How to plant a walnut from a walnut at home. Walnut - tree of life

» Walnut

Usually it is a huge, by our standards, tree up to 25 meters it has a very indirect relation to Greece: the fruits were brought from the south, and "everything is in Greece." Surely, it also grows there, wild forms of this tree are common in Europe.

The tree looks impressive. A separately growing nut not only differs in height - its crown also reaches a diameter of 20 meters.

By European standards, it is a long-liver (second after oak)- specimens of 300-400-year-old trees are often found.

The development of a tree begins with the formation of a powerful tap root, which reaches 1.5 meters deep in the 5th year and 3.5 meters by the age of 20.

Horizontal ones do not grow immediately - they are formed after the rod, located in the surface layer of the soil at a depth of 20-50 centimeters.

The tree begins to bear fruit after 10 years of life., and from the age of 30-40, the time of full fruiting begins.

If the trees grow in groups, partially shading each other, they rarely produce more than 30 kg of yield, while a free-growing nut can produce up to 400 kg of nuts.

But such cases are rare, only a tree 150-170 years old is capable of such a harvest. Usually an adult tree 25-40 years old in Moldova gives 1500-2000 fruits or 2000-2500 in the Crimea.

Moscow region, central Russia - where else can you plant and grow walnuts

They are found in the European part from the foothills of the Caucasus to St. Petersburg where the northernmost nuts in Russia grow. But these are isolated cases, exceptions that only confirm the rule.

These trees do not freeze completely, but they do not grow to their full potential either.

The main factor determining the possibility of growing this southern tree is not at all the winter sub-zero temperature. The sum of average daily temperatures above 10 degrees is taken into account. It cannot be less than 190 C.

If in winter the temperature does not drop below -36 degrees and for 130-140 days a year the temperature is above 0 C, the walnut can grow and bear fruit.

The best winter hardiness was shown by hybrids of Manchurian with walnut.

When planting even the best seed material brought from the south, adaptation to a cold climate does not occur - such trees regularly freeze slightly and practically do not bear fruit.

Completely unsuitable for growing varieties from places with a humid warm climate(west and south of Ukraine, the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus).

Only nuts from eastern Ukraine, the mountains of Central Asia or the Caucasus successfully adapt to the new conditions of central Russia.

Moreover, it is better to grow a nut from the stone yourself- An imported seedling (even from the indicated regions) will be significantly inferior in terms of endurance and adaptability to new conditions.

How and when to plant and grow a tree from a seedling: conditions

It must be immediately planted in a permanent place.. It is unrealistic to transplant a 5-year-old tree already. Therefore, you need to decide to take into account all the factors and calculate the consequences.

A vigorous tree can form a dense shade over an area of ​​approximately 100 sq.m. You will have to delete this area from circulation - there is little that can bear fruit under a walnut(affects the strong overwhelming effect of the biofield of a huge tree).

On the other hand, on this square you can equip a summer recreation area - essential oils nuts keep flies and mosquitoes close.

We choose a place for planting on the edge of the garden so as not to shade other trees. The walnut is very unpretentious to soils, although it prefers loose sandy-stony soil.

The landing hole is dug with the expectation that under the roots there is a layer of stones of at least 25 centimeters.

The bottom of the landing pit must be half filled with construction debris.(broken brick, pieces of cement, crushed stone) - this technique allows you to shift the flowering time of the tree by 1-2 weeks (the stones warm up slowly, the nut starts growing a little later, skipping the frost period).

Half a bucket of ash, compost or humus is brought into the pit. The soil should not be too fertile, the nut will grow intensively and will not have time to prepare for winter.

You need to take a seedling for planting only from a trusted seller, otherwise you won’t get anything except frostbitten branches of a southern tree, you probably won’t wait for the harvest.

A walnut tree is planted only in the spring, it enters a dormant period too early and will not have time to take root before winter.

It is believed that a walnut planted by hand from a bone will grow into a tree practically adapted to new conditions, which will develop successfully.

