Planting an almond tree in the garden, features of care and reproduction. Protection and preparation for winter

Belongs to the Plum family. It is often called a nut, but in biological terms it is a stone fruit, a close relative of apricot, whose seeds are also edible. Native to the Middle East and South Asia, almonds are thermophilic.

Many varieties of almonds can be cultivated only in regions where winter weather is characterized by a short-term drop in temperature to 17-22 degrees, but frosts of 25 degrees and above can destroy flower buds.

is a shrub or small tree with developed roots. The aboveground part of the plant can grow up to 11 meters, and the underground part can go deeper by five meters. The crown can have a round, pyramidal, spreading shape, and sometimes it looks like a weeping willow.

During flowering, the almond tree is densely covered with white or pinkish flowers, in some varieties the petals are bright pink and bordered with a white stripe.

Each flower is represented by five petals surrounding numerous pistil stamens. Almond blossoms occur in mid-spring and are ahead of leafing. Blooming trees endowed with a pronounced pleasant aroma, for which they are valued as early honey plants, capable of producing up to 38 kg of honey per hectare. The green leaves are elongated and resemble the leaves of the olive tree, but are larger in size. Almost all varieties require pollinators to harvest, so several trees should be planted on the site.

Unlike and, the flesh surrounding the pit is a rough green pubescent skin and is not edible. Darkening and cracking of this peel signals maturity. edible seedswhich are elongated and covered with depressions and grooves. But the inner part of the seeds is not edible in all varieties. Wild almonds have a bitter taste and contain toxic substances. From these seeds, valuable almond oil and milk are obtained, which are actively used in cosmetology.

Collecting sweet almond "nuts" falls on the end of summer - early fall, when the pericarp cracks. They are removed from the fruit and dried, after which they are tightly packed and sent for storage in a dry place. Almond trees begin to bear fruit in the third or fourth year of life and yield a harvest for 40-50 years, and the tree itself can live up to 85 years. The nutritional value of the almond kernel is equal to that of bread, milk and meat. "Nuts" contain 55-63% fatty oils, 23-35% proteins, up to 8% sugars, as well as B vitamins. Almonds can be stored for a long time without losing their qualities, and almond oil does not burn at all.

To obtain a crop of edible nuts, common almonds and its varietal varieties are cultivated. The choice of a variety is influenced by the climatic conditions of the region and the possibility of self-pollination, which is inherent in very few varieties, for example, Nikitsky 62.

Also, varietal characteristics affect the shape and size of trees, as well as their resistance to cold, disease and harmful insects. The size of the seeds, the thickness of the pericarp and the amount of the crop depend on the variety.

Frost resistant almond varieties:

• Primorsky - has a good immunity to diseases, needs pollinators and is capable of producing up to 15 kg of "nuts" from one tree.
• Nikitsky 62 - is capable of self-pollination and gives up to 13 kg of yield.
• Dessert - blooms in mid-spring and needs pollinators.

Varieties with medium frost resistance:

• Milos - has an average immunity to diseases and gives about six kilograms of "nuts".
• Alushta - ripens early and gives large nuts, but needs pollinators.
• Steppe - has an average yield and good taste.

Varieties of heat-loving and drought-resistant minadal:

• Jubilee - late ripening, with a yield above average
• Sevastopol - late ripening with high yields, needs pollinators.
• Foros is a medium-ripe large-fruited variety, resistant to pests and diseases, and needs pollinators.

Almond trees feel good in a lighted place, they do not put forward special requirements for the soil, they like liming, they tolerate urban conditions and grow very quickly.

Almond trees can be propagated in several ways: by seeds, seedlings, layering, and cuttings. The first method is the most laborious, but allows you to feel the whole process. When growing an almond tree from a stone, it should be remembered that the culture does not always preserve the varietal quality of the fruit.

The place for planting seeds should be protected from strong winds, the soil needs fertile and well-drained. In dry climates, irrigation will be required:

• sowing seeds is carried out in the spring, during autumn planting, the risk of destruction of seeds by rodents increases
• the earth should be dug deep or plowed
• the bones are buried by 11-16 cm

Seed material is required before planting. To do this, the bones are placed in sand and kept for about a month, maintaining the temperature at a level of 1 to 10 degrees. The best time for this event is the first half of winter. But it must be carried out 20-25 days before sowing. If the roots of the seeds have sprouted strongly, then they should be pinched to stimulate the development of lateral roots. When the seedlings reach 15 cm, they should be shortened with a sharp shovel. Then the plants are watered abundantly.

About six nuts are stirred on one meter, and if a permanent place is chosen and budding is carried out without subsequent transplantation, then two nuts must be placed in one hole.

Budding is carried out at the end of summer to prevent premature ocelli germination.

The procedure is performed near the root collar. For the winter, ookulated seedlings are huddled, which helps to avoid early germination of plant death from the cold. When the eyepiece grows 12-15 cm, it is spud up to fix it. As the oculant grows, the procedure is repeated, and the stock itself is freed from new shoots. In the first year, the shape of the crown is not formed. Young trees are dug up and transplanted to permanent placeif necessary.

The most common breeding method for almonds is to plant grafted seedlings. But acquire planting material follows from a trusted seller or nursery to get the tree of the desired variety.

It is also worth considering that most varieties require pollinators, so you should plant several different varieties.

Planting seedlings is carried out according to a certain scheme, observing simple rules:

1. Prepare planting holes, the size of which should be twice the root. A drainage layer is laid at the bottom using crushed stone, broken brick and sand.
2. Pits are dug at intervals of at least three meters so that future plants do not interfere with each other's development.
3. The soil for planting seedlings should be fertilized using superphosphate (about 500 grams per tree), ripe manure (4-5 kg), and add lime.
4. The roots are evenly distributed along the bottom of the planting pit and a support is installed in the center.
5. The grafting site should not be immersed in soil.
6. After planting, each seedling should be well saturated with water. As it grows, timely clear the soil around the trees from weeds and loosen.

In the first year of life, seedlings will grow slowly, because the plant directs all its forces to the development of the root system. But in subsequent years, almonds will actively start growing and in four years will delight them with their first flowering.

Almonds require special care immediately after planting, but in subsequent years, regular watering, timely pruning and fertilization will be needed:

• In the absence of precipitation, you need to water the trees at least once a week. Older individuals are able to do with more rare irrigation. It is necessary to ensure that the root collar does not get wet, because it can quickly rot and the plant will die. It is reasonable to irrigate with drip irrigation, which will save you from many problems.
• Almonds need to be fed regularly. During the period of active growth, fertilizers enriched with nitrogen and potassium are applied under young trees. For mature trees, manure and ammonium nitrate in the form of solutions are suitable (per bucket of water - a kilogram of manure and 0.2 kg of nitrate). At the beginning of spring, copper-containing fertilizers are applied once. Any fertilizer must be poured with water to avoid burns to the plant and to ensure even distribution of fertilizers.
• It is necessary to conduct shaping and wellness almonds. They are carried out after flowering. First you need to thin out the crown and remove the damaged and dried branches.
• Also, grafted almonds need shelter for the winter, which will prevent the culture from freezing.

In the fourth or fifth buzz of life, almond trees give their first harvest. After flowering, medium-sized, hard fruits are formed, sour in taste. In some countries, they are used for food. As they mature, the fruits begin to harden, turn dark and crack. Drying of the shell serves as a signal for the collection of "nuts".

Like all plants, almonds can get sick and be attacked by insects. The plant is most susceptible to gray rot, rust, moniliosis, cercosporosis and clasteriosis. All of these diseases, including scab and orange spot, are fungal, so they need to be treated. Treatments are carried out twice a week.

As a preventive measure, the almonds are treated with a 1% solution of Bordeaux liquid, and the fallen leaves are also destroyed by burning.

Almond trees can be affected by leaf rollers, plum moth, almond leaf sawfly and Samoyeds, as well as spider mites. In addition to the latter, systemic insecticides are used against all insects, and spider mites are expelled with acaricidal preparations. Trees are processed in the spring, several times before flowering. As a preventive measure, lure natural enemies insects - birds setting feeders in the garden. You should also burn the fallen leaves and dig up the soil for the winter.

If you follow all the rules, you can grow a healthy fruiting almond tree and feast on healthy and tasty "nuts", which are very nutritious, but allergenic and not recommended for overweight people. And wild almonds can be used as rootstock for peach and apricot, which increases the drought tolerance of these crops.

More information can be found in the video:

Plant almond - a small tree or shrub of the subgenus Almond of the genus Plum of the family Pink. It is often referred to as a nut, although it is actually a stone fruit. Almonds grew in the Mediterranean and Central Asia for many centuries BC. Today it is also distributed in China, California, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and South Moravia. This light-loving and drought-resistant crop grows in nature in small groups of several trees or bushes at an altitude of 800 to 1600 m above sea level. In our country, common almonds are usually found in the southern zone of the European part. IN middle lane they grow steppe almonds, or leguminous almonds, or low almonds, or tender plums. The value of this type of almond is not only in the kernels of its fruits, but also in the high decorativeness of its leaves and flowers. And the three-lobed almond is one of the most beautiful garden shrubs, which is grown solely for its decorative qualities. We wrote about how planting and caring for common almonds is carried out in the article "Almonds - planting and care, pruning and grafting." Today we will tell you how to plant and care for ornamental shrub almond.

