How Do Apple Trees Overwinter and Stay Warm? A Detailed Guide to the Latest Protection Measures
The apple is a fruit we are all familiar with, and China is the world's largest apple producer. With the arrival of winter, temperatures keep dropping, and low temperatures have an enormous impact on apple trees, very easily causing freeze damage and huge economic losses. So during production, attention must be paid to cold protection measures. Now let's take a look at overwintering cold protection measures for apple trees.
1. Irrigate with freezing water
Irrigating once thoroughly before the winter freeze can not only let the soil store sufficient moisture and raise the ground temperature, but also satisfy the transpiration of the fruit tree and prevent freeze-drought; in addition, it is also beneficial for flowering and fruiting the following year, so it can be said to serve three purposes at once. However, attention must be paid to the irrigation timing. If irrigation is too early, the temperature is relatively high, the fruit tree's evaporation is large, and it is not conducive to storing moisture, which will reduce the fruit tree's cold resistance. If irrigation is too late, the soil has already frozen, water is difficult to infiltrate downward, and the fruit tree's root system is prone to freeze damage. The suitable irrigation time is in mid-November, when the nighttime temperature is below 0 degrees, the soil is frozen, and the daytime temperature is relatively high and can thaw, making it the best irrigation time.
2. Apply overwintering fertilizer
During the decomposition process, fertilizer can release a large amount of heat, which can raise the low temperature, allow the fruit tree root system to overwinter safely, and the fertilizer can also provide nutrients to the fruit tree and increase its cold resistance. Therefore, before overwintering in winter, overwintering fertilizer should be applied. Generally speaking, the amount of overwintering fertilizer applied is determined according to the growth condition of each plant. Fertilization is generally carried out together with plowing, which can ensure that the fertility is fully absorbed by the soil and can also increase the soil's permeability, allowing it to overwinter smoothly.
3. Harvest in a timely manner
Some fruit growers, in order to increase the freshness of the fruit, do not harvest immediately after the fruit ripens and leave the fruit hanging on the tree for a period of time, which can also improve the fruit's quality. However, if harvesting is too late, it is more unfavorable to the plant's growth. Especially for late-maturing varieties, harvesting too late will cause the tree to not fully recover, the leaf nutrients cannot flow back, nutrient accumulation is relatively low, cold resistance is relatively weak, and overwintering ability is affected.
4. Whitewash or bind the trunk
After the fruit tree's leaves fall and it enters dormancy, whitewash the part of the trunk below 1.5 meters with paint or lime solution to reduce the temperature difference on the surface of the branches and trunk and reduce sunscald. In addition, young trees have relatively poor cold resistance, and whitewashing alone cannot allow them to overwinter safely, so they need to be bound with rice straw or wrapped with white plastic film to avoid freeze damage.
The above is an introduction to overwintering cold protection measures for apple trees. We hope it can help you. If you want to learn more related knowledge, please stay tuned to us.