Seeds are planted in autumn directly into the ground to a depth of 7-10 cm.. It is advisable to lay sideways on the seam in the soil. spring planting requires 2-3 months of stratification in wet sand.

Special care for seedlings is not required - in middle lane even walnuts have no pests.

How to plant an annual walnut seedling:

Care after planting: spring, summer and autumn

How to care? Walnuts may only need watering in spring and early summer. when there is an intensive growth of green mass. Usually the tree has enough soil reserve of winter moisture.

Water only young trees up to 5-7 years old, if it is completely dry.

The tap root system of the southern tree is adapted to find water in the lower horizons. After 10 years of age, watering the walnut should generally be forgotten.

For him, excess moisture threatens too active growth., to the detriment of maturation and preparation of wood for winter. Freezing after a wet summer is guaranteed.

In addition to stopping watering, care must be taken to prepare the root system for winter. So, trunk circles must be mulched with any organic matter or compost:

• in summer - to preserve moisture;
• in autumn - to protect the topsoil from freezing.

In particularly cold areas, the soil is mulched with a layer of at least 10 cm, especially in areas with little snow.

It is useful to cover the trunk up to a height of about 1 m with spruce branches or wrap it with newspapers in several layers (already after the first frosts). This will help to survive -40 degrees and below.

Such shelter is necessary only in the first years. The tree must be hardened naturally.

How to properly care during the growing process: before ripening and after

Like all fruit crops, walnuts need periodic feeding.

In the spring, nitrogen fertilizers are applied, in the second half of summer - only potash and phosphorus, which are responsible for preparing the tree for winter and laying the fruit buds of the next crop.

On cultivated soil, nitrogen can not be fed at all, and phosphorus and potash fertilizers can be applied (in terms of the active substance) at 10 g / sq.m.

Practice shows that the rule applies to all cases where the nut does not grow on obvious stones and clay.

What is especially pleasing - in the middle lane walnut No natural enemies . It has already been said that flies and mosquitoes fly around it.

Moreover, walnut leaves can be cooked very effective remedy against aphids and various caterpillars, which is successfully used in Ukraine.

Completely harmless home remedy allows you to process trees and bushes with ovaries of fruits and berries.

Graft

Unfortunately, walnut cuttings do not take root - reproduction occurs only by seeds.

Vaccination is carried out in cases where:

• there is a seedling of probably winter-hardy Manchurian walnut, for which -40 in winter is not a problem;
• the planted variety did not live up to expectations - it became possible to re-graft it.

One-year-old seedlings are grafted into a split and, under control, grow in a greenhouse to a marketable appearance.

Young trees that have already produced their first few nuts can be re-grafted by the type of "eye budding"- only the bark is removed with a kidney in the form of a half-pipe (the method is called so) and combined with the same cutout on the rootstock.

Until complete healing, the vaccination site is tied with a film.

The result of grafting an adult walnut tree:

Reproduction in the country

The main method of obtaining seedlings is growing from seeds.. To simplify the process, nuts are planted without additional processing in the fall to a depth of about 10 centimeters. It is believed that it is better to lay them sideways on the seam.

Whoever did not have time to bury for the winter, put it in damp sand in the basement - the nut must pass the stratification, otherwise it will not hatch.

Walnut is renewed by stump shoots in just a year or two. These trees are able to bear fruit literally in the second year, and in 10 - already a significant harvest.

It turns out that a walnut can be successfully planted and grown in a country house in the middle lane, in the Moscow region. It is enough to follow simple rules:

• the right choice of location;
• seedling - only zoned;
• mandatory mulching of the trunk circle;
• shelter trunk from frost in the first years of life.

All this is within the power of most gardeners.. Choose a sunny location, protected from cold winds - the nut will thank you.

Walnut is a well-known culture, its fruits of an unusual shape are familiar to everyone since childhood. In addition to a pleasant specific taste, walnuts are distinguished by a high content of useful trace elements and vitamins, have a general strengthening effect on the human body, and are also widely used in cooking.

