Fruit

Why hazelnuts do not bear fruit: causes and diseases, ways to solve the problem

Why hazelnuts do not bear fruit: causes and diseases, ways to solve the problem
Anonim

Hazelnuts - decoration of a personal plot. Gardeners who grow hazelnuts are in awe of the beautiful tree and are looking forward to the first fruits. But fruition does not occur. Why he althy hazelnuts do not bear fruit? What factors can lead to the infertility of a plant and how to quickly get the first harvest are the main questions gardeners face.

After how many years does a hazelnut begin to bear fruit?

Hazelnuts can grow in orchards and yield for more than 20 years. The fruiting time is extended by the efforts of gardeners. After 7 years, the first fruits appear on trees grown from seeds. After 4 years, nuts can be harvested from seedlings obtained by vegetative propagation.

Note: The most productive years of the plant are from 7 to 20 years. During this time, the bush goes through a cycle of complete rejuvenation, the trees need to be pruned to stimulate the formation of fruits.

Reasons why hazelnuts may not bloom

Growing hazelnuts is not difficult, but it requires knowledge of tree planting technology. Incorrect care, poorly chosen planting site, poor planting material, tree diseases or bad weather conditions are factors that can interrupt the flowering process and contribute to a poor harvest. How to make cultivated hazelnuts bloom and bear fruit, what could be the reasons for the lack of fruits?

Bad seedling

Properly grown or selected planting material is the basis of future trees, which the gardener lays for many years. Bad seedlings are more prone to diseases, take a long time to take root and delay the time of harvesting the first harvest.

When choosing seedlings, you must comply with the conditions:

  • Correspondence of the hazelnut variety to the region where it is supposed to be grown, the species must be zoned.
  • The flowering period of the selected hazelnut variety should fall on the warm season of the region in which the hazelnuts will grow, the risk of frost during this period should be minimal.
  • A seedling brought from the forest will not give a good harvest in growing conditions on a personal plot. Choose "domesticated" varieties of hazelnuts.
  • In order not to make a mistake with the choice of variety, it is better to purchase seedlings in specialized nurseries and professional agricultural stores.

Selected seedlings must be examined: the foliage must be he althy, without signs of fungal diseases, the root system is lush, without damaged and dried roots.

Wrong fit

Violation of the agricultural technique of planting trees in the ground, the wrong choice of planting site are negative factors that can lead to infections and infertility of hazelnuts.

The site for walnut crops should be sunny, hazel can grow on slopes and prefers higher ground. Holes are prepared and marked in advance according to the planting patterns of a certain variety and the size of the future walnut plantation. Depending on the height of adult bushes, the interval between plants is chosen: from 4 m by 4 m, to 6 m by 6 m.

Note! To quickly return the harvest for industrial purposes, gardeners resort to tricks: the plantings are deliberately thickened, after 6 years they harvest the full crop, then the plantings grow, the extra trees are removed, leaving room for permanent specimens.

Planting holes for hazelnuts should be deep enough - 30-40 cm.At the bottom, a nutrient mixture of organic and mineral fertilizers, diluted with the main soil, is poured. It is more convenient to plant trees together, so it is easier to maintain the central position of the seedling in the hole: one person fixes the plant in the center and spreads the roots, the other digs in, gently tamping each layer.

The underbarrel circle is mulched with cut grass, sawdust or a mixture of peat and sand. Young trees are watered at the root at the rate of 20 liters of water per plant.

Improper care

Wild hazelnut grows on its own in the forest, domesticated hazelnuts require care from gardeners. If agricultural technology is not followed, the tree stops bearing fruit.

A set of measures for the care of nut plantings includes:

  • Watering - hazelnuts do not tolerate drought well, it is important to water the plants in early summer, when flowers, buds, generative organs of the tree are laid.
  • Regular fertilization increases the yield, the walnut is responsive to organics, it is necessary to apply nitrogenous fertilizers and a potassium-phosphorus complex.
  • Pruning - an excessively lush crown will harm the tree, young shoots should receive enough light, so more fruits will ripen. It is necessary to prune the crown from the age of the plant at the age of six, and the procedure should be repeated every two years.
  • Mulching underbarrel circles is a must-have technique that allows you to retain moisture in the soil. Sawdust, straw, grass cuttings, a mixture of humus and sand are used as mulch.

Regular maintenance of a walnut plantation allows you to restore hazelnut yields in a year.

Freezing

Severe cold winter with little snow is one of the reasons for the lack of fruit in hazelnuts next year.You can secure walnut plantations with the help of special shelters, bending branches to the ground. But this technique can only be used with small trees, as soon as the plant gains growth, it will not work to bend it down.

In this case, it is necessary to protect the root system by sprinkling the root circle with mulch, and wrap the tree trunk with agrofiber or cover it with spruce branches.

Bad weather

The hazelnut yield may vary from year to year. Excessively hot and dry summers or monthly rainfall in a short period of time reduce the hazelnut harvest to zero. The vagaries of the weather are difficult to deal with. It is necessary to support the plant's immunity, balance top dressing and adjust the irrigation system depending on weather conditions.

Even if the season for hazelnuts was unsuccessful due to too rainy or hot summer, next year the "rested" tree will please with its fruits.

Diseases

A common cause of barren walnut trees is fungal or infectious diseases.

Trees should be inspected regularly and action taken if signs of infection are detected. Hazelnuts are especially vulnerable in early spring and during flowering.

Powdery mildew can greatly weaken the immunity of the plant, the fruits will not set, there will be no harvest.

Preventive measures against infections:

  • Whitening trunks with lime mortar in early spring and autumn after harvest;
  • Timely harvest, removal of affected nuts.
  • Cleaning and further burning of fallen leaves.
  • Spraying trees with Bordeaux liquid in early spring during the period of budding, during the flowering period, the treatment is repeated.

In case of severe infection, trees are treated with Quadris, Flint fungicides. Identification of the disease at the initial stage allows you to fully preserve the crop.

Pests

The walnut fruit bearer is capable of destroying the fruits of the entire walnut plantation. Nuts infect the larvae of this beetle. The fruits become wormy, unsuitable for food and storage, fall off prematurely.

In case of severe infection, insecticides are used: "Aktara", "Calypso". Processing is carried out twice: in early spring and in the middle of summer.

Ways to solve the problem

When the cause of infertility of a nut or a decrease in its yield is found, they proceed to its elimination. The set of activities includes:

  • Regular treatment of trees from pests and diseases: the use of fungicides and insecticides.
  • Removal of fallen leaves and wormy nuts.
  • Attracting pollinators to walnut plantations, artificial pollination of trees.
  • Correct choice of planting site and adherence to the planting pattern.

Preventive measures

Prevention avoids the problem. Carrying out regular care of the plant, the gardener minimizes the risk of crop loss. Basic preventive measures:

  • To avoid freezing, bend the nut to the ground and cover it with agrofiber or spruce branches for the winter.
  • Mulch tree roots.
  • Increase plant immunity through complex top dressing.
  • Timely watering adjusted for weather and climate conditions.
  • Whitening trunks.
  • Regular inspection of walnut plantations.

It's easier to avoid problems than to solve them later. The planting of hazelnuts must be planned, the choice of site is carried out carefully. Replanting trees is a laborious task that lengthens the adaptation time of young seedlings.

If a hazelnut variety is zoned and chosen correctly for cultivation purposes, then, subject to agricultural practices and regular care, the trees will delight gardeners with the first harvest in the sixth year of growth.

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