Hollow in the apple tree: correctly treat the wound and seal the dangerous hole

Each grower seeks to get a rich apple harvest from their trees. But for this you need to work hard. In addition to the negative effects of various parasites and diseases that can reduce the fruitfulness of an apple tree, various damage to its stem can be a big problem. Hollowing is not a deadly phenomenon, but at the same time, without taking action, this can gradually lead to the loss of an apple tree. This will be discussed in this article.

First you need to identify approximate reasons leading to the formation of a hollow, which may be the following:

• damage to the apple stem by small rodents;
• the effect of tree diseases, in this case, the thorough processing of apples with various preparations is of great importance;
• aging of the tree can lead to wilting of the bark and, as a consequence, the formation of cracks, which can expand and deepen if ignored;
• oddly enough, too much of a harvest is also a cause of breaking branches and the appearance of cracks in the trunk;
• improper pruning of the branches - if they are not removed “on the ring”, but the untreated stump remains, which can eventually turn into dust, and the tender layers of hemp become the site of infection from parasites;
• in winter, the untreated section of the sawn branch freezes out, which also leads to the formation of a hollow;
• untreated cracks begin to absorb moisture, and at low temperatures, further cracking of the tree trunk occurs; this phenomenon is known as frostbite;
• The reasons for damage to the trunk also include weather phenomena, such as strong wind or a hurricane.

To preventive measures include the use of known drugs and therapeutic solutions. Their action to some extent is of a general protective nature, but the following options are used against damage to the bark and trunk.

Very often, this drug is used against fungal diseases. Blue vitriol is blue crystals of solid consistency. As soon as the solution is prepared, immediately it is necessary to begin spraying. The recipe is as follows: 300 g of product for 10 liters of water should be thoroughly mixed. For effective exposure to the substance, it is worth to use 1.5–2 buckets on a tree, and also consider the age of the apple tree. For the preparation and use of the solution you need to use only plastic inventory. This drug is used at the beginning of spring, it protects the tree from fungal diseases and wood parasites.

Garden decoction is a solution used to gloss over wood wounds, cracks and places of a freshly sawed branch. Recipes for this solution set.

It is worth paying attention to those that can be cooked at home.

• It should take beeswax, rosin and resin. All components need to be melted and mixed with linseed oil. The action should be done on low heat, stirring constantly, then you need to sprinkle a little charcoal.
• 6 pieces of paraffin should be taken, 3 pieces of rosin and vegetable oil 100 g. Paraffin and rosin should be melted, add a little water so that it does not stick, when boiling occurs, add oil and let it boil for another 25 minutes. Remove from heat, let cool, mix everything to obtain a single mass. Garden pitch can be applied in the spring when sanitary pruning is performed. It will protect the cut places from fungi and parasites. It can be applied in the fall on hemp, cracks and other damage to the bark to protect against frost. Garden pitch is not used in winter, as its mass will simply harden and fall off. There are cases when the trunk should be cut down.If the hollow formed at the bottom of the trunk, it can lead to the fall of the tree. But if the apple tree was strong with good branches and yielded a rich harvest, then the roots of the tree are strong. After cutting, you can leave the stump and do not uproot, fertilize, dig it up and water, perhaps the stump will give new shoots and a new apple tree.

To work on stripping and embedding the hollow will need the following tools:

• eyewear;
• saw;
• file;
• a good sharp knife of medium size;
• preferably a one-time bandage on the face or building respirator;
• rubber gloves.

If the hollow will be sealed with cement or clay, then you will need a trowel, trowel, bucket, sand, cement and water. You can use and electrical appliances, for example, a drill. If the hole is deep and rot too much, then the drill is taken, a nozzle with a metal brush is put on it and the appropriate cleaning is done. Here just goggles do not even interfere. And also for cleaning the hollow you may need a flashlight and a spoon, preferably a dining room, again for removing and scraping the rot from the hollow. Outside, around the edges and inside the hollow is trimmed before the appearance of a light tree trunk - this will mean that you can proceed directly to embedding the hollow apple tree.

As professional gardeners emphasize, work on embedding the hollow is done after the end of the harvest. September and October are the most recommended months, because any material used will have time to harden, and the apple tree will be able to meet the cold season.

The process of cleaning and treating the hollow includes the following steps:

• cleaning of dead bark and rot inside and outside the hollow;
• it is recommended to scrape off live wood a little;
• treatment of the cleaned places with chemicals; the best fungicide in the form of 3% copper or iron sulfate, which is done to destroy the remaining fungus and other harmful microbes.

