Growing sea buckthorn: the subtleties of planting and plant care. Sea buckthorn: planting and care, pruning and propagation Spring pruning of sea buckthorn

The beneficial properties of sea buckthorn were known to the Ancient Greeks. Due to the high content of a number of organic acids in the fruits of this plant, it has strong healing properties. And the contained vitamins and microelements are necessary for the human body to withstand many colds. That is why many prudent gardeners grow sea buckthorn on their plot. Although the plant is not too whimsical, every year it needs some care, the basis of which is pruning. Before embarking on this simple procedure, you need to take into account all the rules for trimming sea buckthorn and approach this issue responsibly and seriously.

When to cut?

Some gardeners believe that pruning can be done at any time of the year when there is free time. This is partly true, but still there are some aspects that need to be taken into account.

Most often produced pruning sea buckthorn in spring in order to prepare it in advance for the warm season. It is necessary to choose a period when there is no significant warming yet, and the tree is at rest. It is during this period that there is a chance to prune as correctly as possible and harm the tree to a minimum.
And here pruning sea buckthorn in autumn carried out in order to get rid of, so to speak, from all that is superfluous. Old, dried, diseased branches - all this is removed. Thus, you prepare the tree for winter and completely exclude the possibility of harmful insects living in its bark.

Cropping Features

There are other features of sea buckthorn pruning. For example, the fact that wounds after incisions are completely undesirable to treat with garden pitch or any other putty. So you only harm the plant, not wanting it yourself.

It is also very important that the tool used is well sharpened and sharp. A dull pruner grinds the wound and bark, and a bad saw does not cut, but tears. Of course, now there is a huge selection of such tools in stores. But remember that you need to know what to choose. Since not everything offered is of high quality.

Young trees need to be pruned once a year., forming the correct crown. And rejuvenating pruning of sea buckthorn is necessary for older trees. With age, with improper care, the tree grows, takes on an ugly shape and an untidy appearance. Therefore, it must be unloaded, clarified and rejuvenated. With proper care, the sea buckthorn tree lives and bears fruit up to 50 years.

trimming sea buckthorn video

With good proper care, a sea buckthorn tree can grow and bear fruit for up to 50 years. One of the components of good care is pruning. Pruning of sea buckthorn is of several types, performed at different times for different purposes.

Formative pruning of sea buckthorn is done in the first 4-5 years of tree growth. It is produced for the correct formation of the shape of the crown. With a properly formed crown, it is possible to get a harvest of berries up to 30 kilograms from each tree, instead of the usual 10-15 kilograms. With the help of molding, you can get the desired shape of the plant: either in the form of a bush or in the form of a tree. For each of the varieties of this plant, there are necessary recommendations on the shape of the crown. The yield does not depend on the chosen form, but the durability of the tree is greater than that of the bush. The height of the bush does not exceed 2 meters, the height of the tree can reach 6 meters, if it does not interfere with growth, respectively, the collection of fruits from a sea buckthorn bush is easier than from a tree.

To form a tree, the top is cut off from an annual seedling, leaving 3-4 buds. This is done in the spring, before the buds swell. In the second year of life, the plants pinch off the top, due to which branching will form on the main shoot. In subsequent years, all excess shoots are cut from the trunk of the tree, not forgetting that wounds on sea buckthorn heal more slowly than on other trees, so it is not recommended to make many cuts.

To form a bush, the top is cut off in the first year, leaving 4-5 buds. In the second year, everything is cut off, leaving only 3-5 skeletal branches growing evenly from the lower buds.

At the age of about 7 years, in order to prevent the sea buckthorn from growing too much in height, the upper part is cut to the height of a three-year-old tree.

As the plant becomes old, usually over 12 years old, the annual growth decreases and the yield decreases accordingly. Experts recommend cutting down such a plant. After pruning, sea buckthorn quickly produces stump shoots. This is done to rejuvenate the plant. After that, it continues to grow and bring a good harvest.

Also, annually, throughout the life of the plant, preventive pruning is carried out. This is also done in early spring, before the buds swell. With this procedure, all damaged and dry branches are cut out.

Sea buckthorn is a very useful berry that contains a huge amount of vitamin C. And it is also a wonderful, almost year-round, garden decoration, pleasing to the eye with its sunny color until late winter, until birds peck at the berries.

