Propagation of cherries - both ordinary and felted - in a suburban area is possible in different ways. But most often this culture is bred with green cuttings. Sometimes bones are also used for this purpose.
How to choose planting material
Cherry cuttings taken from the top of annual green shoots are distinguished by the best indicators of survival. They should be cut off in early June - during the period of active growth. Checking if the shoot is suitable for cutting planting material is simple. If, when wound on a finger, the selected process does not break, you can safely cut off the stalk from it. The optimal length of a branch intended for rooting is 5-7 cm.
There should be two buds on the handle. Of course, the cut branch must be he althy, without damage. After pruning, about 1.5 cm of the cutting length should remain under the lower kidney. Leaves should be cut in half. From above, the branch is cut directly above the kidney.
Propagation of cherries by seeds is a simple procedure. In this case, planting material is taken from the bestfruits.
Preparatory measures for propagation by cuttings
You should not dry cut cherry branches. Otherwise, in the future they will take root poorly. Propagation of cherries by cuttings in summer involves only preliminary soaking of the latter in a fresh solution of indolylbutyric acid (50 g / l during the day). Planting material should be immersed in it by about 2-2.5 cm. The solution should be poured into glass or porcelain dishes. It shouldn't be too cold, of course. It is better to dilute the acid in settled water at room temperature.
Propagation of cherries by green cuttings: rooting methods
It is best to plant branches treated in this way in small greenhouses made of plastic film. With this method of rooting, they need to be periodically watered and ventilated. The cuttings should be planted to a depth of about 2.5 cm. The soil itself should be very warm (25-30 g).
Sometimes cuttings are rooted using a slightly different technology. In this case, transparent plastic bags are used. A pre-prepared substrate is poured into them. Two cuttings are planted in each package. Then air is blown into the bag by mouth and tied.
Cherry cuttings usually take root within two weeks. At this time, the film from the greenhouse should be removed. planting material placed in bags, after 14 days, begin to gradually accustom to fresh air, opening first for half an hour a day, and then for a longer time.
Reproduction of feltcherry cuttings are performed using the same technology as the usual one. This variety can also be rooted in a greenhouse or bag. The survival rate of green cuttings of cherries of all varieties is quite good. Usually 50-80% of planting material takes root.
Recommendations regarding soil composition
Of course, cherry propagation will be more successful when planting cuttings not just in soddy soil, but in a special substrate. A mixture of garden soil with humus in a ratio of 1: 1 is very good for rooting cut branches. You can also use peat with perlite or expanded clay.
It is worth pouring a mixture of a slightly different composition into the bags. It is usually prepared from garden soil and sand in a 1: 1 ratio. Such a mixture is poured into each bag with a layer of 9 cm. It is advisable to add another 2 cm of ordinary washed sand from above.
At what age to transplant
Continue such a procedure as propagating cherries with green cuttings, transferring planting material to a permanent place. Trees rooted in greenhouses are usually left to grow in the beds for a year or two. In any case, before transplanting, their root system must reach a length of at least 15 cm, a root neck - at least 4 mm in diameter, a height of 80-100 cm, and a trunk thickness of 1-1.2 cm. You can transfer grown seedlings to a permanent place as autumn as well as spring. Keep them moist until landing.
The cuttings, rooted in bags, are transferred to the growing beds about 3 weeks after planting. The next year (or two)seated.
Propagation of cherries by cuttings in summer: choosing a landing site
You can place grown trees almost anywhere. However, it is still worth observing some requirements when choosing a landing site on the site:
- The level of groundwater in the place of cultivation of cherries should not be less than 2.5 m.
- This crop thrives best in sandy or loamy podzolic soils with good drainage.
You should not plant this crop on peaty, heavily waterlogged or gravel soils. If the groundwater on the site comes too close to the surface, the cherry should be planted on a pre-filled mound.
Propagation of cherries by cuttings has one more feature. When choosing a place for a plant, it is worth considering such a factor as the compatibility of different garden crops. This plant feels best next to apple and pear trees. Neighborhood with cherry plum, plum and apricot cherry does not tolerate very well.
How to plant correctly
From greenhouses and beds, grown cherries are transferred to pre-dug holes with a diameter of 60 and a depth of 80 cm. The soil taken out of them is mixed with two buckets of manure, as well as a small amount of sand and peat. A kilogram of wood ash, 120 g of potassium sulfate and 300 g of superphosphate are added to the resulting substrate.