And although everyone ate walnuts, few people know that a full-fledged fruit-bearing tree can be grown from an ordinary nut. It is not difficult to do this, however, in the process of growing, it is worth considering several features of the agricultural technology of this crop.

Selection and preparation of seed

The choice of seeds for growing walnuts is not an easy task. It is best to stock up on seed in autumn period when it is most likely to meet fresh harvest nuts on the counter. Of these, you should choose a few large, intact, well-ripened specimens. At the same time, one should not forget that very often walnuts go on sale pre-roasted or dried at high temperatures in industrial conditions - such seeds are not suitable for germination. The variety of walnut for sowing depends on where the future tree will grow. For growing an ornamental indoor plant, this is unprincipled - seeds of any variety are suitable, and for cultivation in open ground - only the fruits of zoned plants. This is due to the fact that the southern trees will not withstand the harsh climatic conditions the middle zone, and their northern counterparts adapted to them will die in the too hot climate of the southern regions. Presowing preparation of walnuts is carried out in the following order:

• Seeds are laid flat in a suitable size dish (plastic container, wooden box).
• Nuts are covered with wet sand.
• Dishes with seed are cleaned in a cool place with a temperature of 0 to +5 ° C (frost-free basement or cellar, lower shelf of the refrigerator). The stratification time is 3–4 months.
• At least once every 3-4 weeks, dishes with seeds are taken out to ventilate and moisten the sand.
  The seeds prepared in this way, after the allotted period, are removed from the sand and begin to sow them in the ground.

Seeding rules

The best time for planting a walnut is the second half of April. For this purpose, you should choose a voluminous pot or tub. The soil for planting should be fertile, with good aeration. You can prepare it yourself from soddy land, peat and humus, mixed in a ratio of 1: 1: 1. Further, sowing is carried out in the following sequence:

• The landing tank is 1/3 filled with a drainage layer.
• The prepared soil mixture is poured over the drainage layer.
• The walnut is planted to a depth of 7–8 cm with the end part (where the groove is) down.
• The soil is abundantly moistened.
• The container is placed in a warm, well-lit place. To speed up germination, crops can be covered with glass or polyethylene.

The first shoots appear after 10-12 days. Them further development depends on how competently the care of them will be organized.

Features of seedling care

Caring for a walnut is not difficult, but you should pay special attention to some points:

A year after sowing, young walnut seedlings are transplanted: home - into a larger container, street - in the garden, on a pre-selected site. Young trees grown by seed begin to bear fruit 5–7 years after sowing.

Transplantation and crown formation

Since in nature the walnut has the form of a powerful sprawling tree, it is possible to limit its size with the help of forming pruning. The crown of a tub tree can be given any shape by carrying out the procedure for 3-4 years, starting from the second year of development. Subsequently, old, too thin and weakened shoots, as well as "tops" (branches growing vertically) are pruned. A similar sanitary and cosmetic procedure is carried out twice a year - in early spring and late autumn.

In the first 3–4 years, the walnut is shown an annual transplant into a pot, the volume of which is 8–10 cm larger than the previous one. During the procedure, the root system is cut by one tenth, choosing old and rotten roots. Trees that have reached the age of five are transplanted once every 3–5 years, annually pouring fresh fertile soil under the base of the trunk.

When planting a walnut tree in open ground the question of choosing a place for it deserves special attention. Walnut is highly discouraged from planting near residential buildings and outbuildings, since a powerful root system that grows over the years can even break the capital foundation. Also, you should not plan long-term plantings near a walnut tree - not all plants can survive in the shade of its dense crown.

So, following the recommendations outlined above, from a small walnut familiar to everyone, you can grow it as a charming indoor plant for decorating the interior, and a mighty walnut tree that can live for more than 600 years and please more than one generation with a harvest of delicious fruits.

There are two options for planting a walnut: seedlings and seeds (nuts). Let's consider each of the options in more detail:

• seedlings.

