Content
Planting walnuts from walnuts in the fall is of interest to gardeners in the south and middle lane. Even Siberian gardeners have learned to grow a heat-loving culture. Climatic zones 5 and 6 are considered optimal for growing walnuts. In zone 4, which includes most of the gardens near Moscow, trees need to create suitable conditions for growth.
When to plant walnuts: in spring or autumn
Gardeners differ on the timing of planting walnut seeds. Some people like to plant in the fall, others do it in the spring. Supporters of autumn plantings argue that the germination of walnut seeds lasts 1 year.
Because of this, when planting in spring, the germination rate is lower. Seeds planted in October undergo natural stratification during the winter. When planting walnut seeds in spring, it must be carried out artificially.
It follows from practice that in regions with short winters, it is preferable to plant walnut seeds before winter. This is practiced by gardeners in Ukraine, Moldova, the Caucasus, and southern Russia. Where winters are long, in spring the snow melts for a long time, walnut seeds should be planted in spring. The likelihood of their rotting during spring planting is much lower.
How to plant a walnut in the fall
Before buying walnut seedlings, you need to evaluate the size of your garden, dacha. A fruit-bearing tree requires a large area of nutrition. In adulthood, its crown reaches an impressive size. Its projection on the ground reaches 25 m².
The walnut tree can grow in the garden for more than one hundred years. It is undemanding to the structure and composition of the soil, it can grow on sandy and loamy soils. A walnut seedling, planted in a neutral soil with a pH value of 5.5-5.8, takes root well.
When planning the planting of a nut seedling, it is necessary to take into account the factors that directly affect the yield:
- it is affected by the level of illumination, so it is recommended to plant seedlings in the sunniest place;
- winter winds have a negative impact, therefore, in a garden (summer cottage), it is advised to plant walnuts on the south side of the house, fence, and other garden trees;
- cross-pollination of walnuts increases yields, so it is good to have several fruit trees in the garden.
How to plant a walnut seedling in the fall
Walnut planting holes are dug during the summer months. Before planting a seedling in the fall, it should take about 1 month. It is recommended to dig a hole with a shovel, not a drill, its optimal depth is 70 cm.It is more convenient to plant seedlings in a square hole with sides 60 cm.
In addition to fertile soil, you need to prepare for filling the pit:
- fertilizer "Ammofoska" (for 1 planting pit - 1 kg);
- fresh manure, 50% straw;
- humus 5-6 years old (1.5 buckets per 1 planting pit).
The fertilizer should be poured in a compact slide to the bottom in the center of the pit. Sprinkle it with fertile soil mixed with humus in a layer of 20 cm. "Ammofoska" will feed the young tree with phosphorus for 7-8 years.
Bad soil removed by digging a hole should be left on the surface. It is necessary to form a high roll around the planting hole. The seedling must be placed in the center of the pit. Cover the roots with fertile garden soil.Make sure that the root collar is at ground level after backfilling with soil.
From the north (northwest) side of the seedling, it is necessary to drive in a high stake (3 m). Tie the trunk to it in two places, use only soft knits. Attach the barrel to the stake with a figure-eight knot. From the infertile soil, arrange a roller 25-30 cm high around the hole. Cover the entire area around the trunk with manure. The optimum layer thickness is 25 cm. Leave a small gap between the manure and the trunk.
Pour at least 6 buckets of water under the walnut seedling. Mulching a near-trunk circle with manure has many positive aspects:
- in winter it serves as protection against freezing;
- protects against overheating in the heat;
- reduces moisture evaporation during the warm season.
Planting walnut seeds in autumn
If in September it was possible to get fresh walnut seeds, then in the fall you can plant them in the ground. The largest specimens are selected, on which no damage is visible and the green peel is easily separated.
When planting nuts in the fall, the process of preparing the planting material is simple. The fruits are peeled from the green peel, dried for 2 days in the sun. At the end of October, they start planting. Seeds are planted in rows on a ridge prepared in advance or in holes of 3-4 pieces. The soil is prepared: they dig up, add humus, ash, superphosphate.
When planting fruits in an ordinary way, they adhere to the scheme 25 x 90 cm.In the holes with a diameter of 30 cm, 4 pieces are planted. The fruits are placed sideways, on the edge. In the spring, on one side, the stem pokes and begins to grow upward, and roots appear on the other side.