Take care of the plant properly, and it will delight you for many years. If your garden is located in Moscow or in the Moscow region, then the Sovereign company will always be happy to help you with this, because our company provides services for pruning fruit trees and other gardening services at a professional level.

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Sea buckthorn is capable of annually producing a bountiful harvest of very useful berries. But in order to achieve maximum success, you need to know the rules of planting.

Each fruit crop has its own distinctive features to be considered.

Sea buckthorn is best planted in the country in the spring, in which case the plant will have time to get stronger before the onset of cold weather.

Spring planting is usually carried out in late March - early April. It is during this period that the soil is sufficiently moistened, and the shrub is at rest.

But for seedlings with a closed root system, autumn planting may also be acceptable. Its terms vary from the end of September to the beginning of October. An important condition is a comfortable temperature of +4 degrees.

Sea buckthorn is planted after leaf fall, so that the seedling can spend all its strength not on natural processes, but on taking root in a new place.

If the planting dates of the bush were missed, then the seedlings need to be dug into the ground so that they can overwinter for subsequent cultivation. To do this, at the highest point of the site, they dig a groove 50-60 centimeters high, and put the seedlings there.

The crown should lie in a southerly direction, this position will help avoid sunburn. Then the hole is sent with earth and carefully watered.

As soon as the cold comes, the plant is completely buried in soil., leaving only the tips of the branches on the surface. To protect against rodents from above, such a structure is covered with spruce branches.

After the appearance of snow, it is carefully compacted around the seedling to create additional protection. When digging several seedlings at once, roots should not be allowed to intertwine.

Advantages and disadvantages spring and autumn planting of sea buckthorn:

	pros	Minuses
Spring	when spring planting sea buckthorn, the first crop will appear a year earlier; the root system of the tree will have time to fully grow stronger before the onset of cold weather, so there is a lower risk of death of the young; for spring planting, you can prepare a pit in advance and it will have time to infuse, such a factor significantly affects the fertility of the soil, and hence the future harvest; during this period it is very easy to isolate those plants that do not take root well in a new place and require additional care.	one of the main criteria when choosing the time for planting is the biological dormancy of the plant. In the spring, it is quite difficult to correctly guess the time so that the tree has time to adapt to a new place before the onset of sap flow; spring seedlings must be looked after very carefully, protecting them from heat and drought; when buying a seedling in the spring, you will have to be content with a small assortment.
Autumn	in autumn, a wide selection of seedlings is presented, they can be evaluated by the quality of foliage and other criteria that are not available in spring. Also, many sellers offer to taste the fruits of the trees they sell; during this period, the price of planting material is significantly reduced; in autumn, you have to spend less time watering the plant and other care; trees planted in autumn will begin to grow 2-3 weeks faster than spring ones.	frosts have a detrimental effect on the root system of sea buckthorn, as well as the wind, which can easily break off young branches; in winter, the plant is very often attacked by rodents, a small sea buckthorn may not withstand the invasion of various animals.

Basic rules for autumn and spring planting a bush in the country

Many novice gardeners believe that there is no difference between spring and autumn planting and transplanting sea buckthorn. But it is worth remembering that these two procedures have significant differences, which are the following features and rules of seasonal planting.

For spring work adhere to the following recommendations:

Planting is carried out before the onset of hot weather, so do not rely on a predetermined framework. The gardener must carefully monitor the air temperature in the region and choose the most favorable period.
When planting, organic fertilizers, such as manure, are used.
Immediately after planting, young plants need careful care, which consists in timely watering and protection from the scorching sun.
To accelerate the growth of sea buckthorn, as well as the appearance of young shoots, various growth activators can be used.

During autumn work adhere to the following rules:

Particular attention should be paid to checking the condition of the root system of the seedling. Diseased plants most likely will not be able to take root in a new place.
If the planting dates were missed and the cold came, then the sea buckthorn is added dropwise before the onset of spring.
During this period, manure should not be used as fertilizer, as it can damage the roots of the plant.
In order for the tree to survive the winter, it must be carefully covered using various improvised means, such as spruce branches, paper, film, blankets, snow, etc.
To protect from the wind, sea buckthorn is tied to a peg, which will serve as a support and protection.