To process the hollow, you will need a little solution - just 600 g per 2 liter of water. Disinfection can be carried out with a sprayer, and the entire surface should be thoroughly treated without missing a single millimeter.

Methods of sealing holes in the trunk are various. It all depends on the size of the hollow and the degree of damage to the inner bark of an apple tree. Among the simplest ways worth highlighting a few. For example, from a strong intact tree, in order not to bring infection again, a cork is cut, it must correspond to the size of the hollow, and ash mixed with charcoal can be poured into the cavity. The cork is clogged and smeared in a circle with garden pitch and opened with oil paint (color does not matter). Small hollows can be sealed with a cloth previously soaked in chemicals with garden glue and also painted with paint from the outside.

If the tree is young, but there are already holes in it, that's okay, since it can be healed. It is necessary to take a garden pitch according to the specified recipe, regular electrical tape, gauze and adhesive tape can be used. For a young tree, if you properly care for it, the healing process will be easy. For large grouse uses a very common method - pouring cement. The proportions of sand to cement should be 1: 3, so that the cement is not liquid and slightly thick.

In general, the cementing process has the following algorithm:

• cleaning the outer edges and cavities of the dead bark and dust that has accumulated;
• disinfection of copper sulfate, but now 5%; per liter of water (preferably at room temperature) will require 6 teaspoons of copper sulfate;
• Before processing it is necessary to observe security measures and pre-wear a mask, goggles and gloves;
• you need to wait until the applied solution is absorbed and dry; to prevent dust and parasites from falling into the hollow, you should close it tightly with gauze to allow air to circulate during drying;
• then in the hole you need to fall asleep small-brick;
• with a large hole diameter, fittings are used;
• while the hollow is drying, it is worth preparing the solution itself: 3 liters of sand per 1 liter of cement, with the addition of two tablespoons of drying oil, should be thoroughly mixed;
• it is necessary to fill the hollow with cement, while the cement should not protrude beyond the edges of the cavity, you need to use a trowel and align flush; externally should look like a place formed after cutting a branch;
• cement will dry for 6 days, after which you need to lubricate over the garden broth and open with oil paint.

Hollow can be sealed with clay. To do this, make a standard clay with the addition of manure and varnish. It should not be too viscous, because if it dries in a few hours, then cracks may already appear tomorrow. Clay is a softer material, so after finishing the lubrication, you can apply gauze to it by attaching it to the barrel with smeared chemicals of cloves. Thus, the clay, even when dry, will not crumble, cracks need to be smeared with garden pitch and again opened with oil paint.

With the development of building technologies, modern building materials are also used. In this case, the use of foam is ideal. Unlike cement and clay, this method is less costly, both physically and materially, and the foam itself with small quantities tends to expand and tightly fill the cavity.

When working with foam, the following procedure should be followed:

• cleaning the outer edges and cavities of the dead bark and dust that has accumulated;
• 5% copper sulfate must be disinfected; per liter of water (preferably room temperature), you need 6 teaspoons of copper sulfate;
• Before processing it is necessary to observe security measures and pre-wear a mask, goggles and gloves;
• in the case of cement, the garden water is applied to the cement, in the case of foam garden water it is worth covering the edges of the hole;
• after that, the cavity should be blown out along the edges, of course, the foam will stick out, so you need to wait 30 minutes, then cut off the excess, so that there is a flat surface;
• oil paint should be used again and you're done.

It happens that the state of the tree is extremely deplorable. If the size of the hollow is 25 cm, then it should be covered with cement and foam. It is necessary to take any construction fight (pieces of brick, rubble, stone chips), fall asleep in the hole and pour with a liquid raster.

The question may arise that if the hollow has spread 60–100 cm along the tree trunk. In this case, for embedding, you should take a dense metal mesh, attach it both outside and inside. It is necessary to use a construction battle and a liquid solution. For solidification, you can wrap a dense polyethylene. When everything is frozen, it should be smeared with a thick solution mixed with linseed oil, after drying, apply garden water and oil paint. This whole process will take 4–5 days, since each material must dry well. When closing a hollow of such dimensions, the process of preparation and stripping is performed in the same way as in the cases with the other materials mentioned above.

For information on how to work with a hollow in an apple tree, see the following video.