For a real gardener, every tree is like a child, it is natural that their excellent growth and development pleases, and failures upset. This article will help you find the answer to the disturbing question: why the apple tree does not grow and what to do in this difficult situation.

Apple tree care: general rules

Traditional apple tree care includes the following activities:

  • Top dressing is produced in spring, summer and autumn. The first time when the leaves appear - with a complex mineral fertilizer or organic matter. The second time, with the beginning of flowering, phosphorus, chicken droppings and urea are added. The third spring feeding is done after the apple tree has faded, sodium humate or herbal infusion is added. In the summer, the apple tree needs phosphorus and potassium, they need to be applied about once a week, alternating root applications with spraying the crown. At the beginning of the summer period, nitrogen will not be superfluous. Autumn feeding is carried out in order to prepare the tree for winter, at this time it is necessary to apply potassium-phosphorus fertilizer.
  • Watering. The frequency depends on the region of growth. If there is sufficient rainfall, it is recommended to water three times per season. A young tree needs 5 buckets of water for one watering, and a grown one - from 7 to 10, depending on the size of the tree.
  • A mandatory procedure is pruning. It is needed so that the fruiting branches are shone by the sun. In early spring, the branches are cut off - competitors, leaving the stronger ones, in the summer you can cut out the newly appeared processes that interfere with the growth of the main branches, and in the fall they remove all dry and diseased shoots.
  • Treatment for insects and diseases. It is carried out by spraying with insecticides and fungicides, the installation of trapping belts and treatment with folk remedies are also relevant.

Why the apple tree does not grow

Eggplant seedlings grow poorly: what to do

The gardener has planted an apple tree on the site and is in a pleasant expectation, but suddenly a problem arises: a young apple tree does not grow well. Why the apple tree does not grow, what to do? First of all, you need to find out the reason. There may be several of them, for example:

  • a variety is selected that is not suitable for the given climate;
  • the seedling is not planted correctly;
  • mistakes were made when forming the crown;
  • unsuitable soil;
  • lack or excess of nutrients;
  • close occurrence of groundwater;
  • improper care.

Why the apple tree does not grow in height

Apple tree care

The most common explanation why an apple tree seedling does not grow may be that when planting, an inexperienced gardener buried the root collar. This deficiency can be corrected by raising the tree or by tearing out a recess around the trunk. If this is not done, the tree will not be able to grow and bear fruit.

The apple tree does not grow in height

Too high a landing also leads to a slowdown and even cessation of growth. The root collar should be 1.5 - 2.5 cm above the ground.

If the tree grows in breadth but grows slowly in height, it may be a dwarf variety. Such varieties are planted on more nutrient-rich soil, their roots do not go deep, so they are afraid of freezing. If done correctly, you just have to wait for the flowering and the appearance of the fruits.

So that the apple tree can grow normally and the gardener does not ask himself the question: why does the apple tree grow poorly, one should carefully approach the choice of a seedling. If the variety is destined for southern regions, it will not grow well in the north.In a harsh climate, you will have to insulate the trunk and bury it in for the winter, but even in spite of these measures, the tree will die or, at best, will not increase in growth, will never bloom and will not bear fruit.

Why the apple tree does not grow for the third year

An important reason for the slow growth of an apple tree can be inappropriate soil. Sandy soils and sandy loams are poor in nutrients, and too much moisture collects on the loam, which can also cause slow growth and death of the seedling.

On a note! The tree may not grow due to a poor rootstock or incompatibility between the rootstock and the scion, in which case it is no longer possible to correct the situation.

Perhaps the tree is sick or pests are spoiling it. It is necessary to spray with fungicides, destroy weeds, cut and burn dry branches, whitewash the trunks.

Why apple tree seedling does not grow

In unfavorable soil conditions, a special method of planting a seedling will be required. If it is sandy soil, the hole is dug up to a depth of 1.5 meters, the bottom is covered with clay with a layer of up to 20 cm to retain moisture, and then the hole is filled with peat or specially prepared nutrient soil.

With a close occurrence of groundwater, bulk land will be required, and the level must be raised by 150 cm. Seedlings for such sites should also be selected grafted on ungrown rootstocks so that the roots do not go to great depths.

Attention! If a tree has died on the site for an unknown reason, you should not plant a new one in its place. Even if you add the necessary fertilizers to the soil, the fatigue of the earth will not disappear. It is better to sow this place with green manure and wait until the soil recovers.

When choosing a seedling, you should pay attention to its roots, they should not be dry and damaged. It is better to prefer a two-year or three-year-old seedling to an annual seedling. Overgrown seedlings are also not worth taking, they get sick during transplantation.

If adult apple trees are already growing near the landing site, their trunks are cleaned of old bark and whitewashed, diseased and dry branches are removed, the sections are treated with copper sulfate.

Why does the apple tree grow slowly and what needs to be done

The seedling was chosen correctly, the tree was also planted in compliance with the norms, but there is still no growth, what's the matter? Perhaps the earth is missing some useful elements.

  • with a lack of nitrogen, there is no growth, the leaves become smaller, the fruits fall off. Excess nitrogen leads to chlorosis, the branches soften, the tree produces few flowers.

    Chlorosis

  • a lack of phosphorus can cause slow growth and curvature of the shoots, the leaves change color to red, brownish or purple stripes appear, the leaves become smaller, then dry and fall off;
  • with iron deficiency, the tree does not bloom, the leaves turn yellow. This problem can be eliminated by burying rusty iron nails in the trunk circle or sprinkling the barrel with a solution of iron sulfate;
  • chernozems contain a lot of phosphorus, but plants lack zinc, which can also slow down the growth of shoots after budding.

To remedy the situation, you need to carefully look at the plants, in time and in compliance with the norms, introduce the necessary nutrients.

Perhaps the apple tree grows slowly due to the proximity of other large trees, which take away food and moisture from it. In this case, you should transplant the tree away from competitors or uproot and discard old plants that have become obsolete.

Why does the apple tree swing? Weak, rotten roots may be the cause. This occurs due to stagnant moisture, which can be drained away by making drainage grooves.
Perhaps the roots were eaten by mice or moles. You need to get rid of rodents, and fill the resulting voids with mullein solution.

Roots eaten by mice or moles

Careless rigid pruning will lead to the fact that the tree will need a lot of energy to restore skeletal branches, its growth will stop for a while.

Apple trees are planted, of course, for the sake of getting their fruits - ripe apples. The age at which the tree begins to bear fruit depends on the type of rootstock and on the variety.The earliest of all, trees begin to give birth on a dwarf rootstock, 2 - 3 years after they were planted, and the latest period - from 7 to 10 years, is typical for seedlings on a seed rootstock.

If the apple tree, which should already bear fruit, refuses to give birth, it may be in the wrong pruning. In this case, the tree should not be pruned for a couple of years.

Important! Apples can be tied only on horizontally located branches, if the branches grow upward, they should be bent, tied to a peg driven into the ground. This is done in the spring and the branch is freed in the fall.

To make apple trees easily overwinter, carry out the following activities:

  • autumn pruning;
  • cleaning the trunk of moss and lichens;
  • whitewashing the trunk;
  • cleaning the trunk circle;
  • pre-winter watering;
  • introduction of a complex of fertilizers.

If all unfavorable factors are eliminated, the garden will begin to rise in spring and, over time, will please with a bountiful harvest.