Apricot trees bloom in spring almost the first, with the exception of almonds. During the flowering period, apricot orchards are wrapped in amazingly beautiful pink haze of large fragrant flowers. Flowering trees cause both admiration and excitement because early flowering can be ruined by severe spring frosts. How to counter this? How to keep tender apricot flowers? This will also be discussed in the article.
How apricot blossoms
Flowering apricots - this is one of the signs of the coming spring. Apricot trees bloom even before the leaves bloom. First, swollen pink buds appear on the trees, which then turn into fragrant flowers pink or white with pink streaks.
Video: Apricot Blossom
What color apricot blossoms
Apricot flowers are single, with five petals, large, 25-30 mm in diameter, white or pale pink. A small cup of flower, fused, with five dark red bent sepals. It falls along with the stamens and pestle after fertilization occurs. From 20 to 30 stamens are placed inside the flower in several rows.
Apricot flowers are white with pink streaks or pink
How many days apricot blooms
The beauty of flowering apricot trees can last up to 10 days.
At what temperature does apricot blossom
Friendly flowering of apricots begins at a temperature above + 10C
Awakening of flower buds occurs already when the temperature rises to +50C. If it occurs briefly, then the kidneys freeze again. If the temperature persists for a long time, flowering begins. The sum of the effective temperatures exceeding the threshold of +50C, to start flowering apricot should be 3000FROM.
For flowering apricot trees need temperatures above +100FROM. Ideally, this should be temperature + 17, + 190C in calm weather without strong winds. Such conditions are optimal for the fertilization process, and the bees are then most active. In reality, the temperature spread happens from +7 to +280C. And as a result, the fruit yield will be unstable.
When Apricot Blossoms
In the south, flowering begins in the first half of April, in other areas a little later. Early flowering is dangerous consequences, since the threat of spring frost is likely. And the early development of flower buds leads to their death by return frosts.
Apricot flowering time depending on the growing area
The table contains information about the approximate flowering time of apricots, depending on the region of growth.
Table: Apricot flowering time by region
| Region | Estimated Flowering Time | Recommended varieties (based on the state register of selection achievements) |
| Armenia | End of March - beginning of April | |
| Ukraine | Late March-early April | Krasnoshchey Kiev selection, Kiev handsome, Kiev canning, early Melitopol, Sambursky early, Monastic, Veteran of Sevastopol |
| Krasnodar | First half of april | Kuban sun, Parnassus, Kuban black, Red-cheeked, Hardy, Musa, Pleasure, Orlik Stavropol |
| Crimea | Mid march | Red-cheeked, Pineapple Tsyurupinsky, Nikitsky (a variety of Red-cheeked), Altair, Crimean Amur, Crocus, Spark of Tauris, Dionysus, Marvelous, Veteran of Sevastopol |
| Caucasus | Mid march | Pineapple Tsyurupinsky, Melitopol early |
| Middle lane | End of April - beginning of May | Black Prince, Lel, Red-cheeked, Hardy, Royal, Triumph of the North, |
| Moscow region | Mid may | Iceberg, Alyosha, Countess, Monastic, Lel, Favorite, Royal |
| Rostov region | Mid april | Melitopol early, Seedling of the Red-cheeked, Mlievsky Radiant, Fortune |
| Voronezh | End of April - beginning of May | Voronezh early, Kompotny, Surprise, Voronezh fragrant, Triumph north, Champion of the north |
The effect of frost on apricot blossoms
The problems of early flowering of apricot are associated with the possibility of spring frost returning.
How many degrees of frost does apricot withstand
Temperature drop to -10With closed buds stand without consequences. During the flowering period, the temperature drops to -1, -20C can lead to the complete death of the crop.