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Planting and caring for almonds (in brief)

• Landing: in spring, before sap flow begins, or in autumn, after leaf fall.
• Lighting: bright light or partial shade.
• The soil: fertile, light, loamy or sandy loam, with a pH of 4.5-7.5. Saline and clayey soils, as well as areas with groundwater lying close to the surface, will not suit almonds. It is best to plant the plant in the southern part of the garden.
• Watering: when the soil dries out to a depth of 1.5-2 cm, a bucket of water is poured under the bush. Usually watering is carried out once a week, but in extreme heat and drought, you will have to water more often, and more water is consumed.
• Top dressing: in the spring, the trunk circle is mulched with horse manure or mullein, and before flowering, the bush is fertilized with a solution of 20 g of ammonium nitrate and 10 g of urea in a bucket of water. In the fall, 20 g of double superphosphate and potassium sulfate are added to each m² of the trunk circle.
• Cropping: in the spring they carry out a sanitary cleaning of almonds, and in the bushes of seven years of age they need rejuvenating pruning, which is also carried out in the spring, before the sap flow begins.
• Reproduction: seeds, cuttings, shoots, layering and grafting.
• Pests: spider mites, aphids, leaf rollers and almond seed eaters.
• Diseases: clotterosporia, moniliosis ( gray rot), scab and rust.

Read more about growing almonds below

Decorative almonds - description

The almond ornamental shrub is usually of medium size (2.5-3 m), it is easy to grow even for inexperienced gardeners. It is one of the most valuable ornamental crops. Some varieties of ornamental almonds are grown on a trunk, and then the shrub looks like an almond tree with dark green lanceolate leathery leaves with a serrated edge, creating a spherical compact crown with the branches. Ornamental almonds bloom, as a rule, in the fourth or fifth year after planting: flowers of incredible beauty with a large number of petals and stamens, simple or double, pink or white - they envelop the almond shrub air cloud sometimes up to 3 weeks. Anyone who has ever seen flowering almond branches will never forget this magic. Almond leaves usually bloom after flowering. The fruit of an ornamental almond is inedible, but also decorative: a round-shaped suede three-lobed pericarp, in which there is an easily detachable bone.

Almonds are a close relative of fruit trees such as plum, cherry, apricot, cherry plum, peach, nectarine, blackthorn and sakura. His relatives also include pear, apple, quince, wild rose, rose, hawthorn, chokeberry and mountain ash.

Decorative almonds are unpretentious, resistant to drought, it is a valuable honey plant and good care can live for over a hundred years. Ornamental types of almonds, unlike ordinary almonds, grown mainly for its fruits, are able to withstand the harsh winters of the middle zone, and almonds in Siberia also ceased to be a curiosity.

Planting almonds

When to plant almonds

Ornamental almonds are planted in autumn, after leaf fall, and in spring, after the establishment of warm days, so that return frosts do not coincide with the beginning of the plant's growing season. However autumn planting almonds are preferred.

How do almonds grow? What soil does he prefer? Almonds will not grow in acidic or saline soils - the pH should be in the range of 4.5-7.5, and the occurrence of groundwater in the area should be deep. Almonds grow best in light, fertile loamy or sandy loam soil, but heavy clay soils will destroy it. Since ornamental almonds love air and sun, set aside a spot for them in the southern part of the garden. This can be an area that is under the sun all day, or a place where the shadow of the trees growing nearby will fall on an almond tree for 2-3 hours a day.

How to plant almonds

Since almonds need cross-pollination, it is advisable to plant several almond bushes at the same time. Almonds are pollinated mainly by bees, and proximity to an apiary with several hives would be very helpful.

Clear the area for planting from plants that give shade, and you can not remove the stones - almonds in nature grow mainly on rocky slopes. Dig holes with a depth of at least 30 cm at a distance of 3-5 m from each other in a row, keeping a distance of about 5 m between the rows.Pour a layer of broken brick or rubble for drainage at the bottom of each hole, lay a layer of sand on top and drive a long one into the center of the bottom a pole for supporting the seedling - the support should rise above the surface of the site by at least half a meter.

Almond shrubs are planted in the early morning or after 4 pm. Before planting, annual almond seedlings are dipped into a clay mash with roots, then placed in the pits so that the root collar is several centimeters above the surface of the site, and the hole is filled with a mixture of the top layer of soil with leafy soil, humus and sand. If the soil is acidic, add a little lime or dolomite flour to the soil mixture. After planting, compact the soil around the seedling and pour one to one and a half buckets of water under it. When the water is absorbed and the soil settles slightly, tie the seedling to a support and mulch the near-stem circle with dry soil or peat so that the mulch does not come into contact with the root collar, which should be at the surface level after watering.

Shrub almonds - care

How to grow almonds? Planting and caring for decorative almonds is not difficult. You already know how to plant almonds, and care for almonds is the same as for any other decorative tree or shrubs: watering, loosening the soil, weeding, fertilizing, pruning, treating insects and pests.

Watering is carried out, preventing the soil from drying out in the near-stem circle, however, waterlogging of the soil threatens with rotting of the root collar of the plant. It is enough to pour a bucket of water under a tree or almond bush once a week if the soil has dried out to a depth of 1.5–2 cm. After watering, it is convenient to loosen the soil to a depth of 5–7 cm around young plants and 8–10 cm around mature plants. Keep the trunk circle clean, remove weeds as soon as they appear.

Planting and caring for almond shrubs involves the introduction of dressings. In the spring, you can mulch the trunk circle not with peat, but with manure or mullein, and a little later, each bush is fed with 10 g of urea and 20 g of ammonium nitrate, diluted in a bucket of water. In the fall, 20 g of potassium sulfate and double superphosphate are applied to each m² of the plot.

Almond pruning

Almonds in the garden need pruning. In the spring, before the start of sap flow, they carry out sanitary pruning of the bushes, removing broken, frostbitten, diseased, dry and thickening shoots and branches. Sometimes one branch of almonds interferes with the growth of another - they are called competing. The branch that is more successful is left to grow, and the other is cut out. Formative pruning is carried out when the almond blossom ends. Almonds tolerate a haircut well, moreover: the removal of faded shoots stimulates abundant flowering next year.

After seven years of growth, it becomes necessary to remove aged branches. They will be replaced by root suckers appearing after three years of life of ornamental almonds.

How almonds bloom

According to some sources, the name of the plant comes from the ancient Greek word amygdalos, meaning “ beautiful tree". This version is similar to the truth, because during flowering, decorative almonds look amazing: almond flowers in white, red, purple or pink are located on the branches in such abundance that you cannot see the tree itself. Fans of painting are well aware of Vincent van Gogh's painting "Blooming Almond Branches", but a real gardener would prefer to admire this spectacle not in an Amsterdam gallery, but in his own garden.

In areas with a warm climate, flowering begins at the end of January and lasts until March. In the middle lane, almond blossom appears in late April or early May and lasts about 2 weeks. During this period, it is very important to organize regular watering of almonds, since the flowering may end ahead of schedule due to a lack of moisture.

Pests and diseases of almonds

From diseases, almonds can suffer from clasterosporia, moniliosis, gray rot, scab and rust. Among the pests, spider mites, aphids, leaf rollers and almond seed eater are dangerous for him. You can read in detail about the symptoms of almond diseases and damage by pests in the article that we have already mentioned. Here, we briefly recall that you can get rid of fungal diseases by treating almonds with such fungicides as Topaz, Skor, Fundazol, Kuproksat, and insecticides Actellik, Calypso, Fufanon, Zolon cope with insects. The spider mite is destroyed by treating the plant with Kleschevite, Akarin or Agravertin.

But it is much more important than the timely treatment of plants with chemical preparations, the implementation of agricultural techniques, and the understanding that planting and caring for an almond bush in accordance with the rules will preserve not only its health, but also the health of your entire garden.

Almonds in winter

It is necessary to prepare almonds for winter since summer: pinching the tops of almond shoots accelerates their lignification, which allows the plant to survive the winter safely without freezing. Young seedlings should be covered for the winter with straw, dry leaves or lutrasil to a height of 15 cm from the ground. Make sure that the root collar does not come out under the layer of snow. Adult plants hibernate normally without shelter, but even if frosts damage some of the shoots, the almonds will recover rather quickly.

Almonds in the suburbs and in Moscow

For cultivation in the climatic conditions of Moscow and the Moscow region, such types of almonds as steppe almond, or low, three-lobed almond, Georgian almond and Ledebour almond are suitable. Plants of these species, even if slightly affected by frost during winter, can quickly recover their strength and delight you with lush flowering. Planting almonds and caring for them in the conditions of the Moscow region are no different from those described in our article.

Almond propagation

How to propagate almonds

Species almonds can be propagated by seeds, and varietal almonds only by vegetative methods - grafting, layering and shoots. Gardeners, accustomed to relying on themselves for everything, prefer to grow rootstocks from seeds on their own in order to graft varietal cuttings on them.

Growing almonds from seeds

Almond seeds can be sown in the ground in the fall, or in the spring, but before planting in spring, the seeds must be stratified in a vegetable fridge box for 4 months. Almond kernels are sown into grooves 8-10 cm deep, placing them at a distance of 10-12 cm from each other. The spacing between the furrows is left within half a meter. When the seeds germinate, look after the almond seedlings like any other: water, loosen the soil around them, remove weeds. In summer, on seedlings stretching up to 50 cm with a stem thickness of about 1 cm, all branches growing at a height of up to 10 cm from the root collar are cut into a ring. Seedlings are transplanted to a permanent place, and as soon as they take root, you can graft varietal cuttings on them.