Selection and preparation of soil and seedlings for cultivation

Buying a seedling of sea buckthorn, you need to pay attention to its root system and crown. They should be free of mechanical damage and signs of disease.

To obtain varietal planting material, it is best to choose a seedling obtained after vaccination. Sea buckthorn, grown from seeds or obtained with the help of root shoots, most often does not inherit the characteristics of parent plants.

In order for the plant to absorb atmospheric nitrogen, nodules can form on its roots. Such growths are natural for sea buckthorn and should not be removed!

In order to get a harvest of sea buckthorn, it is worth remembering that she needs an additional pollinator in the form of a male variety the same culture. The most popular of them are Aley and Gnome.

There are several signs by which you can determine the sex of the plant:

the male plant has large buds with 5-7 scales;
in a female plant, the buds are elongated, with 2-3 scales.

How to distinguish between male and female sea buckthorn trees:

If there is not enough space on the site for planting both the female and male varieties, you can graft the male plant onto the female.

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Before planting, seedlings must be prepared:

in the autumn, all foliage is removed;
before planting, the roots of the seedling are dipped in a clay mash;
if the root system is dry, it must be moistened by placing it in a container of water for about 2-3 hours.

Choosing where to plant this tree

Every culture has its preferences regarding habitat. Important factors may be the composition of the soil, climatic conditions, etc.:

the natural habitat of sea buckthorn is sandy or pebbly soils on the shore of a reservoir;
prefers neutral or alkaline soils;
this crop has good drought tolerance, but timely soil moisture will contribute to a good harvest;
unacceptably high occurrence of groundwater;
sea buckthorn loves sunlight very much, the shade can adversely affect the health and fruiting of the plant;
strong winds also have a detrimental effect, so gardeners most often choose the south side of the site;
such a culture does not tolerate neighborhood with other plants because of its sprawling root system, which is only 30-40 centimeters deep, but can reach several meters in diameter. Therefore, for sea buckthorn, the edge of the site, the territory along the fence or buildings are usually allocated.

How to plant in open ground

Regardless of landing time, a pit for a seedling must be prepared in advance. For the spring period, preparation is carried out in the fall, and for the autumn period, about a month before the start of work.

In this case, the soil will have time to infuse, it will become more nutritious and fertile.

The depth and width of the pit should be 40-50 centimeters. When digging it, the upper (fertile) and lower layers of soil are folded separately.

Then fertile soil mixed with:

1 bucket of humus;
1 bucket of river sand;
200 grams of superphosphate;
800 grams of wood ash.

When carrying out work on planting sea buckthorn, you need to act very carefully so as not to damage the fragile root system of the plant.

during planting, the seedling is carefully placed in a hole, after which it must be sprinkled with earth;
the root neck should be 5-7 centimeters above ground level;
at the final stage, the soil around the plant is abundantly watered and mulched with peat or sawdust.

In the first 2-3 years after planting, sea buckthorn does not require additional fertilizers., at this stage, it will have enough of those nutrients that were introduced during planting.

One of the most important factors is soil moisture, so the gardener must make sure that the soil does not dry out and so that moisture does not stagnate in it.

To a young tree like never before Need help with insect and rodent control. The use of chemicals can affect the quality of the fruit, so it is best to use various biological additives or mechanical means in the form of special traps.

In the first years of life, you need to help the plant form the correct shape of the crown., for this, branches that grow in the wrong direction are removed, and diseased or dry shoots are also cut off. This procedure is carried out in the spring, before the formation of buds or in the fall, after leaf fall.

Features and care of sea buckthorn:

Sea buckthorn requires the most careful pruning in the 4th-5th year of life.. At this time, the plant is actively growing, so it is very important to properly form its crown.

For this in early spring, before the first buds appear shoots that grow parallel to the trunk are removed, it is also necessary to cut fruit-bearing branches, because an excessive number of berries on a tree can adversely affect its development and growth.

Another type of pruning is called sanitary. It is usually carried out autumn, after leaf fall. During this procedure, the following work is performed:

remove all dry and diseased branches, also clean the plant from dry foliage or dried uncollected fruits;
all places of cut are obligatory processed with garden pitch;
when a fungus is found, it is cut off and the affected area is treated with antiseptics.

How to cut and shape sea buckthorn in the garden:

How to transplant: simple rules for transplanting shrubs

The rules for transplanting sea buckthorn are not much different from the initial planting plants. The most preferred period is the spring to transplant the plant, but autumn can also be suitable for this procedure.

