Currently, most gardeners without problems grow fruit trees in their personal plots in the suburbs. Along with apples and pears, plums of various varieties are very popular. Plum has a pleasant taste, a whole range of nutrients, and is also well preserved in the form of preserves and compotes for the winter. However, good fruiting, and therefore a high yield, depends on compliance with planting technology. Saplings of fruit trees can be planted in autumn or spring. In this article we will analyze how to plant a plum in the spring in the suburbs of Moscow in order to preserve the tree and get a good harvest.
Choosing a place to land
So, how to plant a plum in the spring? First you need to decide on a place. The plant can successfully grow on any soil, but the main condition is their fertility and regular cultivation. Plum categorically does not tolerate moisture stagnation, so it is necessary that groundwater run at a depth of one and a half meters. Lighting is also important. In an excessively darkened place, the fruit loses its saturation of taste, poorly develops, the leaves turn pale.
If you are faced with the question of how to plant plum in spring on acidic soil, then the answer is very simple. It is necessary to produce soil. For this purpose, dolomite flour or ash is suitable. It is made at the rate of 0.8 kg per square meter.
Thus, the landing site should be sunny, protected from the wind. Plum seedlings are planted on the south side of other trees so that no shadow is created.
Proper planting of seedlings
How to plant plum seedlings in spring? This is completely uncomplicated. Pits for planting are better prepared in the fall, but in a pinch, they can be made several weeks before planting. The depth of the pit is 50 centimeters, the width is at least 70 centimeters. In the center of each pit, a landing stake is installed, which is an ordinary straight stick. Then, the filling mixture is placed in the pit.
The filling mixture consists of the upper layers of the earth, humus, superphosphate, ammonium nitrate, gravel, sand, potassium.
Next, plum sapling is lowered into the pit, the roots are carefully straightened and covered with earth. The root neck is kept at a height of 4-6 centimeters above ground level. This is done in order to eliminate the possible risk of damage to the cortex. During sprinkling with earth, the seedling should be shaken periodically so that there are no voids. From above, the soil is slightly tamped.
How to plant plum seedling in spring correctly? It should be located on the north side of the landing stake and at right angles to the ground. Using a rope, it should be slightly tied to a stick.
The distance between the rows of drains should be about 3 meters and the same between the trees themselves.
Seeding and grafting
How to plant a plum in the spring, which way to choose? Plum, as a rule, is propagated by inoculation, cuttings and root shoots. Propagation by seeds is used extremely rarely and mainly to obtain stocks, that is, plants on which grafts are grafted.
Good healthy seeds are thoroughly washed, cleaned of pulp and soaked for several days, during which the water is changed and the seeds are mixed. Next, the seed material is dried and stored in a glass container. Before planting, the seeds are mixed with wet sand and sawdust and kept for six months at a low temperature of -10 degrees.
Seeds are sown in late April, after freezing to a depth of 70 centimeters. The distance between them is about 10 centimeters.
For successful vaccination, the stock should be winter-hardy varieties. Shoots cut from their trees. The vaccination process is carried out in late spring or mid-summer, during the active movement of the juice.
Prune pruning
Each gardener, in addition, how to plant a plum in spring, should know how to form a crown. Plum tree is characterized by a longline crown with a height of about 35-40 centimeters. In the first years after planting, the plum grows strongly, while the branches can grow unevenly. Therefore, sometimes it is required to shorten the lateral growths, remove the tops, thin out the branches.
After planting, leave about 10 main branches with equal gaps between them and a growth angle of 45 degrees. The remaining branches can be deleted. Further, as the tree grows, branches that are not part of the formed crown should be cut off.
In an adult fruit-bearing tree, branches leaving the crown formation zone are cut, the top is shortened, reducing the crown. Low-lying branches and shoots with a large number of knots are also removed.
Fertilizer and watering
So, in addition to how to properly plant a plum in the spring, it is important to know how to properly care for it. In the first year after planting, no fertilizer is required.
But from the third year of life, you can make fertilizers in the fall , necessarily potassium and phosphorus. In the spring, nitrogen fertilizers are applied, which are reused after flowering.
Organic fertilizers are introduced in mid-June. Moreover, in young plants, the area of application is only trunks, and in adults - the entire area of planting.
Acidic soils are additionally calcified with dolomite flour.
Plum loves moist soil, so regular watering is an integral part of care. Watering is considered good, in which the soil is moistened to a depth of 40 centimeters. It is important to remember that fruiting trees require increased watering. But you should not fill the plum too much, as this can lead to the development of fungal diseases and cracked fruits.
Finally
Thus, in this article it was considered how to plant a plum in the spring in the suburbs. The most suitable and high-yielding varieties are: Alyonushka, Skoroplodnaya, Bogatyrskaya, Mashenka, Candy. The latter variety also has the most delicious fruits.
Subject to all recommendations regarding the choice of place, planting, care and watering technology, growing a plum tree will not take much time and effort, and even an experienced gardener will please the harvest.