Almond grafting

For grafting, you can take rootstocks of any type of almond, but it is better to use the most winter-hardy species. Almonds grow well on rootstocks of thorns, cherry plums, plums and bird cherry. For the scion, you need to find a straight, well-developed almond shoot with formed eyes. Leaves from the cutting are cut with pruning shears, leaving only short petioles no more than 1 cm long.

Reproduction of almonds by grafting is carried out during the period of sap flow - in spring or in August. The rootstock growing in the soil is wiped with a damp cloth from dust and dirt, a T-shaped incision is made on its bark just above the root collar with an budding knife, and the cut bark is carefully turned to the sides.

A shield is cut from the scion cuttings - a strip of bark with a bud and the thinnest layer of wood. The shield should be long enough to fit under the bark of the T-shaped incision. After you insert the shield, press the edges of the unfolded bark against it and fix the inoculation site with tape, eyepiece tape or plaster, making a few turns around the stem. The kidney itself with the remainder of the petiole should remain open.

After two weeks, if the bud remains green and the petiole falls off by itself, slightly loosen the fixing tape, but if you did not budge in spring, but at the end of summer, leave the tape on the stock until next spring and sprinkle the grafted seedling with earth for the winter , hiding the vaccination site under it. In the spring, free the root collar from the ground and remove the tape fixing the grafting site.

Propagation of almonds by cuttings

For grafting almonds, in the second half of June, cut off the apical semi-lignified cuttings from 15 to 20 cm long with two nodes and place them in a growth stimulator for 16 hours. Cuttings are rooted in a cold greenhouse, planted in a substrate consisting of one part of sand and two parts of peat. Rooting occurs after 3-4 weeks. From 85 to 100% of cuttings take root. After the formation of the roots, the cuttings are transplanted for growing on a training bed.

Reproduction of almonds by growth

Growth around the almond bushes begins to form after heavy pruning. The offspring are separated in the second year, when their root system has already formed. The dug out shoots are transplanted to a permanent place and looked after like a one-year-old seedling.

Propagation of almonds by layering

Flexible shoots of almonds are bent to the ground, fixed with metal pins and sprinkled with soil. Until the roots grow at the cuttings, they are watered, the soil is loosened around them and weeds are removed. Not earlier than a year later, when the cuttings have a root system, they are separated from mother plant and transplanted to a new location.

Types and varieties of almonds

Common almonds

In culture as fruit plant common almonds are grown, which are divided into bitter almonds - wild almonds containing hydrocyanic acid in their kernels, and sweet almonds, which are grown in culture and do not contain hydrocyanic acid. It is the numerous varieties of sweet almonds that are in demand both in amateur and industrial gardening. Ordinary almonds may not have high decorative qualities, but on the other hand, their nuts have a high nutritional and medicinal value.

You can read more about this species and its varieties in the article that we have already mentioned.

Low almond, or steppe, or bean

- deciduous shrub up to 1.5 m high with a dense ball-shaped crown, erect branches with reddish-gray bark, narrow lanceolate leathery leaves up to 6 cm long, dark green above and lighter below. The flowers of this species are bright pink, single. Flowering lasts 7-10 days. The bean fruit is edible. Low almonds are the most popular species in midland gardens. It has two forms - white-flowered and Gessler, which is smaller in size than the original form, but has larger bright pink flowers. Of the varieties of steppe almonds cultivated in the middle lane, the most famous are:

• White sail - as the name implies, this is a white almond with flowers up to 10 mm in diameter, abundantly covering the branches of the bush;
• Anyuta - grade with bright pink flowers diameter up to 25 mm;
• Dream - almonds with pale pink flowers reaching 25 mm in diameter;
• Pink flamingo - grade with double flowers pink up to 10 mm in diameter;
• Pink fog - almonds with bright pink large flowers, reaching a diameter of 25 mm;
• Mediator - the variety was created by Michurin. This tree is usually taller than 2 m with large, pale pink flowers that are highly frost-resistant.

Georgian almonds

Is a Caucasian endem growing on slopes, forest edges and in hollows. This plant is about 1 m high, similar in appearance to low almonds, but with more large leaves, reaching a length of 8 cm, and larger bristly flowers of bright pink color. The species has good prospects for selection and is frost-hardy enough for cultivation in the Moscow region.

Ledebour almond

grows in nature in the foothills of Altai, forming whole thickets. The leaves of this species are large, dark green in color. Pink flowers open earlier than other species and bloom within 2-3 weeks. The most famous variety:

• Fire Hill - almonds with red-pink flowers up to 3 cm in diameter.

Almond Petunnikov

is endemic to Central Asia. It is a shrub up to 1 m high with erect or spread-out branches with gray-brown bark and light yellow shoots. The leaves of plants of this species are linear or lanceolate, with a pointed apex, obtuse-serrate at the edges. Single pink flowers.

Three-lobed almond

- shrub up to 3 m tall with a spreading crown, large-toothed three-lobed leaves along the edge, densely fleecy on the underside at the time of opening. Flowers up to 1.5 cm in diameter of various colors grow on the shoots in pairs. The view has two decorative forms:

• Captivity - double almond with flowers 3-4 cm in diameter. Pink almond petals of this shape open after the appearance of leaves, which reduces the decorative effect of the plant;
• Kievskaya - pink almonds up to 3.5 m high, blooming extremely abundantly with double flowers with a diameter of 2.5-3.5 cm. The variety has a high decorative effect due to the fact that flowers appear on the bush before the leaves.

Three-lobed almond

has many varieties and hybrids that differ not only appearance and color of flowers, but also the period of flowering. The most interesting varieties seem to us:

• Svitlana - a variety of Ukrainian selection with very light flowers;
• Tanyusha - almonds with double flowers with a diameter of 2.5-3.5 cm with swirling petals;
,

An almond tree, with proper planting and proper care, will bloom profusely every spring and decorate the garden while the rest of the plants are still sleeping. Blooms in April or early May. Its branches are literally covered with pink or white-pink flowers, exuding a unique aroma. If you plant several almond trees of different varieties next to each other, then at the end of summer it will be possible to collect fruits, inside which there is an edible tasty bone.

Almonds are a tree up to 6 meters high or a spreading shrub up to 3 meters high. It begins to bloom early, in regions with a warm climate, flowers appear in March, in the middle lane - in April or early May. Flowers appear on the branches first, and after they crumble, leaves. There are so many flowers on the shoots that the almond tree looks like a pink fireworks in the spring. Each flower is 2.5 cm in diameter and consists of five petals.

There are two types of almonds:

• bitter is a wild plant, its bones are inedible;
• sweet is a cultivated plant whose nuts can be eaten.

The first fruits appear in the 4-6th year after planting, and abundant fruiting - after 10 years. In favorable conditions, it lasts up to 50-60 years. Almond is a long-lived tree, its maximum age can be 120 years.

Fruits are set only by cross-pollination. A prerequisite is that the trees must be of different varieties and bloom at the same time. They are planted at a distance of 3-5 meters from each other. Pollinators are bees or other insects. Almonds are a honey plant.

Requirements for growing conditions

The almond tree is sun-loving. Growing it in a shaded area leads to the fact that flowering becomes scarce.

The root system has several skeletal branches that go deep into the soil. This makes the plant drought tolerant. Stagnation of water at the roots does not tolerate, the soil must be drained, loose, breathable. Outdoor cultivation should be carried out in a place protected from winds and drafts. Almonds grow well on rocky soils with a high content of calcium and lime. Planting on acidic or saline soils is unacceptable - the tree may die.

Almonds are a thermophilic plant. For cultivation in regions with cold winters, cold-resistant species were bred.

• Steppe almonds are frost-resistant, winters without shelter at temperatures down to -25 °. Its other names are low, Russian, almond or bean.
• Three-lobed almonds are cold-resistant, in frosty winters the ends of the shoots can freeze out, a cover with agrofibre is required. After freezing, it quickly recovers.

All of these species are decorative. Their bones are inedible and can cause severe poisoning.

Saplings grafted onto thorns or cherry plums are considered resistant to cold weather.

Features of cold-resistant almond species

Steppe almonds are considered the most winter hardy. This is a low-growing shrub, its height does not exceed 1.5 meters. The branches are erect, the bark is gray-red. The steppe species is interesting in that its pericarp is pubescent, as if covered with felt. The fruits adorn the branches all autumn.

The steppe species has a lot of root growth, which is used for its reproduction. Pruning is required only sanitary, which is carried out in early spring... This species is undemanding to the soil, carries gas-polluted air, easily withstands drought - it needs minimal care. It is used for landscaping streets and courtyards in the city.

One of the common varieties of the three-bladed type is "Pink foam". It has beautiful large double flowers of pink, crimson or purple color. The root system of this variety is superficial and highly branched. The variety "Pink foam" is suitable for strengthening slopes, artificial embankments.

Planting almonds in the garden

Almonds are planted in pre-prepared pits:

1. they are dug out in the size of 60x60 cm, the same depth;
2. drainage is poured to the bottom, for which you can use crushed stone, cracked brick, stones, expanded clay;
3. for drainage - a layer of coarse river sand, it is tamped;
4. a mound is made from the nutrient soil, and a long stake is driven into its center, which will serve as a support for the seedling;
5. the roots of the seedling are directed along different sides mound, making sure that they do not bend;
6. the pit is covered with loose fertile soil.

