The best time to plant is spring, when all the forces of nature help the plant to develop the root system and start growing. And the best time to buy seedlings is autumn, when many varieties in excellent condition and at a reasonable price go on sale. But root formation does not occur at this time, only callus grows.
This discrepancy raises the question: "If the purchased plant does not take root in autumn (except for currants), what should be done with cuttings and seedlings until spring?" There is a solution, it is digging seedlings for the winter.
Let's wait until spring
Ordinary gardeners are in a hurry to immediately identify plants for a permanent place, and agronomists consider autumn planting the worst type of digging and are in no hurry until spring. What is the opinion of the professionals?
The quality of purchased seedlings is not reliably known. In appearance, it is difficult to determine whether the growth process has completed and how ready the plant is for winter.
It is necessary to dig seedlings in order for them to go through the entire cycle: from spring to late autumn. The seedling preserved in the pit will start a new round of development in time and will survive the next winter.
Determining the timing
If you do not plant, what to do with new plants, when and how to dig seedlings?
For the winter, you can store them in the ground at any time: from early autumn to the time when the snow has already fallen.
In early autumn they dig in, covering only the roots with earth. With the onset of cold weather, the stems also fall asleep, leaving 1/3 of the length outside.
Sometimes valuable varieties ordered from nurseries arrive in late autumn. They, too, can be stored until spring.
Accommodate latecomers
How to dig up seedlings for the winter if the soil is frozen and covered with snow? Two things must be done in advance: prepare a bag of earth in a frost-free room and dig a hole in the garden for a shovel bayonet. When the long-awaited parcel arrives, you need to shovel the snow, put the plant in a groove, sprinkle it with prepared soil and cover it with snow.
If the hole is not dug, pour hot water over the ground, immerse the seedling in the resulting slurry, and throw a snowdrift on top. You can do it easier: the plant is placed directly on the snow, covered with it and waiting for spring.
Preparing the place
For better wintering, a flat or elevated place is chosen, where snow always lies in winter, and melt water does not accumulate in early spring. The soil should be loose, weed-free and free of clods. If the plotraw - you can make a drainage groove.
There should not be compost heaps and hay nearby: mice like to winter in these places.
Orient the trench for the dig in the direction "east-west". The roots are laid to the north, the crowns to the south.
Material preparation
It is not enough to know how to dig seedlings for the winter. They still need to be properly prepared for hibernation:
- he althy strong plants are bought;
- all leaves and petioles are removed from the stem;
- damaged, rotten and dry roots are cut out;
- if disease is suspected, seedlings are treated with copper sulfate;
- crown pruning should be postponed until spring.
How to dig seedlings for the winter
In winter, seedlings have three enemies: damping off, freezing and mice. Done right, they will survive the winter well and grow well in the spring.
In the ground it is necessary to make a groove as deep as the bayonet of a shovel. One wall remains vertical, the other at an angle of 30 degrees. Seedlings are laid perpendicular to the groove, in rows (roots to the vertical wall). At the same time, ½ of the length of the stems should be 3-4 cm below the soil level.
Additionally, you can lay agrofiber under the upper half of the stems, this will protect them from damping out. To fight mice, you can close the pit with spruce paws, then cover it with earth.
Then they should be well watered and gently sprinkle the roots and the lower third of the stems with loose earth. The mound must be compacted and again watered abundantly. When the water is absorbed, sprinkle with earth.
As a result of digging under the roller from the ground, reliably hidden roots turn out. A thin layer of soil (no more than 5 cm) covers half of the stems. ½ of the length of the seedling remains emerging from the ground at an acute angle.
In spring, plants are planted as early as possible, as soon as the top layer of the earth thaws.
