Latest management measures for apple trees after a late spring cold snap

In recent years, late spring cold snaps have become increasingly frequent, causing many apple orchards to suffer reduced yields or total crop failure to varying degrees. If an apple orchard damaged by a late spring cold snap is left unchecked, the apple trees will show signs of nutrient deficiency and large-scale leaf drop, flower bud differentiation will be affected, and an off-year will follow the next year. So how should apple trees be handled after suffering a late spring cold snap? Follow the editor and take a look.

1. Suspend flower and fruit thinning

Orchards that have suffered a late spring cold snap should temporarily suspend flower and fruit thinning work. After fruit set has stabilized, thinning and retention should be done flexibly according to the fruit set rate, the severity of freeze damage, the quality of young fruit and tree vigor. Orchards after a late spring cold snap should make full use of late-blooming side flowers and the center fruit of axillary flower buds to preserve production and increase income. In addition, note that young fruit with mild freeze damage from early decline will develop frost ring symptoms as it grows, which affects the commercial value of the fruit, so it can be thinned as appropriate.

2. Spray plant regulators

Affected by the earlier high temperatures and late frost damage during full bloom, the quality of fruit that set in time is also far inferior to previous years. This is mainly because high temperatures lead to fewer seeds forming through apple pollination and fertilization, and late frost damaged some of the seeds. Later, the small number and poor quality of seeds may also cause physiological fruit drop. Spraying gibberellin in time can effectively increase the fruit set rate, promote young fruit enlargement and improve the commercial value of the fruit.

3. Apply topdressing to strengthen tree vigor

For orchards with varying degrees of freeze damage, the frozen young fruit and tender leaves are in a stage of restoring growth and need to consume a large amount of nutrients. According to tree vigor, high-nitrogen or balanced trace water-soluble fertilizer should be applied in time to promote root, branch and leaf growth as well as young fruit enlargement, which is of great help in restoring tree vigor and increasing yield.

4. Timely summer pruning

Because the load is reduced, many fruit trees begin to grow vigorously on branches and shoots. To avoid excessive nutrient consumption, pinching, twisting shoots and branch bending should be done in time. For fruit trees that grow too vigorously, ringing or girdling should also be done at the right time and to an appropriate degree, which helps apple flower bud differentiation. However, pinching, twisting shoots and branch bending are time-consuming and labor-intensive, while girdling can easily damage the tree. Therefore, it is recommended to combine summer pruning with plant growth retardants to control vigor and promote flowering, so as to reduce the workload and cost of summer pruning.

The above is an introduction to management measures for apple trees after a late spring cold snap. We hope it helps you. To learn more related knowledge, please follow us.