The root collar is left 1-2 cm above the soil level.

The soil mixture is 5 kg of humus or compost, 500 grams of superphosphate, 250 grams of lime and a small amount of river sand.

If you plan to grow several almond trees, then dig holes at a distance of 5 meters from each other.

Autumn planting of seedlings is preferable, this guarantees their survival.

When planting in spring, the roots of the seedling must be smeared with a clay talker. This will retain moisture and prevent the plant from drying out. The trunk circle must be mulched, but the root collar should not be covered with mulch. Caring for a planted tree consists in constant watering. Until the almonds take root, it is important to keep the soil moist. At the same time, it is impossible to fill in: with excessive dampness, the roots can rot.

Care

Caring for an almond tree is not difficult but should be done regularly, especially in the first few years after planting.

Care includes the following activities:

• loosening several times per season to a depth of 15 cm - a crust must not be allowed to form on the soil surface;
• watering regularly, as the earth dries up, but not more than 10 liters in the near-trunk circle;
• top dressing twice a year: in the spring - nitrogen, in the fall - phosphorus and potash;
• early spring and late autumn it is necessary to carry out water-charging irrigation - in the fall, such care will help to endure the winter easier, and in the spring it will provoke lush bloom;
• pruning.

Sanitary pruning is done after the snow has melted. Cut out all the broken, frozen branches. Formative pruning is carried out immediately after the flowers have fallen off. They remove branches growing deeper into the tree, crossing each other and thickening the crown too much.

Older trees sometimes need anti-aging pruning. In this case, all branches are cut, leaving a stump. After a while, it will grow overgrown with young shoots.

In regions with cold winters, care includes preparing the almond tree for winter. To do this, in the second half of summer, buds are removed from the tops of the shoots. This accelerates the lignification of green young shoots and makes them frost-resistant. In cold winters, you need to put agrofibre on the almond bush and press the ends of the canvas tightly to the ground.

Reproduction

The almond tree can be propagated by seeds, cuttings, grafting or undergrowth.

• The easiest way to reproduce is by rooting the shoots. It is carefully dug up and cut off with a sharp shovel from the mother plant along with the roots. It is good if you manage to keep some of the soil on the roots - rooting will be faster.
• Reproduction by layering is possible for bush almond species. The lower branch, extending almost horizontally, is pinned to the ground in several places and lightly covered with earth. Separation from the main plant is carried out the next year.

Growing almonds using the above methods is the most effective. Rooting takes place quickly, and all the characteristics of the mother plant are transferred to the seedling.

The grafting method is more complicated, and inexperienced gardeners do not always succeed on the first try. It takes a long time to grow almonds from seeds. Seed stratification is required, their germination on a separate bed. Only three-year-old seedlings can be transplanted to a permanent place. Maternal characteristics are not always transmitted when propagated by seeds.

conclusions

In regions with cold winters, ornamental almond species are suitable for cultivation. They winter well, quickly recover from freezing, and in early spring they become favorites of the garden.

Blooming almonds make you stop and freeze. Airy and gentle, it soars among the awakening spring greenery of other shrubs and trees.

What is an almond and what is it like

Like the famous Japanese sakura, almonds belong to the plum genus.

The homeland of this plant is Central Asia and the Mediterranean. The discovery of this plant for cultural cultivation took place at the end of the 17th century.

Almond blossom in the garden

Now this plant is distributed all over the world. A very large number of it grows in Central Asia. There is a city of almonds in Tajikistan - Kanibadam.

Large areas are occupied by almonds in California, China. It is grown in smaller quantities in warmer regions of Europe. IN southern climate almonds are grown for the almond harvest.

In more severe conditions, the main attraction of the plant is its early abundant flowering.

This beautiful plant comes in several forms:

• Low or steppe almonds. Its other name is bean. This is a small shrub no more than one meter high.
• Its branches are erect. In spring, narrow leaves unfold on them, pointed towards the end.
• The color of the leaves is bright green in spring and summer, by autumn, it changes to purple.
• This type of almond blooms in spring with bright pink flowers. They bloom simultaneously with the leaves.

The crown shape of the plant is spherical and dense. In mid or late May, depending on weather conditions, almonds are abundantly covered with flowers.
Later, closer to autumn, fruits are formed on it in the form of small nuts, pubescent on top.

The legume reproduces very well with root shoots. Once a small bush has been planted, after two or three years a border can be made from almonds for taller deciduous or coniferous trees and shrubs.

Three-lobed almond. The second name of this variety of almonds appeared recently - luiseania. The homeland of this plant is North China. It was discovered much later than its little brother in 1831 due to the fact that it grew in the mountains that are hard to reach.

Luiseania is a large and beautiful shrub. Sometimes it is grown as a short tree. In the middle lane with snowy winters, the bush does not grow more than three meters in height.

His crown is spreading up to two meters in diameter. The leaves of this type of almond are unlike the leaves of the legume. They are closer in shape to cherry or plum leaves, only smaller.

Flowers of such almonds come in various colors:

• Pale pink
• Hot pink
• Raspberry

Almond inflorescences

The shape of the flowers can be either simple or double. Paired flowers stick around the branch. Flowering begins before the leaves open and lasts about two weeks.

When the spring is early and the temperature reaches over 20 ° C in May, flowering ends in a week. At lower spring temperatures, flowering lasts up to three weeks.

The flowers stand very well in a vase and make interesting compositions from them.

This type of almond is often grown in standard form. A miniature neat tree in spring decorates the garden with its unrestrained flowering.

Any type of almond looks great in the garden and is worthy to be grown.

What almonds love

For abundant and long-lasting flowering, the wishes of the plant must be taken into account:

• Sunny location. Almonds are very light-requiring. As shading, it can only tolerate light and temporary partial shade.
• Draft protection and strong wind... You can use the south or southwest wall of the house for planting almonds. It will serve as a cover from the winds, and in the spring it will be the warmest place in the garden.

A solid fence will serve as a shelter for an almond bush, provided that there are no drafts along it.

Fertile neutral soil. Soil mixture for growing almonds is prepared from:

• Garden land
• Humus
• Sand

All components are mixed in a 3: 2: 1 ratio. Add 200 grams of dolomite flour to this and mix everything thoroughly.

Drainage. To prevent the bush from getting wet, drainage from fine rubble or broken brick must be placed on the bottom of the planting hole. The thickness of this layer should be about 20 cm. A layer of coarse sand 7 cm thick is poured onto it.

Timely watering. Proper spring watering ensures good and long flowering... The amount of liquid when watering depends on the composition of the soil. Sandy soils require abundant watering, while on other, heavier soils, it should be moderate.

Lush garden decoration

You need to monitor the condition of the soil around the plant regularly. The top layer should not be constantly wet, otherwise decay of the root collar will begin. The soil should dry out to a depth of about 3-5 cm.

In this case, the volume of liquid for one adult plant should be about seven liters.

Pruning. The plant tolerates pruning well. Sick and weak branches are removed after flowering. It is recommended to cut flowering branches for making bouquets.

Top dressing. For lush flowering, this is a mandatory procedure and it is carried out twice a season. The first feeding is done when the soil thaws. For her, 10 liters of water are diluted:

• Fresh cow dung - 1 kg. It can be replaced with dry chicken droppings, but several times less. Dry chicken manure is much more concentrated than cow fertilizer, so you only need to take 200 grams of it.
• Urea - 10 g. It can be replaced with ammonium nitrate in the same volume.

Autumn feeding is carried out no later than the end of September. At this time, complex mineral fertilizers without nitrogen are used.

You can prepare a mixture of double superphosphate and potassium sulfate. This fertilizer is applied at the rate of two tablespoons per one square meter... Before fertilizing, you need to draw a circle around the diameter of the crown. Sprinkle the mixture over the entire surface of the earth, inside the boundaries of the circle.

After that, it is necessary to mix the fertilizer with top layer soil and shed the plant well.

Almonds for care and good conditions will answer the gardener with an abundance beautiful flowers and long flowering.

Protection and preparation for winter

Weakened plants are most often attacked by pests. The best remedy from diseases and pests:

• Timely feeding
• Pruning diseased branches
• Keeping the trunk circle in a loose state and the absence of weeds in it
• Preventive spraying against pests in early spring with Iskra-M
• Spring spraying with Bordeaux liquid helps from a complex of diseases.
• But if, nevertheless, trouble happened, then you need to act immediately.
• In stock, the gardener should always have drugs for pests and diseases.

To prepare for possible attacks, you need to know your enemies.

Pests:

• Leafwig. Spraying with Iskra-M. The solution is prepared at the rate of 5 ml per 5 liters of water.
• Plum moth. The preparation is similar to the previous one. An exception is the spraying method. It must be carried out two or three times with an interval of 10 days.
• Aphid. Iskra-BIO preparation in a volume of 5 ml is diluted in one liter of water.
• Plum bark beetle. Iskra Zolotaya is added to the whitewash that is applied to the trunk in early spring before bud break. It is best to carry out this procedure in March at a temperature not lower than 5 ° C.

• Gray rot. The damaged branch is removed in winter. After flowering, the plant must be checked for disease and, if necessary, removed immediately to avoid the formation of spores.
• Monilial burn. Spraying with Bordeaux liquid several times at intervals of 15 days.
• Rust. Spraying with colloidal sulfur preparations.

