The apple tree is a rather capricious tree, and first of all, you need to ask yourself not only what varieties to plant, but also how to plant apple trees correctly. After all, 80% of the time of the first harvest depends on professional planting. But more on that later, first you need to choose a good seedling.
What to look for when buying an apple seedling
The tree should be with he althy bark, about 1.5 m high. Grafting is at a distance of 7-8 cm from the root, crown with 4-5 branches.
There should be a lot of roots. Choose only winter-hardy varieties. Be sure to find out where the south side is on the seedling, this is especially important for its fruiting. The fact is that when planting a seedling, it is necessary to place it on the cardinal points in the same way as it grew in the nursery. Otherwise, the tree will take root for a long time and will bear fruit a few years later.
What you should be aware of when choosing a planting site for a seedling
If there are leaves on the apple tree, be sure to remove them. When deciding how and what to plant in the garden, it is impossible to skimp on the space for the future tree, since each plant wins its place under the sun. And if the apple trees are planted closely, theystart to oppress each other. For the same reason, a seedling should not be planted near an adult tree. Well, it is also not recommended to do this near garden paths, so that the branches of an already adult tree do not block the passage later. It is also undesirable to grow apple trees in places where groundwater is high. In this tree, the root system develops in two directions: horizontal and vertical. Horizontal roots provide rainwater and various nutrients to the fertile layer. Vertical ones provide stability to the apple tree. If the underground waters are high, then the vertical roots, having reached them, stop growing and rot, which means that the "age" of such a tree will not be long.
How to plant apple trees in a permanent place
So, having correctly marked the site, start digging a hole for landing. The depth is 1 meter, the width is 1-1.5 m. The pit must be filled up to half with a mixture of compost, peat and humus. Next, add regular soil so that the root neck is above the ground. It is advisable to drive a wooden stake into the center of the pit before planting in order to fix the seedling later. And never do this after planting the tree: you can damage the root system. Now lightly tamp the earth in the center, and compact more along the edges.
How to plant apple trees if their growth in the cardinal directions in the nursery is unknown
If you do not know exactly how the seedling grew in the nursery, then the grafted branch should be directed to the south side. If the graftlocated in the center of the rootstock, then place the thickest root to the south. This will make it more likely that the tree is planted correctly. Otherwise, an incorrectly “oriented” seedling will take root longer, and will begin to bear fruit 2-3 years later, it happens that even for 10 years the tree grows idle.
After planting, the entire hole must be spilled with water until the soil absorbs it. Sometimes it takes up to 70 liters. Then you need to mulch the landing site, for this, use dry grass and humus. And somewhere for 5-7 days you can forget about the tree. But after this time, the landing site must be poured with plenty of water again. Now, you know how to plant apple trees and how to do it right.
