METHOD FOR FORMING CROWN OF FRUIT APPLE TREES Russian patent published in 2018 - IPC A01G17/00 A01G2/00 

FIELD: agriculture.

SUBSTANCE: invention relates to agriculture, in particular, to fruit-growing. Method includes pruning of apple trees grafted onto dwarfish M9 rootstocks, forming a fruit link, and pruning of fruit segments during fruiting period on a stump from a two-year increment and further annual pruning of trees with the "to the stump" renewal of fruit-forming wood with systematic rejuvenation of the fruit-bearing fruit links. In this case, apple trees are planted on M9 or M26 dwarfish stocks. Crown of one-year-old sapling is pruned at a height of 0.8–0.9 m from the soil level. In the first month, after the planting of saplings and evocation of buds, the stem zone is cleaned up to 40–50 cm above the soil level. On the vertical trunk, an extension shoot – central conductor is distinguished, and shoots-competitors are removed "to the ring" at an acute angle. During the vegetation period, shoots of 60–70 cm long are topped with 3-4 leaves. In the spring of the second year, before the beginning of the vegetation, the zone of the stem is cleaned from young shoots, well-grown shoots are cut off at acute angle, 3-4 semi-skeletal branches on the central extension shoot are located at a distance of 10–15 cm from each other, limiting them to 50–60 cm. In the spring of the third year, before the bursting of buds from the shoots formed on the semi-skeletal branches form the fruit links, that is, one-year increment is cut "to the stump" with a height of 8–10 cm and is allowed to grow freely during the current season and all the overgrown branches on the central extension shoot. In winter, from shoots formed on the stump, or in the spring before the bud bursting, one well-grown shoot is shortened for fruiting (if the length of the shoot is more than 60 cm, it is shortened by 1/3), and another shoot is again shortened "to the stump" with a length of 8–10 cm. In the third or fourth year, when the trees begin to bear fruit, they act with the annual shoots that appeared during the growing season in the same way as in the previous years: one is left for fruit-bearing, and the other is cut off "to a stump". In this case, the fruit bearing three-year branch is not removed "to the ring", but cut again "to the stump" and form the fruit links along the entire crown and on all the semi-skeletal branches of the central extension shoot.

EFFECT: method provides annual regular fruiting with high quality fruits.

1 cl, 2 tbl