In the spring, the tree will be able to quickly get used to the new environment and recover from the work done, but in the fall (especially in the Urals and Siberia) there is a risk of sea buckthorn freezing due to lack of time for survival.

Given the structural features of the root system of such a tree, many gardeners recommend not replanting adult sea buckthorn at all, because there is a high risk of damaging its roots.

Despite the fact that sea buckthorn is one of the most useful berries, many gardeners grow such a tree or shrub for ornamental purposes.

From this it can be concluded that sea buckthorn not only brings fruits rich in chemical composition, but also is an adornment of any site.

As a rule, sea buckthorn is grown either as a bush or as a tree. A tree can reach a height of five meters, a shrub - 3-4 m. Both options are difficult to collect fruits. No matter how hard they try to breed less prickly varieties, there are still sharp thorns. Therefore, it is better to form a female plant with a low crown, it is necessary to focus on the growth of a gardener with a raised hand. The male plant is quite acceptable to let go in height, in this case, pollination will be of better quality. For some reason, many articles indicate that pruning is done in early spring before the buds swell. Based on experience, I can assure you that the later pruning of sea buckthorn did not affect the harvest, moreover, with blossoming buds, it is easier to find dried, frozen branches, notice broken ones and correct the situation in time.

The task of the gardener in caring for sea buckthorn in the spring is to remove dry, fruit-bearing branches, lower the crown so that at the end of summer it is possible to harvest without effort. Sea buckthorn twigs, which were hung with berries and are called cobs, have already given up all their strength, as a rule, they dry up by next spring. Therefore, they must be removed in the first place. Sometimes they are cut along with the berries and stored in the freezer of the refrigerator. But I consider the advice to leave them on a tree, and collect them after frosts, unacceptable (there are such “tips”). In this case, after thawing, the berries change their taste not for the better.

To trim the branches and branches of sea buckthorn, you will need tools - a lopper and pruner, as well as any garden shears.

I already noted in one of the works that I would like to note the excellent tool for pruning branches - purchased in the summer of 2017.

Lightweight, comfortable, palm-sized, cuts quickly without effort. I regret that I did not ask the name of the seller of the garden tools department in Moscow, on whose recommendation I also purchased garden shears and rakes there, I am very pleased with the purchase.

Sea buckthorn wood is soft, no great efforts are needed, chopped branches rot very quickly.

The main conclusion on pruning male trees: we cut dry, inconveniently located, ugly, everything to your taste, you can remove the tops. Only the flowering middle should be left. When propagating by sea buckthorn shoots, no one is immune from mistakes. Only last season I was able to recognize the sex of the plant. Even now, the ends of the branches have buds that do not differ from the female ones, only the buds on the branches of past years say that they are male.

In the shoots that all sea buckthorn gives, the buds are completely inexpressive: they consist of two covering scales. Therefore, it is so often possible to make a mistake when buying seedlings (it is better to take 2-3-year-old ones, closer to the main stem - in the branches - the buds can be recognized).

For further cultivation, it is necessary to leave the strongest shoot, cut off the rest.

spring pruning of the male sea buckthorn plant is to remove the apical shoots to reduce the crown, sanitary removal of broken, shrunken, frostbitten branches. It is necessary to remove and rubbing against each other, unsuccessfully located. The central shoots must be removed before branching, we choose the height that is convenient for ourselves. If the male specimen is grown as a tree, does not interfere with anyone, then it is permissible not to touch it, but then one must put up with dry branches spoiling the aesthetic appearance. We removed our "man" a week ago, he did his job (5 females) for ten years. Now, due to my inattention, two male specimens are sitting next to each other. We will leave them for this season, and then we will choose one.

In the upper left corner of the photo - crushed sea buckthorn branches. It is advisable to clean the trunks of dry twigs and thorns, this is more convenient than fearing for your safety. The right tree has deep cracks in the bark, as a rule, sea buckthorn itself heals wounds. There are 2 trees on the left, I decided for too long which one to choose, left both, but removed the branches between them. I hoped that these were “girls” ... By the way, the grass was not mowed in the fall, now you just need to add any mulch on top of the soil, this will be sufficient nutrition for sea buckthorn. Behind a row of sea buckthorn - a bulk bed - a shaft (potato tops, stalks of pumpkin, zucchini, cuttings of branches, dry nettle shoots, angelica trunks and much more). All this is covered with a small layer of earth. A lot has grown here. So we win back landing places from the swamp, because here is a lowland, a slope to the right to the river.

