What to Do About Early Decline in Peach Trees? Cause Analysis and Control Measures

Peach trees are one of the easier fruit trees to grow and are planted over a fairly wide area, but during peach cultivation, early decline of peach trees often occurs, seriously affecting peach yields and bringing considerable economic losses to fruit growers. So what causes early decline in peach trees? And how should it be controlled? Let's take a look together.

I. Causes of Early Decline

1. Waterlogging and root suffocation

The rainy season is heavier in the south, especially in areas at higher altitude, where cloudy and foggy weather is more common and humidity is higher. For [peach trees], which like light and fear dampness, have a relatively shallow root distribution and strong aerobic requirements, if dampness is not dealt with in time, root growth and development will be seriously affected, and root suffocation may even occur, causing the tree to decline early and die.

2. Fertilizer deficiency

The soil in the south is mostly acidic. If the planting holes are dug and the base fertilizer applied below standard, and there is also a lack of soil improvement, the root system of the peach tree cannot adapt to growth. In addition, inconvenient transportation in the orchard, no long-term application of organic fertilizer, a bias toward chemical fertilizer, or even no fertilization for many years, will lead to soil compaction and extremely poor permeability, causing physiological diseases in peach trees, such as yellow leaf disease, little leaf disease, fruit shriveling disease and so on, resulting in early defoliation of peach trees and, in severe cases, normal early decline and death.

3. Letting trees grow unchecked

Peach trees grow vigorously and generally enter the full fruit-bearing period four years after planting, but they are also relatively prone to early decline, especially when fertilizer and water are insufficient. If they bear too much fruit and flowers and fruits are not thinned in time, or if they are left to grow unchecked without timely pruning, then due to the influence of apical dominance, the phenomenon of a strong upper canopy and a weak lower canopy will occur, causing the inner branches to die, leading to early decline and death.

4. Improper control

Because of the effects of wind and rain, the tree body suffers damage and mechanical injury, but if this is not dealt with in time, and in winter the [orchard] is not thoroughly [cleaned] and no protective agent is applied, all of these will cause early decline in peach trees.

II. Control Measures

First of all, water and fertilizer management must be done well. Water promptly during drought, and carry out drainage measures during the rainy season to avoid waterlogging and root suffocation that cause early decline of the plants. Before planting, apply organic fertilizer or farmyard manure to improve soil structure and increase permeability, which is beneficial to root growth. During the growing period, topdress in time, preferably with human excrement and urine and compound fertilizer. After peach trees enter the full fruit-bearing period, expand the planting holes and improve the soil to improve the permeability of the orchard and create good conditions for root growth and development, thereby delaying senescence. During the growth of peach trees, prune promptly and repeatedly every year, among which winter pruning is relatively important; prune reasonably according to the root system and tree vigor to control canopy density, shorten the transport distance, reduce apical dominance, increase the photosynthetic area of leaves, and create favorable conditions for promoting flower bud differentiation and increasing the fruit-setting rate the following year. During the growing period, promptly remove excess young shoots to increase effective photosynthesis in the canopy. For water sprouts, promptly [remove them] and take measures such as girdling so that they form fruiting branches, while reasonably thinning flowers and fruits.

The above is an introduction to the causes of early decline in peach trees and control measures. We hope it can help you. To learn more related knowledge, please stay tuned to us.