Apple tree: TOP 8 answers to the most important questions about growing trees

The apple tree is in itself not the most capricious and demanding plant, but if you carry out the correct agricultural technology, then your fruit trees will thank you with a generous harvest, and the quality of the fruits will be at the highest level. In this material, we will tell you in detail what should be the care of an apple tree in spring: about watering, pruning, feeding and about measures to protect your apple trees from external adverse factors.

What are the main steps you need to take in order for the apple tree to receive proper spring care?

Spring maintenance is very important for your apple trees. Plants are just waking up from hibernation and need your help preparing for the new season. In the spring, it is necessary to warn your apple trees as soon as possible against dangerous insect pests and various diseases. It is also very important to supply your trees with the necessary amount of substances that will contribute to the correct development of apple trees.
The checklist for working in your apple orchard does not include anything supernatural. In spring, you will need to whitewash tree trunks, cut off unnecessary branches, observe the correct irrigation regime, timely process damage to the bark, apply top dressing, in order to prevent treatment from various harmful insects and diseases, and also protect your apple trees from recurrent frosts.
Let's consider each of these points in more detail.

How to whiten apple trees correctly?

This item is relevant for young trees (but not seedlings one or two years old). This procedure is not required for trees over 12-14 years old. Excessive sun light can harm the still young and insufficiently matured bark.
The whitewashing process is carried out in early spring. Usually they use a special paint for the garden, with a predominant acrylic in the composition. It is necessary to whiten from the base of the apple tree to the beginning of the branches. For young trees, it is better to use chalk, as the composition of the lime can be too aggressive. Do not forget that it depends on the period of completion of these works whether there will be any sense from whitewashing or not.

How to trim correctly?

There are common opinions on the topic of "aged" apple trees. Some say that there is no point in difficult caring for old trees, and it would be better to plant new ones. Others advocate leaving the "oldies" to the last. There are a ton of care recommendations out there, and proper pruning of apple trees is essential.
Pruning apple trees in the middle lane is usually done in the first month of spring. But for colder climates, it will be better to wait until the night temperature stops dropping below 10 degrees. With no longer growing branches, it is necessary to prune the existing branches that form the "skeleton" of the tree. The place where the kidneys are located is the site of the potential cut. This is usually closer to the base of the shoots.
When pruning a young tree, you need to remove dried, dead and damaged branches. You also need to cut out "tops" and thickening branches. The future harvest strongly depends on the formation of the crown.

How to properly water and loosen the soil around the apple tree?

Young apple trees that have been recently planted require quite abundant watering (every five to six days). This is necessary for the normal growth of your plant. After that, in order to preserve moisture longer, it is better to mulch the trunk circles with straw or peat. The choice of mulch must be approached responsibly so as not to get problems with rodents and rotting of your tree.
Don't forget to regularly loosen the soil around the trunk of your tree. It is not necessary to deepen too much, ten centimeters will be quite enough. Otherwise, you risk damaging the root system of the apple tree. Regular loosening is important as the roots need to get enough oxygen.

How to handle winter damage?

What to do if after wintering you find traces of frostbite on your trees? In the event that the bark has exfoliated and the area of ​​damage is not too large, you need to clean the wound to living layers and treat this place with a garden varnish. After that, you do not need to take any action, the wound will overgrow over time. Remember that all tools you use must be disinfected!
In case of severe damage, experienced gardeners are advised to vaccinate "bridge". This will help not to have similar problems in the future.

Apple tree: how and what to feed?

Gardeners often argue about the best time to feed apple trees? In the autumn or in the spring? True, as always, in the middle. Fertilizers are required in spring and autumn with some amendments. When the time has come for the snow to melt, fertilize your apple trees with nitrogen-containing fertilizers, you can also use a solution of ammonium nitrate and urea.
When your apple trees are in bloom, you can help them by adding urea, wood ash, or rotted manure. Also, a herbal infusion can be a good help, which is easy to make on your own.

How to protect an apple tree from harmful insects and diseases?

A very important component of spring apple care is measures for the appearance and prevention of harmful insects and various diseases. It's no secret that only healthy trees are capable of delighting with a truly abundant and high-quality harvest.
These actions, as a rule, are carried out in a complex, and this is done more than once in the spring.
Before the onset of active movement of sap in your tree, you need to carry out the first treatment. This usually happens in early March.
Later, in April, apply biologically active prophylactic agents. Someone prefers not to deal with the processing of trees at all, getting rid of insects with just their hands, so that pollinators do not get harmed.
On the 15th of May, it makes sense to carry out treatment against pests that can spoil the fruits.
Most often, a solution of Bordeaux mixture or copper sulfate is used for the spring processing of apple trees. Until flowering occurs, gardeners use Trichlorol-5, and then Karbofors.

Apple tree and return frosts. How to avoid problems?

Return frosts in spring are another recurring problem for summer residents. This usually happens unpredictably, especially for apple trees. To avoid damage, you need to take some precautions. So, for example, if there is a risk of a drop in temperature, say, at night, you can thoroughly spray the crown of your fruit trees with water. The droplets will freeze and warm the leaves of the plant a little. This procedure is carried out only when there is no wind.
Also, as one of the options for warming plants, you can use smoke. Peat, sawdust, hay are laid around the hammered stake, not far from the trees. Wet earth is laid with the top layer. Before the onset of frost, the stake is removed and everything that was laid around it is set on fire. Thus, you get a kind of chimney.