Preparing a pear for winter: how and when to cover it, can it be pruned?

Preparation by region

Caring for pear trees in the Moscow region, Leningrad region and the middle zone is a classic option. You just need to pay attention to the fact that winter may have little snow. You need to regularly shovel snow to the trunk. If there is no snow at all, then increase the amount of sawdust and peat mulch (about 20 cm) or cover the area with the roots with a layer of spruce spruce branches and top with soil.

In the Urals, on the eastern slopes, climatic conditions are almost no different from the weather in the central regions. Winters are a little harsher, but preparing the pear tree for cold weather is greatly simplified thanks to the snow cover. In the eastern part the climate is more severe. It is necessary to insulate the root circle and wrap the trunk with burlap, paper or black film.

Siberian care is complicated by the short autumn. Sometimes gardeners decide to prune in the spring, naturally, if sanitary pruning of dry shoots is not needed. In the fall, you should definitely dig up the soil near the roots and add a lot of organic matter. The roots are covered with sawdust, pine needles and spruce branches. Also, young plants are prepared for winter in Siberia, and strong and powerful pears only have trunks. They are wrapped in burlap, paper or spruce branches. It is advisable to complete care by the beginning of October.

Insulation of trunk and branches

They begin to insulate the pear after harvesting and with the onset of the first cold weather. The method of covering fruit trees depends on the climatic characteristics of the growing region. It is equally important to take into account the varietal characteristics and age of the plants. Thus, covering young pears for the winter requires more attention and time compared to mature trees.

Selection of materials

The procedure for insulating a pear for the winter begins with the selection and preparation of covering material. Thus, fruit crops cultivated in the southern regions are wrapped in burlap, white polypropylene bags, non-woven fabric, agrofibre or lutrasil. Pears grown in the Leningrad region, Siberia, the Urals and other regions with severe frosts are additionally covered with spruce branches, brushwood, wooden boards and slate sheets.

Shelter technique

Preparing fruit trees for winter is not difficult if you follow simple rules for insulating plants. So, let's figure out how to properly insulate a heat-loving fruit crop.

Covering the pear tree begins from the root collar. The tree trunk circle is mulched with peat, humus, straw, sawdust and dry leaves. The height of the mulch layer should be within 3–5 cm. It is especially important to properly insulate the root collar of a young pear that has not yet fully matured. During an unexpected thaw, a layer of mulch protects the tree from excess moisture and icing during further frosts.

The next stage is the insulation of the branches and trunk of the tree. First you need to remove all the supports so that the branches fall to the ground. In order for young shoots and skeletal branches to sink as low as possible, “weighting agents” are used in the form of sand, dry earth, vegetable tops, pine branches and other vegetation. It is recommended to carefully wrap the trunk of the pear tree and the base of the skeletal branches with covering material, which should have small holes for air circulation.

Please note that the use of synthetic and moisture-proof covering materials leads to the accumulation of moisture inside, which can lead to rotting of the wood.

Removing foliage and fruits

Before preparing pears for winter, they are inspected, fruits, leaves and remnants of greenery on the crown and in the trunk area are removed. At the end of autumn, there should be no leaves, rotten or mummified fruits on the tree, and fallen leaves in the tree trunk area. The shoots of the columnar pear should be whole and ripened without green tips, and not located too close to the surface of the earth. Pests and infections can hide in fruits and leaves for the winter. At the beginning of the growing season they will begin to attack the tree. That is why they should be removed at the end of autumn.

Cleaning is carried out as follows:

• The tree is shaken a little so that the leaves fall.
• The fruits are removed, and if they do not fall, they are carefully knocked down with a stick or a special device for removal.
• After harvesting the fruits and leaves, the tree trunk circle is cleaned of all kinds of plant debris. It is recommended to lightly weed it and loosen the soil a couple of centimeters.

Fertilizers after fruiting

Fertilizing pears in the fall with fertilizers is done along with digging up the soil near the tree. Use 1-2 tbsp per 1 m². potassium sulfate and superphosphate. When the pear grows under turf, fertilizers are poured into several holes. Their depth reaches a maximum of 20 cm. Holes are dug in different places near the trunk and 0.5 buckets of water are poured into them.

Attention! Nitrogen fertilizers are prohibited from being used.

It is also not recommended to apply manure. It is better to spread a 4-5 cm layer of humus under the tree closer to the cold weather. It will act as a mulch layer, and in the spring, nutrients will be transferred to the ground along with meltwater.

