Seven measures to restore tree vigor after fruit trees suffer from flooding
July and August coincide with the second flower bud differentiation and fruit enlargement period of apple trees, and recently, due to heavy rainfall, some fruit-growing areas across the country have suffered disasters. How to remedy the situation after an orchard is hit by heavy rainfall.
1. Wash leaves and straighten trees. For fruit trees whose branches and leaves have been submerged in water, when the rain stops and the water recedes, race against time to clear away debris, and use the floodwater to splash and wash the contaminated branches and leaves to reduce mud stains. After the flood has fully receded, straighten the toppled fruit trees, bank up soil, and protect the roots, then once again spray and wash the remaining stains on the branches and leaves with clean water, so that the leaves can carry out normal physiological activities.
2. Clear ditches and shallow plowing. For waterlogged orchards, promptly clear and dredge the drainage ditches, drain the accumulated water, and restore the soil to a dry state, so as to avoid dead and rotted roots of fruit trees caused by water accumulation in the orchard. At the same time, orchards that have been flooded are prone to soil compaction, causing root hypoxia; shallow plowing and loosening of the soil should be carried out when the surface soil is basically dry, and shallow plowing and turning of the soil should preferably not exceed 10 cm, so as to avoid damaging the roots, thereby restoring soil permeability and promoting new roots.
3. Moderate topdressing. Orchards that have been flooded should not be fertilized immediately, because at this time the root system will be damaged to varying degrees, which limits the absorption of nutrients to a certain extent. Fruit growers can supplement nutrients by spraying foliar fertilizer after the tree vigor recovers, and the foliar fertilizer should preferably be mainly organic nutrients. Li Bingzhi reminds that the frequency of soil topdressing with quick-acting fertilizer should be determined according to the disaster situation and tree vigor, and generally 2-3 topdressings are sufficient.
4. Pruning according to the tree. Li Bingzhi said that in order to reduce water evaporation from the branches and leaves of fruit trees after a disaster and the nutrient consumption of the tree body, measures should be taken for disaster-affected orchards to control the upper part and promote the lower part, maintaining a balance between aboveground and underground growth. At the same time, fruit growers should note that the amount of pruning must be determined according to the degree of damage; in addition to heavy pruning, damaged trees should also have part or all of their fruit removed.
5. Spray pesticides in time to prevent and control diseases. Focus on preventing and controlling diseases caused by high-temperature and humid weather and various physiological diseases caused by waterlogging damage. Such as anthracnose of various fruit trees, banana leaf spot disease, litchi and longan downy blight, citrus canker, grape downy mildew and black pox, etc.
6. Harvest in time. For fruits that have entered the ripening stage, harvest in time on cloudy or sunny days to reduce losses.
7. Do a good job in flood prevention work. For orchards with high groundwater levels or low-lying terrain, a cultivation model of deep ditches and high ridges should be formed, using the orchard's perimeter ditches, middle ditches and ridge ditches, so that all ditches are connected, forming a waterlogging prevention system. For flatland orchards, the drainage ditch system should be repaired and reinforced urgently to ensure it is complete and unobstructed. For mountain orchards, the protective ditches around the orchard should be dredged, deepened and reinforced, using the protective ditch at the top as a flood collection ditch and the protective ditches on both sides as flood discharge ditches, so as to ensure the safe passage of fruit trees through the flood season.