Almonds that are not affected by various diseases

To prepare the plant for winter, it is necessary to pinch the ends of young shoots. This procedure takes place at the end of August.

After it, the shoots stop growing green mass and go into the mode of wood formation. By the end of the season, the shoots will become lignified as much as possible and will tolerate even a harsh winter well.

Covering with non-woven material such as lutrasil or grintex helps to protect standard forms from freezing of the vaccination site.

It is equally important for the good condition of the plant and, as a result, the luxurious flowering to protect the plant from possible damage.

Application in landscape design

Almond blossoms are such a beautiful sight that it is not worth depriving the garden of this beautiful shrub, even if there is not enough space in the garden.
With a lack of space, standard forms help to revive the landscape.

Almonds are very beautiful in single and group planting. Its flowers are some of the earliest and bring groups to life conifers... Against the background of their greenery, they seem to float in the air.

Low forms are used to decorate an alpine slide.

Almonds can fit perfectly into your garden design

Suitable for these purposes dwarf varieties almonds low:

• Albiflora. This variety has flowers of unusual white color for almonds.
• Gessler. Large bright pink flowers reach a diameter of 2.5 cm.

Early flowering almonds in flower beds high grades lands in the background. After flowering, it serves as a backdrop for other smaller shrubs.

Groups of several steppe almond plants can serve spring decoration groups of low shrubs. After a spring solo, their neat bushes fade into the background, without interfering with other plants to show their beauty.

While watching the video, you will learn about growing almonds from the stone.

The beauty of the flowering plant and the neatness after flowering are excellent characteristics of the almond.

Found a mistake? Select it and press Ctrl + Enter to tell us.

Fruit

Almond is a shrub or tree. Such a plant belongs to the subgenus almond of the genus plum of the pink family. It is very often mistaken for a nut, although it is actually a stone fruit. Almonds grew in Central Asia and the Mediterranean for several centuries BC. Today it can be found in California, Czech Republic, China, Slovakia, and South Moravia. This light-loving plant is highly resistant to drought. IN natural conditions such a culture prefers to grow in small groups (several pieces of bushes or trees) at an altitude of 800-1600 meters above sea level. In Russia, common almonds are grown in the southern zone of the European part. In the middle latitudes, steppe almonds, or bean, or low almonds, or tender plums are cultivated. This type of such a plant has not only valuable fruits, but also very beautiful leaves and flowers. Moreover, the most decorative view in such a culture, the three-lobed almond is considered, it is usually cultivated as an ornamental plant. Below will be described in detail how to plant and grow an ornamental almond shrub.

Features of decorative almonds

Almonds, an ornamental shrub, can grow in height from 250 to 300 centimeters. There is nothing difficult in growing such a shrub; even a novice gardener can cope with this. It is one of the most valuable decorative crops. There are varieties that grow on a trunk, outwardly this shrub is similar to an almond tree, it has leathery lanceolate leaf plates of dark green color with a serrated edge, a compact crown has a spherical shape. The flowering of decorative almonds can only be seen 4 or 5 years after it is planted in the garden. Double or simple, very showy flowers with many stamens and petals can be painted white or pink. Flowering, as a rule, lasts about 20 days, while the bush seems to be shrouded in flowers, like an air cloud. It is enough to see such a shrub in bloom once to remember this wonderful sight for a lifetime. Leaf blades usually grow back after flowering ends. You can't eat ornamental almonds, but they are just as incredibly beautiful. The fruit is a three-lobed suede pericarp, which has a rounded shape, inside it has a bone that is very easy to separate.

This plant is very closely related to such fruit cropslike: cherry, bird cherry, cherry plum, nectarine, sakura, plum, sweet cherry, apricot, peach and blackthorn. And it is also related to apple, rose hips, hawthorn, mountain ash, pear, quince, rose and chokeberry.

Ornamental almonds are not picky about growing conditions, are highly resistant to drought and are considered a very valuable honey plant. If the shrub is well looked after, then it can live for 100 years or even more. Ornamental almonds differ from ordinary almonds (cultivated in most cases only for the sake of fruits) in that they have a very high frost resistance and grow well in mid-latitudes. That is why almonds are no longer a rarity in Siberia.

Planting almonds

What time to plant almonds

It is recommended to plant decorative almonds in autumn time after the leaf fall ends. It can also be carried out in early spring, after the night frosts have passed and warm weather has been established. It should be borne in mind that the autumn planting for such a plant is more preferable.

Saline or acidic soil is not suitable for cultivating this shrub, a suitable soil pH should be between 4.5 and 7.5. You should also choose a site where groundwater are not located close to the soil surface. For growing this shrub, it is recommended to choose an area with light sandy loam or loamy soil saturated with nutrients. At the same time, in clayey heavy soil, almonds will quickly die. This shrub needs a lot of sunlight and air, therefore it is recommended to plant it on the south side of the garden plot. The place where the plant will be planted can be illuminated by the sun all day, or it will be covered by the shade from nearby trees for no more than three hours.

How to plant

Ornamental almonds need cross-pollination, therefore it is recommended to plant several bushes of this beautiful plant at once. Mostly bees participate in pollination of almonds, in this regard, it will be simply excellent if a small apiary is located not very far from these bushes.

From the area where the almonds will be planted, it is necessary to remove all plants that can cast a relatively large shadow. At the same time, it is not necessary to remove stones, because in natural conditions this shrub prefers to grow on rocky slopes. The depth of the planting hole must be at least 30 centimeters. In this case, the distance between the specimens should be from 3 to 5 meters, and the row spacing should be about 5 meters. Make a drainage layer at the bottom of the planting hole, for this it is recommended to use crushed stone or broken brick, and a layer of sand is laid on top of it. Then a long pole must be driven into the middle of the bottom of the pit, which will be the support for the seedling, while it is necessary that it rise above the surface of the site by at least 50 centimeters.

Directly planting a bush should be done very early in the morning or after 4 pm. Before proceeding with the planting of annual seedlings, their root system you need to immerse it in a clay chatter for a while. Then they are lowered into the planting holes and covered with a soil mixture consisting of an upper nutrient layer of soil, sand and humus, while the root collar of the plant must necessarily rise above the surface of the site by a couple of centimeters. In the event that the soil is acidic, it will need to be mixed with a small amount of dolomite flour or lime. Upon completion of planting, the soil will need to be well tamped, and the plants will need to be watered (for 1 bush from 10 to 15 liters of water). After the liquid is completely absorbed, and the earth settles at the same time, it will be necessary to tie the bush to the previously installed support, and also fill the trunk circle with a layer of mulch (peat or dry soil). It is necessary to make sure that the root collar, which after watering should be flush with the surface of the site, is free of mulch.

Care features

Planting and growing almonds is easy enough and won't pose any particular problems for the grower. You need to take care of it in the same way as for the rest of the ornamental shrubs, namely: water, weed, cut, loosen the soil, feed, treat diseases and harmful insects on time.

Water the almonds so that the surface of the trunk circle never dries out. However, it should be borne in mind that stagnant water in the soil can cause rot formation on the root collar of the bush. Watering is carried out approximately 1 time in 7 days, while the soil should dry out a couple of centimeters in depth. 10 liters of water are poured under 1 bush. Experienced gardeners recommend, after each watering, to loosen the soil surface around adult bushes from 8 to 10 centimeters in depth, and around young ones - from 5 to 7 centimeters. Weeding should also be done during loosening.

In order for the plant to grow and develop normally, it needs feeding. IN spring time It is recommended to sprinkle the trunk circle with mulch, but instead of peat, take mullein or manure. A short time later, under each shrub, it will be necessary to pour a nutrient solution consisting of 10 liters of water, 20 grams of ammonium nitrate and 10 grams of urea. In autumn, 20 grams of double superphosphate and the same amount of potassium sulfate will need to be added to each square meter of the plot.

Almond pruning

Ornamental shrub almonds need timely pruning. Spring pruning should be carried out before sap flow begins, while all injured, frostbitten, dried, thickening crown and disease-damaged branches and shoots should be removed. It happens that one of the branches interferes with the normal growth of the other, they are called competing. In this case, the strongest and most well-located branch is chosen, and the second is cut off. After the almonds have bloomed, formative pruning is performed. Cutting does not harm this plant, on the contrary, if you cut off the faded stems in a timely manner, then next year the almonds will bloom even more magnificently.

After the bush turns 7 years old, it will be necessary to remove those branches that have become very old. They can be replaced by root suckers, which grow after the bush turns 3 years old.

How almonds bloom

There are sources that claim that the name almond comes from the word amygdalos, which is translated from ancient Greek as "beautiful tree". Many consider this version to be true, since blooming almonds look just bewitchingly beautiful. There are so many flowers that they stick around the whole plant. Their color can be red, pink, white or purple. Those who love painting have probably seen the painting "Blooming Almond Branches" by Vincent van Gogh.

If the region has a sufficiently warm and mild climate, then almonds begin to bloom already in last days January and ends in March. In middle latitudes, flowering begins in the last days of April or the first days of May and lasts for about half a month. At this time, the shrub should receive required amount water, otherwise the flowering will not be as long.