Types of fertilizers and methods of their use

There are two ways to feed a pear after harvesting - “at the root” or “by the leaf”. To deliver minerals, vitamins, amino acids and other elements to all parts of the plant, it is recommended to alternate root (by adding to the soil) and foliar (by spraying on leaves and shoots) nutrition. According to reviews, in the autumn gardening mode, the first method of fertilizing is considered the most effective.

When using purchased drugs, you must follow the dosages and application schedules recommended in the manufacturer’s instructions

Experienced garden owners are guided by the basic rule of autumn fertilizing - do not use fertilizers with a high nitrogen content, which promote vegetation. In autumn, it is important to give preference to phosphorus and potassium , as well as copper , magnesium , calcium and other microelements that increase the immunity and frost resistance of plants. Organic matter can only be added when mature and in small quantities.

Along the periphery of the crown, grooves with a depth of 30-40 cm are dug. Organic fertilizers (compost and humus) are added to them simultaneously with mineral complexes . Usually they take 4-5 kg ​​of organic matter, 40-50 g of superphosphate, 20-30 g of potassium chloride per square meter of land.

Among the folk remedies that enrich the soil, wood ash , which contains high doses of potassium, as well as phosphorus and microelements that increase plant frost resistance and disease resistance. The ash is first poured with warm water and left for 10-12 hours, or scattered over the surface of the soil and covered during digging.

When using ash, additional fertilizing with phosphorus fertilizers is not required.

If the hole was well “filled” before planting, the tree does not need to be fed for 2-3 years.

As for mineral fertilizers , it is recommended to annually add potassium sulfate (30 g/10 l) or potassium monophosphate, which contains 50% phosphorus and 33% potassium (diluted at the rate of 10-15 g per 10 l of warm water), to the soil. 10 liters of solution are consumed per 1 square meter of tree trunk circle.

Once every three years, it is advisable to feed the trees with double superphosphate (30 g of powder is scattered around the trunk). It is preferable to use it in dry form for a prolonged action: nutrients, dissolving in melt water, will gradually saturate the soil and flow to the roots of plants. First, the top layer of soil (1-2 cm) is removed from the tree trunk circle, then dry fertilizers, including granular ones, are evenly distributed and covered with earth.

After feeding, the tree trunk circle is mulched with mowed grass, peat, straw, humus and other materials to additionally protect the root system from frost.

In orchards with a large number of fruit trees, as a rule, ready-made preparations in granular form of industrial production are used. We consider the characteristics of the most popular of them in the table:

Gardeners who prefer to do without digging offer an alternative way of introducing granular mineral complexes under fruit-bearing trees: to a depth of 30-40 cm. To do this, in the zone where the bulk of the roots spread, holes are made in the soil with a sharp iron crowbar at intervals of 60-80 cm from each other. Fertilizers are poured into them in portions, adhering to the dosages specified by the manufacturer.

Some experts advise first removing the top layer of soil (1-2 cm) in the tree trunk circle, scattering granules, then sealing and watering abundantly

Experienced site owners independently choose “monofertilizers” in accordance with the fertility and acidity of the soil, as well as taking into account the needs of the plants. For example, if the fruits of the current harvest are too small, during the growing season the leaves turned pale, curled and fell off, then foliar feeding is carried out with any potassium-containing preparation. If the leaves were thickened, darkened and fell off, and the fruits were deformed, it means that there was not enough boron. In this case, the pears are sprayed with a solution of boric acid (5 g per 10 liters of water). With an excess of nitrogen, active growth is observed, but rather weak flowering; the fruits grow to large sizes, but with loose pulp, and their shelf life is reduced. In such situations, it is necessary to abandon the addition of organic matter in the fall.

Pruning pears in autumn

Pear is a tree that loves light. If it has a thickened crown, this will provoke the development of diseases and a decrease in fruiting. You can prune pears at any time of the year. However, gardeners recommend doing formative and sanitary treatment in the spring or autumn, while there is still no sub-zero temperature. Autumn pruning of pears for beginners is not a difficult process. It helps shape the crown, reducing the risk of disease development. The absence of excess leaves makes it possible to assess the density and remove excess, incorrectly growing branches.

There are 3 types of pruning:

• rejuvenating;
• formative;
• sanitary

Anti-aging pruning increases the life and fruiting of the tree. After it, new shoots actively grow, the yield increases. The procedure is carried out on old pears - over 30 years old. Formative pruning is done to improve crown aeration.

Sanitary manipulations involve the elimination of improperly growing branches and shoots. Depending on the climate, the pruning time is determined. In Siberia, where frosts can occur as early as September, it is done after the pears are harvested and the leaves have partially fallen off. In areas with mild climates, pruning is performed in October or even early November. In the Moscow region, the procedure begins at the end of August and no later than the 15th of September.

