Sea buckthorn - planting in spring and autumn, rules of care and cultivation

Despite the great decorativeness and healing properties, sea buckthorn is quite rare on the plots of summer residents. The reason for this paradoxical phenomenon lies in the peculiarities of planting. What is the secret of growing and caring for sea buckthorn?

When is it better to plant sea buckthorn: features of spring and autumn planting

Sea buckthorn is planted in early spring, right after the soil has thawed, but sap flow has not yet begun. The optimal time for planting a tree comes in March-April, when the temperature rises above + 4-5 C.

Pros of spring planting sea buckthorn:

• During the warm season, the seedling gains strength and forms a good root system, thanks to which it safely tolerates a long winter.
• With proper care, the plant quickly takes root and starts growing.
• A lot of time is allotted to the preparation of the landing pit, since the construction work begins in the fall.

The disadvantages include the following factors:

• It is difficult to guess the time for planting, since the interval between thawing of the soil and the beginning of sap flow is very short.
• To prevent seedlings from drying out during the summer heat, they need to be properly cared for.

Before giving preference to the autumn planting of sea buckthorn, you need to take into account the fact that sea buckthorn is one of those plants that does not tolerate winter well, especially if it is very changeable. So, if long thaws often occur in the growing region, the plant starts up and freezes when it gets cold. In more severe conditions, young seedlings do not have enough strength, and they die. Depending on the climatic conditions of the region, sea buckthorn is planted in the fall immediately after leaf fall at the end of September - the first half of October.

Among the advantages of the autumn planting of sea buckthorn are the following:

• In the fall, you can easily find a seedling of the required variety and assess its condition by the type of foliage and bark.
• Many sellers provide the opportunity to taste the berries, so you can quickly select a variety.
• Plants planted in autumn start growing 2-3 weeks earlier than those planted in spring.

Considering all of the above facts, the best time to plant sea buckthorn is in early spring. Only container-grown seedlings can be planted in autumn.

How to plant sea buckthorn: features and step by step instructions

Planting, like any other procedure, requires adherence to the rules and recommendations, which guarantees a positive result. Therefore, it is necessary to strictly follow the tips and instructions below.

What should be a seedling

When choosing planting material, first of all, you need to pay attention to the appearance of the root system and sea buckthorn bark. A good plant should not have mechanical damage, dark spots, sluggish or exfoliated areas.

Important! You cannot cut small nodules on the roots. With the help of these outgrowths, the plant assimilates nitrogen from the atmosphere.

To minimize the risk of damage to the root system, it is better to give preference to sea buckthorn seedlings with a closed root system. A biennial plant with a height of 50 cm should have a rhizome with 5-8 shoots about 25 cm long.

Since the shoots that have departed from the roots practically do not retain the characteristics of the mother plant, it is best to use grafted seedlings for planting.

Saplings with an open root system, which dried up during exposure to air, are immersed in water for 24 hours. The rhizome, which has restored its elasticity, is dipped in a clay mash, and then planted in the ground.

Important! Sea buckthorn trees are divided into male and female. You can distinguish the sex of the plant by the size of the buds: in the “cavaliers” they are larger and covered with 5-6 scales, the buds of the “ladies” are somewhat elongated and covered with 2-3 scales. In order for the plant to bear fruit, one male and 1-3 female trees must be planted on the site at a distance of 5-10 m from each other.

Landing place

It is necessary to plant a light-loving plant exclusively in sunny areas, protected from strong winds. The root system of sea buckthorn consists of several weakly branched shoots about 5 m long.Despite this vastness, the bulk of the roots lies at a depth of 20-30 cm.Therefore, in order to protect the tree from damage, it must be planted away from vegetable gardens or areas where digging.

Groundwater should be at a level of at least 2 m.

Thus, the best place for planting sea buckthorn in the country will be a site located on the periphery or along the road, near which there are no large buildings and dense trees.

What to plant with

The worst neighbors for sea buckthorn are raspberries, strawberries and black currants. The result of such a neighborhood will be a deterioration in yield, since these crops consume the same substances.

It is also not recommended to plant a healing tree near the garden, especially next to potatoes and tomatoes. In addition, the nearby incompatible plants are in danger of being infected by the same pests.

At what distance

Due to the peculiarity of the sea buckthorn root system, the minimum distance between plants should not be less than 2.5-3 m.To the edge of the plot there should be at least 1.5-2 m.If there is not enough free space for planting two plants, a female tree is planted with a male stalk.

What soil is needed

Sea buckthorn grows best on sandy and sandy loam soils, the acidity of which is more than 6.5. The most unsuitable for growing plants are clayey acidic soils. In order to improve such a soil, the following actions are carried out:

• In heavy clay soils, sand or sawdust must be added before planting.
• To neutralize excess acidity, slaked lime is scattered over the site. Substance consumption per 1 sq. - 250-400 g. To alkalize the acidic environment during the autumn digging, wood ash is also introduced. After adding the substance, the site is dug onto the bayonet of the shovel.