Diseases and pests

Almonds are susceptible to diseases such as moniliosis, scab, clotterosporia, gray rot and rust. And from pests, aphids, almond seed-eaters, spider mites and leaf rollers can settle on it. Fungal diseases can be dealt with with fungicides, for example: Skorom, Cuproxat, Topaz, Fundazol. They get rid of pests with the help of insecticides: Calypso, Zolon, Actellik or Fufanon. And if a spider mite has settled on a bush, then it should be treated with Akarin, Kleschevit or Agravertin.

However, it should be remembered that if you take care of this ornamental shrub correctly, then you will very rarely have problems with it.

Wintering

Preparing for winter

For wintering, this shrub must begin to prepare in the summer. So, for this purpose, the tops of the stems are printed, due to which they lignify much faster, and almonds in winter time does not freeze. Young seedlings must be covered in autumn with dried foliage, straw or lutrasil, to a height of 15 centimeters from the ground surface. It is necessary to ensure that the root collar under a layer of snow does not start to rot. Adult specimens do not need shelter for the winter. If part of the stems freezes, then the shrub in the spring is restored in a short time.

Wintering in the suburbs and Moscow

In Moscow and the Moscow region, it is recommended to grow such types of almonds as: low (steppe), Georgian, three-lobed and Ledebour almonds. These shrubs may suffer a little during the wintering period from severe frost, but they recover very quickly and bloom incredibly abundantly. You need to plant and care for almonds in the same way as they do in the middle lane (described above).

Almond propagation

Varietal almonds can only be propagated by layering, grafting and shoots, and species almonds can also be propagated by seeds. Some gardeners grow rootstocks on their own, and then they are grafted with varietal cuttings.

Growing almonds from seeds

Sowing seeds is done in open ground, and this can be done in spring or autumn. It should be noted that before you start sowing in the spring, the seeds should be prepared, for this they are placed in the refrigerator for four months on a vegetable shelf. Make grooves in the soil, the depth of which should be from 8 to 10 centimeters, while keeping a distance of 10 to 12 centimeters between the seeds. The gap between the grooves should be 50 centimeters. The almond seedlings that appear require care, which consists in timely watering, weeding and loosening the soil surface. In the summer, when the seedling reaches half a meter in height, and the thickness of its stem is 10 mm, all its branches that grow up to 10 centimeters from the root collar must be cut into a ring. Then the plants are transplanted to a permanent place. As soon as they get sick, you can start grafting varietal cuttings on them.

Almond grafting

Rootstocks of any of the species of this plant are suitable for grafting, but it is recommended to take those of them that are highly frost-resistant. Almonds grow well on rootstocks of cherry plum, bird cherry, blackthorn or plum. A suitable graft must be straight, have well-developed stems with eyes that must be fully formed. All foliage should be removed from the cutting with a pruner, only short centimeter-long petioles should be left.

This shrub can be propagated by grafting only at a time when sap flow is observed, namely: in spring or in August. The rootstock, which should grow in open ground, should be gently wiped with a damp cloth to remove dust and dirt from it. Then, a little above the root collar, a T-shaped incision must be made using an eyepiece knife. And then gently turn the incised bark to the sides. A scute should be cut off from the scion, which is a strip of bark with a bud and a thin layer of wood. It should be noted that the flap should fit entirely into the T-cut you made earlier, so you do not need to make it too long. When the flap is inserted, press the edges of the bark that were previously unscrewed. To fix the shield, you can use an eyepiece tape, tape or a plaster, while it is enough to make just a few turns around the stem. At the same time, remember that the bud with the remainder of the stem should not be closed.

If the vaccination was carried out in the spring, then after half a month the petiole from the kidney, which should still be green, should fall off by itself, while the eyepiece tape should be slightly loosened. In the event that the grafting was carried out in August, then the tape should not be removed until the next autumn period, while in late autumn the grafted seedling must be spud with soil (the grafting site must be covered with earth). With the onset spring period it is necessary to remove the soil so that the root collar is free, and the fixing tape is also removed.

Cuttings

Planting material for cuttings should be prepared from mid to late June. For this, semi-lignified apical cuttings are cut, on which there should be 2 nodes, their length varies from 15 to 20 centimeters. Then the cuttings must be immersed in a growth stimulating agent for 16 hours. They should be rooted in a cold greenhouse. For planting, a soil mixture consisting of peat and sand (2: 1) is used. Cuttings will take root completely after 20-30 days. According to statistics, 85-100 percent of cuttings take root. When the roots appear, the cuttings will need to be transplanted into a training bed for growing.

How to propagate by growth

Strong pruning should be done to provoke active growth around the shrub. The detached offspring must have a fully formed root system, and this will happen only in the second year. The offspring transplanted to a permanent place must be looked after in the same way as for a one-year-old seedling.

How to propagate by layering

It is necessary to bend flexible stems to the soil surface, fix them with metal studs, and then sprinkle them with earth. During that time, while the root system is forming at the layers, they should be provided with timely watering, weeding and loosening of the soil surface. It will be possible to separate the layers and plant it in a permanent place only after 12 months. During this time, the root system should be fully formed.

Types and varieties of almonds with photos

Common almonds

This species is grown as a fruit plant. It is divided into sweet almonds, which are cultivated by many gardeners and do not contain any harmful substances in their fruits, as well as wild almonds (bitter) - there is hydrocyanic acid in its cores. A large number of sweet almond varieties are very popular with gardeners and are also grown on an industrial scale. This type of almond is not decorative, but its fruit has a high healing and nutritional value.

Low almonds, either steppe or bean

The height of this deciduous shrub can be up to 150 centimeters. Its lush crown has a spherical shape, the bark on upright branches is gray-reddish. The length of leathery narrow lanceolate leaf plates is about 6 centimeters. The front surface is dark green, and the back is pale green. Single flowers have a deep pink color. It blooms for 1–1.5 weeks. The fruit of such a shrub can be eaten. This type is very popular with gardeners in the middle lane. This species has 2 forms, namely: white-flowered and Gessler. Gessler's almond is smaller than the original species, but its deep pink flowers are somewhat larger. In the middle lane, the following varieties are most popular:

1. White sail... White flowers of a centimeter diameter densely cover the branches of the plant.
2. Anyuta... The deep pink flowers have a diameter of about 2.5 centimeters.
3. Dream... The diameter of the light pink flowers is about 2.5 centimeters.
4. Pink flamingo... The diameter of the double pink flowers reaches 1 centimeter.
5. Pink fog... Quite large, deep pink flowers have a diameter of about 2.5 centimeters.
6. Mediator... This variety was created by Michurin. In height, such a tree reaches, as a rule, 200 centimeters, its large flowers are light pink in color. The plant is highly frost-resistant.

Georgian almonds

This Caucasian endem prefers to grow on forest edges, elephants, and also in hollows. The bush reaches a height of about 100 centimeters, outwardly it bears great resemblance to low almonds, however, its leaf plates are not so small and reach about 8 centimeters in length, and the bristly rich pink flowers are larger. This species is especially often used in their work by breeders, and it can also be grown in the conditions of the Moscow region, since it is quite frost-resistant.

Ledebour almond

In natural conditions, it can be found in the foothills of Altai, while given view can form dense thickets. Large leaf plates are dark green in color. Flowering begins earlier than in other species and lasts 15–20 days. The flowers are pink. The most famous variety is Fire Hill, its pink-red flowers can reach 30 mm in diameter.

Almond Petunnikov

This species is endemic to Central Asia. The height of this shrub reaches 100 centimeters, the branches are spread out or erect, covered with brown-gray bark. Shoots are pale yellow. Lanceolate or linear leaf plates have a pointed upper part and a blunt-serrated edge. Single pink flowers.

Three-lobed almond

This shrub has a spreading crown, and in height it can reach 300 centimeters. Three-bladed sheet plates with a coarse toothed edge have a very fuzzy back surface during opening. In diameter, the flowers reach 1.5 centimeters, on the stems they are arranged in pairs, can be colored in different colors... There are 2 decorative shapes:

1. Captivity... The diameter of the double pink flowers is from 3 to 4 centimeters. Flowering begins after the leaf plates appear, which reduces the decorativeness of the plant itself.
2. Kievskaya... In height, the bush can reach 350 centimeters, the flowering is very lush. The double pink flowers range in diameter from 2.5 to 3.5 centimeters. The leaves appear later than the opening of the flowers, due to which the plant has high decorative qualities.

This species has a large number of hybrids and varieties that differ not only in color and size of flowers, but also in flowering period, for example:

1. Svitlana... This variety was created by breeders from Ukraine. The flowers are very light.
2. Tanyusha... The diameter of the double flowers is from 25 to 35 mm, the petals are swirling.
3. Snows of Wimura... Terry large enough flowers have a light pink color, which, after the plant begins to fade, changes to cream.
4. In memory of Makhmet... The color of the double flowers is flesh pink.
5. Chinese... The flowers are simple, pale pink.
6. Ruslana... This variety is hybrid. The color of simple flowers is flesh, and when the plant begins to fade, it changes to almost white.
7. Hybrid No. 3... Large double light pink flowers are placed on long peduncles. The flowering of this plant is similar to sakura.

Growing almonds in the country does not contain any special wisdom, but some little things require attention, because it is in the little things that the most important thing lies.

Almonds love to grow in a sunny place, but they can also tolerate light partial shade. An important condition is the protection of plants from strong winds and drafts.

Almost all plants of the Prunus genus can grow on almost any soil, but the best for almonds are not too heavy soils well fertilized with organic matter, and most importantly - good drainage - almonds will not grow where the groundwater is shallow, temporarily flooded and waterlogged areas.

