How to plant a walnut: cultivation and care, reproduction and disease control

There are several ways to plant a walnut. In any case, it is important to properly carry out preparatory and landing work. In order for the tree to actively develop and form crops, it is necessary to organize proper care and create the required conditions. It is important to be aware of the first symptoms of problems when growing a tree. To preserve all the useful components in nuts, the crop must be harvested on time, following some rules.

Tree specifications

Walnut is a strong and large tree with a spreading, domed crown and a powerful root system.The trunk of many trees is straight, reaches 24 meters in height, the bark is ashy. The walnut begins to bloom in May. At the same time, elongated leaves of light green color also bloom. Pollination occurs with the participation of the wind. The fruits may be oblong or rounded. The nut kernel, divided by partitions, is covered on top with two halves of a hard brown shell.

How to choose a variety for different regions of Russia

There are a large number of walnut varieties that differ in ripening limits, resistance to cold and disease, yield, and the taste of the fruits themselves.In central Russia, it is best to grow nuts with early fruit ripening, high resistance to diseases and pests, resistance to winter cold and sudden changes in temperature. Suitable varieties such as Ideal, Aurora, Graceful, Giant, Dessert, Abundant, Dawn of the East.

Is it possible to germinate a walnut at home in a pot

You can germinate a walnut tree for planting at home, and then an adult strong plant is transplanted to a permanent place. They start work in the last days of April.

Step by step action plan:

1. Preparing a fertile soil mixture from soddy land, peat and humus.
2. For planting, choose a wide container 30 cm deep.
3. A drainage layer is laid out at the bottom of the pot, and then prepared soil.
4. Make a hole 7 cm deep and lay the nut edge up. They cover it with earth and water it.
5. The container with the nut is removed in a warm, bright place.

After 2.5 weeks, the first sprouts should appear. If further cultivation of the house is planned, then as it grows, the tree is transplanted into a large container. Transplantation of seedlings in open ground is carried out one year after planting.By this time, the length of the stem reaches 20 cm. Make a planting hole 1 meter deep and place fertilizer. Then carefully remove the plant from the pot along with the earthy clod. The central root is cut by a third.

Fitting technology

Adult walnut tree is tall, sprawling, the trunk reaches 5 meters in diameter, the roots are powerful and occupy a large area. All these characteristics indicate that for landing in the ground you need to choose a spacious place, away from other crops and buildings. The distance between two mature walnut trees should be at least 5 meters. You can plant a tree in spring or autumn.

If the climate in the region is cool, then it is preferable to engage in planting work in the spring before the start of sap flow. In the southern regions, a walnut tree is planted in the garden in autumn.

Any soil is suitable for planting a nut, the main thing is that there is a fairly good drainage layer and neutral acidity.In the case of a predominance of clay composition in the soil, peat and compost are introduced. Seedlings do not develop well in the shade, so they choose a place where the sun's rays fall without obstacles. On the site, groundwater should not pass close to the surface of the earth. The culture can be propagated by seeds, seedlings, layering or grafting. Each method has its advantages and disadvantages.

Seeds

The most common but long-term way to propagate walnuts is through seeds. Suitable fresh, just fallen nuts with a smooth, undamaged shell. Initially, the seeds should germinate. The stratification procedure accelerates this process. Moistened sawdust or river sand is poured into a wide container with holes at the bottom. Then the nuts are laid out so that the rib is at the top, and covered with the rest of the substrate.

Thick-skinned nuts are stratified for three months at a temperature of +1 to +6 degrees. If the nuts have a thin shell, then 1.5 months is enough. At the same time, the air temperature should be closer to +18 degrees.

Seeds are planted in mid-spring, when the soil warms up well enough, or in mid-September.

Many experienced gardeners believe that it is better to remove the shell before planting. This will allow seedlings to emerge faster.

3.5 weeks before sowing, they dig a planting hole 58 cm deep. A nutrient mixture is poured into the bottom of the hole, which includes manure, superphosphate and wood ash. Nuts are placed in holes to a depth of 13 cm. If the seed size is too small, then the depth should be less than 8 cm.

Seedlings

Walnut seedlings are best planted in the spring:

• Two-year-old seedlings are suitable for growing.
• The thickness of the trunk near the neck of the root should be at least 1 cm.
• The central root of the seedling is shortened to 42 cm, the cut is processed with clay.
• Damaged, rotten or dried roots are removed.

Green cuttings will take little time to plant. At the selected site, a hole is dug 90 cm deep and 48 cm wide. The seedlings are placed in the hole, the root branches are straightened and covered with earth so that the root neck remains 3.5 cm above the surface. The earth around the trunk is compacted, watered and mulched.

