When to whitewash fruit trees correctly - in autumn or spring
Whitewashing is one of the most important preventive maintenance measures for fruit trees. It helps to protect plants from temperature extremes and sunburn, pathogenic microorganisms and insect pests. To achieve the desired effect, it is important to know when to whitewash trees and how to do it right.
When fruit trees are whitened
Fruit trees are traditionally whitened in spring and autumn, and the coloring of boles in different time year has its own characteristics.
Source: Depositphotos
Knowing when to whitewash trees can help protect them from pests.
In spring, trees are whitened in late March - early April, with the onset of the growing season. It is important not to miss the moment when insect pests have not yet managed to get to the surface. You should carefully monitor the concentration of the whitewash so as not to injure the bark of a tree that has just emerged from hibernation.
With the onset of autumn, you should also worry about whitewashing. It is carried out after the fall of leaves, but at a positive air temperature. The procedure can be carried out earlier, but in this case it is necessary to ensure that the long autumn rains do not completely wash away the whitewash from the trees.
Autumn whitewashing also has advantages:
- kills insects hiding under the bark for the winter;
- reduces the number of bacteria and harmful microorganisms;
- protects the barrel from temperature extremes.
To reliably protect trees, you need to apply 2-3 mm of whitewash. If you use a lime composition, it should not be too liquid, the optimal consistency is like thick sour cream.
Prepare the trees before processing by choosing a wet, cloudy day. Spread a tarp around the trunk, gently sand the dead bark from the processing area with your hands and burn them to destroy the pests.
Now you need to disinfect the barrel, for example, with a mixture of ash and soap: mix 0.5 kg of ash with 10 g of simple laundry soap and dilute in 2 liters hot water... Spray the barrel with a spray bottle. When it dries up, repair the damage with garden varnish. The tree is ready for whitewashing, do it on the next dry day.
There is a bias towards whitewashing fresh plantings and seedlings. However, you can harm delicate trees only if you use too thick a layer of concentrated whitewash.
Their thin crust can be severely affected by adverse climatic conditions... To prevent this from happening, it is recommended to reduce the concentration of lime in the solution or use a special garden paint designed for young trees. It is worth processing them up to the level of the beginning of branching.
We are already used to seeing in early spring and in autumn fruit trees with whitewashed trunks, but how many of you wonder why this is done? It seems to most that this ritual is performed exclusively decorative function... We suggest you figure out whether you need to whitewash trees, and if so, when is it better to do it.
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Why whitewash trees
The bark is the protective shell of the plant, which takes on all adverse changes. external environment- temperature fluctuations, too bright sun, sharp cold wind, frost, pest infestation, rodent teeth and other phenomena. From such a load, it coarsens over time, cracks and exfoliates. Compare the smooth skin of a young tree to the cracked, rough surface of a mature or old tree. It is due to the fact that the bark of the plant gets hit first, it is necessary to monitor the state of its health. Whitewashing trees is a procedure aimed at effective protection tree bark:
- from winter and spring burns when the lack of foliage makes the trunk and branches vulnerable to sunlight;
- from temperature differences leading to cracking of the bark;
- from frostbites;
- from insect pests that live in the bark of trees.
In the photo: Preparing a solution to whiten trees
Therefore, it is necessary to treat the whitewashing of boles and skeletal tree branches responsibly. Moreover, both fruit and ornamental trees should be whitened.
When to whitewash trees
When to whitewash trees in autumn
Professionals insist that whitewashing should be done twice, or even three times a year - in early spring, summer and autumn. Autumn is considered the main whitewash. It is carried out in October-November, just before the frost. Whitewashing trees in the fall is done in order to protect them from fungi and pests that have settled in the bark for the winter. In addition, whitewashing garden trees, as well as decorative ones, protects their trunks from the formation of ice, and hungry hares will not chew on the bark covered with lime.
When to whitewash trees in spring
But if you didn’t manage to whitewash the trees before winter, you will have to do it in February - at this time during the day the trunks without whitewashing heat up to 11 ºC, and this temperature is enough for the trees to start sap flow. At this time, nighttime temperatures drop to -10 ºC, and the juice set in motion during the day freezes. As a result, a rupture of wood tissue and the formation of frost cracks may occur.- long and deep cracks in the bark. The white coating on the trunks and bases of skeletal branches, repelling the sun's rays, does not allow the bark of trees to heat up to the temperature at which they begin to awaken, therefore, night frosts are not so terrible for trees.
