Cherry propagation: choosing the most convenient way

Cherry trees are very popular with gardeners. If you want to plant a cherry orchard, but don't know how to propagate a cherry, read this article. Cherry propagation is a relatively simple procedure that requires minimal knowledge of breeding. The article will provide information on the most popular and effective breeding methods: how to implement them and what results you can get in the end.

Propagation by cuttings

If you are a novice gardener, then try the easiest way - propagating cherries by cuttings. When June comes, start preparing the shoots. Cuttings that have begun to turn red and harden at the base are most suitable. Having chosen such branches on the mother tree, they must be cut off. The length of cut shoots should be 30 cm. Pruning is recommended in the morning or evening, preferably in cool weather. The cut branches must be immediately placed in the water.

Growth regulators can be used to achieve rapid root emergence. Heteroauxin is usually used. Dissolve 100 ml of the drug with ethyl alcohol and dilute with cold water to obtain a solution in a volume of 1 liter. Cuttings are collected in bundles of 30 pieces, tied and immersed in the prepared solution for 18 hours. In this case, the shoot itself sinks only 1.5 cm and no more.

It is advisable to prepare the soil the day before. In well-dug soil, it is necessary to make beds and fill them with a 10-centimeter layer, consisting in equal proportions of peat and sand. On top of it, a layer of river, preferably coarse-grained sand is poured. All layers should be leveled with a rake and tamped a little. Before planting, be sure to thoroughly moisten the soil and feed it with mineral fertilizers. Superphosphate is usually used. To prepare it, you need 10 liters of water, in which a teaspoon of fertilizer is diluted. Cooked cuttings are planted vertically in the beds. Planting depth is not more than 3 cm, keep a distance of 7 cm between rows.

Depending on whether you used growth stimulants or not, it will depend on what time of day to plant. If growth stimulants were used, then planting is best done in the morning, and if not, then in the evening.

The planted cuttings are covered with foil and provided with appropriate care, namely, in the first month, they are protected from the sun's rays and are gently watered with a watering can or a sprayer. After about 2 weeks, adventitious roots will appear at the cuttings, and after a month they will be difficult to root.

In this way, varieties reproduce well: Polevka, Turgenevka, Vladimirskaya, Molodezhnaya and Shubinka.

Video "Reproduction of cherries by green cuttings"

This video will show you how to propagate cherries by cuttings.

By vaccination

Reproduction of cherries by grafting according to their technology is very simple and very effective. For him, one or two-year-old wild seedlings are used, in which they will carry out grafting of more improved, intensive varieties with increased characteristics of the quality of the fruit, the speed of ripening and a low crown.

Annual shoots with a trunk diameter of at least 5 mm are harvested in the first half of winter. But if you live in the southern regions, you can do this just before the vaccination itself, in the spring.

Shoots are cut from mother trees and their cuts are placed in water at room temperature for several hours.When the shoot is saturated with moisture, the required number of cuttings is cut from it, each of which must have at least 4 buds. Also, in parallel, a special mixture (anti-respiratory) is prepared from wax or paraffin and the resulting cuttings are treated in order to prevent drying. In the event that you do not carry out this treatment, then it is necessary to cover the grafted part with a plastic bag and leave it until the shoots from the buds grow. The grafting procedure must be carried out until the period of active sap flow has begun. The best time is mid-March.

This method is suitable for any cherry varieties, including Sania, Vladimirskaya or Fertile Michurina.

Good results are obtained by grafting cherries on cherries. This is how excellent varieties of Sasha, Kubanskaya, Chudo-cherry, Nadezhda, Mak, Yuzhnaya, Dessertnaya Morozova were obtained.

Propagation by bones

Cherries, like all seeds, can be propagated by seeds. This procedure is carried out in spring or autumn. You can also plant a bone in the summer immediately after separating the bone from the pulp.

When planting in autumn, the seeds are well washed and dipped in a weak solution of potassium permanganate (0.25 g per liter of water), without drying, they are placed in a humid environment (sawdust, moss). In October, it is desirable to sow it in a permanent place of growth in loose, moist soil to a depth of 3-4 cm. The distance between the holes is 25-30 cm. Several seeds (4-5 pieces) can be placed in one hole. After overwintering and passing through stratification, in the spring the seeds germinate and give young shoots, after which they are thinned out, leaving only the strongest and healthiest.

When planting seeds in spring, the seeds must undergo stratification - the stage of post-harvest ripening. During this period, which lasts 3-4 months, the seeds are stored in a moist substrate (sawdust or sand can be used) at a temperature of 15-20 degrees. Before the start of stratification, the seeds are soaked for 4-5 days, changing the water daily. During storage, it is necessary to ensure that the substrate does not dry out, and also to mix it for fresh air. Then the seeds are placed in a cellar or refrigerator, where the temperature is 2-6 degrees and stored there until germination. The sprouts are placed in snow or glacier until spring, where they go through the last stage of maturation. In early spring, the seedlings are transplanted to a permanent place in the garden.

It should be noted that varietal cherries are propagated only vegetatively (by cuttings or seedlings), since when sowing seeds, such varieties poorly convey traits to offspring and the fruits can be small.

Varieties for seed propagation: all varieties of felt cherry, Magalebskaya, Vladimirskaya and Lyubskaya, Shubinka, Rastunya, Kostychevka, Raspletka, Late pink, Kostychevka, Volevka, Polzhir, Menzelinskaya.

Reproduction by shoots

Cherries have been propagated by root shoots for a long time - this is the easiest and most affordable way to get new trees. This type of reproduction is especially relevant for the northern regions, where, as a result of severe frosts, cherry trees can freeze slightly.

When propagating by shoots, one must be careful - not all young growth fully inherits the characteristics of the mother tree, which leads to a deterioration in the quality of the fruit and a decrease in yield. You should also select strong healthy offspring, weak ones usually do not take root in a new place after transplantation. Do not take perennial or closely growing plants. In the first case, a weak root system will prevent the tree from growing strong and healthy, in the second, there is a risk of damaging the horses of the mother tree during transplantation, which can lead to its death.

The best quality material for this type of reproduction is two-year-old offspring with well-developed branches and a root system, growing at some distance from the mother tree.

The technology of reproduction undergrowth is pretty millet.In the spring, we select samples that are suitable in all parameters and, at a distance of 20 cm from the trunk, we chop off the root connecting the offspring with the mother tree with a shovel. First, it is necessary to fertilize the mother trees, loosen the ground well under and around them in order to avoid the growth of weeds. After separation, we leave the young for the summer, during which time it will grow a decent root system and in the fall it can be dug up and transplanted to a permanent place in the garden.

The main disadvantage of this type is that many good varieties have a low survival rate after transplanting.

Varieties that give good results when using this method: Vladimirskaya and Lyubskaya, Shubinka, Apukhtinskaya, Rastunya, Shubinka, Korostynskaya, Fertile Michurina.

Before you start choosing cherry propagation, consider the timing of fruiting. So, trees grown from seeds begin to bear fruit in the fourth year of life, growing from cuttings in the third, and on seedlings obtained by grafting, berries are obtained in the second year.