In order to plant a tree in your area, you need to get a seedling. It can be purchased at specialized points of sale or you can take a young shoot of a plant from friends. If you buy a seedling, then pay attention, firstly, to the bark - it must be without damage. Second, take a look at the root system - the main root should be intact. Only a strong two-three-year-old seedling, with a trunk thickness of at least 1 cm, is able to quickly take root and avoid various diseases.

As for the landing time, there is no consensus here. Some gardeners argue that planting should be done only in the fall, since at this time the sap flow slows down in the tree, and therefore it is easier for even a weak seedling with bark disorders to take root and avoid infection. Other gardeners believe that planting a walnut in the spring is the only right option. Moreover, planting work must be carried out in early spring until the buds swell. Since there is no consensus, it is worth focusing on climate zone in which the site is located. So, the inhabitants of the southern regions, thanks to the warm climate, even in winter, plant seedlings better in autumn, it is better for residents of the northern regions to do planting work in early spring - a young tree planted for the winter may not endure severe frosts and die. The inhabitants of the middle lane are the best of all, since they can plant seedlings both in early spring and late autumn: in this case, a young tree has an equal chance to take root and grow.

Planting a seedling is carried out as follows: in the chosen place, holes are prepared with a depth of about 50-60 cm, with a diameter of 1 m. Potash and phosphate fertilizers, humus, lime are laid in the pits, after which the future tree is placed in them so that its root collar is 3-5 cm above the ground. The hole is covered with earth, which must be tightly tamped around the plant, and then carry out abundant watering.

Growing walnuts from seeds

Planting a walnut with seeds is more laborious, but interesting in terms of at least a country experiment. To get started, select planting material. For planting, we select only high-quality nuts, the shell of which is neither too soft nor too hard. In addition, the shell should not be damaged, and the nuts themselves should be large enough.

It is curious that opinions on the preparation of nuts for planting vary quite a lot - some believe that in order to ensure germination it is necessary to remove the outer shell, while others are sure that nuts should be planted only in their original form. Alas, the long-standing dispute has not yet been put to an end, therefore, if you are planting a walnut for the first time, you can use both methods. The only condition that is equally suitable for both methods is the choice of seeds. The easiest way to do this is by placing the nuts in a container of water. Some of the seeds will go under water, some will remain on the surface. And despite the fact that both are suitable for planting, sunken seeds have a much higher chance of germinating, since they have a solid and large core. By the way, this method is perfect for selecting peeled seeds, but it must be used only if the shell is not damaged.

Then you can go one of two ways: the first is to plant the selected material in pots or special containers, and in a couple of years, with proper care, you will have an excellent seedling ready for transplanting into open ground. The second option is to plant prepared nuts immediately in open ground.

When planting a nut in pots, the following must be done: 4 months before planting, it is necessary to place the nut in wet sand and make sure that the environment in which the planting material is placed does not dry out, but is not too wet either.

A container with sand and nuts planted in it must be placed in a cool place. Ideally, if this is the bottom shelf of the refrigerator, or you can use the basement or, in the end, the balcony.

Thus, the nuts undergo stratification, which improves their germination, and later the fruiting of the tree. When it's time to plant a nut, you need to get it out and place it in a pot with prepared fertile soil, deepening by 4-5 cm. The plant does not require specific care, within two years it is necessary to carry out timely watering, loosening the soil, and removing weeds.

On the question of how to plant a walnut in open ground in the middle lane, all gardeners agree that if you place the seeds to a depth equal to their greater length, then they will simply not survive not only winter, but even spring frosts (if landing for some reason is done in the spring).

The deepening of nuts is carried out to a depth of 1/2 - 2/3 of a spade bayonet, since this is the only way to protect it from extreme exposure to low temperatures. And only in the southern regions the rule of choosing the planting depth for a large seed length is relevant. But in the northern latitudes, planting in the autumn is out of the question, and you will have to deal with germination at home.

When planting in open ground, the seeds are placed three at a time, with a distance between them of 12-15 cm. In this way, the best germination can be ensured, but if all three sprout, then after two years you will have to choose one, the strongest seedling, and the rest either deposited in other places, or removed altogether.

