What should be noted when girdling a cherry tree?
Girdling a cherry tree can promote flower bud differentiation, improve the fruit-setting rate of flowers and fruit and fruit quality, and also has an obvious effect on increasing yield. However, if the timing and method of girdling are inappropriate, it will cause gummosis in the cherry tree, leading to weakened tree vigor or death. Therefore, it must be done with caution. Below, let's take a look with the editor at the precautions for girdling cherry trees.
1. Girdling time
The timing of girdling must be well controlled. Girdling too early will affect the normal growth of new shoots, while girdling too late makes the wound extremely difficult to heal and highly prone to infection by pests and diseases, causing dead branches and death. In addition, girdling too early or too late has a poor effect on promoting flowering. The best time for girdling is about half a month after flowering. At this time, most of the leaves of the planted trees can already carry out photosynthesis and can synthesize nutrients through the leaves to supply fruit growth. This can not only improve the fruit-setting rate and fruit quality, but also promote rapid wound healing. Another time is from after fruit harvest to July. Girdling at this time can control excessive vegetative growth and also promote flower bud differentiation.
2. Girdling targets
The targets for girdling cherry trees should be the main branches or secondary branches of vigorously growing plants. Generally, in production, only the main branches and secondary branches are girdled, not the trunk, so as to avoid the plant dying from lack of nutrients and water. For the main branches and secondary branches of the same plant, the girdling amount should be controlled at about one third, so as to avoid the branches dying from lack of nutrients. For plants with weaker tree vigor, girdling is not suitable.
3. Girdling method
The width of the girdle is generally one tenth of the branch diameter. Girdling should be carried out on a smooth part of the trunk. The wound should be smooth; the width may be uneven, so that during wound healing, the narrow parts can heal first, avoiding leaf chlorosis and weakened tree vigor. When girdling, be careful not to touch the exposed xylem. After girdling, wrap it promptly to prevent bacterial infection. A healing agent may also be applied to speed up wound healing.
4. Management after girdling
After girdling, strengthen fertilizer and water management for the plant to enhance tree vigor, so as to avoid weakened tree vigor. At the same time, do a good job in pest and disease control to prevent pathogens from invading. Pay attention to drainage measures during the rainy season. Do not apply fungicides near the wound, as this may make the wound difficult to heal and may even cause the wound to rot. After the wound heals, remove the wrapping promptly.
The above is an introduction to the precautions for girdling cherry trees. We hope it can help you. To learn more related knowledge, please stay tuned to us.