Medium-sized seeds are buried in the ground by 9 cm, larger ones by 10 cm. The approximate thickness of the soil layer should be equal to the diameter of the fruit, multiplied by 3. The ridge is not watered during autumn planting. The entire surface is covered with mulch. Fallen leaves are usually used. They are poured with a layer of 20-25 cm. Seedlings will appear in May.
Pros of autumn planting:
- seeds do not need stratification;
- shoots appear earlier in spring;
- after winter, there is a lot of moisture in the soil, this speeds up the rooting process;
- seedlings planted in autumn are stronger and develop faster than those planted in spring.
Transplanting a walnut in the fall to a new place
In the fall, they are engaged in transplanting annual walnut seedlings into a greenhouse (school). There they are grown for 2-3 years, then planted in the garden. With the small size of the school, seedlings are allowed to be planted often, maintaining an interval of 15 cm between them.
With dense planting, walnut seedlings grow for 1 year. Transplanted to a permanent place at 2 years of age. Grown up seedlings, when densely planted, will shade each other. The wood will ripen more slowly, this will lead to a decrease in the frost resistance of the walnut seedlings.
Seedlings are transplanted with a clod of earth, trying not to damage the taproot. Its length at the time of transplantation should be 35-40 cm. Varietal properties of walnut seedlings are rarely preserved, therefore they are most often used as a stock.
Inoculate with cuttings taken from a young fruiting tree, or with eyes (budding). The grafted seedlings enter fruiting in 4-8 years. The better the care, the earlier the walnut bears fruit.
Care after landing
Caring for plants in the school is simple. It comes down to watering, loosening row spacings, removing weeds... Grown seedlings (1-2 years old) are transplanted into the garden. The strongest are chosen. For mature trees, maintenance is minimal. Walnut seedlings require special attention after transplanting them to a permanent place (1-2 years).
Formative and sanitary pruning of the crown is carried out in early spring, when the temperature is above zero (4-5 ° C). You need to do it before the start of sap flow.With a lack of moisture (there was little snow, there was no rain in spring), water-charging irrigation is carried out in April. At the same time, the trunk and skeletal branches are revised:
- examine;
- remove pieces of dead bark;
- the wounds are washed with copper sulfate (3%);
- whitewash the trunk and large branches.
In April, the crown is treated for pests and diseases. Until the buds have opened, young trees are treated with a 1% solution of Bordeaux liquid. He or copper sulfate is sprayed on the ground in the near-trunk circle. In May, root feeding is carried out with ammonium nitrate. Trees over 3 years old need it.
Throughout the summer, under a fruiting walnut, they bring:
- ammonium sulfate - 10 kg;
- ammonium nitrate - 6 kg;
- superphosphate - 10 kg;
- potassium salt - 3 kg.
The main summer care comes down to watering. Walnuts need a lot of moisture in summer. The trees are watered every 2 weeks. The top layer of soil in the near-trunk circle is not loosened after watering. Trees are watered for 3 months, starting in May.
Water consumption - 40 l / m². Watering stops in August. In late autumn, the last watering is carried out - moisture-charging. It increases the frost resistance of the tree. For the prevention of fungal diseases of the walnut and protection against pests, the ground around the tree is kept clean. Weeds are removed all summer.
Walnut fruits ripen from late summer to October. After leaf fall, the crown is treated for diseases with copper sulfate (1%). Before frost, young seedlings begin to prepare for winter:
- wrap the trunk and branches with covering material or burlap;
- the ground around the trunk is covered with mulch, manure or straw is used.
Experienced gardening tips
According to experienced gardeners, the first formative pruning should be carried out after the walnut seedlings grow up to 1.5 m:
- the height of their trunk will be about 0.9 m;
- crown height - about 0.6 m.
On a walnut seedling, no more than 10 strong shoots are left, and the weak ones are cut out. All remaining branches are shortened by 20 cm. In old trees, the crown is thinned out in the spring. This stimulates lateral branching.
Conclusion
Planting a walnut from a nut in the fall is one of the most common breeding options for a crop. It takes at least 2 years to get seedlings. In the central and middle zone of Russia, it is worth growing varieties with good indicators of frost resistance, early ripening, such as:
- Dawn of the East;
- Ideal;
- Breeder;
- Giant.
