Detailed Monthly Care and Management Methods for Cherry Blossoms
Family and genus: Rosaceae, Prunus.
Scientific name: Prunus serrulata.
Common names: mountain cherry, Fukushima cherry, green-barked cherry, mountain cherry.
Habits: Cherry blossoms originated in China, Japan and Korea. They are deciduous trees with strong adaptability, preferring sunlight and a relatively humid climate. They are highly cold-tolerant, but not tolerant of waterlogging, smoke damage or saline-alkaline soil. They prefer well-drained, fertile loam with a slightly acidic pH of 5.5-6.5.
January: Pay attention to cold protection.
February: For transplanting and cultivation, keep the soil ball, take care to keep the root system intact, and appropriately prune away some branches. Some decomposed compost should be applied in advance in the planting hole.
March: For grafting propagation, mountain cherry or wild cherry is mostly used as rootstock. Cleft grafting or split grafting can be carried out before flowering, with a high survival rate. Hardwood cuttings can also be taken. Apply a light liquid fertilizer once before flowering.
April: The flowering period begins. Pay attention to intertillage and weeding, and ensure timely drainage on rainy days. Pay attention to timely pest and disease control.
May: Flowering continues. Same management work as the previous month.
June: Carry out a second round of fertilizer application to promote flower bud differentiation. After flowering, shorten the main branches at all levels, thin out weak twigs and pest- and disease-damaged branches in the inner canopy, and improve ventilation and light penetration. Pay attention to pest and disease control work.
July: Softwood cuttings can be taken. Carry out timely intertillage and weeding as well as drainage after rain.
August: Pay attention to intertillage, weeding and pest and disease control work.
September: Same management work as the previous month.
October: The tree gradually enters dormancy. Timely clear away dead branches and fallen leaves, and stop watering. Cherry blossoms differentiate flower buds from the terminal bud and several apical lateral buds of the previous year's branches, so do not cut them short; a natural tree form is usually adopted. Generally, for large trees, only dead branches, pest- and disease-damaged branches, and branches that affect the tree shape too much are pruned. When seedlings grow to 1-2 m tall, cut off the top of the trunk, and select several evenly growing buds on the trunk to train as main branches.
11th: After leaf fall, apply compost as a base fertilizer to promote the next year's growth and lay a good foundation.
December: Perform tasks such as mounding soil and cold protection.