Selection of a site for planting

The site for growing fruit and berry crops should be as level as possible with a slight gentle slope to the south or southwest. Such areas are better illuminated by the sun, in the spring they dry out faster and warm up, which allows earlier to start cultivating the soil and planting. Dry air on these slopes contributes to the fact that the rocks are less affected by scab and earlier start to ripen.

If the site is located on a slope, you need to provide for the arrangement of terraces. If the slope of the site is 5-10 °, the falls can be covered by laying a layer of organic fertilizers, compost, household waste, branches, leaves, etc. on the bottom. If the slope is more than 10 °, it is necessary to build bulk terraces. Cloth terraces are used for planting fruit trees, slopes for berries or ornamental plants.

Unnecessary for the laying of an orchard are low places in the basins, which are characterized by the accumulation of cold air and excessive humidification.

Well, when a site or complex of sites adjoins the forest, especially the northern and eastern parts. This protects plants from the adverse effects of winds. The proximity of the natural reservoir( river, lake, pond) increases the humidity of the air, softens the sharp

not. At the foot of the slopes is much colder than at the top. The early-flowering plants - pear, cherry plum, sea buckthorn, actinidia, currant and gooseberries - will suffer more often from late spring frosts and less often harvest. ..

On open high ground areas, fruit plants, especially plums and currants, suffer from wind and moisture shortage. In such cases, it is necessary to provide a device for blowing windbreaks in the form of a fence or a hedge of climbing plants.

temperature fluctuations, especially in the morning frost, creates a favorable microclimate for plants.

The level of pound water should not be more than 1-1.5 m from the soil surface for different crops. The depth of occurrence of pound waters can be determined by the level of water in the wells or pits, specially dug in different places of the site. To drain the land with a close pounding of the pound waters, it is necessary to drain the drainage on the whole territory and dig the drainage ditches, lay the drainage pipes.

Soil cultivation

In the non-chernozem zone of Russia, four main types of soil are distinguished, each of which also has various transitional forms.

Sod-podzolic soils are characterized by a low content of humus( no more than 0.5-2.5%), a thin fertile layer, high acidity( pH 4-5).Many varieties of sod-podzolic soils have signs of swampiness. With temporary excess moisture, the physiological activity of the roots is weakened. From the lack of oxygen, the absorption of not only nutritional elements, but also water, is reduced. Signs of temporary excessive moisture: ocherous spots of oxidic forms of iron, black specks and iron and manganese concentration on the soil. With a longer water flooding, bogging occurs with the appearance on the soil of blue patches of ferrous forms of iron, which harms all fruit crops due to the poisonous nature of ferrous iron.

Maximum duration of flooding of cherry roots - up to 2 weeks;the roots of the apple tree die from flooding within 3-4 weeks depending on the temperature of the soil).The main measures for the cultivation of these soils are the improvement of the water and air regime, the removal of stagnant soil moisture and dehumidification through the arrangement of drainage and open drainage systems, as well as in the increase of the fertile layer by applying organic and mineral fertilizers and restoring the normal acidity of the soil at the expense ofits liming. "Sod-carbonate soils, , unlike podzolic soils, have higher natural fertility( contain up to 4% humus) and lower acidity( pH 5.5-6), are better provided with plant nutrients.

To receive high yieldsfruit and berry crops on such soils, regular application of organic and mineral fertilizers is necessary

The gray forest soils are characterized by a rather high content of humus( up to 3-5%). The water-physical properties are close to sod-podzolic.

The main measures to increase the fertility of gray forest soils are liming, application of organic and mineral( mainly phosphorus and nitrogen) fertilizers.

Peaty, vum marsh, soils are formed in conditions of waterlogging, they are divided into lowland, upper and transitional

Horse peat bogs contain very few nutrients and consist of weakly decomposed sour peat, so they are of little use for growing fruit and berry crops. For the laying of an orchard, lowland and transitional peatlands are more suitable. peat soils of the lowland bogs have a deep peat layer( more than 40 cm), are characterized by high natural fertility, contain a lot of nitrogen, but little phosphorus and potassium, have a weakly acid or neutral reaction, differ in the degree of decomposition of peat and high humidity. Transient bog soils, , in contrast to lowland soils, are characterized by high acidity( pH 3.5-5), a lower degree of peat decomposition. Sand is an important technique that improves peat soils. On the surface of the site, a large amount of sand is evenly distributed( 4 m3, or 6 tons per 100 m2) and digs through the area, mixing peat with sand. In addition, it is necessary to apply organic and mineral fertilizers for digging peat soils.

Soil acidity

A very important role in the assimilation of nutrients from the soil by plants is the soil acidity.

Acidity of soil has a great influence on the development of fruit plants. With acidic soil reaction, the concentration of some compounds in the soil solution rises to a level harmful to plants. Harmful effects on plants with high acidity are compounds of aluminum and manganese. With high acidity, the availability of soil phosphates, potassium, magnesium, molybdenum decreases. The process of nitrification is weak, and therefore less nitrogen is available to plants in the soil. Alkaline reaction also has a negative effect on fruit plants. For plants, such nutrients as magnesium, boron, copper and zinc become inaccessible. Fruit crops have a relatively high resistance to soil acidity, but different breeds and even varieties of fruit plants react differently to the acidity of the soil. With respect to soil acidity of fruit and berry crops can be divided into the following groups:

Group 1

Plants do not tolerate high acidity of the soil and the reaction for the successful development requires a neutral or slightly alkaline SOIL:

black currant,

red currants,

white currant. Group 2

Plants transferred to soil some acidity, located within a slightly acid, neutral or weakly acidic require SOIL:

quince,

cherry,

drain,

rosehips,

apple.

Group 3

plant tolerates moderate soil acidity - from mildly acidic to mildly:

pear,

strawberries,

gooseberries

Group 4

Plants tolerate increased acidity of the soil, which even they need for full development of raspberry.

Nevertheless, to obtain good harvests of most fruit and berry crops, it is recommended to maintain the soil acidity index within pH 5.5-6.5.Eliminate the excess acidity by introducing into the soil lime, dolomite flour and other lime materials.