There is no need to talk a lot about nuts and explain why hazelnuts are so beneficial to humans. Most people know this themselves. The positive qualities of hazelnuts were noted by the inhabitants of the planet several centuries ago. People collected, processed and ate herbs, berries, roots, nuts, which made their body stronger and their immunity stronger.
Today this crop is actively grown in our region. Trebizond hazelnuts can be purchased at any store, although quality nuts are not cheap.
How to grow and care for a plant and whether it is possible to get a quality crop from a bush at home, we will try to figure it out together.
Growing hazelnuts as an integral part of industrial activity
The technology of stem cultivation of hazelnuts (tree) came to European countries from America. This method is preferable in cultivation, because single-stemmed crowns show a several times higher percentage of yield than bushy ones. This is due to the rapid increase in yield. It is noted that 5-6-year-old trees give a fairly high offspring per unit of the horizontal projection of the crown.
In standard nut crops, the growth rate of the ground part of plants is less, which contributes tomechanization of the main part of the work, which is characterized by the greatest labor intensity - harvesting nuts, which accounts for about 47% of all costs associated with the industrial cultivation of nuts.
Hazelnuts in the country
The property of excellent adaptation to any type of soil makes Trebizond hazelnuts suitable for growing not only on an industrial scale, but also in your country house. You can usefully use rocky soil where vegetables (cucumbers and tomatoes) do not grow to grow a nut. Hazelnuts can grow where it is difficult to plow the land and water the beds. This is due to the characteristics of the plant and botanical characteristics. Despite growing on stingy soils, the plant still shows a high level of yield.
Technology of growing hazelnuts
Modern economic conditions contribute to the industrial cultivation of hazelnuts. Therefore, in order to increase the efficiency of nut production, it is necessary to work on focusing on those tasks, the solution of which will lead to a guaranteed consistently high yield and product quality.
Among the priorities of the Trebizond hazelnut cultivation technology are the structural features of plantations.
Indicators such as the width and height of the crown determine its volume. When conducting research for 24 months, the following changes occur: when forming a bush, the volume of the crown of a hazelnut variety called "Trapezund" increases by 1.35 m3, while forming a tree - 3.22 m 3.
Representatives of the "Tree" standard formation show a significantly higher crown growth, which confirms the high manufacturability of the culture compared to the control sample.
Growing the considered variety of hazelnuts in the bush form is characterized by a smaller increase due to the neglect of the crown and the deterioration of the ventilation of the bush. It was noted that in bushes with a large formation of stems, the ovaries fall off more actively, the number of empty fruits is higher, and their formation is observed only from the outer part of the crown of the hazelnut bush.
Proceeding from this, it is noticeable that the indicators of growth strength and yield of nuts depend on the conditions for the formation of the crown of the plant and its age. Changes in the structure of plants of standard formations of hazelnut "Tree" are manifested due to the following biometric parameters:
- increase in height;
- shaping and changing the crown;
- increasing stem diameter;
- increase the natural potential of the plant.
The economic value of hazelnuts is determined according to mechanical analysis, which include:
- percentage of the weight of the hazelnut kernel to the weight of the whole nut;
- core execution;
- shrinkage (percentage).
Highly valued fruits include nuts with a thin shell, large in size, with good taste and uniform color.
Procedure for planting plants
Before digging a hole, prepare the intended planting site for Trebizond hazelnuts. Reviews of gardenersconfirm that if the plant is provided with careful care and favorable conditions, then the yield increases significantly, although the nut already bears excellent fruit. The earth is plowed or dug up to a depth of 40 centimeters. It is this deepening that is suitable for maximum enrichment of the soil with moisture, oxygen, and contributes to the optimal placement of the root system. They prepare for spring plantings from autumn and vice versa. Autumn planting is considered more fruitful, because during the summer the earth accumulates a sufficient amount of moisture, which contributes to a gentle overwintering of the bush.
Important! Remember: soil poor in humus must be plowed to the full depth of the layer, adding 10 cm to loosen the soil.
The most preferred landing patterns are: 4x5/4x6/5x6/6x6. Planting technology depends on the type of soil, because the more fertile the land, the greater the volume of the bush and the space it occupies. Nest planting is considered classic: 5-7 bushes are arranged in a circle, with a diameter of 1.5 m and a 6x6 pattern. Before deepening the root system and the lower part of the stem of the seedling into the hole, all root processes, except for the central one, are removed, which ensures the growth of the bush into one trunk and intensive deepening of the roots into the ground.
Features of planting hazelnuts
The optimal time for landing is autumn. In the month of November, when the earth is sufficiently saturated with minerals, it is best to plant seedlings. This will ensure the stress resistance of plants in the winter.
Before planting, the land is fertilized. The mixture is prepared from:
- manure - 250 kg;
- phosphorus-potassium fertilizers - 500 g.
The proportion is indicated with the calculation of top dressing for fertilizing 1 acre of land. Additionally, before planting plants, 5 kg of manure is poured into each of the holes.
Pits 70x70 during autumn planting are dug in advance: about 6 weeks before planting.
It is better when two people lead the process: the first one is engaged in leveling and compacting the earth in the hole, the second carefully fills it up.
After planting, each of the hazelnut seedlings is pruned, leaving only 20 cm from ground level.
After planting plants, monitor the condition of the area where young seedlings grow: the soil must be clean and weed-free, do not forget about the systematic loosening of the soil around the planting hole by 7-9 cm, and the diameter of the loose earth should not exceed the volume of the bush.
