature over vast territories from Eastern Europe to the west of the Asian continent, is a very curious plant. This publication will introduce its features and preferences.
Historical reference
The ancient Greeks began to cultivate the pear. It was from Byzantium that these fruit trees fell into Russian lands. The monks were the first to appreciate them, starting to breed in the monastery gardens. In the royal estates of the first of the Romanov dynasty, Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, 16 varieties of pear trees were grown already, and under the great reformer Peter the Great, their number in Russia increased several times, since every year Western European countries supplied the latest varieties of fruit crops. Today, more than 5000 varieties of pears, varying in the shape and size of trees, taste, color and time of fruit ripening, are grown in different countries.
Description
An ordinary pear is a fruit tree (sometimes a large shrub), which, under comfortable conditions, grows up to 20 m in height. The diameter of the stem of culture in large specimens sometimes reaches 40-50 cm. A young pear is distinguished by a compact, pyramidal crown, older trees - round, broad-cylindrical or spread. The culture is self-infertile, that is, for fruit formation it requires the presence of two cross-pollinated varieties. In the temperate zone, for example, neighboring stands of varieties Sibiryachka, Granddaughter, and Dangling are popular.
An ordinary pear lives productively from 30 to 200 years. In many respects, plant longevity is determined by the growing conditions and varietal characteristics.
The tree is especially beautiful during the flowering period, when snow-white or slightly pinkish flowers, gathered in corymbose inflorescences, cover the branches of the plant so densely that they can not see shoots and barely hatching young leaves. Typically, flowering occurs even before the leaves completely bloom in late April or early May. Flowers with a lower ovary are dotted with many stamens.
The leaves of a pear, round or oval with a pointed tip and a serrated edge, are shiny, dense and smooth. The blossoming leaves are densely pubescent, the mature ones are naked, juicy green above and light matte below. In autumn, pear leaves, acquiring a yellow-orange color, are unusually decorative and adorn sleepy gardens for a long time.
Fruit
Harvest ripens in August-September. Fruit - achene of a classical pear-shaped, oval or round shape. In juicy pulp there are stony inclusions inherent in pears. The color of the fruit is diverse: from green and yellow to pink-red. The taste is different, often they are distinguished by a noticeable astringency.
The most aromatic fruits are presented to gardeners by a yellow pear - a number of yellow fruit varieties. Plants cultivated in different regions produce fruits that differ in chemical composition and appearance, but they are all useful and rich in essential trace elements, the various compounds of which create a unique and inimitable taste characteristic of a particular variety.
The pear begins to bear fruit at the age of 5-8 years. Harvest from one tree reaches from 30 to 500 kg. The maximum yield occurs periodically in 1-2 years.
The healing properties of fruits
Being an excellent dietary product, pears have a number of very valuable qualities. Their fresh use regulates and normalizes the digestive process, pears of many varieties have anti-febrile, analgesic, diuretic and fixing effect. This is a great natural antiseptic. Fresh fruits, like baked ones, are recommended by traditional healers to alleviate conditions in pulmonary diseases - from bronchitis and pneumonia to tuberculous manifestations. In addition to eating raw, pear fruit is the most valuable raw material for the food, perfumery and distillery industries.
Planting: choosing a place
Culture grows in fields, deciduous forests with single trees or small islands. Since ancient times, plants have been planted in personal plots, in forest shelterbelts, along railways and highways.
An ordinary or wild pear is a photophilous tree. Therefore, to ensure her comfortable development and maximum fruiting, an open sunny place with light drained fertile soils is chosen. Black soil, gray forest loam in areas without groundwater standing are suitable for the plant. In the wild, the pear often settles on hills or gentle slopes, characterized by good drainage.
The wild pear is hygroscopic, drought- and frost-resistant, but sudden changes in temperature and spring frosts can damage part of the flower buds. To avoid this, the tree should be protected from the north winds.
Care
A growing pear requires the usual care, the basis of which is moderate watering, forming cuttings, weeding and light loosening of the soil in the trunk circle, as well as timely top dressing, stimulating the harmonious development of the fruit tree. He also needs protection from various misfortunes.
Pear Pests
Like many fruit trees, the pear has many pests.
Fruit mites,
apple blossoms, leaf and fruit gall midges, moths, sawflies, bark beetles and aphids - this is an incomplete list of insects that can greatly undermine the health of the tree. Pear pests, such as caterpillars of the butterfly hawthorn, make their way to open buds, eat them, leaves and flowers. By mid-summer, butterflies lay eggs on the upper sides of the leaves, the caterpillars that have appeared can eat them, leaving only the veins. By autumn, hawthorns are wintering, wrapping themselves in leaves.
Moth butterflies are also dangerous. Their caterpillars eats up passages in the shoots, which subsequently dry out. They feed on the pulp of fruits. There are many microscopic insects that are invisible to the eye, but no less dangerous: pear itch, gall mite, etc. Their ability to quickly reproduce and the absence of restrictive measures can weaken the plant and significantly reduce yields. In other words, they should be fought constantly, since an unprotected tree can simply die.
Pest Control Stages
An effective method of combating pear scourges is the spring spraying of fruit trees with insecticide solutions. The first treatment with "Oleocoprit" or "Nitrafen" is carried out before the buds open and the sap flow begins, dissolving the drug to the concentration recommended in the annotation.
Before flowering, the treatment is repeated once again using such means as "Antio", "Zolon", "Karbofos", "Nexion" or "Metaphos".
During the summer season, twisted leaves of visible pests are mechanically removed, the soil is regularly weeded in near-stem circles, preventing sodding. After harvesting, the opal leaves are removed, if necessary, the tree is treated with a solution of any insecticide or Bordeaux mixture.
Such measures will help to avoid the spread of pests and create the most comfortable conditions for the plant to develop.