Grafting

The grafting of the walnut culture is carried out by the method of budding. The cut shield from the scion branch should be large. This will provide the eye with a sufficient amount of moisture and nutrients. The shield is placed under the rootstock bark.

But the winter cold leads to the death of most of the grafted buds, so the seedlings are dug up and stored in the basement at a temperature of +1 degree.

In the spring, when the soil warms up to +11 degrees, the seedlings are planted in a greenhouse. As soon as the seedlings reach a height of 130 cm, they are transplanted to a permanent place.

Layers

Walnut propagation by cuttings is considered a popular way. The plant in this case is planted in the last days of April or in November. Two days before the procedure, the tree is watered. The incisions are made with a sharp, disinfected knife. Cut off the cutting, which is located on the south side of the tree, at a height of 5 meters from the ground. With the help of a knife, several cuts are made on a smooth surface, after which the resulting shield with a good eye is removed. Its size should be about 3 cm.

The cut shield is placed on the rootstock and the place is wrapped with a film. After two weeks, the petiole will change color, it will become light gray. Seedlings planted in this way grow quickly.

When the seedling takes root

For good rooting of seedlings, it is necessary to create conditions. The cuttings are planted in a greenhouse, where the air humidity should be equal to 98%, and the air temperature - +28 degrees. The soil must be warmed up to +25 degrees. Rooting will occur in 2.5 months.

Help accelerate the rooting of top dressing. Immediately after planting the seedlings, superphosphate in granules should be applied. A month later, fertilizers are used, which contain nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, and after another 1.5 months, fertilizer application is repeated.

How is a planted tree cared for?

Walnut care is carried out all year round. Growing is not complete without fertilizing the soil, watering, weeding, trimming branches, treating diseases and pests.

Irrigation

A tree after planting in open ground should be watered often and plentifully. One root should take about 30 liters of water.Recommended to moisturize twice a month. If the weather is hot, you should water more often. As soon as the tree reaches 4 meters, watering is reduced. In rainy weather, additional irrigation is dispensed with.

Soil fertilizer

For better crop development and increased immunity, it is required to fertilize the soil twice a year:

• In the spring and early June, there is a need for nitrogen components. Nitrogen should not be applied during the fruiting period, as an excess of the component leads to the development of fungal infections.
• In summer, it is recommended to carry out foliar feeding of the plant with phosphate and potash fertilizers with the addition of trace elements.
• In the autumn it is necessary to apply fertilizers rich in potassium and phosphorus. Top dressing is placed in the near-trunk zone.

Green manure (peas, lupins, oats) are planted around the tree, which enrich the soil with nutrients. With the onset of autumn, they dig up the soil.

Cutting

At the end of March, the first sanitary pruning is carried out, provided that the weather is warm. In case of cold weather, the procedure should be postponed. Before the start of sap flow, you need to have time to remove frozen, dry, damaged branches. Sanitary pruning of the tree is repeated at the end of August. At this time of the year, diseased, dry branches are clearly visible, which should be disposed of.

Dry, broken and diseased branches should be removed in late autumn.

Pruning is done with a sterile, sharp garden knife or secateurs. The first time the procedure is carried out after the tree reaches a height of 1.6 meters. At the same time, the formation of the crown is also carried out. 11 main branches are left on the tree, the rest are shortened by 22 cm. Formation is carried out 4 seasons in a row.

Combating diseases and harmful insects

In order for the walnut to be protected from attack by pests and infections, spraying with special solutions is carried out twice a year. The first treatment is carried out before fruiting, the second - in the fall, after the leaves fall. In the spring, before the start of sap flow, the crown is treated with a solution of Bordeaux liquid or copper sulphate. The tree is treated with the same solutions in the fall, after the leaves fall

Common diseases that infect walnuts are: bacteriosis, brown spot, root cancer, bacterial burn. In all cases, spots appear on the leaves, they dry, curl and fall off. The yield decreases, and in some cases the situation threatens the complete death of the plant. Treatment is carried out with drugs such as Vectra, Strobi.

From the pests most often attacked: American white butterfly, warty mite, codling moth, moth and aphid. Drugs such as Lepidocid, Dendrobacillin, Aktara, Akarin, Decis, Actellik help to cope with insects.

How to cover a walnut for the winter?

Many varieties of walnuts do not tolerate winter frosts well. Already at a temperature of -26 degrees they can die. Young seedlings need shelter. The tree trunk is wrapped with warm fabric material, and the near-trunk area is mulched with manure. After snow falls, a snowdrift is thrown around the trunk.