Soil preparation

Of course, you can’t sow seeds anywhere, since good germination, confident growth and fruiting seriously depend on how correctly the place was chosen and how well it was prepared.

First of all, it should be remembered that the plant is thermophilic, and therefore you will have to choose the land from well-insolated places in the backyard. In addition, the walnut does not tolerate crowding, because there should not be tall trees and shrubs around the future tree (like pears, apple trees, overgrown cherries), but small shrubs (currants, raspberries, gooseberries) within a radius of at least three meters may already be present . Walnut planting interval - at least 10 meters.

Soil preparation is quite simple, but prolonged. It begins in late spring with a deepening of the fertile layer - the soil is removed to a depth of 0.7-1 m and a width of 0.5 m. A fertile soil layer taken from the same area is poured into the resulting pit. Further, throughout the entire time until late, the planting site is loosened to improve aeration and remove weeds.

Finally, it should be said that even with careful observance of all the conditions and rules, the taste and abundance of the harvest on a new tree can seriously differ from the mother tree, both for better and for worse, and even seedlings grafted in nurseries are not a guarantee of tasty and large walnuts. However, even if the fruits disappoint you, the tree itself will become an excellent decoration of the site, besides, from its seeds it will be possible to make attempts to achieve your goal again and again.

Walnut has long ceased to be something outlandish in central Russia. To date, many breeding varieties have been bred, adapted to both frost and drought. Grow on your own personal plot beautiful and strong tree, giving good harvests healthy fruits, every gardener can. In this case, it is not necessary to buy ready-made seedlings, but you can plant a nut with seeds. When choosing the second method, you need to know how to germinate walnuts, how and when to plant them, and how to care for them. All this will be discussed further.

Selection of planting material

Well, let's start answering the question "how to germinate a walnut?". A successful result depends primarily on the choice of seeds for planting. The main criteria to be guided by are:

• The size of the nuts (you should take the largest possible fruits).
• The size and taste of the kernel (the nuts should be tasty, and the kernels should completely fill the shell).
• Thickness of the shell (you should opt for fruits with a thin shell).
• Maturity and quality of nuts (fruits must be fully ripe, without any damage such as blackening, congenital deformities, etc.).
• The age of the seeds (nuts for planting should be taken fresh, from the current year's crop, since last year's and the year before last's fruits lose up to 50% of their germination capacity).

Another important nuance in the topic of how to germinate a walnut at home, is the method of acquiring seeds. It should be noted right away that it is highly undesirable to do this in stores, since there is no guarantee that they will be fresh. In general, finding high-quality planting material is not so easy, but you can try your luck in vegetable tents.

The ideal option is before germinating walnuts, take them directly from the tree when they are already ripe. But you should not pick up fruits that have had time to lie on the ground for a long time.

At right choice seed you are guaranteed to receive full-fledged, high-quality and healthy seedlings.

Preparatory work

Sowing seeds is carried out in autumn or spring. it is necessary to start 1-1.5 months before the planned date of landing in the ground. Before germinating a walnut for planting, it is necessary to carry out certain preparations. Selected nuts are kept in a manganese solution for three days. After that, they are placed for the same time in some kind of plant growth stimulator, for example, "Zircon".

In the process of soaking nuts, the liquid must be changed daily, completely draining the old one. The fact is that a large concentration of tannins and essential substances formed from the shell can adversely affect how successfully and how quickly the walnut will be able to germinate.

Planting seeds

After a week water procedures planting material must be planted in a container. Before germinating walnuts, it is necessary to prepare the soil, consisting of sawdust and sand. To eliminate bacteria, sand should be calcined, and sawdust should be steamed. The resulting mixture is poured into a container to the thickness of the palm and moistened. On the resulting sand-sawdust cushion, nuts are laid “on edge”. A layer of moistened soil of the same thickness is poured on top.

The container should be placed in a warm place, but not near heating appliances. To preserve moisture in the soil, the container is covered with a film.

