Is it possible to grow a cherry plum from a stone at home and how to do it

Cherry plum is one of the most unpretentious plants belonging to the Plum genus. It is a tree or shrub with high frost and drought resistance. Thanks to selection, improved varieties have been bred, distinguished by large sweet fruits. Some of them are so hardy that they can grow even in Siberia. Despite this, the Caucasian (wild) cherry plum is still the most popular.

The plant is propagated in different ways. However, to obtain a wild form, the generative method is more often used. Of course, it does not always allow you to preserve varietal characteristics, but trees grown from seeds often have higher yields and hardiness than those obtained by a vegetative method. How to grow cherry plum from a stone at home, read the article.

Cherry plum breeding methods

Alych bred generatively and vegetatively... In the first case, seeds from the fruits of the culture are used, and in the second, parts of an adult tree are taken.

The vegetative propagation method involves 3 different options... They are listed:

1. Cuttings. Branches with buds cut from a fruiting tree are rooted.
2. Root shoots. Planting material is obtained from shoots growing from the roots of the tree.
3. Graft. A branch of a varietal tree is grafted onto the rootstock of a wild or other similar cherry plum culture.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Bone Reproduction

Reproduction by the generative method of cherry plum is still the most popular... This is due to the advantages of the method:

1. Ease of obtaining planting material. Even the seeds of fruits bought on the market will do.
2. Plant hardiness. Wild trees are more hardy than vegetatively propagated trees.
3. High productivity. Experienced gardeners say that more fruits grow on such trees.

There are disadvantages to growing cherry plum from a stone:

1. The plant rarely inherits varietal maternal traits. The wild grows often. However, there are often cases when the fruits are even sweeter.
2. It takes much longer to grow cherry plum from a stone than from a cuttings. The plant is planted in a permanent place only 2 years after sowing the seeds.
3. With the generative breeding method, the first crop can be harvested no earlier than 4 years later. When vegetative, cherry plum will begin to bear fruit in 2-3 years.

Is it possible to grow cherry plum from a stone at home

This method increases the germination of planting material. and increases the chances that the sprouts will not die due to adverse environmental factors.

It is easier to germinate seeds at home than outdoors.... Most of the planting material emerges in the pot. Saplings are grown in an apartment for 1-2 years, and after they get stronger, they are planted in open ground.

Note! The cherry plum tree can be grown at home as a houseplant.

Necessary conditions for growing cherry plum at home

To grow a tree in a pot, you need to provide it with optimal conditions.... Since cherry plum is an unpretentious plant, it will not be difficult to do this:

1. Temperature. The optimum temperature for a plant is within + 19 ... + 25 ° C. Fluctuations within + 15… + 35 ° C are not dangerous.In the cold season, the temperature in the room where the young tree is located should not be above + 15 ° C and below 0 ° C.
2. Lighting. Cherry plum is a southern plant that needs sunlight. A pot with a tree is placed on the south or southeast windowsill. In summer, it is recommended to take the seedling out to the dacha, in the garden or on the balcony.
3. Humidity. Hot dry air is dangerous for wood. Therefore, a seedling in a pot is not placed near heating appliances.

If the cherry plum was in suitable conditions and wintered at the right temperatures, then when the time comes for planting it in open ground, it will quickly adapt to new conditions and will be able to survive the winter.

Preparatory work

Before propagating cherry plum by seed, it is important to carry out a number of preparatory work. Attention is paid to both the choice of planting material and the preparation of containers and soil.

Selection and preparation of fruits

To obtain planting material, fully ripe fruits are selected., free from spots, holes or other signs of disease and pest infestation. It is advisable to choose the sweetest and largest specimens available.

The bones are freed from the pulp and examined. They must be of the correct shape, without holes, stains or damage. It is important that the planting material is firm and firm to the touch.

The seeds are soaked in warm water for 3 days... It is changed daily, and the bones are shaken. This procedure allows you to get rid of the pulp that interferes with seed germination.

Thus, it is recommended to prepare planting material in the fall, when the crop is fully ripe. It is not recommended to store the seeds for more than a year, as this negatively affects their germination.

