Breeding rules for cherry plum cuttings in summer and the stages of growing a tree from a twig

Cherry plum is an unpretentious shrub that easily takes root in a new place. It is grown in generative and vegetative ways. Most gardeners prefer to propagate cherry plum by cuttings. In this case, the plants quickly take root, develop correctly and retain their maternal characteristics.

Spring and autumn are considered the best times for tree cuttings. However, some gardeners carry out such work in the summer. Consider the subtleties of propagation of cherry plum cuttings in the summer.

Is it possible to cut cherry plum in summer

Cherry plum is allowed to be cut by cuttings in the spring, before flowering, or in autumn, after the return of the harvest. These periods are considered the most favorable, as they are accompanied by comfortable weather for rooting. At this time, the plant requires minimal maintenance.

Subject to the rules for the preparation and rooting of planting material, as well as with subsequent competent care, the plant quickly takes root in the warm season. In this case, it will get stronger before frost and easily endure the winter.

Advantages of summer cherry plum cuttings:

1. In summer, the sap flow ends, so when cutting branches, the plant is not injured. In this case, the shoots already have time to wake up and start growing. They take root faster than those cut in the spring.
2. Warm weather promotes intensive growth and root formation. There is no need to create special conditions for seedlings, they will quickly take root in the open field.
3. The plants will have enough time to mature. They are less likely to die due to winter frosts than when planted in autumn.
4. In summer, unlike spring, even a novice gardener will see which shoots have survived the winter and which have frozen.

Summer cuttings also have disadvantages:

1. Hot, dry weather is bad for the condition of the seedlings. In order for them to take root, they will have to be protected from the scorching sun, often watered.
2. In summer, the survival rate of cuttings is lower than in spring.
3. The cuttings will have to be rooted immediately after cutting. In the spring and autumn, this procedure can be postponed.

When planting in summer, it is important to work when the sun is at its least active. This is done on cloudy days, in the morning or in the evening.

Optimal timing for summer cuttings

In order for the cuttings to quickly take root and take root, it is important to choose the right timing for cuttings. Then, when cutting the planting material, the mother plant will not suffer.

Cuttings of fruit trees are carried out after they have faded. The green planting material is cut in June or July. Woody cuttings and cuttings are recommended to be taken in August.

Cherry plum cuttings are possible from June to August. The main thing is that by the time of harvesting the planting material, the plant has completed flowering.

Important! Vegetative parts cannot be harvested during the flowering period. Such cuttings will not take root, and the yield of the mother plant will decrease.

In summer, cuttings are carried out in the morning or evening, when the sun is not active. If possible, the procedure is transferred to cloudy but dry days.

Auspicious days

Agronomists are still debating whether it is important to take into account the lunar calendar when carrying out garden work. Most gardeners are confident that lunar days affect the growth and survival of plants.

In July 2020, grafting and rooting are best done on the 14th and 15th (Taurus phase, Waning moon), 23 and 24 (Virgo phase, Waxing moon).

Suitable varieties of cherry plum

Cherry plum, unlike plum, easily propagates by cuttings. Green planting material takes root regardless of varieties... Woody cuttings are more difficult to root, this method is not suitable for all plants.

Hybrids take root worst of all. The list contains plants that easily take root in the conditions of Russia:

1. Golden autumn. Yielding self-fruitless variety. It annually produces bright yellow fruits weighing 15–20 g, which ripen in the second half of August. The fruits hang and do not fall until the end of October. The flowers can withstand frosts down to -7 ° C.
2. Kuban comet. Self-fertile plant, producing large red fruits weighing up to 29 g. Tasting score - 4.4-4.6 points. The indicators of frost resistance and productivity are high, 10-50 kg of fruits are harvested from 1 tree.
3. Nectarine aromatic... A self-fertile plant with large maroon fruits weighing up to 52 g. The pulp is juicy, with the taste and aroma of nectarine, the juice is thick. Winter hardiness is high.
4. Traveler. Self-fruitless cherry plum. The fruits are red on the outside, orange on the inside. Banana flavor. The tree has a high resistance to disease and winter frost.
5. Apricot. Self-fertile variety. The pinkish-orange fruits, weighing about 26 g, taste like apricots. High frost resistance (up to -35 ° C).

Selection and preparation of cuttings

Before growing cherry plum from a twig, it is important to choose the right planting material. You can root green cuttings, lignified branches, root shoots and air layers.

Greens

One of the most common propagation methods involves the use of green, semi-lignified cuttings. Such shoots are not herbaceous, rather strong and elastic, but still very flexible, since they did not have time to lignify.