In the photo: Whitewashing trees in the garden
If the autumn whitewashing was carried out on time, in the spring - in February or March, or even at the beginning of April - it needs to be freshened.
Should trees be whitewashed in summer? If the whitewashing layer has been washed off by abundant rains in the spring and summer, then it is better to restore it, but if the trunks are covered with a persistent indelible compound, then there is no need for summer whitewashing.
Autumn, spring and summer whitewashing is carried out only in dry weather.
How to whiten trees in autumn
Trees can be whitened with a lime solution, water emulsion or water dispersion paint.
The whitewash composition should consist of three components:
- chalk or lime, because only White color paint guarantees the reflection of sunlight;
- glue or clay for adhesion of the composition to the bark;
- disinfection fungicide - preferably copper sulfate.
The protective qualities of lime mortars, which gardeners have been using since time immemorial, are not very high, and they are washed off quickly, but their advantages are the simplicity of the recipe and an affordable price.
Garden whitewash based on lime is prepared as follows: 2.5-3 kg of chalk or slaked lime, half a kilogram of copper sulphate are diluted in 10 liters of water and a few tablespoons of flour paste or 100 g of casein glue are added - all this is long and diligently stirred to dissolve the components, after which the composition of the whitewash for trees should be infused.
Here are some more recipes lime mortar for whitewashing trees:
- in 8 liters of water, you need to stir 1 kg of manure, 1 kg of lime and 200 g of copper sulfate, then let the composition brew for 2-3 hours;
- 2 kg of slaked lime, 400 g of copper sulphate, dissolved in not a large number hot water, 60-100 g of casein glue must be mixed with 10 liters of water - this composition stays on the trunks for a long time;
- 1 kg of fatty clay, 2 kg of slaked lime, 1 shovel of cow dung and 250 g of copper sulfate are stirred in 10 liters of water, after which they are insisted for 2-3 hours.
Water-based garden paint is absolutely safe for trees and durable - a breathable vapor-permeable coating that is resistant to water and direct sunlight is formed on the tree.
Water-dispersive garden paint, in addition to pigment, contains an antiseptic, latex and various modifying additives. It is breathable, but at the same time it does not transmit ultraviolet and other rays to the surface of the bark of trees, which are dangerous for plants devoid of foliage. In addition, this paint stays on the trunks for quite a long time - up to two years. Coating tree trunks with water-dispersion paint at an air temperature of at least 3 ºC.
In the photo: How can you whiten fruit trees
You can whitewash fruit trees with a self-prepared composition based on bustilate or other glue containing latex. You need to take two parts of a binder (busylate, for example, or PVA glue) and one part of a white pigment - kaolin or chalk. The ingredients are thoroughly mixed, and then water is added to them in small portions, bringing the composition to the consistency of oil paint.
Tools for whitewashing trees
Usually trees are whitewashed with brushes from a washcloth, but in recent times more often they began to use flat paint brush made of artificial bristles, flange brushes or the so-called maklovits. They are much more convenient and faster to work with, since they cover both rough and smooth surfaces of trunks and branches equally well. Some summer residents prefer to use paint rollers. But if you have a lot of trees and they are very tall, then it is better to use a spray gun to whitewash the trees.
How to whiten trees in autumn
Preparing trees for whitewashing
If whitewashing with lime or garden paint pursued only an aesthetic goal, it would be enough to cover the trunks to a height of 1-1.2 m, however, there will be little benefit from such whitewashing. You need to whitewash the entire stem and the lower third of the skeletal branches. On average, mature trees are whitened to a height of 1.8-2 m.
Before whitewashing, you need to prepare tree trunks for it. On a wet day, remove lichens, mosses and old loose bark from the trunks and bottom third of the skeletal branches. You need to work in tight gardening gloves without the use of scrapers, washcloths, brushes made of metal or plastic, since healthy bark can be easily damaged.
Cracks and grooves clean wooden knife or a sharp peg. Everything that you have removed from the bark of the tree must be burned.