Why is it necessary to transplant a walnut

Walnut should be transplanted when it is planted near the house or near other cultivated plants. Transplanted before the walnut tree is 4 years old.

In order for the tree to continue to grow and bear fruit, digging and transportation is carried out with extreme care. If the root system is damaged, the death of the plant may follow.

How to properly transplant a fruit tree

The process of transplanting a walnut tree to a permanent place involves the fulfillment of a number of conditions:

• the place should be away from buildings and other trees;
• the day before the procedure, the plant is watered so that the soil gets wet to a depth of 50 cm;
• the roots are cut, leaving a length of 45 cm;
• better to transplant in the afternoon.

It is important to determine the timing of transplanting seedlings. It is forbidden to do this in summer. In this case, the roots will not adapt to the new location and will rot.

Transplant dates

Transplanting should be done in the spring (in April), before the buds appear or in the fall after all the leaves have fallen (in October). At the same time, the soil should warm up, and the air temperature at night should not fall below +10 degrees.

Preparing the site

A landing hole is being dug in a new place. Its dimensions will depend on the age of the tree, the volume of the earthen coma and the quality of the soil.The denser the soil and the older the plant, the larger should be the size of the dug hole. A drainage layer 16 cm high is laid at the bottom. Then they begin to prepare the nutrient soil. To do this, the topsoil removed from the pit is combined with humus, compost, ammophos, wood ash and superphosphate. The resulting soil mixture is filled with a hole, leaving a recess equal to the root system of the seedling.

Procedure technology

The procedure for transplantation is not complicated, but requires some rules to be followed:

• seedlings are placed in the center of the prepared pit so that the root collar is slightly above ground level;
• next to the seedling, two pegs are driven in, to which the plant is tied;
• fill voids with earth;
• make a small rim of earth around the trunk, which will prevent water from leaking during irrigation;
• the near-trunk zone is mulched;
• at the last stage, water the plant abundantly with warm water.

If all the rules are followed, it will be possible to transplant a tree without damaging the roots, and proper care will ensure rapid rooting.

When a young nut begins to bear fruit

After how many years the nut will bear fruit depends on many factors. A tree grown from a fruit begins to form a crop in the 7th-9th year. On purchased seedlings, with proper care, the first nuts will appear already in the 3-4th year. To increase the yield in the future, the first 3-4 years of growth should be controlled so that the tree has gained a sufficiently branched green mass. If there are few side branches, then their tops are cut into 2-3 buds.

Ripening period

Nuts begin to ripen at different times. The variety plays a decisive role:

• early harvest starts in early September;
• mid-season varieties begin to ripen in late September;
• late walnut varieties ripen in mid-October.

The region's climate also plays an important role. In places with cold weather conditions, fruit ripening is delayed by 2-2.5 weeks.

Signs of fruit ripeness

In order for the crop to be stored for a long time, it must be harvested on time. Signs of fruit ripening that begin to appear as early as August include:

• shedding nuts from branches;
• darkening and cracking of the green shell of the nut;
• The nutshell is turning brown.

The harvest does not ripen evenly, so the collection of nuts is carried out in several stages.

Harvest rules

When can I start harvesting? Nuts begin to ripen by the end of summer, the beginning of autumn. Suitable for harvesting for storage are those fruits in which the green peel has begun to crack. It is not recommended to collect fruits from a tree, since they do not accumulate the entire supply of useful components. It happens that the nut is ripe, but does not fall from the trees. Therefore, a long pole comes to the rescue, which is carefully hit on the branches. Harvested nuts are cleaned of pericarp and other debris.

Main difficulties in growing walnuts

Incorrect care, non-compliance with the rules for planting or transplanting a walnut, as well as other adverse factors lead to the fact that the tree begins to dry, yields decrease, and other problems appear.

The tree does not bear fruit

There are several reasons why a tree does not bear fruit:

• too dense crown;
• abundance of side branches without flowering;
• heavy rain during flowering or low air humidity disrupts pollination;
• attack by pests or infection;
• wrong trimming procedure;
• lack or too much fertilizer.

All these reasons indicate that it is necessary to properly organize the care of the culture.

Not growing

Walnut requires some attention. The growth of the seedling stops as a result of the following adverse factors:

• early planting outdoors;
• bad soil;
• incorrect insecticide treatment;
• no garter;
• damage to the root system during transplantation.

It is necessary to deal with the problem in time to save the crop and get a plentiful harvest.

Leaves and branches dry

Fungal diseases are a common cause of drying of leaves and branches. Plant immunity is reduced due to frost damage, acid rain or hail, excessive watering, excess nitrogen.

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