Attention!

When pruning, the optimal ambient temperature should be +10°C...+12°C.

Experts advise adhering to the law of subordination when pruning. That is, the length and thickness of the branches decreases from bottom to top. This scheme for pruning pears in preparation for winter makes it possible to achieve the correct crown. Branches with a diameter of less than 20 mm are not treated with protective agents. The rest can be sealed with garden varnish. Branches are pruned above a healthy upper bud. Moreover, this rule applies to any type of pruning. To prevent the bark from lifting up, the branch is cut a little from the bottom and top, and only then is it completely cut off.

Some tips from experienced gardeners

Sometimes it happens like this: even after careful covering, with the onset of spring it turns out that the tree is still frozen. To do this, experienced gardeners recommend grafting with a bridge, which will save the pear from death. This procedure is performed as follows:

• if the tree is partially frozen, then it is necessary to completely cut out all damaged branches, and thoroughly cover the cut areas with garden varnish;
• in the case when frost holes are found on a tree, it is necessary to remove the damaged bark and part of the frozen wood from these areas, since such places will lead to disruption of the normal nutrition of the entire tree;
• in the case where the areas affected by frost are very large, the bark and wood are also excised and bridge grafting is performed.

If you follow this procedure, then in the future all damaged areas will heal and the tree will be completely restored.

It is worth emphasizing that it is much easier for a gardener to prevent partial freezing of a tree than to later deal with the problem that has arisen. To do this, it is enough to thoroughly whiten the trunk and lower branches with slaked lime or paint.

It is worth highlighting that pears can often freeze not only in winter, but also in spring, when there are still frosts at night.

Therefore, in order to eliminate the possibility of frost damage in the spring, as soon as the pear wakes up from hibernation and the insulation is removed, the trunk should be thoroughly whitened again. At the same time, do not forget that all damaged areas are carefully covered with garden varnish or oil paint.

Whitewashing process

The purpose of whitewashing a pear in the fall is to prevent sunburn and cracks on the trunk due to temperature changes. They can form during the transition period - in February and March.

Both old and young trees need to be whitewashed. For young seedlings, weak solutions are used. If lime is used, the concentration is halved. This will help avoid burning the bark. Or they use special paints for garden trees. Young trees must be whitened, as the seedlings have thin bark. And it can be seriously damaged in winter and spring from frost damage. Gardeners advise young seedlings that have smooth bark to be wrapped in a covering white material rather than whitewashed. This way you can protect against sunburn and rodents at the same time.

Protection from bright sun, rodents and frost

Don't forget about whitewashing. It is necessary not only in spring, but also in autumn, so that with the onset of the first sunny spring days the rays do not burn the bark of the trees.

1. Ready-made whitewash can be purchased at the store, but you can do it yourself. To do this, we dilute one and a half kilograms of clay and two to two and a half kilograms of ordinary lime in a bucket of water. Using a brush, whiten the trunk from the lower branches to the ground. Young seedlings can be completely whitened. It is better to use a regular paint brush.
2. To protect the lower parts of the trunks from rodents, they can be wrapped in spruce branches (needles down) and tied with twine.
3. Next, we dig up the tree trunk circles shallowly. We water them thoroughly, then the trees will more easily withstand the approaching frosts.
4. After abundant watering, cover these circles with a layer of mulch of about 15-25 cm. This can be peat or sawdust. With this coating, the roots have a better chance of remaining healthy.
5. If the winter has little snow, do not forget to shovel snow onto the tree trunk during the winter.

Spraying against pests and diseases

This procedure will help get rid of most pests, their larvae and pathogenic fungi, so that they cannot survive the winter in the soil and tree bark. There are two opinions about autumn spraying. Some gardeners believe that it is better to do the treatment after leaf fall. At this time, the tree goes into a dormant state, the buds completely close. They will not be exposed to strong spray solutions. Other experts recommend carrying out the treatment a couple of weeks before leaf fall, but only after harvesting. In this case, the leaves will quickly turn black. There is no need to be afraid of this, since this is precisely the goal. Thanks to the loss of leaves, the pear will actively prepare for the cold.

In any case, you should not delay spraying. You need to make it before frost, otherwise the products will not be effective, and the procedure itself will become meaningless. As a rule, most drugs work at temperatures up to +5°C. Most often, when spraying in autumn, Bordeaux mixture or urea with iron sulfate is used.

What does autumn pear care include?

After the end of leaf fall, it is necessary to collect all fallen leaves and fruits from the ground, as well as mummified pears from the tree itself. It is recommended to burn all collected waste.

After the end of leaf fall, it is necessary to collect all fallen leaves and fruits from the ground.