Hazelnut is a monoecious plant, therefore a couple of mutually pollinated varieties are planted with it next to the Trebizond hazelnut. Pollinators are represented by the variety Cosford and others. The harvest will not be fertile if this feature is not taken into account. With a properly carried out planting procedure with cross-pollination, up to 500 kg of nuts are obtained from 1 hectare.
Crop Benefits
The advantages of the standard culture, which is represented by the Trebizond hazelnut, include:
- Maximum number of units of seedlings per square meter;
- High levels of fat (2% more) and proteins (2-6% more) than in the classical rearing scheme.
- Stamp formation allows you to getfruits with a greater weight of up to 0.50 grams than in the control (bush).
- Stamp formation allows you to get fruits with a kernel yield 2.5-10% higher than that of bushes.
- The standard form, unlike the bush form, begins fruiting 1-2 years earlier.
- With intensive growth in a special microclimate, plants become more stress-resistant.
- Comparing with the bush form, it is noted that the productivity of growing standard crops is up to 80% higher than that of bush plantations.
- Possibility of mechanized harvesting of nuts.
- Earlier fruit ripening: a week earlier than with bush forms.
How do you care for a plant?
The advantage of growing a hazelnut crop is that of all the known diseases and pests, none can have a tangible negative effect on the plant. Despite such resistance, endurance to weather conditions and not picky in the soil, preventive treatments are also welcome, for example, against walnut barbel, and thinned bush crowns, and pruning of damaged shoots. Let's get acquainted in more detail with the rules for caring for Trebizond hazelnuts, growing and storing nuts.
Hazelnut irrigation system
Hazelnut is a moisture-loving crop. Feels great when growing in river floodplains. The issue of irrigation is simply solved by drilling a well if the site is located far from water bodies or installing barrels of water for drip irrigation of the plantation.
Plants deprived of moisture andwater, as a rule, give a meager harvest. Only in warm areas, subject to about 1 m of precipitation per year, the plant can please with fertility without the need for systematic watering. But this rule does not apply to "Northern" hazelnuts. This nut is adapted to growing in cold climates. Sometimes, even if the zonality and climate are satisfactory, the exact rate of precipitation is unknown.
That's why experts recommend systematic autumn watering of plants in the first three years of the life of seedlings, allocating about 300 liters of water for each of the Trebizond hazelnut bushes. A description of the variety of the plant in question, or rather, a botanical reference, will help determine the norms of watering and the characteristics of growing nuts. If the growing conditions are not too favorable, and the soil was previously used for agricultural technology of other plants and was not prepared, the volume of water is increased to 1000 liters, and during the fruiting period - up to 1500 liters.
Water Periods Guidelines
The rate of irrigation is adjusted depending on the amount of precipitation, as well as soil moisture. In general, there are 5 main periods:
- The first and the beginning of the second decade of May.
- The first two weeks of June to feed the bushes in the summer heat.
- First half of July.
- The first and second decade of August.
- End of October - beginning of November to prepare for wintering.
Irrigation in early spring is meaningless, since the period of flowering and development of the Trebizond hazelnut comes earlier than that of other plants. At the 4th year of the life of the bushes, watering is doubled. During the period of activefertility, it is recommended to irrigate in the amount of 1.5 m3 on a hazelnut bush.
Important! If perennial grasses are planted between rows, watering volumes are doubled.
Pruning plants
Pruning is considered one of the main agrotechnical moments in the cultivation of hazelnuts, which allows you to adjust the growth, development, fruiting, life expectancy of the plant, the timing of fruiting, plant yields, and the quality of nuts. Also, this process is responsible for such physiological features of the plant as an increase in winter hardiness, resistance to certain pests and diseases. Using such a cultivation tool, specialists manage to bring closer or postpone the timing of flowering in the spring, keep the shoot growth period under control.
In all cases of cultivation, the principle of pruning is the same. In the process, a light, sparse crown is restored with maximum access to oxygen and light, which stimulates the growth and formation of young shoots and twigs with fruit buds covering the main skeletal branches.
Having planted seedlings, layering shows the first growth, with which gardeners later form a future trunk.
Fertilizer
When planting plants, mineral fertilizers are applied, consisting of 150 g of superphosphate and 50 g of potassium s alt with the addition of 5 kg of humus in each hole.
In the spring, when the fruits begin to set (in June), the plants are fed with urea concentration up to 0.5%.
Mulching
Trunk mulching is carried out according to agricultural practices,providing the plant with moisture retention and free access of oxygen. Use a mixture of near-stem soil with sawdust, non-coniferous trees, in a ratio of 1: 1 or replace the earth with humus, fertilizing in the same volume.
Crop propagation methods
One of the classic methods is propagation by layering. In general, the process is not difficult and consists of several stages:
- Branches are placed in horizontal grooves with shallow depth and lightly pinned. It is better to use last year's shoots, as the older ones show the worst development indicators and do not take root well. The procedure is carried out in autumn and early spring.
- Grooves with hazelnut seedlings are covered with humus, watered, and small incisions are made at the attachment points to accelerate the growth of buds.
- The tops are tied to stakes, and the growing point is pinched.
Features of harvesting nuts
Harvest at the end of August - the first decade of September, focusing on fruit fall and dry wrappers. After harvesting and drying the crop, the nuts are stored in a dry room. There are rules and recommendations on how to store Trebizond hazelnuts. The yield per tree is about 15 kilograms.
After harvesting, the nuts are stored in a dry but cool room, keeping the temperature within 4-13 degrees Celsius for 12 months; at 0-3 degrees Celsius - about 3-4 years.
