The apple orchard, not only in summer, but also in autumn, requires our protection and increased attention. Today we will talk about how to properly treat an apple tree in the fall against diseases and pests, as well as what preparations should be used to treat trees before wintering.
Treatment of apple trees in the fall 1.1 Why treat apple trees before wintering 2. Treating trees against diseases 3. Spraying an apple orchard against pests 4. Preparations for treating apple trees in the fall 4.1 Whitewashing trees
Photo pixabay/MariaGodfrida: It is important to pay attention to the apple tree in the fall.
Indications for treating apple trees in autumn
Caring for apple trees in the fall includes a set of measures aimed at reducing the amount of infection , destroying accumulations of pests overwintering in the garden, as well as increasing the winter hardiness of fruit-bearing plantings.
Ignoring preventive measures at this time of year will lead to massive damage to trees in the spring. Diseases are a leading cause of damage to gardeners. Among the ailments, the most common are those of a fungal nature. Viruses and bacteria infect fruit trees much less frequently. If symptoms of a certain disease or pest appear on the apple tree, treatment must be carried out as soon as possible.
The concentration of drugs and the frequency of treatment largely depend on the climate zone. In the southern regions, trees should be treated more often and stronger solutions should be mixed for this. Pests and pathogens often adapt to specific products. Therefore, it is recommended to periodically change them for others.
The effectiveness of spraying is enhanced if it is combined with other reasonable methods of agricultural technology: disinfection of working tools, elimination of infected leaves and fruits, weeding.
Autumn treatment is required when the following is detected on apple trees:
- Scab is a fungal disease that causes dark brown spots and cracks on fruits and leaves.
- Ulcerative lesions of the cortex.
- Dark spots on tree trunks.
- Lichen.
- Tinder fungi.
In addition to obvious problems, the apple orchard can be threatened by hidden infections such as powdery mildew, brown spot and munilia. In addition, insect pests are already preparing for wintering on trees, which usually hide under the bark, near the buds, inside the branches and in the top layer of soil.
Processing rules
The phases and rules of autumn processing of apple trees are tied to the stages of the plant’s life cycle. Autumn control of pests and diseases of fruit trees is carried out after the end of the growing season. After leaf fall, the apple orchard can be successfully sprayed with higher concentrations of chemicals without fear of leaving burns.
There are a number of processing rules:
- spraying should be carried out in clear, windless weather;
- the air temperature should be at least 5 degrees Celsius;
- the sprayer should create a uniform cloud of fine suspension;
- any lesions on the bark must be cleaned before treatment and treated with copper sulfate;
- shortly before the start of the procedure, the garden should be cleared of all plant debris.
If no diseases or pests were found on the trees during the warm season, then the residual debris can be taken to the compost pit. Otherwise, it will have to be burned or buried.
Autumn spraying should be as thorough as possible; in this case, not only the crown and trunk of the tree are subject to treatment, but also the soil in the tree trunk circle. But nearby lawn grass should not be treated.
Preparations for spraying apple trees
To prevent infection of apple trees and insect infestations during autumn treatment, it is very important to dose the preparations correctly and follow the recommended doses. The choice of means of protection depending on the condition of the tree also plays an important role.
These substances are of contact action only. This means that they do not have a cumulative effect, are washed off by rain and do not harm people, animals and dormant apple trees.
- Urea (urea) is white or colorless crystals, soluble in liquid. This substance, at high concentrations, is capable of burning out all fungal and viral infections, and also effectively fights insects overwintering on trees. During autumn treatment, urea simultaneously plays the role of both a fungicide and an insecticide. In addition, urea will increase the winter hardiness of the apple tree.
- Iron sulfate is a concentrated solution of iron used to prevent and treat damage to the branches of fruit trees. It is successfully used to destroy overwintering larvae and fungal diseases.
- Copper sulfate is another effective and inexpensive preventive fungicide used in the fall to prevent diseases of fruit crops. This drug is not recommended to be mixed with Bordeaux mixture or iron sulfate.
