Spring is a hot season for gardeners. One of the important things is the spring feeding of fruit trees. The soils of garden plots are very different in their mineral composition and structure. Yes, and different types of fruit trees put forward their own requirements for normal growth and fruiting, not every soil can provide them with everything they need. That is why it is very important to properly and thoughtfully carry out top dressing in the garden. Fruit trees especially need them in the spring, when they are preparing for flowering and fruiting.
Why you can't miss this event
To begin with, spring feeding of fruit trees is not the most time-consuming part of home garden care, but experienced gardeners know that this is the most important agricultural technique. Without this event, it is impossible to achieve the decorative properties of trees and berry bushes, not to wait for a good harvest of berries and fruits. Fertilizing can be compared on demand to spraying a garden against pests. Timely fertilization of fruit trees will add the necessary elements to the soil,which in the future will turn into excellent flowering and fruiting.
Fruit trees live for many years, so the soil needs additional nutrition. The tree consumes many elements from the soil, especially during the period of fruit ripening. The question is often asked whether the autumn top dressing will cover all the need for nutrients. Leading agricultural technicians think not. Before the growing season, the concentration of nutrients decreases, which leads to a decrease in yield and a deterioration in fruit quality. Next, we'll look at which items need to be filled first.
Nutrients essential for fruit trees
Spring feeding of fruit trees involves the introduction of the entire set of nutrients needed by these plants. During the growing season, the need changes dramatically, nitrogen comes to the fore, which in the autumn-spring months is washed out by heavy rainfall and water coming after the snow melts. The second most important are potassium, phosphorus and nitrogen. This sequence must be known and taken into account. First of all, the need for nitrogen intensifies in trees, and only later, when the ovary is formed, for phosphorus. Feeding trees in the spring is the key to a good harvest in the fall. A very important point is the presence of humus in the soil. It is usually abundant in heavy fertile soils, and practically absent in sandy and sandy soils. Also, the content of potassium strongly depends on the structure of the soil.
How to properly fertilize
We are talking about the period when the trees awaken fromhibernation. Top dressing of trees in the spring is done directly under the root of the tree. Moreover, it is introduced into the snow when it melts. That is how, slowly penetrating into the soil along with melt water, mineral mixtures get to the awakening roots.
The mixture is brought into the trunk circle, which should have been well loosened since autumn. The perimeter should be marked by drawing the width of the crown on the ground. It is here that the largest number of young suction roots is located. A young tree will need 40 g of complex fertilizer, for adult plantings a larger portion will be required.
The location of landings also matters. If the garden is growing on a slope, then fertilization should be delayed so that the mineral mixture is not washed away with melt water.
Under the snow, top dressing containing nitrogen is applied. But just do not buy universal mixtures called "spring", they often contain too much of this element, which can lead to the appearance of fungus. A little later, when the snow melts, you can add superphosphate, ash and potassium sulfate to the soil.
May - the time of active ovary and fruit growth
Feeding trees in spring is not limited to this. Flowering is in full swing and the first ovary is already appearing, now the trees need not so much minerals as organic matter. Properly prepared manure and compost are perfect for May top dressing. The amount of fertilizer applied depends on the soil. Fertile chernozem requires a minimum of additives, forest soils are larger, andpodzolic requires regular and abundant moisture. Manure is usually applied in the form of an aqueous solution, this method is familiar to every summer resident. Compost should be prepared in the fall by putting grass in the compost pit.
Processing and feeding fruit trees in spring will become easy and simple if you take care of such proven means in advance.
Types of fruit trees
There are many of them in our garden plots, and each reacts in its own way to any type of fertilizer. That is why tree feeding in the spring should be carried out individually. Fertilizing fruit trees is the key to a rich harvest, so you should not forget about it. Apple trees respond well to such events. They need a huge amount of nutrients to grow fragrant fruits. It is equally useful to apply organic fertilizers to the soil where pears and plums grow.
And yet, what fertilizers for fruit trees should be used? Many summer residents will answer that it is enough to take manure - and they will be absolutely right. The only exceptions are decorative, coniferous tree species. For them, it is better to choose a balanced top dressing with the appropriate labeling.
