Cherry dries: what to do, why the fruits turn red and dry on the tree

The he alth of a fruit tree can be determined by its appearance. When the leaves begin to dry out, this is the first sign of a serious problem in the development of the plant. What to do when the cherry dries? The gardener thinks about this, looking at the cherry, from which yellowed leaves flew around in the middle of summer. And here the main thing is to identify the cause of the drying of the tree, the fruit. And pre-planned preventive measures will help avoid problems.

What could be the reasons

When the leaves on a cherry tree are bright green, without spots or dots, the plant is he althy and will bear fruit profusely. But often during the flowering period, the leaves and branches begin to dry out. The reason for this is that:

the seedling was planted at a great depth, and the roots begin to simmer;
too much moisture in the soil;
insufficiency or excess of mineral and organic substances in the area;
tree exposed to severe frosts in winter.

In the middle of summer, when the fruits appear, the process of their drying up can begin. The berries turn red, but their flesh shrivels and dries. Instead of juicy cherries, there are bones covered with brown skin. Usually the phenomenon is typical for cool and humid summers, when the trees in the garden are affected by pathogenic fungi or pests.

Pathological processes are spreading in neglected orchards where the agrotechnology of stone fruit cultivation is not used. On the trunk of diseased cherries, the presence of gum flowing from the trunk is noted. Then the plant stops developing, dries up and dies.

Pest control

The main pests of cherries feed on juices, sucking them out of leaves and fruits. Hence the loss of the harvest of berries, and the drying of the tree. The danger is not only adult insects, but also their larvae. After pupation, the insects spend the winter under the snow, in the ground, and in the spring, adults emerge from them, which damage the future crop and destroy the cherry.

Pest control:

cherry fly;
aphids;
sawfly;
cherry shoot moth;
hawthorn

It is necessary in advance, spraying bushes and trees with insecticidal preparations in the spring, before bud break. It is better to choose means of systemic action. Among them are Iskra, Kinmiks. Sawflies outwardly look like a fly, but harm at the stage of false caterpillars, which lead to leaf skeletonization.When winter sets in, the cocooned larvae survive the frost in the topsoil.

After pupation in the summer, adult insects are born, starting to lay eggs. In one season, a sawfly can turn a cherry tree into a leafless tree. You can scare away the sawfly with sulfur smoke. And by digging up the trunk circle, you can destroy the colonies of larvae in the ground.

Winter nests of hawthorn caterpillars are harvested and destroyed in autumn. If left untouched, the caterpillars will damage the plants during the growing season.

You can fight aphids with folk remedies and chemicals. It is necessary to destroy ant colonies that attract aphids to cherries.

But it is necessary to carry out such work in the autumn as:

branching;
treatment of cracks on a tree trunk, cuts on branches with garden pitch;
cleaning up leaves, fallen fruits, branches, their burning;
digging the trunk circle;
spraying urea solution on the soil under the tree before winter sets in.

If the work is carried out regularly, then the cherry will not be attacked by pests. But many of the insects contribute to the weakening of the tree. Hence the appearance of fungal infections.

Fungal diseases

A favorable period for the activation of pathogenic fungi is summer with heavy rainfall and air temperature no higher than 15-17 degrees Celsius. Moniliosis fungus retains its viability well during periods of mild winter and infects stone fruit crops very quickly. When in July the tree begins to dry out, losing half of the foliage, this indicates the onset of the disease.

The disease manifests itself as a burn when the fungus gets inside the wood. Spores also act on berries, forming islands of gray rot on them. From the juicy pulp of the fruit, only dried bones remain on the branches.

To save the cherry, the crown is urgently treated with the Horus preparation, after cutting the affected part of the bush. After 2 weeks, they are sprayed with "Skor".

Symptoms of coccomycosis are visible to the naked eye. Yellowed leaves begin to fall from the tree in summer, although the crop is still hanging on the branches. It is necessary to fight the infection after the berries are picked. The leaves are raked into heaps and burned, and the trunk circle is spilled with a solution prepared from 400 grams of urea in a bucket of water. Spring treatment with Bordeaux liquid is carried out in April, while the kidneys are in a dormant state. Spraying should be repeated after the cherry tree blossoms.

So that the disease does not return, in the fall they are treated with preparations containing copper: Ridomil, Oxyhom.

Anthracnose fungus is detrimental to the cherry bush. In addition to the appearance of spots on the leaves, rotting of the fruit is noted.At the first signs of the disease, it is necessary to spray with a solution of copper sulfate, taking 50 grams per 10 liters of water. Bordeaux liquid with a concentration of 1% is also effective.

The stone fruit culture infected with clusterosporiosis loses leaves, which turn brown and dry. The fruits also become small, shrinking to the bone. Gum leaks are visible on the shoots. Cherries are cured by spraying Bordeaux liquid three times. The first time in the budding stage, then immediately after flowering. The last treatment is carried out after 10-15 days. And the entire infected part of the tree must be destroyed.

Spores of the false tinder fungus, appearing on the cherry, lead to the complete drying of the tree. In July, it is necessary to remove the growths of the fungus, since at this time the spores have not yet formed. And the wounds that appear after cutting the fungus are smeared with garden pitch. Diseases overtake a tree with improper care of the crop.

General tips for drying cherries

When shriveled cherries are detected, urgent action must be taken. You don't want to lose the whole tree.

To do this:

Carry out treatment against diseases in several stages in spring and autumn. Of the drugs, the result will be from the funds "Skor", "Horus", Bordeaux liquid. A few days before the appearance of flowers and after harvesting, it is necessary to carry out processing. And in the spring, whitewashing of the trunk is needed with the addition of copper sulfate to the lime.
Cut dry shoots. Dried branches are sawn off or cut off with secateurs, capturing the he althy part by 12-15 centimeters.
If the berries are dry, they are harvested and destroyed as carriers of fungal spores.
The sapling is transferred to another place. But first they dig it out, examine the roots. The underground part of the plant is slightly pruned and the cutting is lowered for 4 hours in a solution of camphor alcohol (15 drops per half liter of water).
The shoots are cut out with resin, gum.

When the cherry dries due to the fact that the root collar begins to rot, it is necessary to remove the layer of mulch, adjusting the moisture content of the crop.

Preventive measures

Preventing cherries from drying out is easier than bringing them back to normal.

Preventive measures include:

processing damaged parts of a cherry tree with garden pitch;
cleaning and burning dry, diseased shoots, berries, leaves;
digging up soil in cherry plantings in autumn and spring;
whitewashing the trunk in April and October with lime milk;
feeding with potassium sulfide, dissolving 1 tablespoon in 3 liters of water;
top dressing with peat before wintering.

Regular watering of the tree will save the cherry from drying out. You should not moisten the soil too much, but it is necessary to keep it moist at a depth of 5-10 centimeters. The plant is fed as needed, but it is necessary to loosen the soil in the root circle constantly, especially after rains. Before winter, they dig up a site to destroy pest larvae and fungus spores wintering in the soil.

Prevents the occurrence of diseases by spraying Bordeaux mixture or blue vitriol. It is better to carry out processing before flowering and after harvesting. To avoid gum formation, it is necessary to dig grooves in the garden and water the cherries without stagnant water. Cherry will not dry out if you follow the rules of agricultural technology of culture, carry out disease prevention, protect against pests.