All about fruiting plums

Those who have just placed plum seedlings on the site are always interested in the question of the beginning of the fruiting of the tree. You want to enjoy the fruits as quickly as possible, but in order for them to appear, you will have to follow a number of rules and take into account some of the nuances.

Most varieties of plums begin to bear fruit 4 years after the seedling is planted. However, there are those that differ in an earlier or later period of fruiting. For example, early varieties "Iskra" and "Novinka" will give the first fruits already at the age of two. But flowers on the branches of "Winter", "Minskaya white" and "Hungarian Moscow" will be able to wait only for 5 or 6 years of life.

Kozlovsky Prunes and Belaya Yasenevskaya are the latest varieties. Such plums will yield a harvest no earlier than 7 years of age. Sometimes they can begin to bear fruit at both 8 and 9 years. Such features and differences in timing are due to the fact that most of the varieties are hybrids.

It is rather difficult to say specifically how many times in a life the plum will bear fruit. The varieties are different, the beginning of their fruiting differ, and the life span, which can be 10, 12, 15 years. Some trees stop bearing fruit earlier, others later. The very same fruiting depends on several factors.

• Stock type. The taller the plum tree, the later it will begin to bear fruit. If you want to taste plums as early as possible, it is recommended to grow dwarf or semi-dwarf specimens. To obtain such trees, the following rootstocks should be taken: OD 2-3, 146-2, VVA-1.
• Self-pollination ability. The varieties are different. Some can pollinate themselves on their own, others need to attract beneficial insects and plant pollinators nearby. If you ignore this moment, of course, there will be no fruit. But at the same time, the plum will bloom well, abundantly covered with flowers.
• Climate. Plum loves regions with warm or temperate climates. It can grow in the northern regions, but it will need to be covered for the winter. In the absence of shelter, the tree will freeze without giving a summer harvest.
• Growing conditions. Improper agricultural practices and inattention to external conditions can significantly delay the fruiting of plums.

There are some tricks that can be used to get the plum to bear fruit earlier. The first way is correct pruning. You can start it already in early June. The main trunk of a young tree is shortened by a third. The lateral branches are also cut off, making them two-thirds shorter. It is worth remembering that such pruning is done to newly planted trees; it is contraindicated for plums of a different age.

If the tree is already several years old, then in the summer it is necessary to cut off the branches, the growth of which is directed towards the inside of the tree. Vertical specimens are also removed as buds will only form on those that grow horizontally. If the plum is no more than two years old, the vertical branches can be tilted rather than cut, since they are still very flexible. The twigs are carefully bent and then attached to the supports. Thanks to this manipulation, the tree sap will go down, promoting the early formation of the buds.

Plums that are at least three years old and have at least 6 skeletal branches can be dragged over multiple branches. It is recommended to choose 4 of them. On the basis of the selected pieces, fabric is wound, the best choice is linen. A wire is applied on top of the fabric; for this, the easiest way is to use pliers. Winding is performed in the last month of spring, and it will be removed in July.

In addition to the listed techniques, you should always remember about pollination. Plums can be self-fertile (do not pollinate independently), partially self-fertile (pollinate themselves by 30%), self-fertile (50%). Thus, even self-fertile plums only half pollinate themselves. To increase the yield and speed up fruiting, plums of any variety should be pollinated. To do this, bees are attracted to the site, which will transfer pollen from other varieties. It is important to remember that during the period of insects' work, you cannot use insecticides, use aggressive chemistry on the site. Do not burn foliage, carry out repair work, accompanied by the use of substances with a pungent odor.

If it was not possible to attract bees, then you can pollinate the trees manually. This will require a soft brush. First, it is carried out over the flowers of the pollinator variety, and then the resulting pollen is transferred to the pistils of the plum flowers that need to be pollinated. You can also cut off a couple of flowering branches from the pollinator, and then simply shake off the pollen on the pollinated plum. But here it is important to remember that pollen dies within an hour, so you need to work actively.

Sometimes it happens that the tree does not bear fruit well or does not do it at all. If the plum has ceased to bear fruit, then the search for the problem should be started immediately. There are several options here.

Plum trees are very demanding on the composition of the soil. They will not grow on acidic soils. If the soil is highly acidic, measures must be taken even at the stage of digging the soil. For example, wood ash is a good deoxidizer. 200-300 grams will be enough per square meter. Another option is slaked lime. It will take about half a kilogram for 1 square. Determining the acidity of the soil is accepted by the litmus test. In addition, there is always a lot of moss, horsetail, buttercups, and sorrel on such soils.

Plums will bear fruit very poorly in poor soils. If the soil is depleted, the plant will have nowhere to get food. The ovaries are weak, and the fruits are small and there will be few of them. To prevent this from happening, it is imperative to feed the soil with organic matter and mineral mixtures for stone fruits. This should be done at least once every 2 years. However, it should be remembered that the use of large quantities of manure is impractical.