Seed germination

2-3 weeks after sowing upper layer the soil is carefully removed without touching the nuts to check their germination. If the shell flaps open and a small white root appears, then the seeds have sprouted. For further cultivation, the container is moved to a sunny window, where the cultivation of seedlings continues until they are transplanted into open ground.

It should be borne in mind that the timing of seed germination is far from always possible to predict. Fresh and high-quality planting material can sprout in 10-12 days, and for seeds bought in a store, it sometimes takes from 1 to 6 months. Germination rate depends on the time of collection of seeds and on storage conditions, and these indicators are often simply unknown.

For example, fallen in autumn and ripened natural way the seed, without additional stimulation with growth preparations, sprouts in open ground only in May. Artificially planted nuts germinate in containers in the second week.

Storage of planting material

If a autumn planting walnut is not planned, you can save the seeds until spring. To do this, they are buried in a container with moistened sand and left for winter storage in a dark and cool place, such as a cellar or basement.

About a month before the May planting, the nuts are transferred to a soil mixture prepared for germination, consisting of thermally treated sand and sawdust and watered with a growth stimulator. The container is taken out to a bright and warm place.

Germinated seedlings can be transplanted into open ground already in May or grown in a container until autumn and planted in October. If the seedlings are grown indoors for a long time, they must be transplanted twice a season into larger containers.

Seedlings grown in the spring must be hardened off before planting in the ground. To do this, they are taken out into the street every day for several hours. Gradually, the time spent on the street should be increased, reaching full daylight hours.

Conclusion

If you know how to germinate walnuts, follow the rules for further cultivation, feed and take care of seedlings in a timely manner, then planted in May in open ground, they grow up to 15 cm by September, and their roots increase in length up to 35 cm. nuts planted with seeds can be obtained as early as the 4-5th year after planting.

Of the seeds, it has one valuable property, namely: seedlings often surpass the parent tree in all quality indicators.

Walnut is a rather unpretentious tree. He loves light and moisture, so it grows best in southern latitudes, but recently it has taken root well in the Moscow region. There were even individual frost-resistant varieties successfully grown in Siberia and the Urals. Having learned how to grow a tree from a walnut fruit, in a few years you will be able to harvest the first crop.

Planting material preparation

Of all the fruits, only large ones with pronounced varietal qualities are suitable for planting. It is best to take nuts with a strong intact shell. Until planting, they are stored in a dry, cool room.

Start preparing the fruit for planting about 12-14 weeks in advance. To do this, place it in a box with wet sand and leave it at a temperature not exceeding +7 °C. Make sure that the room is kept at a constant low temperature, and the sand is always moist.

You can prepare the fruits in another way. Soak them for 3 days cold water don't forget to change it daily. After that, leave the fruits for another 3 days in the growth stimulator.

Growing a seedling

It is best to plant walnuts in the ground in early May. At the same time, place the fruit in the planting groove with a depth of 7-10 cm, placing it on the rib. In this position, the roots will immediately germinate in the right direction. Cover the ground above the walnut with a finger-thick layer of sand. The first shoots will appear in about 10 days. The exact timing of the emergence of seedlings depends on the variety, climatic and weather conditions. Prepare obviously more seedlings so that you have the opportunity to choose the healthiest and strongest trees later.

tree planting

A year later, the seedling can be transferred to the place of its permanent "residence". To do this, carefully dig it out along with a clod of earth. Be sure to keep the length of the tap root at least 35-40 cm.

Usually, seedlings grown from the fruit do not retain all the properties of the mother variety, so they are planted in those places where shade or protection from dust is required. To obtain high-quality walnuts, such trees have to be grafted. Due to the peculiarities of the tree structure and bark, this operation can be quite problematic, so the ability to graft a walnut is considered a sign of special horticultural skill. In some rare cases, trees grown from walnut, without any grafting, are superior in their characteristics to the mother tree. Unfortunately, you will be able to determine how lucky you are only after the ripening of the first fruits.