- Bordeaux mixture - spraying with it is considered the final stage in the autumn treatment of the garden. Contains copper ions, which kill fungi and bacteria, destroying plant protein.
Safety precautions
When working with any drugs, you must observe the following precautions:
- use safety glasses;
- wear long sleeves;
- keep hair under a scarf or cap;
- do not allow solutions to come into contact with the skin and mucous membranes;
- work with rubber gloves;
- wear a respirator (a gauze bandage is ineffective).
After work, you need to take a shower and put your clothes in the wash.
Means and methods for treating apple trees against diseases
To combat various diseases and pests affecting fruit crops, appropriate methods of prevention and treatment have been developed.
Treatment of moniliosis
This tree disease is caused by fungal spores carried by insects that pollinate the blossoming buds. Under the influence of fruit rot, the branches and foliage of apple trees look scorched. To treat plants for moniliosis, infected parts of the tree are removed and burned. The affected apple tree and the trees adjacent to it are sprayed with antifungal compounds. The following have proven themselves well in this regard:
"Abiga Peak";- "Topsin";
- "Horus";
- "Kuproksat";
- copper sulfate.
Fungus treatment
If untreated cuts or broken branches are found on the apple tree, this indicates that the tree may be infected with mold.
To prevent the development of the disease, damaged areas of the bark should be cleaned with a thick brush, and damaged branches should be trimmed. Treat cleaned areas with fungicides. In addition, it is necessary to whitewash with slaked lime. Treatment will give a positive result only at the beginning of the disease. And after the fungus penetrates the cambium, the entire tree will gradually die.
From lichen and moss
Apple trees are cleaned of lichens and moss only in late autumn. Before processing, the crop must already be harvested and fallen leaves removed from the garden. The branches are treated with a solution of iron sulfate, the effect of which lasts a week. After this period, mosses and lichens are carefully cleaned from the trees. Damaged areas are covered with garden varnish. After another week, it is necessary to repeat the treatment, spraying the ground next to the tree. Complete the cleaning with whitewashing.
Bacterial and viral diseases
Bacterial microorganisms can cause peculiar burns that affect the tissues of the apple tree.
Microbes that enter the tree through damage to the bark accompany moniliosis. The cause of infection can be insects. To combat such diseases, broad-spectrum antibiotics are used. At the same time, insects carry viral diseases, for example: mosaic, witch's broom, star cracking of apples and much more. Once in the wood tissue, viruses become a catalyst for the process of their degeneration into malignant formations.
Currently, there is no specific treatment for viral diseases of apple trees, so it is necessary to destroy identified foci of the disease. Phytohormones are used as prophylaxis.
Pear rust
This disease affects only two plants - pear and junipers. More precisely: in order for rust to live, it needs 2 host plants. Neither juniper nor pear can infect themselves.
manifestation of rust on pear leaves
Symptoms of rust
The first signs of the disease can be detected in the second half of April, immediately after flowering - round yellow-orange spots appear on the leaves. Then the rust spreads to the petioles. And during the years of epidemics, the shoots and ovaries become covered with spots.
In mid-summer, the number of dots on the leaves becomes noticeably larger, they take on an irregular shape with a diameter of 1–1.5 cm, and become light brown with a black dot in the middle.
And finally, in the fall, rust reaches the peak of its development: “horns” are formed on the underside of the leaf - outgrowths filled with spores. They open up and infect... no, not the pear...
Where does the pathogen overwinter?
In summer, rust lives on pear trees, and in winter on juniper. In autumn, spores falling on a coniferous plant quickly begin to form a mycelium. Rust affects needles, shoots, fruits, wounds, swellings and swellings form on the branches. In the spring, spores ripen on the juniper, they fly away, infect the pear, and this repeats from year to year.
Are you surprised because you don't have any junipers? Surely the neighbors have them. Or in the area - spores of a pathogenic fungus can fly 40–50 km! Warm and humid weather is especially favorable for them. However, such weather in early spring does not always happen, so most often the infection cycle extends for 1.5–2 years.