There are always a lot of dry branches on the female sea buckthorn plant, therefore, without pruning, it has an untidy and unkempt appearance. In addition, dry branches create shading for fruit-bearing plants and can hide diseases and pests.

Right now, when the buds are puffed up, you can consider all the dry and extra branches. This is a young tree, but last season it bore fruit well. In order to reduce the crown, it is also necessary, as in the case of the male, to remove the central shoots to a convenient branching. Another option is to remove the central shoot (it is vertical in the top photo), then the remaining branches can be formed in a horizontal plane.

At the left one, it is necessary to remove the stumps lower, so it’s not worth leaving, and, by mulching, raise the level of the soil. In no case should weeding, the roots are located very close to the surface.

The old female sea buckthorn tree can still be used this season, but a new shoot can be prepared to replace it.

Unlike apple, plum, pear, these “tops” do not need to be removed from sea buckthorn, unless there are too many of them, with their help we will prolong the life of the female tree and its fruiting.

main conclusion: remove dry branches, leave alive.

This tree is heavily pruned after a bountiful harvest in 2017. It could even be cut off to the second fork. A vertical shoot caught on a fork in the branches. Just at this lower fork, it is worth cutting off the central trunk. This is the variety "Gift of Moscow State University" - the thorns are soft, but there are enough thorns at the ends of the branches. This variety is very good for wet winters in the northwestern regions, which cannot be said about Chuiskaya. She wakes up early and, believing that spring has come, falls under frost.

All such small last year's branches must be removed, there will no longer be berries on them. A plentiful harvest on the branches of sea buckthorn is a difficult test for her.

And for the gardener? Collecting such berries in a dense "cob" is also difficult. It is these branches that will die. A sea-buckthorn tree with a crown cleared of dry branches and unnecessary thorns, with an intricate curved trunk - which is not a decoration of the garden, contrary to popular belief. And we will get healthy products from sunny berries - juice, oil, sea buckthorn with honey and marshmallow.

I hope that I talked about pruning, it is clear that everything that has been said will be useful to novice sea buckthorn lovers.

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Even very cold winters are tolerated by sea buckthorn without loss. But in the spring, some of the branches die off. Especially small twigs that were covered with fruits last year. This is a natural phenomenon and should not be afraid of it. But if you do not interfere in this process, then the branches of the first order will quickly become bare. As a result, the crop will focus on the ends of the branches and the number of fruits will greatly decrease.

To prevent exposure, after three years of fruiting, the central conductor is cut at a height of 2 m. You can do this together with the fruits. As a result, all the food will go to the skeletal branches and many tops will appear on them, giving a bountiful harvest for the next year.

A lot of tops are formed after such pruning. Some grow down, others up, others to the sides. The last two spinning tops develop cobs from berries. They must be pruned, otherwise the tree will be greatly depleted from abundant fruiting and may dry out.

Tops directed upwards are usually left. In a couple of years they will turn into a whorl - that is, a branch covered with whole ears of fruit. Such branches with fruits can weigh up to 10 kg, which cannot but please the gardener.

It happens that a top directed upwards is located on a horizontal branch. Spinning tops located at the end of a branch develop better. They should be left for the next three years, waiting until they give the most abundant harvest. The rest of the tops must be removed one per year, starting from the end of the branch. Otherwise, they will take the juice from the tree, and give a poor harvest.

Sea buckthorn wounds heal quickly. Therefore, extra branches can be removed without pity.

With the correct formation of sea buckthorn, you can get 30 kg of fruit from a tree instead of the usual 10-12 kg.

However, no pruning can replace competent tree care, especially timely watering. In other words, if the sea buckthorn is neither alive nor dead, then pruning will not be able to stir the tree. The soil under sea buckthorn should be watered along the entire periphery of the crown. And you can’t dig it up, as you can easily damage the roots and infect them.

We must not forget about a very important moment for sea buckthorn - pollination. If there is no “man”, then the harvest from the tree can be only a couple of glasses per season.