When the bark is cleaned, it needs to be disinfected. It is better to do this on a dry day, when, according to the forecast, rain is not expected, which can negate all your efforts. A three to five percent solution is used to treat the bark. copper sulfate by dissolving 300-500 g of the substance in a bucket of water. Instead of copper sulfate, you can use HOM, Oxyhom, Abiga-peak or Bordeaux liquid to prepare a disinfecting solution. Spraying is carried out at close range from a fine-dispersed nozzle: water should not flow along the bark, it should envelop the bark of the tree in fog and settle on it.
In the photo: How to whitewash fruit trees
However, it is undesirable to treat trees with these preparations every year, since copper will accumulate in the bark, and its strong concentration can become toxic to the tree - it weakens, is more easily exposed to diseases and suffers more from pests. Therefore, alternate fungicides with a soap-ash solution, which not only effectively disinfects the bark of the tree, but is also very beneficial for plants. A soap-ash solution is prepared as follows: 2-3 kg of ash and 50 g of grated laundry soap are diluted in 10 liters of hot (but not boiling) water.
Ash liquor can also be used as a disinfectant: 2-3 kg sifted wood ash pour a bucket of water, stir for 15-20 minutes, bring to a boil, allow to cool and infuse, then drain, filter and dilute with water 1: 1. Trees are washed or sprayed with this liquid.
After disinfecting the bark, you need to close up the wounds in the trees. To do this, you can use three compositions:
- first- clay talker: you can use pure clay for its preparation by mixing it with water, or you can add manure and copper sulfate to the composition. For example, you can mix 200 g of clay, 100 g of mullein, a small amount of finely chopped straw, and then dilute it all with water until the consistency of sour cream;
- second – garden var which you can buy or prepare yourself: 200 g beeswax and 100 g of rosin must be melted over low heat separately, then combine and add 100 g of unsalted fat to them, and when the fat melts, you need to pour the resulting mixture into cold water, then get it out and roll it into a ball. Before use, the garden pitch is slightly warmed up so that it gains elasticity;
- third- garden paste Runnet containing humate and copper sulfate. Apply the paste in dry weather as it is not waterproof.
How to whiten trees in autumn
So, after the leaves fall, prepare the trees, as just described, and start whitewashing. Some gardeners argue that only mature trees need to be whitened, because lime can burn the tender bark of seedlings. but whitewashing in autumn of young one-two-year-old trees and seedlings water-based or water-dispersed paint will not harm them, and if you prefer to whitewash trees with lime, then for young animals you can make the composition less concentrated.
Some people far from gardening have a strange opinion that trees are whitened for beauty. However, this is not at all the case. This manipulation is very important for the plant itself for completely different reasons, and to be more precise, it performs most of all a protective function, and not a decorative one. Without a doubt, additional fuss is unlikely to please in a series of autumn worries, but all the costs will more than pay off in a long-term abundant flowering and a rich harvest. So, it would be wiser and more practical not to neglect such a useful and extremely necessary action like whitewashing tree trunks in autumn and spring.
Why do you need to whitewash trees
The answer to the question " Should trees be whitewashed?" v Middle lane(Moscow region), in the Urals and Siberia is unambiguous - "Yes need". But with a little southern exception... If you live in a very warm region, where there are no subzero temperatures and sharp drops weather (minus-plus), then based on the main purpose of whitewashing, you practically do not need such a procedure.
By the way! Everything needs to be whitened garden trees, and not just fruit (fruit).
Video: why and how to whiten trees
Is it possible to whitewash young trees
Some novice gardeners believe that whitewashing can, on the contrary, only harm young trees. However, this is not at all the case, if, of course, certain rules are followed.
Trees are whitewashed both old and young. But on young seedlings, weaker solutions should be used (if you use lime, then its concentration should be reduced by 2 times) so as not to burn the young bark. Or you can use special paints for whitewashing garden trees, for example, the same water-based or water-dispersible paints, or acrylic paints. But it is imperative to whitewash, since young seedlings have a very thin bark, which can easily be damaged in late winter or early spring from sunburn (burst due to temperature differences).
By the way! There is a not unfounded opinion that it is better not to whiten very young seedlings with a smooth bark, but to wrap the trunk with white covering material (spunbond ribbons). This will not only prevent sunburn, but also protect the seedling from rodents.