Spring frosts are detrimental to flowering apricots
How to keep apricot blossoms in spring: recommended methods
Extending the dormant period of an apricot is a real way to increase the regularity of fruiting. There are many ways to do this. Experts believe that it is best to combine several of them at once:
- Vaccination on a crop with a later maturity;
- Summer pruning (the process is described in more detail below in the advice of gardeners);
- Mulching with sawdust: first sprinkle the tree trunk with snow, then sawdust, and then again with snow, ramming each layer. Such a “pie” freezes in a single layer and does not melt for a long time, restraining the beginning of flowering;
- Whitewashing of the trunk: white color reflects the sun's rays and prevents the warming of the trunk;
- Spraying with saline: Before flowering, spray the crown with steep saline (400 g / 10 l of water). Flowering will shift by 7-10 days;
- Water spillage: in autumn, immediately before frosts, water a tree abundantly with water so that it freezes well in winter.
Video: how to slow the flowering of apricots
Expert Advice
You can delay flowering in only one way, but not by mulching and tamping the snow, that's for sure. It is necessary during summer sap flow, in our Lower Volga, this is the end of July - the beginning of August, to make a small pruning of the tree. At this time, fruit buds are laid for the next year. Cutting out diseased and at the same time dry branches, you transfer this formation ten days later (until the tree becomes sick). Accordingly, the flowering of the next year occurs later.
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How to protect blooming apricot from frost
From light frosts (up to -10C) it can prevent smoke from planting, because in this way a smoke cover is created around the trees, which prevents the warm air from rising and leaving. It must be "laid" before the start of the freeze and held until sunrise.
Video: Smoke as a way to keep apricots from freezing
From freezing to -20With flowering apricots will help save watering and spraying:
- Watering should be plentiful and carried out before freezing;
- Spraying will have an effect when the temperature drops to minus indicators.
The most reliable shelter is shelter with any material: woven or non-woven.
A simple roof above the plant holds 3 degrees of frost, shelter to the ground - up to 5 degrees.
And here is such advice on preserving plantings from frost.
Making smoke bombs
This method of making smoke bombs - you need ammonium nitrate (ammonium nitrate), which is sold in a fertilizer store, and regular newspapers. First you need to prepare a solution of nitrate, proportion: 1 liter of water and 300g of nitrate. Simply put, you need to take a liter plastic bottle, fill it with 1/3 ammonium nitrate and completely fill it with water, you need to wait until the nitrate is completely dissolved. A foam will appear at the top, which must be carefully drained. After that, you need to insert a flower sprayer into the bottle. Now you need to take the first newspaper sheet and completely moisten it with a solution from the sprayer (be sure to place something under the newspaper, all this must be done away from walls, furniture, carpets, etc.) On top of the impregnated first sheet, apply the second and repeat the procedure. After all the sheets are wet with the solution, turn the resulting stack on the back side. They should dry completely at room temperature for 3 to 5 hours in a suspended state on a rope. 1 liter of the resulting solution is enough for about 35-40 newspaper sheets Newspapers cannot be left in direct sunlight (!) We will describe how to make a smoke bomb from these newspaper sheets. Gently bend the newspaper sheet soaked in solution, then bend again. We perform a similar procedure with all the sheets. We take one folded sheet, tightly twist it to the middle, put another into it and twist it further. When we reach the middle again, put another sheet, etc. Everything should be very tight (!) After twisting the last one, rewind the resulting product with adhesive tape and ram it from the ends. Chimney stuffing is ready! Attention! A checker, twisted from newspaper sheets, may catch fire during smoke emission (especially if you use it in the wind). To avoid this, it is necessary to make a housing. For this, a half-liter aluminum can is ideal. It is necessary to cut a cover from it from above, and then completely cut off the bottom. Insert the curled flue into it (if it hangs, wind it up a little with plain paper) so that it reaches the end. After that - cut off the excess metal so that 1 cm edges remain, carefully bend them. Smoke is ready to use! Application- Ignite it on the side and throw it away, puffs of white smoke will go. Freshly made newspaper smoke bombs burn with the release of a large amount of smoke, but if they are stored for a very long time, they may not be ignited at all. It is best to store them for no more than 1 month and store in plastic bags to protect against moisture. Try it - determine the number of checkers and the smoke time.
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To enjoy fragrant fruits in the summer, you need to keep tender spring flowers
If spring return frosts do not destroy delicate apricot flowers, then already in the middle of summer it will be possible to enjoy its fragrant juicy fruits.