What to do about pear rust?
In general, rust, although it looks unpleasant, does not cause much harm to pears. But if the disease manifests itself from year to year over a long period of time, then the tree will gradually weaken and may freeze out in winter. Therefore, the disease still needs to be treated.
As you understand, both plants need to be treated - both pear and juniper. But curing rust is quite difficult. Even if it seems to you that the disease has receded, treatment must be carried out for another 3 years.
Rust treatment plan for pear:
1. A few days before leaf fall: treat the trees with Revus (6 ml per 5 liters of water) - it kills pathogenic fungi and restores the plant’s immunity.
2. In early spring, before the buds open: treat the pear with 1% Bordeaux mixture or copper oxychloride (CHOM). After a couple of days, spray the trees with Skor (2 ml per 10 liters of water).
3. At the very beginning of flowering: repeat this treatment with Bordeaux mixture and “Skorom”.
4. Immediately after flowering: repeat the treatment again - Bordeaux mixture, then “Skor”.
5. 10 days after the previous treatment: carry out the last treatment - this time with Bordeaux mixture alone.
6. During the summer, prune heavily affected branches 5–10 cm below the source of the disease. Clean the wounds down to healthy wood, then disinfect them with a 5% solution of copper sulfate, then treat them with Heteroauxin (0.5 g per 10 liters of water), and finally cover them with garden varnish. It's summer.
In addition, once a month, water the pear at the root with an infusion of wood ash (500 g per 10 liters of water, leave for 2 days). Consumption rate: for mature trees – 10 l, for young trees – 4–6 l. This will help the pear regain its strength.
7. At the end of August, treat the pear with the preparation "Skor" (2 ml per 10 liters of water), and the next day with the biofungicide "Fitolavin" (20 ml per 10 liters) - it will help get rid of bacteria that always accompany fungal diseases.
Action plan for rust treatment for juniper:
There are no special remedies for treating juniper rust - just cut out the infected branches in a timely manner and burn them immediately. At the end of autumn, treatments with copper-containing preparations are also useful.
How and how to treat an apple tree against pests
Apple tree pests are divided into three groups:
- insects;
- mites;
- rodents.
Treatment of apple trees from their harmful presence is carried out taking into account their numbers and species characteristics. In the fall, the procedure is carried out without fail.
Insects
To combat insects, urea is considered the best preventative treatment. Spraying it is carried out on a regular basis. In addition, industrial preparations of the insecticidal group are used to destroy insect pests.
Ticks
Spider mites are one of the most harmful phenomena for an apple orchard. Universal acaricidal-insecticidal preparations are effective against these pests. Treatment should be carried out not only in autumn, but also in spring, before and after flowering. It is important to complete processing before the ovary forms.
Rodents
Mice, hares, wild rabbits and water voles pose a serious threat to apple trees in winter - they are capable of chewing off a circular strip of bark and interrupting the circulation of vital tree juices. In addition to mechanical protection, the wood will need to be treated with a protective compound. For this purpose, spraying with copper sulfate or Bordeaux mixture is used.
Autumn feeding
Autumn feeding is needed in order to strengthen the tree's strength before the onset of cold weather. Fertilizers based on potassium or ammonium sulfate are used. This will strengthen the immune system of the apple trees, and next year they will produce a good harvest.
Treatment of apple trees against diseases and pests in the fall should be carried out regularly. This will help prevent the development of many diseases and rid the tree of harmful insects. Healthy apple trees will delight you with juicy fruits every year.
Calendar dates for processing apple trees in different regions
The timing of treatment of an apple orchard depends entirely on the growth phase of the trees, weather conditions and the presence of pests.
September
In mid-September, carry out the last feeding of the season: add 1 tbsp. l. potassium sulfate per 1 m2 of trunk circle for adult plants and 1 tsp. - for young people.
October
At the end of October, carry out charging watering, adding 10 buckets of water under each apple tree, and mulch the tree trunk. If autumn is rich in rain, it is recommended to reduce the amount of liquid to 3 buckets.