To increase the germination of planting material, it is certified:

1. Disinfect the container (wooden box or plastic tray). Then it is filled with soil (sand, sphagnum, peat or sawdust). The soil is also watered with a dark pink solution of potassium permanganate or ignited in the oven.
2. Bones are placed in the ground, deepening them by 3-4 cm. They are covered with a film and left at room temperature for 2 weeks.
3. The seeds are then collected on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator. They are kept there for 3-3.5 months.
4. For 2-4 weeks, the temperature is reduced to 0 ° C.

All this time, the soil is moistened as it dries.... Make sure that it does not become moldy. If such a problem arises, then the affected soil layer is removed, and the remaining soil, together with the seeds, is treated with a solution of potassium permanganate.

Container and soil

For planting cherry plum seeds, use individual containers... Peat or plastic pots, cut bottles, semi-finished packaging are suitable. There must be holes in their bottom.

The pots are disinfected... They are treated with a dark pink solution of potassium permanganate or doused with boiling water.

Regular commercially available universal soil is also suitable for germinating seeds. Experienced gardeners recommend preparing the soil mixture yourself... To do this, mix:

• peat - 3 parts;
• sand - 1 part;
• vermiculite - 2 parts;
• humus - 2.

In addition to the soil mixture, you will need river sand and drainage (expanded clay, fine gravel, shell rock and broken ceramics).

All ingredients are disinfected... They are calcined in the oven, poured with a dark pink solution of potassium permanganate or a product made from 3 liters of water and 1 tsp. copper sulfate, or treated with antifungal drugs ("Fitosporin").

Landing dates

Usually, cherry plum seeds are planted in the ground at home in the second half of February... This is necessary so that they have time to undergo stratification, and when they germinated, the daylight hours were already long enough.

Advice! If the seeds are sown in open ground, then the work is carried out in October. In this case, the planting material will undergo natural stratification.

Landing technology

Even a novice gardener can handle planting cherry plum seeds. The main thing is to follow the step by step instructions.

How to plant cherry plum seeds:

1. A 2 cm layer of drainage and a 2 cm layer of sand are poured into the bottom of the pots. The rest of the volume is filled with soil. The soil is moistened with warm water.
2. The seeds are planted in individual pots.
3. The soil with crops is moistened again from the spray bottle. Then the container is covered with foil.

Crops are kept in a bright, warm place.... They are ventilated daily for 15 minutes. As the top layer of the soil dries up, it is watered from a spray bottle.

Shoots will appear in 2-4 weeks, the duration of airing is increased. When the time for the procedures reaches a day, the greenhouse is dismantled.

When the seeds germinate, spray irrigation stops... Water is poured under the root, first with a syringe, and then with a special watering can for indoor plants.

Further care

A seedling is planted in a permanent place a year after planting... All this time, he is looked after, providing:

1. Watering. The procedure is carried out 3-4 times a week, in the evening or in the morning, but not in the afternoon, when the sun is especially active. It is important not to allow the topsoil to dry out. For irrigation, use warm, settled water.
2. Loosening. Held once a week. This is necessary to destroy the earthen crust, which interferes with normal air exchange, provokes fluid stagnation and root rot.
3. Spraying. The procedure is recommended in the morning or in the evening on very hot days to avoid leaf shedding. For spraying, use warm, settled water.
4. Top dressing. In order for the plant to develop correctly, top dressing is applied at least once every 4 weeks. A solution of chicken manure (diluted 1:20 with water) or manure (1:10) with mineral fertilizers (a mixture of superphosphate, ammonium nitrate and potassium sulfate) is alternated. The cherry plum is preliminarily watered abundantly in order to prevent burns on the roots.
5. Transfer. As the pot is filled with roots, the cherry plum is transplanted into a new, larger container. The transshipment method is used. Cherry plum is abundantly watered 2 hours before the procedure, then removed from the pot along with a lump of earth. The drainage and top layers are removed from it. The plant is moved to a new pot filled with drainage. The free space is covered with soil without deepening the root collar.
6. Wintering. Usually the plant spends the first winter after planting in a pot. To ensure optimal conditions, it is taken to a room with a temperature not higher than + 12 ° C and not lower than 0 ° C. In winter, no top dressing is applied, and the amount of watering is reduced to 1 time in 1-2 weeks.