Technical details
How to fertilize fruit trees? There are two options. The first is dry mixes, which gradually dissolve with water and penetrate into the soil. The second is much better suited for fruit trees and iswater solution. Plants absorb liquid fertilizer faster. At the same time, if you have a seedling, then you need to apply fertilizer on a cloudy day, preferably at night. Note that the soil under the tree must be well watered so that the fertilizer solution added to it does not burn the roots.
Dry mineral mixtures are applied before watering so that the tree begins to receive nutrients as quickly as possible. The fruit tree is very responsive to the addition of calcium, sodium, iron and potassium. No less important are selenium, magnesium, copper and many other trace elements, which are usually not enough in the soil. It is very important not to overdose. A large amount of nitrogen is detrimental to young plants. By the middle of summer, the bark will not have time to take shape, and the plant will freeze in winter. Another point: excess nitrogen stimulates the formation of shoots and slows down fruiting.
It is very important at what time of the year fruit trees were planted. Top dressing is most effective in the summer months, while winter plantings will prepare for wintering, which means they do not need fertilizer.
Mulching
There is another way to get the most out of your home garden. Fruit trees can be fed with organic mulch. These are peat, manure, organic residues, rotted leaves and straw. All this organic matter is located on a well loosened layer of fertile soil under a fruit tree. The thickness of the mulch should not be too small, the optimal layer is about 15 cm all overcrown perimeter. If such a procedure is performed in the spring, then it will be very good to add mineral fertilizers to the mulch. Mulching is a very useful technique, it helps to retain moisture in the soil, inhibits the growth of weeds and maintains the optimal temperature regime of the soil near the trunk circle.
Foliar applications
As you know, a plant is able to absorb nutrients not only through the roots, but also through its green crown. Agricultural technicians have long adopted this knowledge and began to actively use it. Today, advances in science allow every gardener to have a huge selection of preparations for gardening. Among them are foliar top dressing. You get the opportunity to spray fruit crops with a solution of mineral fertilizers and growth regulators. Such preparations can significantly improve fruiting. They are often based on a 0.2% urea solution.
During the flowering of fruit plants, it is important to attract as many insects as possible, which will produce pollination. Summer residents go to the trick, making a sweet solution of honey, sugar and water. Such a bait in the spring works flawlessly. Since the flowering of the main honey plants has not yet begun, not a single bee will miss such a feast.
Seedlings, care and feeding
The first task of these plants is to take root and start growing as quickly as possible. Fruiting is not yet a priority. Usually, in the first few years, a young apple or pear tree produces only a few fruits, andThis means that it does not use too much of its resources. Later, the question will surely arise - what fertilizers for fruit trees should be applied? The best option for top dressing at the time of planting and subsequent fertilization of the seedling is the AgroPrirost complex fertilizer. It provides all the vital elements: phosphorus, nitrogen, potassium, as well as trace elements: calcium, zinc, boron and magnesium. This is especially necessary in clay or sandy areas where the soil is poor.
The first feeding is done by applying a dry product directly into the prepared hole. The subsequent ones are performed annually, superficially in the near-trunk circle. Usually they are repeated in spring and autumn. An adult tree can be completely transferred to home-made organic fertilizers.
Mature fruit trees
Starting from the fifth year of life, plants enter a period of active fruiting, and therefore, the requirements for top dressing change. Now the trees are fed with a complete mineral fertilizer. One square meter of area consumes 15 g of nitrogen, 8 g of phosphorus and 12 g of potassium. These substances are brought under the snow. A little later, the turn of organic fertilizers comes, once every 2 years about 6 kg of manure is applied per square meter of the trunk circle. After the end of flowering, when the ovary growing phase begins, dry crushed bird droppings are excellent. For 1 m2 of the near-stem circle, about 0.3 kg of such a powder is scattered. Falling asleep with manure can be completely replaced by the addition of slurry. To do this, take one liter of solution per square meter of soilsurfaces. Minerals are required to be applied annually.
Summarize
In the spring, as you know, the day feeds the year, so the gardener should not miss the time. Spring feeding of fruit trees, both adult and young seedlings, is guaranteed to ensure their good growth, flowering and fruiting. Despite the abundance of work on the garden plot, it is necessary to devote time to this. Then autumn will meet you with ruddy apples, juicy pears and delicious plums.