In winter, not so much frost and cold are dangerous for this southern plant, but unstable weather with prolonged thaws, drizzling rains, late frosts, high humidity air - all this plant tolerates much worse than even cold winters.

This is due to the fact that the deep resting phase in almonds lasts only about a month - during the thaw, a rapid awakening begins, and subsequent severe frosts can destroy swollen buds or protruding buds. The same problem exists with apricot, peach, and other southern plants. Also, in unfavorable winters, there is a danger of damping out of the root collar of the plant.

Planting and transplanting seedlings

The best time for planting and transplanting almonds in the middle lane is from late September to mid-October. Plants are planted according to the scheme 0.5-1.5m.

Drainage from crushed stone or broken brick up to 15-20 cm and 5-7 cm of coarse sand on top must be brought into the planting pits. Soil mixtures consist of leafy earth, humus, sand (3: 2: 1) with the addition of lime or dolomite flour 0.2 - 0.3 kg for one planting pit 2-3 buckets of manure, and a glass of full mineral fertilizer. Do not bury the seedling, the root collar (or grafting site) should be slightly above the soil level. After planting, securely attach the seedling to the stakes.

Plant care

Plant care is normal - weeding, loosening the soil, pest and disease control, pruning.

Watering

Despite the fact that almonds do not like waterlogging, in spring, during flowering, terry forms require abundant watering, especially on sandy soils, since the flowers evaporate a lot of water. Without a sufficient amount of moisture, the plants quickly fade, the flowers do not reach their normal size. The overall decorative effect is reduced.

In summer, in hot weather, watering is moderate on loams, and more abundant on sandy soils. With a slight drying of the top layer of soil by 1-1.5 cm, the watering rate is 7-10 liters per plant. The main thing is not to soak the root collar and remember that when high humidity soil there is a danger of its rotting.

Top dressing

In the spring, add: 1 kg of mullein, 10 g of urea, 20 g of ammonium nitrate, which are diluted in 10 liters of water.

In July - superphosphate - 30g under a bush. Such feeding will ensure better maturation of the wood and help the formation of flower buds for flowering and harvesting next year.

In autumn, they give double superphosphate and potassium sulfate, 20 g each per 1 m2.

Z protection against pests and diseases

Aphid. Solution can be used laundry soap (200 - 300 g per 10 l of water) or infusion of tobacco, yarrow, potato tops etc.

In difficult cases, use an early spring spraying with nitrafen.

Monilial burn. Spraying with Bordeaux liquid at intervals of 15-20 days.

Pruning

Almonds tolerate pruning and crown shaping well
Timely, competent pruning contributes to the abundant flowering of plants, the development of the root system, and the emergence of new shoots. First, remove the dried, damaged and growing branches inside the bushes and thin out the thickened crown, then cut the plant into the shape you need.

In early spring, before flowering, cut dry branches, immediately after flowering, remove the faded shoots. In this case, young shoots will have time to grow and ripen, which will ensure a good wintering and lush flowering next year.

Preparing plants for winter

In harsh winters, flower buds and shoot tips can freeze near almonds. As a preventive measure, pinching (pinching) the ends of the shoots at the end of July-August can serve, which contributes to the suspension of growth and better maturation of the wood, and hence greater resistance to cold weather.

Growing almonds in the country in the middle lane is not a problem if you have chosen the type and variety of plants specifically for your climatic conditions and have read our tips.

For a long period, three-bladed luizeania was called three-bladed almonds. The second name was terry plum. And only then the scientists allocated this plant to the separate genus Louiseania. Before today continue to import this plant from nurseries located in Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic. So, luizeaniya terry almonds in the Moscow region three-bladed - care, reproduction, shelter, photo - we are considering today.

Terry almonds, in the suburbs is shelter necessary for the winter

You should not pay attention to the fact that the plant is of southern origin. Almonds without the need for additional insulation. Its flowering begins in the first half of May, before the leaves dissolve. You can admire the beautiful flowers of pink, dark pink or crimson shades for no more than two weeks - this is exactly how much the plant blooms with miniature roses. It happens that recurrent frosts damage them, but this is not scary. Blooming almonds look good in cut, they stand for a long time in a bouquet.

Planting rules: terry almond three-lobed

The plant has no special requirements for. But you shouldn't take risks trying to grow almonds in heavy clay areas or places where groundwater is very close to the surface. Before planting in the soil, it is recommended to dig it.

The plant loves well-lit places, light partial shade is allowed. The planted almonds must be protected from the winds. On the garden bed, a twenty centimeter drainage from gravel or broken brick is obligatory arranged, a layer of sand of five centimeters is poured on top.

It is carried out at intervals from half a meter to one and a half. In this case, the root collar should be located slightly above the soil level. The mixture for planting is made up of three parts of leafy earth, two parts of humus and one part of sand. Three hundred grams of lime is added to each planting hole. Planting ends with mulching with earth or peat.

Luiseania necessary care, photo

• The plant loves regular feeding. a kilo of mullein, ten grams of urea, twenty - saltpeter are added to a bucket of water. In the fall, twenty grams of double superphosphate is added to each square of the site.
• Watering is recommended in moderation. On sandy areas, it can be done more often. An important condition - do not soak the root collar. It is recommended to pour from seven to ten liters of water per plant.
• It is useful to loosen by pulling out weeds. Almonds perfectly tolerate pruning, quickly recovering due to young growth.

Plant propagation

It happens by seed method or . It is allowed to plant almonds on plums, thorns, and even bird cherry. Subsequently, it is necessary to cut out all the wild sprouts that form below the inoculation site.

Luiseania is damaged by leafworm caterpillars. They are advised to spray them with chlorophos. Plum moth is etched with karbofos, processing it several times. Aphid raids are prevented with a solution of laundry soap, infusion of tobacco, potato tops. In order, it is advised to whitewash the stem with a solution of lime and clay, adding a little wood glue to it.

In case of diseases with gray rot, the damaged branches are cut off. The procedure is performed twice - after flowering or in winter. The resulting rust is treated with preparations based on colloidal or ground sulfur.

Almonds and. It helps with asthma, ulcers and pleurisy, improves vision. With its help, the stomach is treated. Great for growing. Plant almonds on the site, and you will not regret it at all.

Almonds are a subgenus of shrubs or trees from the genus Plum, 2 - 6m high, and its "nuts" are actually kernel kernels - the same ones are edible in many apricot varieties - close relative almonds.

These plants are thermophilic, most varieties in Ukraine grow only in the Crimea, Transcarpathia and in the zone up to 80 km from the sea. In winter, they can withstand a short-term drop in temperature to -18 - -20 0 С, but with a sharp cooling down to -24 0 С, flower buds die in most varieties.

Leaves are lanceolate, long, green; resemble olive in shape, but much larger.

The flowers are white or pink, sometimes with white edges and a deep pink center, have 5 petals, many stamens and 1 pistil, up to 2.5 cm in diameter. They bloom earlier than leaves - in March - May, depending on the region - simultaneously with plums. A rather strong pleasant aroma is emitted.

Most varieties need cross-pollination to form fruits, so at least 2 - 3 plants are planted on the site to get them.

Pericarps are inedible - the part that makes up the flesh of a plum or apricot, in almonds is represented by a dense green pubescent peel, which turns brown and cracks along the "seam" as the seed ripens. The stone follows the shape of the fruit, is covered with dimples, less often - grooves.

The kernel of the stone is edible only in some varieties - in the bitter ones, it is poisonous and is used only to obtain almond oil and milk. Collected seeds of sweet varieties in July - September, when the pericarp begins to crack; they are well dried and stored tightly packed.

Fruiting begins at 3 - 4 years of plant life and lasts 30 - 50 years, while the tree itself lives on average 50 - 80 years, sometimes up to 130 years.

Growing conditions and care

Almonds are a fairly hardy plant, and problems with them usually arise from an unsuitable climate, especially if you want to get fruits: from spring frosts during the flowering period, the crop can be much less or not at all, and the plant simply will not survive in severe winters. His general wishes are as follows:

• Watering - not a vital necessity, the plant will completely survive without it, but to increase the flowering period and abundant fruiting, you need to pour 10 - 15 liters of water under each plant when the soil dries up by 3 - 5 cm. With a lack of moisture in the hot summer months, you can lose not only the current harvest, but also the future, because the flower buds of almonds are laid in the summer. Young seedlings are watered every 10 - 15 days.
• Top dressing applied in spring and autumn, digging the soil into near-trunk circle... It can be rotted manure, superphosphate and potassium sulfide. Young plants need nitrogen fertilizers to accelerate growth.
• The soil should be light, native to almonds - rocky, sandy loam or light chernozem is also suitable. The acidity of the soil is needed at a pH level of 7.7 - alkaline, it can be neutral; acidic soils must be limed. Heavy clayey or saline (especially with bleach) soil and areas with a high level of groundwater are also contraindicated.
• Sveta almonds like a lot - do not plant them close to buildings and do not let the crown get too thick, otherwise the fruits will form only at the ends of the branches.
• However, to the wind too yenom the place for this tree will also be uncomfortable - especially in the northern, cold winds.
• It is advisable to loosen the trunk circle to a depth of 10 cm 4 - 5 times per season, the first time before flowering.
• Pruning - a mandatory annual event to ensure plant health and prevent crown thickening. To form a tree (usually in the 2nd year after planting, after the end of flowering), on average, 4 skeletal branches are selected at a distance of 10 - 20 cm in height from each other, which together form a cross, or 3 tiers of branches at a slightly greater distance. In this case, all other branches are cut with a pruner up to the trunk, and the top is cut 50-60 cm above the upper branch of the skeleton.