Sea buckthorn planting methods

Due to the fact that sea buckthorn is a dioecious plant, its planting is slightly different from the general recommendations for planting unisexual plants. There are such planting methods:

• Curtina. A male tree is planted in the center, and 2-3 female trees are planted on the sides.
• Into the ranks. From the side of strong winds 1-2 male trees are planted, followed by 4-5 female trees. Thanks to this arrangement, the plants are better pollinated.

Preparation of the planting pit and direct deepening of the sea buckthorn seedling

The sea buckthorn planting pit is prepared in advance. At the chosen place, a hole is dug with a diameter of 50 cm and a depth of 35-40 cm. Taking out the soil from the depression, the upper layer is folded in one direction, and the lower one in the other. In the future, only surface soil is used, since it is the most fertile. The planting pit is covered with the following substrate:

• Add 1 bucket of rotted manure and river sand to the soil. Then 800 g of ash and 200 g of superphosphate are poured into the substrate.
• The resulting mixture is poured into a pit in the form of a mound, a seedling is placed in it and the roots are carefully spread along the slopes. The height of the embankment should be such that the root collar of open-rooted seedlings is flush with the surface. When planting plants with a closed root system, the growth point deepens by 5-7 cm.
• In order for the crown to form correctly, the trunk is tied to a small peg,
• The pit is covered with earth, crushed a little and watered with a bucket of water.
• A shallow hole is made near the plant and its edges are covered with a roller.

Video: how to properly plant sea buckthorn

Sea buckthorn care after planting

Particular attention should be paid to moisturizing sea ​​buckthorn seedlings, which are planted in the spring, since even the strongest and healthiest specimens cannot tolerate long-term drying out of the soil. And after the autumn and after the spring planting, the seedling is immediately watered abundantly. In the future, in the established hot weather, 30-40 liters of water are added once a week under young plants, 60-80 liters per 1 sq.

Important! Although sea buckthorn is very hygrophilous, water stagnation cannot be allowed.

Top dressing. Plants, which were well fertilized during planting, do not need feeding for 2-3 years. Trees older than 3 years old are fed according to the following scheme:

1. In early spring, they are fed with ammonium nitrate (20 g of substance per 10 liters of water). Instead of ammonium nitrate, you can feed sea buckthorn with urea. For plants 2-4 years per 1 sq. for better growth, 5 kg of substance is introduced in the near-trunk circle, 8 kg for mature trees.
2. During fruit setting, potassium-phosphorus fertilizer is applied under the sea buckthorn.
3. In the fall, 25 g of potassium salt, 30 g of superphosphate are introduced and wood ash is scattered between the rows (100 g per 1 sq. M.).

Since sea buckthorn is unpretentious to the composition of the soil and is able to improve its composition itself, complex mineral fertilizers are applied once every 2-3 years.

Loosening and mulching. After watering or heavy rain, the soil around the plant is loosened with a hoe to a depth of 5-7 cm. It is impossible to dig the soil with a shovel, as the roots can be damaged. To protect the plant from possible damage, you can use mulch. A thin layer of peat or humus will not only prevent weed growth and moisture evaporation, but also serve as an excellent addition to basic dressing.

Pruning. In order for the plant to develop correctly, in autumn or spring, dried, frozen, weak and deformed shoots are removed from the crown. Old plants that have lost their fertility are cut down, leaving a low stump, from which new growth will grow later.

Shelter. Since the seedlings planted in the fall are not yet strong enough to withstand the winter surprises, they are attached to a peg before the onset of cold weather and covered with spruce branches, rags or snow.

Video: sea buckthorn care

Features of planting sea buckthorn in different regions

Since our country is very extensive, the weather conditions in its parts differ significantly from each other. For the planting of sea buckthorn to be successful, the gardener must take into account the conditions of his region.

In the Volga region

Since this part of Russia is characterized by a moderate but long winter, sea buckthorn is planted in early March. Local gardeners recommend planting only zoned varieties.

In the middle lane (Moscow region)

Landing in the suburbs differs from other regions only in terms. Depending on the prevailing weather, the plant is planted in the third decade of March or early April.

In Siberia and the Urals

Due to the fact that the wood of the sea buckthorn is very fragile, areas are allocated for planting where the least amount of snow accumulates. Half a bucket of sand or sawdust is added to the heavy soils inherent in the northern regions. Sea buckthorn is planted throughout April-May.

Possible landing errors

Due to poor knowledge of the characteristics of sea buckthorn, novice gardeners often make mistakes that become the causes of diseases and death of young seedlings. In order to save a young plant from the consequences of its own wrong actions, it is better to first familiarize yourself with their main content:

• Trees of the same sex are planted on the plot.
• Nodules are cut off at the roots, mistaking them for unnecessary growths.
• Caring for young plants, they loosen the soil too deeply.

Thus, it is very easy to plant and grow sea buckthorn if all the above recommendations are followed exactly.

Video: spring planting sea buckthorn