The soil mixture prepared in this way is poured into the pit with a mound. The roots of the seedling are preliminarily kept in a manure-clay mixture.
Growing from seeds
Reproduction of cherries is also possible using this planting material. But it is used quite rarely. The fact is that cherries grown from seeds do not retain varietal qualities. Such plants usually do not tolerate cold very well and do not have high yields. However, they are very well suited as rootstocks. Most often, this method of cultivation is used for felt cherries. Some summer residents consider it even more preferable for this variety. If the proper technology is observed, the reproduction of felt cherries by seeds can be really very successful.
Planting material when using this breeding method should be taken from local trees. It is best to plant seeds in the ground in the fall. Their germination, unfortunately, is not one hundred percent, and therefore it costs more to take them from fruits. Planting material of this variety should be placed in the garden in increments of about 25 cm.
It is allowed to use this breeding technology in the spring. However, in this case, the successful reproduction of felt cherries with seeds is possible only with properly carried out stratification. This procedure is performed as follows:
- Planting material is poured into a jar, pre-mixed with peat and moss.
- The container is covered with a plastic lid with holes made in it and placed in the refrigerator for 6-8 weeks.
Reproduction of cherries by seeds is possible and one moretechnology. Such planting material can not be stored in winter, but planted in pots. In the spring, young seedlings will simply need to be transferred to the garden.
Felt Cherry Propagation Recommendations
Select the bones in this case should be as carefully as possible. Felt cherry, the reproduction of which is an absolutely simple procedure, sometimes has such a drawback as sagging branches. From the fruits of trees with such a bone defect, of course, it is better not to take. Also, do not use planting material from trees with too large branches.
The best solution is to take the seeds from the berries of compact plants with dark green leaves and strong wood. Of course, when choosing planting material, among other things, you should pay attention to the yield of the tree, the taste characteristics of its fruits, the speed of their ripening, etc. Of course, much better quality felt cherries will grow from good seeds. The reproduction of this culture, in comparison with the usual varieties, has another feature. Its bones are planted to a depth of no more than 2 cm. For ordinary cherries, this figure is 3 cm. In the aisles, in both cases, 25-30 cm of free space is left.
Recommendations for caring for young plants
Propagation of varietal cherries, as you can see, is a simple matter. However, rooting cuttings and properly planting them in a permanent place is, of course, only half the battle. In order to get good harvests,trees should be properly cared for.
Watering cherries should be done four times per season - during the swelling of the kidneys, after flowering, some time after shedding the excess ovary and during the period of fruit growth. In wet years, it is possible to moisten the soil under the trees less often. Overwatering can cause the trunk and branches of this crop to crack.
Of course, cherries should be fed annually. Manure, compost and ash are commonly used as fertilizer. This garden culture also responds very well to liming. This procedure is desirable to carry out once every 5-6 years. Depending on the pH level of the soil, 200-300 g of slaked lime, chalk or dolomite flour should be applied under the trees.
Approximately the same technology is used, including for such a variety as felt cherry, care. Its reproduction is a simple procedure even for an inexperienced summer resident. At the same time, many believe that caring for felt cherries is even easier than for ordinary varieties. For example, such trees do not even have to be fed during the season. In order for the felt cherry to receive the amount of nutrients it needs, its near-stem circle should simply be mulched with manure.
Pruning young trees
This procedure is usually performed once a year - in the spring. There are no specific pruning rules. Most often, the crown is simply thinned out slightly and all dried, frozen and improperly growing shoots are removed from it. Skeletal branches are usually not touched during pruning. Sometimesgardeners practice the propagation of cherries by shoots. This, by the way, is also a very simple way. In this case, the processes are simply dug out along with a piece of root and transferred to the right place. If the shoots for growing cherries on the site are not used, it, of course, should be periodically removed. Moreover, it is worth doing this more often, since cherries grow very quickly and can easily drown out plantings of other crops.
Conclusion
Propagation of felt cherries by cuttings, as well as ordinary ones, as you can see, is a relatively simple procedure. The main thing is to prepare a good soil for cut branches and create a suitable microclimate for them. It is quite easy to propagate this culture using seeds. During spring planting, in this case, it is important to properly stratify. The transfer of seedlings obtained by both these technologies into the ground is carried out in a standard way.
