My girlfriend has had a column-shaped plum growing for seven years, there is some experience in growing these trees. I asked her to tell about the features of the columnar trees, about planting, caring for the plum. As many gardeners know, after the colony-shaped apple trees, a "fashion" went for the same pears, and then varieties of plums appeared. Experienced summer residents appreciated the column-shaped plums. They take up little space in the garden, there is practically no shadow from them, and the harvest is decent. In addition, the plum-shaped plum is a wonderful decoration of the garden.
In the photo below, only two side branches are all strewn with fruits - the whole tree did not fit into the frame. The branches bent under the weight of the fruit. Grade Imperial.
The huge advantage of columnar trees and plums is that they don’t need a lot of space and do not need to trim them. Usually the colony-shaped seedling that you acquire looks like a twig with almost no lateral branches. Then, shoots from 2 to 15 cm appear on this central twig - their experts call them lances. And short processes (from 2 to 4 cm), which also appear on the trunk, are called gloves. Every year they appear on the central trunk as if in a circle. It is they who will bring you the main harvest.
With age, the lateral branches lengthen. In spring and after harvest, the plum tree looks like a low pyramidal poplar tree. And at the peak of ripening, the side branches hang from the severity of the fruit. Sometimes they need backups.
Seedlings of columnar plums can bloom in the first year, if you planted them in early spring. But more often it depends on the variety. It can begin to bear fruit in the second or third year, and sometimes even in the fifth. I repeat that this is more dependent on the variety. A good harvest can be obtained from the plum-column for about 16-18 years. As soon as you notice that the yield has fallen sharply, the tree needs to be changed. Of course, you can leave it, but only as a decorative one.
When to plant a plum? This question is asked by many gardeners. The answer to it depends on what climate zone you live in. That is, the calculation is simple: in the middle lane you can plant colon-shaped seedlings in the spring, but in the Kuban it is best in the fall. Northern latitudes are not very suitable for autumn landing. You can recommend planting them in the spring after the retreat of frost.
At the very moment of planting seedlings, it is better not to apply fertilizers, because a disturbed root system may not cope with abundant top dressing.
I advise plum to feed urea 3 times a year. A fertilizer solution is prepared at the rate of 50 g (two matchboxes) per 10 liter bucket of water. Under the root of each tree, it is enough to pour 2 liters of solution. The terms of root dressing are as follows: the first time - as soon as the kidneys open; the second - after 2 weeks; the third - in another two weeks.
So far, there are not so many columnar varieties of plums. I will name those that grow with me and with the closest neighbors in the site.
Plum-shaped Blue Sweet, grade description. The Blue Sweet variety is up to 2 meters high. Gives a high yield with large purple fruits. Fruits of medium ripening period, very large, fleshy - up to 75 g, the bone is well separated from the pulp. Frost resistance is high. The fruits are good in jams and compotes, and it is also a pleasure to eat them fresh.
Variety Imperial - the fruits have a more delicate taste than Blue Sweet. The fruits are large, weighing 45-60 g. The tree is medium-sized, high-yielding and frost-resistant, but requires large irrigation. The fruits of this variety are good in jams, compotes, in jam.
Variety Mirabelle (Mirabella) - with yellow fruits. The jam from these plums is very fragrant! The fruits are sweet and sour to taste, but when they lie down for 10-12 days, they become sweet-sweet. One minus - the bone is poorly separated from the pulp.
By the way, the fruits of almost all varieties of colon-shaped plums can remain on the tree for a long time without crumbling.
The main feature of planting colon-shaped plums is the correct choice of place. Yes, the tree is small and requires little space, but, nevertheless, it will grow remarkably and bear fruit only in a well-lit area.
Colon-shaped plums give an excellent crop of large fruits, but the best part is that you do not need to substitute the stairs for their collection and torment with pruning.
Plant these wonderful trees at home, you will not regret it!