The best methods on how to get rid of tree growth on the site
Many fruit trees have the ability to sprout. This brings many problems to the summer resident and harms the tree itself, since the yield is significantly reduced. To find out how to get rid of the overgrowth of fruit trees on the site, you first need to find out the reasons for its appearance.
What trees does it appear on?
Shoots can be found next to most fruit crops. But most often, young bushes begin to grow next to those trees that are weakened due to various factors. For example, due to temperature changes, lack or excess of nutrients in the soil. Or if these trees simply die of old age.
Most often, this problem arises when growing plum, cherry, lilac, apple, cherry plum, poplar, birch. These trees can be a lot of hassle before successfully removing the shoots from the site.
Reasons for the appearance
The most common causes of young growth:
- Exposure of the root system if the root collar was poorly buried.
- Damage to bark or branches (for example, if too many branches were cut during pruning).
- The resulting wounds after pruning (the places of the cuts must be immediately treated with garden varnish).
- Incompatibility between the scion and the stock (because of this, metabolic disorders are observed, you can notice the problem after about a year).
- Pruning the shoots (if every year you just cut off the shoots, they will not become smaller, you need to dig them out along with the root system).
Almost all the reasons due to which the tree begins to grow strongly are associated with improper care.
When should the undergrowth be removed?
Despite the fact that the overgrowth negatively affects the yield, it is not always necessary to get rid of it. Very often young bushes are used for propagation. For example, cherries and plums give very strong growth. For reproduction, 2-3-year-old shoots are used, growing at a distance of 2-4 m from the mother tree.
Removing the bushes is necessary if, because of this, the yield is greatly reduced, since all the nutrients are spent on growth.
Also, growing, the bushes take up a lot of space on the site. If you do not control their growth, after a while the garden can completely overgrow.
How to destroy the growth of trees on the site?
There are two ways to deal with this problem. The first is to destroy the bushes mechanically. The second is used if the site is heavily overgrown. This will require resorting to the use of chemicals.
Using chemicals
The destruction of shoots is used in the event that other methods are completely ineffective. This method should be used as a last resort, because during processing it is possible not only to destroy the growth, but also to harm the tree itself.
After treatment, the substances that make up the herbicides disintegrate in the soil and do not have a negative impact on the environment and plants growing nearby.
It is best to use 2,4-D amine salt to kill young shoots. The solution is applied directly to the leaves. Butyl ether effectively fights against undergrowth of fruit trees. Also effective drugs "Roundup", "Tornado", "Glukor".
Mechanically
The safest method of removal is mechanical.
Features of the destruction of processes by mechanical means:
- Shoots should be removed as soon as they began to appear, before they had time to get stronger.
- Cutting off the shoots with pruning shears will not be enough, you need to dig it out without separating it from the root system.
- Cut the stems of the shoots as close as possible to the base of the root.
- After removing the shoots, the pruning sites should be lubricated with garden varnish so that they do not start growing again.
For the procedure, sharpened secateurs are used so that no creases remain after cutting the bark system from the mother tree. Also, after that, the soil around you can be scalded with boiling water so that the shoots do not start growing again.
For example, cherries have a very specific growth system. Even if you dig up a shoot by the root, next year a few more shoots will grow in its place. So you can dig out the shoots indefinitely and not achieve any results.
You can get rid of shoots if you cut them off with a pruner. The bushes are cut at a level of 30 cm from the soil. Thanks to this method, it will be possible to "wean" the cherry to give a large amount of growth in several years.
Folk remedies
In addition to using chemicals and mechanical removal, folk remedies will come to the rescue. For example, you can plant a shady tree (chestnut or maple) nearby. These trees will prevent other plants from growing. In order to prevent shoots from appearing in this area, the soil is mulched with a thick layer of peat, sawdust or straw.
In order to prevent the appearance of unnecessary shoots, the root collar is abundantly buried with soil. Very often it is the exposure of the roots that leads to the active development of the shoots.
Prevention of the appearance
In order not to engage in overgrowth cutting every year, preventive measures can be taken in advance. A circle with a diameter of up to 1.5 m should be left near the tree. Slate is driven in next to the tree to a depth of 1.5 m. It will limit the space at the root system, and the tree will not have enough room to grow. True, shoots will appear in the very circle. There will be much less of them, and it will not be difficult to remove the shoots.
Another option is to choose varieties that are not prone to overgrowth. For cherries, these are the varieties Shokoladnitsa, Crimson, Lyubskaya.
For plums, these varieties include:
- Ochakovskaya yellow;
- Italian Hungarian;
- Common Hungarian.
Mulching the soil will also help prevent sprouting, as will occasional watering during the summer. During watering, do not make a strong stream and direct it to the root system. This leads to the exposure of the roots.
It is not recommended to dig deep into the soil near the trunk.
Digging can damage the roots. Better to weed the topsoil with a hoe.