Harvest the fruits of late varieties and store them

The duration of storage of pears of late autumn varieties depends on the correct harvest time. Very unripe fruits quickly wither; overripe ones will not be stored for long. In addition, some pears are prone to shedding when ripe. Cracked and bruised fruits will not last long.

Whole, dry fruits with the stalk intact are suitable for storage. It is recommended not to tear them from the tree, but to carefully unscrew them.

From the description of the varieties you can find out in what condition the fruits can be removed from the tree.

Plastic or wooden boxes with perforations are suitable for storing pears. Fruits can be laid in several layers, each lined with paper.

Watering in autumn

Pruning, cleaning nearby soil and cleaning the tree trunk circle - all these activities are considered preparation for the most important event. This is moisture-charging irrigation, that is, the tree trunk circle is dug well and watered. At least 40-50 liters of water are poured onto each tree. Then pour a mulching layer (height up to 200 mm). Such manipulations are carried out in September-October.

Autumn loosening and mulching helps protect tree roots from mechanical damage. Under heavy snow cover, the soil becomes compacted, which has a bad effect on the root system. Mulch retains moisture at the roots and protects the underground parts of the tree from sudden temperature fluctuations and provides oxygen access to the roots. All this will help complete metabolic processes in the fall, prepare and safely survive the cold.

Preparing young pears

Firstly, when planting, a wooden peg must be driven in, to which the seedling is tied. It is not recommended to use a metal support, since in frosty conditions the bark may stick to the metal and damage its structure.

All shoots must be tied to the main trunk so that the winds do not break the fragile branches. Sometimes, if the tree is planted in an open area, each branch is tied with soft rope to a separate stake to provide stability to the tree.

The tree trunk circle also needs to be loosened and watered abundantly. Next add a layer of mulch. Use peat and sawdust, and the layer must be made at least 30 cm. Snow must also be raked to the roots more often. But in the spring, when it begins to melt, glaciation of the upper layer is possible. It needs to be removed so that oxygen penetrates to the roots.

It is strictly not recommended to replant young trees before the onset of cold weather. This is a lot of stress for the pear. Subsequently, after such manipulations, the pear may not have time to prepare for winter, will not tolerate stress and may die.

Pear transplant

There are situations when it becomes necessary to plant or transplant a young tree. If you are carrying out the procedure in an area where winter is not too cold, then plant no later than a month before the onset of the first frost.

1. It is important that by the beginning of the event the fruiting period has ended, the harvest has been fully harvested, and the foliage has fallen.
2. The young tree must be completely healthy and strong.
3. The planting hole should be dug at least 14 days in advance so that the ground subsides a little and the soil is saturated with oxygen.
4. You cannot put fresh humus or peat at the bottom; only compost will do. Make a mound of fertile, nutritious soil. Place a seedling on it.
5. Straighten the root shoots and gradually cover with soil. It is important that there are no voids in the root system, so compact the soil with your hands. The root collar should be 3 - 5 cm above the soil level.
6. Drive a wooden peg into the hole next to the seedling and tie the plant to it.

After planting, water the tree with 10 - 20 liters of water. Then prepare it for cold weather, like all other garden trees, especially mature pears.

Shelter for the winter

You can cover the pear for the winter using plastic film. On the market you can buy agril, spantex, spunbond, agrosuf, lutrasil. All these are names of insulation, which is used as a covering and wrapping material. Such non-woven canvases made of polypropylene fibers are pliable, loose and soft. This is a good means of insulation and protection.

Covering a pear tree involves wrapping the trunk and the bottom of the first row of main branches with material, which is tied tightly with strong rope. It is better to wrap young trees in 3 layers. You can place a spruce branch on top, which is also well secured. This is done to prevent it from being blown away by the wind, or rodents from reaching the branches and trunk.

Caring for pear trees in the fall before the cold weather is very important. Thanks to him, the prepared tree will delight you with a rich harvest next year. The abundance and time of flowering, the formation of ovaries and the size of the fruit depend on how it survives the winter period.

Typical mistakes gardeners make when preparing for winter

Beginning gardeners often make mistakes when preparing pears for winter. The most common mistake is choosing the wrong insulation method.

You should not leave pear pruning until spring. It is better to cut off diseased branches and prune to form a crown. Autumn pruning is less traumatic for garden plants.

Applying fertilizer will allow the plant to fully survive the most severe frosts. It is better to use potassium phosphate or superphosphate. They are introduced when digging up the tree trunk circle. You can make a ditch around the tree and add humus there. It is necessary to carry out the procedure in late autumn, then the beneficial substances will reach the plant only in the spring.