In the spring, before flowering, they carry out a sanitary haircut, removing dry, broken, damaged branches and frostbitten tips.

• For prevention diseases and pests in the fall, remove all fruits that have not fallen from the tree, collect the foliage and burn outside the garden, dig up the soil in the near-trunk circle and treat the entire plant with a 1% solution of Bordeaux liquid.
• To protect the roots from frost, you can mulch their peat, sawdust or spruce branches. In more northern regions almonds are grown as a bush and covered completely for the winter - with purchased material or spruce branches, on top - with sawdust, on top - with film.

Reproduction

Most often, varietal almonds are bought in the form of seedlings - just like any fruit trees... Almonds tolerate "moving" better in autumn, it is possible even in winter - during dormancy. A pit 60 cm deep and the same width is prepared for it, the bottom of the pit is covered with rubble and sand or broken brick, and the earth that will be filled in the pit will be lime and, if necessary, drained with sand or rubble. If there are several plants, 4 - 6 m recede between them. Additionally, 5-6 kg of rotted manure and 500 g of superphosphate are mixed into the soil. If the planting was postponed for the spring, you still need to prepare the pit in the fall. A tree is planted along with an earthen lump, a support is dug in next to it - so that it is at least half a meter above ground level. The root collar should remain slightly above ground level; all the free space is filled with soil and the seedling is watered, only after that it can be tied to the support. If necessary, add earth, but do not cover the root collar!

Almonds grow from seeds for a long time - they will begin to bear fruit in about the 4th year. The seeds (unpeeled, not fried) are best sown in autumn in a container outside or in a room with a temperature not higher than +3 0 C. When sown in open ground, they will most likely be eaten. You can also keep the seeds until spring (4 months) in the lower drawer in the refrigerator, and sow in the spring. Sowing pattern - in rows, at a distance of 45 - 60 cm with intervals in a row of about 10 cm. Seeding depth - 10cm. At first, seedlings require particularly careful care - watering, loosening, weed removal and frost protection. IN good conditions by July, the seedling will reach 50-60cm in height and about 1cm in diameter of the stem - then it is time to remove all branches from the base of the stem to a height of 12cm so that a tree can form and all forces go into 1 stem.

Often varietal almonds are grafted on wild (bitter), as well as on thorns, plums or thorns - this way it develops faster and partially retains the endurance of the stock. This is done in mid-April or late August, when the movement of the juice along the plant is as active as possible, preferably in the evening cool so that the sections do not dry out too quickly. There are several ways of grafting - with a bud on a shield (eye), an escape into a cleft or into a patch, and others. The essence of each of them is that all shoots are removed from the rooted plant (except for one, small - for nutrition, the leaves are shortened, leaving 1 cm), a cut is made on it (only the bark is removed or the entire branch is cut off at an acute angle) and closed this cut is part of a varietal almond with at least 1 bud. All cuts must be clean, even, made in one motion of a special, very sharp, sterile knife; you cannot touch them with your fingers. The junction is tightly fixed, leaving the buds free, all shoots below the inoculation site are removed, and fusion is expected for 3 to 4 weeks. If after this time the kidney is green, then everything went well. Do not forget to remove the last branch from the plant - the rootstock, which was left for feeding in the coming spring.

Root shoots - usually appear after cutting the plant. They need to be allowed to grow stronger and take root for 1.5 - 2 years and only after that they should be planted from the mother's almonds.

Reproduction by layering is the artificial rooting of the lower flexible branches - for example, when growing in the form of a bush, or if the growth and root shoots have appeared close to the trunk, on its base or on a stump. Such shoots are bent to the ground, fixed in the middle with several pins and fill this place with a layer of soil about 20 cm (you can first dig a hole). Layers will take root for 1 - 1.5 years, subject to regular watering and loosening, and only after that the young plant can be planted.

Diseases, pests and ways to control them

Most varieties of almonds can be susceptible to the following diseases:

• Gray rot (botrytis) - initially appears as brown spots on the leaves, which grow rapidly, later a gray bloom appears - fungal spores. It is important to have time to trim the infected parts before spores form. The risk of infection is especially high when plantings are thickened or nitrogen fertilizers on the leaves.
• Rust - brown spots on the leaves, on the back of the torona - pads with red, "rusty" powder - spores.
• Moniliosis enters the plant through flowers and infects the flowers themselves, leaves and young shoots.
• Cercosporosis - most often occurs in April, it is expressed by red-brown spots with a diameter of about 3 mm.
• Clasteriosis, or perforated spotting, also leaves spots on the leaves, but with a characteristic dark border. Over time, the middle of the spot falls out.

Treatment and prevention

All these diseases, as well as scab and orange spot, are fungal, and therefore they are treated with fugnicidal preparations, with repeated treatment after 3 - 5 days. Try to remove all damaged parts of the plant before processing. Moniliosis in the early stages is treated with Bordeaux liquid, and rust - with sulfur powder or colloidal sulfur suspended (shaken up) in water.

Disease prevention is the autumn (and, if necessary, spring) treatment with a 1% solution of Bordeaux liquid, as well as the burning of fallen leaves outside the garden.

Among the pests, aphids, leafworm, plum moth, almond leaf sawfly, almond seed-eater or spider mite can be seen.

Drive out all except the last with insecticides, and spider mite - acaricides. Processing is carried out in early spring, before the blooming of flower buds, 2 - 3 times with an interval of 3 - 5 days. You can get rid of aphids with soapy water (300 g of laundry soap per 10 liters) or tobacco tincture. The almond seed hibernates in damaged fruits that do not fall off, so pick off all the nuts, and in the fall, carry out a preventive treatment with Bordeaux liquid. The leafworm disappears from 0.2% karbofos, but in the spring it is better to insure yourself with nitrafen, insecticides or Bordeaux liquid (before flowering, but at temperatures above +4 0 С)

Pest prevention is the most natural and uncomplicated activity: attract birds (make birdhouses and feeders) - and you are pleased, and not a single bug will survive on the tree. Aphids also feed on hoverflies, which can be lured onto dill or fennel sown in the trunk circle. Many pests hibernate in fallen leaves, damaged parts of a tree or in the ground, so in the fall, burn all plant waste outside the garden, and dig up the ground around the trunk.

The use of different parts of almonds, its useful and not very properties

Almond kernels are the most nutritious product of all fruits and vegetables in the CIS countries, they contain even more protein than meat or milk. The only negative is that it is an allergen and is not recommended for obese people. But the use of seeds for food is far from the only use of the almond tree:

1. Grown as ornamental plant for an early, abundant and aromatic flowering.
2. In horticulture, wild almonds are used as a stock for peaches and apricots - it increases their drought resistance.
3. Almond oil is used in medicine as an emollient, anti-inflammatory and laxative, as well as in cosmetology and for expensive soaps.
4. The cake remaining after the production of oil is a raw material for obtaining essential oils - for perfumery fragrances.
5. Almond kernels are eaten raw, fried, salted, added to chocolate, liqueurs (for example, amaretto), and baked goods. They are very popular as spices for main courses in China and Indonesia. Popular desserts are marzipan (ground almonds in sugar syrup) and praline (ground kernels fried in sugar).
6. Almond milk is a substitute for cow's milk for vegans.
7. The shell of the almond seed gives flavor and color to alcoholic beverages, and is also used to make activated carbon.

Types and varieties for garden cultivation

In horticulture, only 1 species is used to obtain "nuts" - common almond (and its varieties), and as an ornamental one grows shrub steppe almond - "bean" (and its varieties), which is much more winter-hardy.

It is necessary to choose an almond variety primarily according to the climatic conditions, and also take into account the ability to self-pollinate (very rarely, for example, in the Nikitsky 62 variety).

Also, the height and shape of the plant's crown, resistance to frost, diseases and pests, the size of the seed and the thickness of its shell, as well as yield, depend on the variety.

Keep in mind that not all almonds are edible!

1. Winter hardy varieties:
   • Steppe almonds and varieties based on it - Anyuta, Dream, Pink Mist, White sail, Pink Flamingo. The seeds of these plants are not edible, they are grown only for the sake of abundant flowering - white or pink. Due to their relative compactness (up to 1.5 - 2m), they can grow in tubs, for example, on a balcony or loggia.
   • Three-bladed almond (aka three-bladed Louisiana) is a tree of about 3 m, it grows even in the Moscow region, but its bones are also not suitable for food. It blooms very profusely with pink double flowers.
   • Edible - Primorsky (resistant to diseases, up to 14 kg of net harvest from 1 tree) and Nikitsky 62 (self-pollinated, up to 12 kg of harvest).
2. Medium frost-resistant varieties - Milos (not very susceptible to diseases, gives up to 6 kg of harvest) and Dessert Almonds (bears fruit regularly, up to 9 kg per season).
3. Heat-loving, heat-resistant varietiesalmonds - Yalta (regular harvest up to 14 kg, sweet), Sevastopol (late ripening, with high productivity), Fragrant (very tasty and fragrant seeds, late blooms) and Mangup (late ripening, drought-resistant, not susceptible to diseases and pests).