Video: protecting the young fruit trees from sunburn with whitewash
When to whitewash trees
In the opinion of most gardeners, whitewashing of garden trees should be carried out 2 times a year - in spring and autumn. But it just so happened that most often inexperienced summer residents whitewash in the spring (perhaps because of the Soviet experience of spring subbotniks), although the main and most important is considered exactly autumn whitewash.
But there is also additional summer whitewash, which is resorted to only if you either whitewashed the trunk poorly, or used non-waterproof compounds that washed off the rains.
Video: when to divide trees - in spring or autumn
Whitewashing trees in autumn: terms, goals, features
As for certain dates, then experienced gardeners it is recommended to whitewash the trees in the fall, when the air temperature drops to + 3-5 degrees (but not less than 0, that is, the procedure must be performed at positive temperatures), the prolonged autumn rains will end, and all the leaves will fall off, that is, around October - November month.
By the way! Under certain circumstances (if you use exclusively high-quality and waterproof composition), you can only do with autumn whitewashing, because it is considered the most effective.
It should be understood that it does not matter whether it is a young tree or an old one. If it was not whitewashed in the fall, then at the end of winter - early spring (as a rule, this is February-March) it can get a sunburn (frost breaks form on the trunk).
Interesting! What is a sunburn of a tree (frostbite) and how does it happen?
When in February-March the daytime temperature rises to + 8-10 degrees, and at night drops below 0 degrees, then during the day the tree perceives this high fever for a signal to the beginning of sap flow. With the onset of night and sub-zero temperatures, all the juice that ended up in the bark crystallizes (freezes), and the bark simply cracks from such a temperature drop (tissue rupture occurs = frost cracks). Although, according to other sources, cracking occurs due to thermal expansion and contraction of the wood itself.
To prevent this from happening, the trunk is whitewashed, because the white color perfectly repels the sun's rays.
Video: how to whitewash trees in autumn: whitewashing secrets
Whitewashing trees in spring:terms, goals, features
Spring whitewashing (even better to say early spring), as a rule, is carried out if, for some reason, the autumn was not carried out. Or if it has washed off or has peeled off badly, therefore it is also called repeated or, in a way, renewing.
The whitewashing of trees in spring begins when the thermometer reaches positive values, that is, at a temperature above 0. At the same time, it is important to be in time before the buds bloom and the foliage appears (if there is still snow, then it is possible at this time), in other words, the approximate period of spring whitewashing is the end of February-March.
Thus, the main goals (advantages) of spring whitewashing of trees are:
- updating the autumn whitewash to improve protection;
- retention of bud opening (to postpone flowering and protect against recurrent spring frosts);
- prevention of pests and diseases (fungicides must be included in the composition, such as or)
- beauty, as whitewashed trees will look much more decorative.
Video: whitewashing trees in spring - a recipe for a life-giving bark balm
But! Many professional agronomists believe that spring whitewash- This is a senseless activity that only performs a decorative function, but in no way the main one - a protective one.
How to whiten trees: preparatory work and the technique of applying the composition itself
That the procedure was as effective as possible, before performing the whitewashing of the trunk itself, the tree must first be prepared:
Video: which is better - garden var or clay
Only after completing these procedures, you can proceed directly to whitewashing.
Video: preparing a tree for whitewashing
Important! As mentioned earlier, you need to whitewash at positive temperatures. Moreover, it is advisable to choose a dry and clear day so that the whitewash dries quickly and is well fixed.
What is better to whiten? To whitewash a tree trunk, it is convenient to use:
To what height should the trees be whitewashed? Some gardeners believe that the higher the better, but still, as a rule, trees are whitened from the ground and down to the base of the skeletal branches, that is, the entire stem (from the root collar to the first skeletal branch of the lower tier), although it is highly recommended grab 1/3 of the lower skeletal branches.
Video: how to prepare and whitewash trees in autumn
How to whitewash trees: whitewash compositions
The composition of solutions for whitewashing trees, as a rule, can include the following components (optional), each of which performs a specific function:
- slaked lime (gives the whitewash a white color);
By the way! In order to make slaked lime from quicklime granulated lime (it is in this form it is most often sold), it is necessary to extinguish 3 kg of lime with 6-8 liters of water - pour water into a bucket and add lime, and then stir with a stick for 20-40 minutes until complete dissolution and cooling of the solution (due to the reaction, the temperature will increase significantly), at least up to + 35-40 degrees).
