When and how correctly to collect a plum from a tree?

In every garden, there is a culture called plum. The fruits of these trees are very tasty and juicy, but, unfortunately, do not differ with a long shelf life.

thereforeit is very important to know the maturity and harvesting rules.

Also considerable damage can cause premature shedding of fruits, which can be prevented, knowing some tricks.

In which month can you harvest from a tree: in the Urals, in Siberia and the Middle Russia

Varieties of plums differ in different maturation periods. Harvesting can begin in July, and this process will end in September-October.

Early plum varieties- their maturity period falls on the end of July - the beginning of August. Such trees give abundant harvests. The brightest representatives are: Morning, Opal, Renkold, Record, Red ball and Zarechnaya early.

Medium-ripening plum varieties- such fruits are distinguished by excellent taste and aroma. The period of their ripening lasts from mid-August to mid-September.

Experienced gardeners distinguish the following varieties: Blue Gift, Busy, Sukhanov, Mashenka, Romain and Souvenir of the East.

Late plum varieties- Such fruits are most often used for conservation, begin to mature at the end of August and harvest fruits until the middle of September.

The most popular varieties are: Renkold Tambovsky, Bogatyrskaya, Zhiguli, Svetlana and the President.

The Urals and Siberia are significantly different in climatefrom the central and southern regions of Russia. The plum ripening period and harvesting in the Urals and Siberia falls on the end of August - beginning of September.

I also want to note that very often because of lack of heat and light, plums do not ripen to full ripeness.

The harvest period does not depend on the color of the fruit. The maturity term determines the plum variety, not its color.

How to properly remove fruits, so they are stored longer?

For,so that the plum crop is preserved as long as possible, it is necessary to adhere to the following rules during the collection of fruits.

Compliance with this rule will save considerable time and effort, as well as increase the shelf life of the plum. It is much easier to harvest the fruits already dry than to prepare them for a long time.

If you collect the plum, once the fruits begin to form, this process will prevent shedding and significantly increase the amount of harvest.

During the harvesting of fruits in the country,they should not be soft, to the right degree this fruit can mature in a dry and warm place.

From the influence of the external environment, the plum protects the wax coating on the peel, so if it is not damaged, the shelf life will be much longer.

What to do: do not once again touch the fruit, during removalthey should be cut off together with the peduncleor use scissors.

The technology of harvesting is simple, but many ignore this sequence, because of what yet not removed from the branches of fruit will be unsuitable for storage or transportation.Begin collecting plums from the lower branches, moving from the edge of the branch to the trunk.

To collect fruits from the top of the tree,it is recommended to use a ladder or step-ladder. In no case can not get up on the branch.

Such actions entail not only damage to the tree, but also can cause serious damage to health in the form of bruises, abrasions and even fractures.

Alsoyou can not shake a tree, because the fallen fruits will not be able to lie down for a long time, such plums can either be eaten immediately or used for making compotes, jam or juices.

To preserve the fruits for up to 2 months, they need to create comfortable conditions for them. To begin with, they are neatly folded, without causing mechanical damage and not wiping away the wax coating.

The best containers are wooden boxes or plastic trays lined with paper. Then you need to provide a comfortable temperature from 0 to -2 degrees and a humidity of 85%.

Alldamaged plums can not be stored, they very quickly begin to deteriorate and rot.

The crop ripens heterogeneously, soto remove fruits is best in 2-3 sessions.

Why does the plum fall early?

Very often it happens that the fruits, not waiting for full maturity, begin to fall from the tree. Because of this, you can lose most of the crop, so it is very important to know the causes of plum dropping. Why do the fruits fall?

Lack of nutrients in the soilcan lead to complete shedding of fruits. Fertilize the plum tree follows a special scheme. Also, if you examine trees in time, you can identify which component is missing.

In that case,when there is little potassium in the soil, the branches become weaker and can not withstand the weight of the ripened fruit.

When in the soil a small amount of nitrogen, plums can not keep up at all, because because of the lack of this component the tree starts to grow more slowly, the leaves turn yellow, the ovaries form too small and quickly crumble.

The root system of the plum is located very close to the surface of the earth, and because of this, watering the tree needs much more often.Lack of moisturecan lead to the crushing of fruits and to their shedding in an immature form.

Another reason for the shedding of plum can beattack various insect pests. They can harm both the tree as a whole and its fruits:

1. Plum moth- it lays its eggs in the fruits of the plum in the spring, and the young caterpillars actively begin to feed on the ovaries. Because of this, there is a significant loss of crop or its shedding in unripe form in early summer.

1. Tolsto nike- these butterflies begin to fly over a tree about a week after its flowering, laying its eggs in the fetus's bone. Caterpillars of the tolstalk devour the plum from the inside, so their actions are often difficult to determine, they remain unnoticed until the beginning of the shedding of fruits in early June.

1. Plum Sawfly- the larvae of these insects fall into the ovaries and begin to feed on flesh and not yet strengthened bones. Because of them there is a shedding of still green fruits.

What to do to prevent shedding?

In order not to lose a significant part of the plum harvest, it is necessary to properly care for the tree and to perform all necessary procedures in time.

Timely and abundant top dressingreplenish the supply of nutrients and the tree will have more strength in the formation and maturation of fruits. In addition, the fertile soil will help ripe plums, as long as possible to keep on the branches.

You also need to carefully monitor the state of the tree, and if there are signs of a shortage of a component, you will need to immediately make it.

Aridity of the soil is one of the reasons why the fruits begin to crumble. Therefore veryit is important not to miss the watering time, do not allow the soil to dry up, to correctly build a schedule for carrying out this procedure.

On average, the plum is watered 3-5 times during the entire flowering season and fruiting.

But this indicator may decrease or increase depending on the following indicators:

• amount of precipitation;
• air humidity level;
• level of groundwater occurrence;
• Also, the abundance of watering can be affected by the presence of other landings in adjacent territories.

Experienced gardeners recommend to water the plum using special trenches, which are excavated at the level of the crown. Its depth should be 40-60 centimeters.

To moisture last longer, it is necessary to mulch the ground around the trunk of the tree, not letting it dry.

Also, in order to prevent shedding of plum fruit, you need to know the control measures against insect pests.

Plum moth- in order to prevent fertilization of larvae it is recommended to hang pheromone traps on the tree at the end of May - beginning of June, which are destructive for males.

You can also use a variety of chemicals, such as "Fitoverm" or "Carbophos."

Tolsto nike- in order to get rid of insects, you need to process the affected trees with "Confidor" or "Dantop".

This procedure is carried out immediately after flowering and repeated after 10-15 days. For a more effective fight, you need to collect and burn all the carrion.

As a preventive measure, experienced gardeners recommend spraying a tree with water during the summer of butterflies.

Plum Sawman- to get rid of pests can be by spraying the tree with insecticides during the formation of pink buds.

Plum trees give a rich and delicious harvest, which you can begin to harvest in mid-July, and finish the harvest of fruits in late September.

To keep the plums as long as possible and prevent them from shedding, you need to follow all the above tips.