These are the branches of the current year, with a reddish area at the base and a bright green tint along the entire length. They quickly take root and start growing. The chances that such planting material will take root are high.

For reproduction, trees are chosen that bore abundantly, tolerated drought and winter frosts well. It is important that the plant does not have damage, formations on the bark, spots on the leaves and other signs of disease and pests.

Harvesting of green cuttings lasts from June 10 to the end of July. The procedure is carried out when the sun is not active.

Instructions for harvesting green planting material:

1. The day before cuttings, the mother plant is watered abundantly (at least 3 buckets of water are consumed per tree). It is advisable to add a growth stimulant.
2. In non-sunny weather, cut green branches 25-30 cm long and no less than a pencil in diameter. After separation from the mother plant, they are placed in a container with clean water.
3. The twigs are cut so that each piece has 2-3 leaves in the upper part and a stem 3 cm long under the leaves. The upper cut is made even, departing 0.5 cm from the kidney, and the lower one - at an angle of 45 °.
4. The cuttings are soaked for half an hour in a light pink solution of potassium permanganate, then placed in a root stimulator ("Heteroauxin" or "Kornevin") for a day.

Green cuttings will take root in 2–4 weeks if conditions are favorable. On average, about 60% of the harvested planting material takes root.

Of the stiff

Reproduction by lignified branches is not as effective as by green cuttings. Annual shoots are used, which managed to become covered with bark of the appropriate shade. They should not be damaged, cracked, stained, or other formations.

It is best to harvest such cuttings after leaf fall, but it is allowed to do this in the second half of August. It is recommended to harvest excess branches that would still have to be cut off.

Cuttings 0.7-1.2 cm thick and 20-30 cm long are suitable. Cuttings 5-10 cm long are suitable for rooting in a greenhouse.The number of internodes must be at least 3.

Attention! It is important to make sure that the branch has not dried out before grafting. It should be flexible enough, and the surface under the bark of the live shoot should be moist.

When harvesting lignified cuttings, an oblique cut is made both from above and from below. The lower and central parts of the shoot are suitable for cuttings.

Air layering

The use of air layers involves building up roots on a branch that is not separated from the tree. Work is carried out in May or early June.

How to propagate cherry plum with air layers:

1. Choose last year's branch. It should be straight, without branches, growths, damage, spots, signs of disease and pests.
2. All shoots are removed from the branch so that there are no stumps left on it.
3. In the central part, closer to the base, a bark ring is removed. To do this, make an incision with a sharp knife in a circle to the depth of the upper layer of the bark, 1 cm recede from it and a second incision is made.
4. A solution of a root formation stimulator is applied to the resulting cut.
5. The branch is threaded into a plastic bag, breaking through the bottom. It is pulled over the shoot so that the lower edge is 10 cm below the cut bark ring. The lower edge of the bag is tightly fixed with electrical tape.
6. Nutrient soil is poured into the bag so that it covers the cut ring. The soil is moistened with water at room temperature or a solution of a growth stimulator.
7. The bag is tied at both ends with electrical tape to make it look like a bag. Several small holes are made.

After the roots appear, the upper part of the branch is cut in half. Remove the bag and separate the shoot from the mother plant just before planting.

There is another way to root the shoot - without separating from the mother plant. To do this, the shoot is bent to the ground, fixed with a bracket, and covered with soil. Water it as the earth dries up, periodically feed it, weed it.

Root shoots

Another way is propagation by root shoots. To do this, choose the growth located at the maximum distance from the tree.

Attention! Only self-rooted plants are propagated by cuttings. If the mother tree was grafted onto the stock, the cherry plum grown from its branches may not retain parental characteristics.

During the summer, the future seedling is fed, watered, hilled, weeded. At the end of August, the cutting is dug out, carefully separating the root system from the mother.