- chalk (again to make the whitewash white);
- fireclay or ordinary clay (needed for viscosity (sticking), so that it is convenient to repair various small damages on the bark);
- casein glue or PVA (improves adhesion so that the composition is not washed off for a long time by rains);
- milk (for sticking);
- laundry soap(for better adhesion);
- or (antiseptic, that is, for disinfection);
Important! cannot be mixed with lime, unless with chalk.
Contradictory! Many amateur summer residents believe (are mistaken) that special whitewashing paints do not allow the bark of trees to breathe normally, therefore it is better to limit their use only to adult specimens.According to other more trusted sources, on the contrary, they are excellent for whitewashing young plants.
Recipes for the most popular and effective compositions for whitewashing trees in autumn and spring:
- 200-300 grams (for the preparation of a 4-5% solution), 3 kg of slaked lime, 5 kg of clay, 100 ml of mullein (or 1 kg of fresh manure) for 5-6 liters of water (very strong concentration, for an old tree);
- 200-300 grams of copper sulfate (for a 4-5% solution), 3 kg of slaked lime, 1 kg of clay, 1 kg of fresh cow dung (or 100 ml of mullein) and 100 grams of PVA glue for 5-6 liters of water (for a middle-aged already fruiting plant);
- Dissolve 2 kg of quicklime in 5-6 liters of water, add 1 kg of special acrylic paint for whitewashing trees (more light composition, suitable for young seedlings);
- You can prepare the composition for whitewashing yourself, mixing suitable components in certain proportions (for example, if in the fall you forgot to process the garden from pests and diseases, then you should definitely add copper or inkstone; if poorly fed, then - mullein or cow dung), so that in the end you get a sufficiently dense and sticky solution.
Note! To whitewash very young trees (2-3 years old), the lime concentration should be reduced by 2 times from the recommended one.
But the author of the next video suggests (based on his experience) to whitewash garden trees just lime(without any additives), i.e. 3 kg quicklime extinguish lime in 8 liters of water and apply such a solution to the trunks.
Video: the better to whitewash trees
The gardening season does not end with the first snow. It is possible and even very necessary to prepare the garden in advance for winter and spring. For this, whitewashing of tree trunks serves as best as possible, which prevents sunburn, and also gives them a more well-groomed appearance.
Video: whitewashing fruit trees
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Everyone has seen trees with whitewashed trunks in gardens or within the city. We used to think that this is done for aesthetic purposes, in fact, whitewashing trees has many different functions. It is necessary and mandatory procedure to protect all trees, not just fruit trees.
Whitewashing plays not only a decorative role. Its main task is to protect the tree bark from adverse conditions. environment... The bark of a tree, like human skin, acts as a barrier, preventing pests, bacteria and infections from penetrating deeper and more sensitive tissues. She is daily faced with temperature extremes, sunlight, pests, human exposure, insects.
Over time, the bark begins to coarse and crack, damage appears in it, through which insect larvae and infections enter. Therefore, the main reason why tree trunks are whitened is to strengthen protective properties tree bark.
The bark of young seedlings and already mature trees equally needs whitewashing.
The solution contains lime. Many gardeners are afraid to whitewash young trees due to the toxic effects of lime, but for young bark, you can simply choose different proportions or buy a special safe paint.
The main functions of whitewashing trees:
- Sun protection. The sun can damage the bark, dry it out, and cause cracks and damage. Even in February, the sun's rays are damaging to the bark of trees, despite the deceptive cold. For this reason, all solutions and paints for treating tree trunks are white, which reflects the sun's rays and prevents the tree trunk from getting too hot.
- Protection against temperature extremes. In both cold and warm seasons, temperature drops occur. During the day, the sun heats the air, and at night it gets cool or cold. Such changes negatively affect the condition of the cortex. It begins to crack, damage is formed in it, opening access for infections. Whitewashing not only thickens the top layer of the bark, preventing it from cracking, but also has an antifungal effect.
- Protection from pests. The bark of trees is adored by small rodents, as well as insects. To scare off pests and prevent insects from settling in cracks in the bark, the trunks are whitewashed annually.