If the roots of the plum do not receive enough moisture, they will inhibit development. And this will be the reason that fruiting will be delayed or not at all due to the rapid fall of the ovaries. The plant will still survive a brief drought, but it is unwise to experiment with watering on a regular basis. Especially carefully it is necessary to monitor the state of the earth at the time of flowering, the formation of ovaries, and then the fruit.

There are no clear dates for irrigation, since the regions have different climates. You should focus on the soil. If the top layer is already dry, it is necessary to water it, because the plum has surface roots and cannot go deep into the ground in search of water. One tree should consume at least 5 buckets of liquid. It is best to water it with rainwater. In extreme cases, you can take a tap, but then she should stand in the sun for at least a day. The liquid should be warm.

If the tree does not bloom or does not bear fruit, then the reason may lie in the wrong planting. First of all, you should choose the right site. Plum loves the sun, and there should be plenty of it. Do not plant a tree near fences or under large trees with a voluminous crown. The site should not be heavily blown, otherwise you will have to install protective screens. It is also worth taking care that groundwater does not leak near the surface of the soil. You can skip this point if you plan to install drainage.

Novice gardeners make mistakes during the planting itself. One of the roughest is the deepening of the root collar. If it hides in the soil, then the tree will not only not bloom, but it may even die. The second mistake is ignoring the stimulation of root growth. Plants without an earthy coma dry out quickly, so the roots must be kept moist before planting. They are wrapped in a damp cloth and kept in growth stimulants for several hours.

The plant may not bear fruit even if it is damaged. Broken main shoots, cracked bark may well become the reasons for a lack of harvest. Another dangerous factor is gum removal. It often occurs when there are wounds on the trunk. Therefore, any damage must be repaired immediately. It is also important to remember that work with wood is carried out with disinfected tools.

Plum damage can be not only mechanical. The lion's share of all misfortunes are diseases and pests that damage all parts of the plant. For example, with fruit rot, you should not wait for a normal harvest. Clasterosporium is also very dangerous. Plum pests are attacked by various types of aphids, sawflies, ticks, caterpillars from all kinds of butterflies.

Any gardener knows how important fertilizing is for plants. But it is equally important to comply with their timing, as well as the dosage. If you give more than you need, the effect will be the opposite.

Organic fertilizers are recommended to be applied in early spring. This is done because organic matter contains a lot of nitrogen. Thanks to this element, the green mass grows quickly, but if you give it constantly, then there will be no flowering, as well as the harvest. Organic matter can be added in the fall, digging up the soil near the drain. And also such fertilizers are often supplemented with wood ash. Some gardeners do not apply organic fertilizing at all in the spring, preferring urea to them.

As for the summer period, minerals will be important here. Potassium, calcium and phosphorus are the main elements that the plum must receive. Without them, the crop simply will not form on the branches. Mineral fertilizers must also be applied carefully, strictly following the instructions from the manufacturer.

There are several more reasons why a plum may not yield a crop.

• Density of the crown. If there are too many branches, they begin to intertwine, thickening the crown. Because of this, sunlight does not penetrate inside. Its absence also becomes the reason for the weak formation of ovaries.
• Weather. The tree will not bear fruit if it is extremely hot outside. In such conditions, the pollen becomes sterile. The rains, which wash away the precious pollen, will also be a problem. And bees do not fly in the rains. In the absence of wind, the tree is also not pollinated. But here at least there is a way out - to make weak sugar water and sprinkle the flowers.Bees recognize such bait even several kilometers away.
• Wrong choice of variety. It is very unwise in the pursuit of large yields to choose varieties that do not survive the peculiarities of the climate of certain regions. Plums that are not winter hardy will not yield crops in the northern regions.

In order for the plum to always be distinguished by stable fruiting and to give tasty and abundant yields, it is necessary to remember about some rules.

• Any activities for planting or transplanting plants are carried out in the spring. In this case, the soil must be fertilized before the procedure. Mullein is given exclusively in dissolved form.
• To prevent the tree from being damaged by the sun or cold, care must be taken to whitewash the trunks.
• Damaged areas of the bark must be removed immediately. At the same time, disinfection of the cleaned area is also carried out. A 2% solution of ferrous sulfate will help here.
• Sometimes it happens that there is not enough space on the site for planting pollinators. There is only one way out in this situation - grafting into the crown.
• The place where the plum grows must be kept clean. The carrion is immediately removed, as well as the fallen leaves. The weeds are pulled out, and the soil should be loosened after each watering. This is the only way to preserve all the nutrients in the soil and prevent the appearance of diseases.