If any damage has appeared on the apple tree (torn bark, broken branches, etc.), this poses a threat to the plant: pests, microorganisms, and infections can enter through the wounds. In addition, untreated injuries overgrow for a long time, which affects the yield and the process of formation of new shoots. For these reasons, even the smallest cracks should not be ignored - action should be taken immediately. About how and how to process the apple tree, as well as what to do if the cut began to decay, it will be discussed further.

The main reasons for the formation of slices

Any traumatic procedures cause cuts. The root causes of damage can be very different:

1. Incorrect pruning. Crown formation, removal of old, diseased branches, rejuvenation - procedures after which damage almost always remains on the trunk requiring treatment.
2. Accidental mechanical damage. If the cracks have not been processed, sections form on them.
3. Frost Frost. Foliage in cold weather does not protect the bark, and it cracks.
4. Bully bark. It occurs with illiterate cutting of shoots, if the base is not filed from the bottom before the procedure.
5. Temperature fluctuations. Cracks can also occur as a result of sunburn.
6. Windbreak and other weather troubles. In summer, branches can break under the weight of the crop.
7. Rodents. They do not mind eating bark in the cold season and damage it.

Important! An apple tree can only be saved when rodents have damaged it slightly.

Is there a need for cutting and processing an apple tree?

In order for fruit trees to produce crops every year, they need to form a branched part, removing excess branches, redirecting new shoots, removing dry and diseased parts. But at the same time, damage remains on the stem, which should be processed.

This procedure is necessary to seal the wound and is an obstacle to the infiltration of infections and bacteria. The fact is that in an unprotected area, negative processes begin to occur.

First of all, an unprocessed slice causes the branch to dry out. This happens because the movement of organic substances is disrupted and the nutrients do not reach the part of the shoot that is located above the cut, and moisture escapes through the recess itself.

In addition, cracking may occur in an unprotected area. Moreover, the cracks are quite deep. Sometimes hollows may appear in the area where the saw cut damaged wood.

It is timely and competent processing that is the main prevention of the formation of depressions, rotting of wood and damage to its fungal diseases.

When to process cuts and damage to the bark of apple

Saw cut in dry cloudless weather. When to carry out activities - depends on precipitation and season. In rainy autumn, the slices do not dry well, and you have to wait 7-10 days. In spring, in fair weather, the wound can dry in 2-3 days.

Did you know? In Celtic, the word "paradise" (Avalon) literally means "country of apples."

During the summer formation, only young shoots that do not have time to lignify are cut off. They have a small section, as a rule, heals on their own and does not need special care.

In cold weather, in winter, tree injuries do not heal at all. Through them, low temperatures damage healthy shoots, so they are not formed in winter.

If the cut is small, 2–2.5 cm in diameter, it does not need to be coated, only disinfected. Such damage quickly heals and does not carry a special threat

If the cut has turned out 3 or more centimeters in diameter, then perform the following procedure:

1. After trimming, the damage is cleaned of burrs and roughnesses. The work is performed by a sharpened garden knife.
2. Lubricate the saw with a disinfecting solution (lime, Bordeaux liquid, copper or iron sulfate, manganese solution, etc.). It will not allow pathogens to enter the wound.
3. Leave the tree for 5-10 days. The treated area should dry.
4. They cover the place with a special tool. In this case, the area along the edges of the slice is not touched.

If during the winter hares or mice damaged the bark, it cracked due to temperature fluctuations or suffered from sunburn, treat it in the spring, when the threat of frost disappears. The injured segments are stripped to a healthy area and treated in the same way as after trimming the crown.

Experienced gardeners believe that dry and not cold autumn is the optimal period for processing cuts and damage on the bark. At this point, the apple tree all metabolic processes slow down.

What and how to cover slices properly

After the cleaned and disinfected section has dried up, you can take up the putty.

Important! The tool is applied in a small layer. Under a thick layer, the wood will begin to rot after some time.

What paint can be coated with a slice?

As a protection for the bark, oil paint based on drying oil (ocher, etc.) can be used. Other types of paints (white, alkyd enamels, nitro enamels, etc.) are not suitable - they cause damage to the apple tree: they can burn wood and destroy living cells of the tree.

Due to the fact that all paints are washed off by precipitation, they will have to be updated periodically

Putty Recipes

Mixtures may vary, but they are all aimed at saving wood and the apple tree as a whole. Most popular putties:

1. Clay talker. Ingredients: mullein - 1 hour, clay - 2 hours, dry mowed grass or straw - a small amount. All components are thoroughly mixed and diluted with water to the texture of sour cream.
2. Cement composition. To make it, you will need fine sand and cement (3: 1). They are mixed, diluted with water and added to drying oil. Such a solution is suitable for processing deep cracks.
3. Garden Var. It can be purchased ready-made, but you can mix it yourself by mixing fat (vegetable oil or drying oil), wax (can be replaced with turpentine) and rosin. Proportions: fat base and rosin - in one part, wax - 2 parts. All ingredients are first melted, then mixed and diluted with cool water. Some gardeners recommend adding ash.

The advantage of a garden var is the presence of wax, thanks to which the putty does not spread, but remains at the processing site. Sticky rosin reliably attaches the putty to the tree, and fat does not allow it to crack. Before lubricating the cracks, the product is slightly warmed up to soften. It is applied in a thin layer.

Why can't you cut and cover the cuts on the same day?

It is impossible to cover the wounds on the same day with pruning - the cut should dry. Wait a few days before using putty.

Did you know? According to archaeologists, the first cultivated tree was just an apple tree. Our ancestors grew it more than six thousand years ago BC. e.

If you gloss over a fresh, not dried up slice, rot may form under it, various microorganisms can develop, or pests can settle.

What if the cut began to rot?

If the wound on the wood begins to rot, this may indicate infection of the apple tree with fungus-tinder fungus. Spores of this parasite are carried by the wind, and an unprotected area is an ideal place for their fixation.

The damaged shoot is completely cut off and inspect the place. If the site is healthy, then the parasite has not yet penetrated inside. The sick part is burned, disinfected, and the cut area is treated with garden var.

If darkened wood is found in the section of the cut, then the mushroom has begun its activity and after a certain time the apple tree will disappear. The tree is cut to the root and burned - a diseased plant can infect the entire garden.

Important! Tools to combat fungus-fungus are not invented. But if the rot is detected on time, and the bark in this area is still solid and moist, then the tree is still possible to save.

As you can see, do not ignore saw cuts and other damage to the wood - measures must be taken immediately. The main thing is to correctly approach the solution of the problem using the right material and tools, and then the apple tree will certainly please with a generous harvest.