You can whitewash the lower part of the trunk, or you can whitewash the entire trunk to the lower tier of branches. Some gardeners whitewash the branches themselves, which they can reach. Of course, whitewashing the entire tree will be much more effective, but this is too time-consuming and expensive process. It is enough to whitewash the trunk to the lower branches. It is this part that hares love and insects often settle in it. This part of the tree is usually covered with the most ancient bark.
The whitewashing process is extremely simple: you need a prepared family and an ordinary paint brush gently cover the tree trunks to the desired height. If the layer seems too transparent, you can whitewash the trunk a second time. You can purchase a ready-made solution for whitewashing in a specialized store, but experienced gardeners recommend making the solution yourself in order to maintain the proportions and control the quality of the components.
Types of whitewashing for trees:
- Lime mortars. You can prepare such a solution from ordinary lime, glue and copper sulfate. Glue (you can replace it with clay) is needed so that the coating adheres and does not wash off with the first rain. Casein glue is the best fixer. Copper sulfate is an excellent antiseptic. If the tree is young, the amount of lime can be reduced. If desired, manure can be added to such a solution. All components are diluted in certain proportions in 10 liters of water. For an adult tree, it is better to take at least 1 kg of lime.
- Water-based paint. Pretty much too effective remedy for whitewashing, it can be found in stores. You don't need to cook anything. However, it is believed that lime solutions have big amount positive effects and much cheaper than paints.
- Acrylic paint. Acrylic paint works well and lasts a long time, looks aesthetically pleasing, but is quite expensive.
Trees can be whitened with a brush, roller or special spray. The solution should not be too thick, but also not so liquid that it drips from the tree during whitewashing.
Many people associate the whitewashing of trees with the spring cleanup. Indeed, in the spring, it is customary to update the whitewash, but this procedure is belated. The most effective and important whitewashing for a tree is carried out in the fall, in October-November. Exactly autumn preparation includes whitewashing of trunks.
It seems that the sun warms slightly in winter, but the sun's rays still damage the bark. In February, the most dangerous time comes when the sun heats up the trunk so much that the process of sap flow begins in it. At night, the temperature drops and the sap freezes, injuring the tree. If whitewashing was not carried out in the fall, you need to do this in December-January to prevent damage to the bark. In the spring and summer, you can simply update the whitewash if necessary.
As a rule, after winter, the whitewash cracks and crumbles from frost, so in April it is advisable to apply a new layer.
Whitewashing will slightly delay the flowering period of the tree, but it will benefit him, since the likelihood of infection and damage to the trunk will be minimal. In summer, whitewashing may not be carried out if the spring layer is still present.
When whitewashing trees, you need to adhere to some rules and know the intricacies of this procedure. Whitewashing rules for trees:
- No need to regret the solution when applying. The whitewash layer should be quite dense. When using mortar, the whitewash may be pale at first and will brighten after a few hours.
- Whitewashing can only be done in dry weather, otherwise the solution will not have time to grab.
- Even if you decide to color the trunks for beauty, Bottom part the trunk and most of it should be white. It is the white color that has the ability to reflect the sun's rays.
- If you buy paint, it must be special. On these jars write "paint for garden trees." You cannot apply any paint that has fallen over the bark, otherwise you can harm the tree, moreover, ordinary paint does not have a disinfecting effect.
Before you start whitewashing, you need to carefully prepare the tree. Preparatory work are very important, the quality of whitewashing largely depends on their effectiveness:
- The preparation process begins with cleaning the barrel. It accumulates mosses, dust, dirt, lichens. Cleaning should be done with gentle materials. For this purpose, you can use cloth gloves or a soft washcloth. It is best to clean during wet weather... Some gardeners use more aggressive cleaning methods such as metal brush or a spatula. Such cleaning will be appropriate if the tree is old and the bark is rather thick and dry. It is necessary to carefully remove the top old layer, being careful not to damage the living tissue under the bark layer. Do not let the cleaners fall to the ground during cleaning. It is necessary to spread polyethylene, collect all the cleanings, and then burn them, as they may contain fungi and insect larvae.
- After cleaning, you need to proceed with disinfection. All surfaces that have been cleaned must be disinfected. During cleaning, the lower protective layers are exposed, small cracks appear, and the tree becomes defenseless against infections. Disinfection can be carried out using a mixture of ash, a solution of laundry soap, and also just ash liquor. To get it, you need to mix ash and water and boil. After settling, everything above the sediment is ash liquor. A solution of ferrous sulfate has good disinfecting properties, but such a solution cannot be used annually, since iron accumulates in the bark, poisoning the tree.