Open ground transplant

It is recommended to plant one-year-old or 2-year-old seedlings in open ground in spring... This is done when the soil has already thawed and the threat of new frosts has passed, but the buds have not yet woken up. Before this, the plant begins to be taken out into the street and the time spent there is increased in order to accustom it to new conditions.

Not later than 3 weeks before the cherry plum transplant, the soil is dug up and cleaned of weeds... Holes are made at a distance of at least 1.5 m from each other. Their diameter and depth should be 40 cm.

The soil extracted from the hole is mixed with 5 kg of rotted manure, 30 g of superphosphate, 20 g of potassium sulfate and 20 g of ammonium nitrate. A hot solution of copper sulfate is poured into the hole.

A drainage layer is poured at the bottom... The cherry plum removed from the pot is placed in the recess together with a layer of earth. The free space is filled with soil, compacting each layer.

After landing the soil is watered with water at room temperature... If the ground around the tree has settled, then add more and water again. The trunk circle is mulched with peat, sawdust, hay, straw or bark.

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Post-transplant care

Caring for cherry plum does not take a lot of time from the gardener. An unpretentious tree rarely gets sick, easily tolerates drought and cold snaps.

Some activities still have to be performed:

1. Watering... Cherry plum is watered only in dry summer.At a time, 2-3 buckets of warm, settled water are consumed per tree. Enough 1-2 waterings per month.
2. Weeding and loosening... The soil is loosened the next day after each watering and precipitation. The process removes weeds that are considered vectors of diseases and pests. The most thorough and deep loosening is carried out in the fall and spring after it in order to reduce the likelihood of infection by pests wintering in the ground.
3. Top dressing... In the year of planting, cherry plum is not fed. Further, it is enough to add once a month a bucket of chicken manure or manure solution with the addition of 1 tbsp. ash under each tree.
4. Formation... Remove all weak branches growing inside the crown. On each order, at least 4 skeletal branches are left, directed in different directions.
5. Sanitary pruning. The procedure is carried out in late autumn or early spring. All damaged, frozen and dry branches are removed. If damage is found on the bark, the dead part is separated, and the wound is covered with garden pitch.
6. Preventive treatment. Carried out in early spring and after harvest. The tree is sprayed with a solution of copper sulfate.
7. Autumn cleaning. After leaf fall, all leaves and plant debris are removed from the site. The soil is loosened and mulched.

How to propagate cherry plum in other ways

Cherry plum reproduces not only by seeds. Much more often use the vegetative method... Cuttings or cuttings (root growth) are used.

Reviews suggest that the easiest way is to propagate cherry plum by growth... For this, shoots are selected that are located as far as possible from the mother tree. They are the ones that adapt best after separation. They should look healthy with no signs of disease or pests.

During the summer, the scion is watered and fed.... When it gets stronger, it is dug up, the root system is carefully separated from the mother plant. The roots of the shoots are dipped into a rooting stimulator, and then transplanted to a new place.

The second possible way to reproduce cherry plum is cuttings... To do this, in the summer, cut green cuttings at least 40 cm long with live buds. During the day, they are soaked in a rooting stimulator.

Prepared cuttings are planted in a greenhouse (greenhouse) or pot, which is covered with a bag. The soil is moistened as it dries, the cutting is regularly ventilated.

After a month, the duration of airing is increased, and the bag is removed. The fact that the cutting has taken root is evidenced by the formed leaves and new shoots. After rooting, they begin to make additional fertilizing (urea, superphosphate, potassium salts, a solution of dung or manure).

In the open ground, seedlings are planted in the fall. Some gardeners prefer to wait until spring.

Conclusion

It is not difficult to grow cherry plum from a stone. Often this method allows you to get richly fruiting, hardy plants. You can sow planting material not only directly into the open ground, but also into a pot. With proper care, the plant is planted in a permanent place the next year.

The generative method of reproduction often does not allow preserving the varietal characteristics of cherry plum. Therefore, to obtain larger and sweeter fruits, a vegetative growing method is used.