Rooting methods

Green and lignified cuttings need preliminary rooting. Usually gardeners use these methods:

1. For green cuttings in a greenhouse. The soil for planting is mixed with peat, humus, superphosphate. The cuttings are buried 3 cm so that the bottom sheet is above the ground. The soil is watered abundantly. A distance of 5 cm is maintained between the cuttings. When rooting in open ground, a frame is made of film arcs, onto which the film is pulled. The germination temperature should be kept within + 25… + 30 ° C. A month later (by this time the first roots are formed), the plantings are fed with mineral fertilizers. The soil is moistened as it dries. After the formation of roots, airing begins, gradually increasing their duration. For the winter, the seedlings are covered with peat or dry leaves.
2. For woody cuttings. They are soaked for a day in a growth stimulator. In the lower part of the branches, shallow notches are made on the bark. The cuttings are planted in moistened nutrient soil so that the lower bud is underground. In the summer, the cuttings are watered and fed, and for the winter they are spud with fallen leaves or peat.
3. At home. Cuttings are stuck into a container filled with moist nutrient soil. Cover the top with a cut bottle or bag. As it dries, the soil is moistened. A month after planting, the cuttings are fed. After the formation of the first roots, they begin to air the plants, gradually increasing the duration of the procedure.

Landing

Summer cuttings are planted in the fall, but it is better to do this next spring. In this case, the plant will not die in frost, and before next winter it will have time to get stronger and get used to new conditions.

For cherry plum choose a sunny, wind-protected place. It is important that the groundwater is not closer than 1.5 m to the surface. At least a month before planting a tree in a permanent place, the soil is prepared: it is cleaned of weeds and plant debris, dug up, watered with a hot solution of copper sulfate.

Dig a hole 50 cm deep and 70 cm wide. Drainage is poured at the bottom (gravel, expanded clay, fine gravel). The removed soil is mixed with potassium chloride, humus, superphosphate, ammonium nitrate, river sand.

Part of the fertile soil is poured back into the hole. An earthen mound is formed in the center. The seedling is placed on a mound, spreading the roots evenly around the elevation. A stick is stuck nearby, which will serve as a support. For reliability, a plant is tied to it.

The hole is covered with earth and compacted. The plant is watered with 2-3 buckets of water. The root collar should be 5 cm above the ground. The trunk circle is mulched with hay, straw, peat or humus. This will protect the plant from diseases, pests, cold snaps, weeds.

Features of cuttings depending on the type of cherry plum and the region

Cherry plum takes root and takes root in a new place much easier than plums. Difficulties usually arise only with hybrids.

Advice! If after several attempts the seedlings of a certain variety have not taken root, it is propagated by grafting. Usually, the cultivated graft is twisted onto the wild (seed-grown) stock. Such a plant will be the most powerful and hardy.

There are slow-rooting and fast-rooting varieties. If the first one takes about 2 weeks to form adventitious roots, then the second one takes at least a month.

The varieties are chosen taking into account the climate of the region. For areas with warm weather, all options are suitable, but it is better to give preference to cherry plum with resistance to heat and drought. Early maturing plants with high frost resistance are optimal for the northern and central regions.

Further care

In order for the cherry plum to take root, develop and bear fruit, it is important to take proper care of it:

1. In dry summers, young plants need watering at least 2 times a month. 2-3 buckets of water at room temperature are poured under 1 tree.
2. To destroy the earth crust and normalize air exchange, the next day after each watering and precipitation, the soil is loosened. In the near-stem circle of young plants, weeds must be removed.
3. First 3 years after landing no need to feed cherry plum. Then fertilizers are applied 2–4 times a year, alternating mineral and organic compounds.
4. In the first year, the cherry plum is not cut, then the crown begins to form. Every year, in autumn or spring, sanitary pruning is carried out, removing damaged, weak, dry branches and root shoots.
5. In order for the tree to easily survive the winter, the soil in the trunk circle is mulched. To protect the plant from diseases and pests, it is recommended to carry out such a procedure in the summer. In autumn, the trunk circle is cleaned of foliage and plant debris.
6. To reduce the risk of infection of cherry plum with diseases and pests, in the spring, before flowering, and in the fall, after fruiting, the tree is sprayed with a solution of copper sulfate.

Experienced gardening tips

There are several secrets that will make it easier to care for the cherry plum and increase the chances that it will take root after planting:

1. Cherry plum cuttings are not recommended to be rooted in water: in such conditions they give roots poorly and often rot.
2. Many gardeners argue that it is not necessary to cut at an angle on the planting material.
3. Before grafting, the mother tree is watered abundantly, but not fed.
4. If it is not possible to start rooting cuttings immediately after cutting, they are wrapped in moist material and placed in a cool place. In this form, they are stored for up to 2 weeks.
5. Before use, the secateurs must be wiped with alcohol or a dark pink solution of potassium permanganate for disinfection.

Conclusion

Cherry plum is an unpretentious plant that easily reproduces in a vegetative way.

Many gardeners use green cuttings as planting material. They quickly take root and take root in a new place. Lignified shoots, aerial layers and root growth are also suitable.