- After disinfection, the stage of wound treatment begins. After cleaning the bark, all wounds are clearly visible. Each of them needs to be processed. For these purposes, you can use a garden pitch, which can be purchased in a store or made yourself from wood resin and linseed oil, rosin, wax, alcohol and lamb fat, etc. For treating wounds, any disinfecting purchased garden pastes and putties are perfect.
The whitewashing procedure should not be treated as something secondary. Regular whitewashing helps the tree stay healthy, bloom and bear fruit.
More information can be found in the video:
Caring for a garden is like caring for a child. The garden requires attention constantly, every year, every day, in winter and summer, in spring and autumn (I’m not talking about leaving day and night, otherwise it’s quite scary).
One of the most important agrotechnical techniques is caring for the bark of a tree in the fall. It is not enough to carry out water-charging irrigation, feed, and loosen the soil. You also need to take care of the woody skin - the bark. The bark is the first to experience temperature fluctuations, freezes over, gets sunburn, cracks, is affected by bark beetles, coarsens, exfoliates for natural reasons, and therefore requires constant care. After all, if the bark is damaged, the wood subsequently begins to be damaged, which leads to a strong weakening and to the premature death of trees and shrubs.
The first stage is manual cleaning of the trunk and branches
In wet weather, we clean the trunk and bases of the lower skeletal branches from mosses and lichens, old exfoliated bark. We do it with our hands in garden cloth gloves. No plastic and, moreover, metal scrapers, brushes, washcloths and the like can not be used - they very much injure the bark, instead of doing good they will harm the plant. Use a wooden knife or just a sharpened chip to clean cracks and grooves. By peeling the bark, you remove some of the pests and pathogens that have remained overwintering. Everything that is cleaned off is subject to burning.
The second stage is disinfection of the bark
It is best to carry out disinfecting treatment in dry weather and when the threat of rain has passed, otherwise all the work will go to waste.
You can use 3-5% (300-500 g per 10 l of water) solution of copper sulfate and other copper-containing preparations - Bordeaux mixture, HOM, OXIX, Abiga-peak. The bark of the trunk and branches is sprayed so that the solution does not flow along the bark in streams. There is little benefit from such processing, more harm. Spraying must be carried out finely dispersed, i.e. the droplets of the solution should be small, enveloping the bark in fog and simply settling on it. You can use ferrous sulfate in the same concentration as copper, or prepare a 6-8% solution (600-800 g per 10 liters of water). However, you should not use these drugs annually. Copper and iron accumulate in the bark and in the soil, do not wash out anywhere and do not decay, and in high concentrations they become toxic, i.e. poisonous to plants. Plants weaken and become more susceptible to pests and diseases. It turns out that we ourselves poison our plants, trying to protect them.
A very effective and useful method for plants is the use of ash or ash-and-soap infusion (laundry soap is added for better adhesion) - 200-300 g of ash and 5 g of soap are diluted in a liter of hot, but not boiling water (they take a bucket (10 l) 2-3 kg of ash and 50 g of soap). Grass or rags are tied into a dense bundle, dipped in warm ash infusion and washed with the trunk and branches. Ash in reasonable quantities and concentrations does not harm the plant, it is both a disinfectant and a top dressing.
Ash liquor can also be made. For this, 2-3 kg of sifted ash is poured with 10 liters of water, stirred for 15-20 minutes, brought to a boil, allowed to cool and settle. A clear or cloudy liquid on top is ash liquor. It is better to work with him with rubber gloves. It is drained, filtered if necessary, diluted with water in a ratio of 1: 1 or 1: 2 (1 part lye to 2 parts water) and sprayed or washed with it on trees.
The third stage is closing the wounds
For this there are a lot of recipes for a variety of putties. There are so many recipes that there is no point in citing all of them, I will limit myself to their main types adopted in modern gardening, which can be easily bought or made by hand. There are, in my opinion, only 3 of them:
1. Clay talker. This is a well-known and successfully used putty. Clay is used in pure form or mixed with lime, manure, copper sulfate. Dilute it to the consistency of thick sour cream. For example: for 200 g of clay add 100 g of cow dung and some finely chopped straw. All this is diluted in water to the consistency of sour cream. Such a mixture performs well its protective functions, does not crack for a long time, does not crumble.
