General information on stone fruit crops

Stone fruits include cherry, plum, thorn, thistle, cherry, apricot, cherry plum.

It should be noted immediately that cherries and plums are strictly cross-pollinated, so you can not grow only one tree. You need a pollinator, and not any horrible, but one that suits your chosen brand. Cherries and apricots, as well as thorns, cherry plums can grow alone. But it must be remembered that apricots and cherries are very tall trees, so they should take a proper place in the garden. Both plants are less winter hardy than cherry or plum, especially as apple trees. In the Northwest, it is better not to grow them. The trouble is not enough, but there's not much use.

Whether to plant them in pits, on level ground or in hills, it's up to you, depending on the type of soil on your site. And these plantings are no different from planting an apple tree.

Features of growing

What do stone fruit cultures like? Weak or neutral soil with a high content of potassium and calcium, necessary for the creation of a stone, but at the same time the drainage additionally requires phosphorus, while the apricot and sweet cherry are in nitrogen, so the mineral composition of their dressings is different.

All stone fruits require a sunny location, although it is believed that they can tolerate penumbra, but in this case the fruiting begins to move to the periphery of the crown.

All stone fruit during the growing season requires heat. The average daily temperature should not fall below 15 degrees.

North-West is generally the northern limit of the spread of stone fruit crops on the territory of Russia.

What do not like stone fruit crops? Acidic soils, chlorine( therefore it is unacceptable to feed them with potassium chloride).

Poorly tolerate close groundwater occurrence. Stagnant waters, waterlogged soils are also contraindicated. Drought at the time of growth of the ovaries( 2 weeks after the end of flowering) can cause their massive loss, so the stone fruit need abundant watering at least two times - from the time of flowering to the beginning of the coloring of berries.

The suction root system lies at a depth of about 40 cm, spreading widely beyond the crown, and the central root can extend to the depth of the earth to 1.5 m. Its task is to keep the plant in an upright position, extract moisture and dissolve mineral elements.

In addition, you need to know that pome fruits and stone fruits do not like each other's neighbors, so they should not be planted next to each other. Although stone fruits are relatively unpretentious to soils, they grow better and bear fruit on organic loamy loams. The least demanding for the soil is apricot, the historical homeland of which is the Pamir Mountains.