2. Garden var. Used either purchased or made by hand. It's not so difficult to prepare a garden pitch yourself, it all depends on the recipe. For example, such a recipe: take 100 g of rosin and 200 g of beeswax (not stearin and not paraffin), melt over low heat separately from each other, combine in one container and add 100 g of unsalted fat. When the fat has melted, the mixture is poured into cold water, taken out and rolled into a lump. Such putty is stored for a long time. Before use, it needs to be slightly warmed up for plasticity. It is advisable to warm up a purchased garden pitch, with a low positive or sub-zero temperature it hardens.
3. Garden paste "Rannet". The name of the paste speaks for itself. She heals well, it is checked for personal experience... It is used not only for filling cracks, but also for processing sections after trimming. The paste contains copper sulfate, humate. Thus, using it, there is no need to additionally treat the wood with preparations based on copper. You need to use the paste in dry weather, it is not waterproof and can be easily washed off with water.
The fourth stage is whitewashing
It is started after the three operations described above. It is advisable to whitewash the trunks and lower skeletal branches (by 1/3 or even half the length) 2-3 times a year. The main whitewash is autumn, in October-November. Repeated, renewing, spring - at the end of February - at the beginning of March, the third can be done in the middle of summer, but it is not so necessary, although it is desirable.
It is necessary to whitewash both young seedlings and adult plants. It is believed that one-year and two-year-old seedlings do not need to be whitewashed, as if whitewashing burns the delicate bark and prevents the trunk from thickening. it controversial issue... A high concentration of lime, of course, can harm the bark, therefore, for young seedlings, the amount of lime is taken not for 10, but for 20 liters of water. Also enjoy water-based paint... However, if you are afraid of lime burns and do not whiten at all, the harm from sunburn and frost damage will be immeasurably higher. Seedlings are grown in a nursery in a fairly large number, thickened, thus they do not receive light hardening. And when the seedling is planted in the garden, it ends up in an open space, where the bark is easily sunburned. Therefore, whitewashing for young seedlings is simply necessary, especially during autumn planting.
As already mentioned in the article "Preparing the garden for winter", only by whitening the trees in the fall, you can achieve the maximum protective effect. However, the whitewash you used may be slightly water resistant. Therefore, a spring renewal of whitewash is provided (preferably with the same mixture). The layer of whitewash applied to the trunk should not be thick - this is harmful to the health of the tree, and it is also expensive for the wallet. Whitewashing a trunk is not whitewashing or plastering the wall of a house. If, after drying, the whitewash begins to flake off and crumble from the trunk - this is a marriage, such whitening is useless, you will have to whiten the tree.
Not to do double work, spend carefully preparatory activities described above and take care of quality material... The thickness of the applied whitewash layer should be no more than 2-3 mm. To achieve these results, the mixture must be homogeneous, without lumps.
For whitewashing, you can use various purchased whitewash, acrylic paints, but you can prepare the whitewash yourself. It is important that the whitewash contains glue components, otherwise it will not last for a long time, it will be washed off by rains. The whitewash should not be gray, otherwise it does not protect against changes in air temperature and from sunburn. Its color should be snow-white.
Here is one of the recipes for a good whitewash based on 10 liters of water:
2.0-2.5 kg of slaked lime;
250-300 g of copper sulfate;
1 kg of oily clay;
1-2 shovels of cow dung (optional).
All components of the mixture are mixed until a homogeneous mass is obtained. The finished whitewash should have the consistency of cream or sour cream. When applied to the trunk, the whitewash should not flow down it in streams. If it flows, then it is not thick enough.
It is important to remember that smooth bark is easier to whiten than bumpy, rough ones. On such a bark, the consumption of whitewashing will be higher, and it will also take more time for the process itself.
Whitewashing on unprepared bark is dangerous - mechanical action on the damaged bark leads to its stratification, lagging behind the wood, cracking, which, in turn, increases the harmful effects of the sun, freezing temperatures, pests and diseases.
Carry out protective operations annually, and you will see a positive result - the trees will hurt less, their decorative effect, yield, fruit quality will increase, and most importantly, the trees will live longer.