Cherry is a beautiful fruitful tree that bears delicious berries. However, gardeners sometimes notice that their pet begins to dry: the leaves turn yellow and dry out, and the cherries deteriorate or do not grow at all. Moniliosis is the cause of this problem.

Features of the fruit tree

The cherry tree in Russia is very popular, because it is unpretentious in its content, and delicious berries can be obtained every year for 15 years. Its height reaches 4-5 m, but there are varieties higher and lower. Cherry roots extend horizontally for more than 4 m.

Flowering occurs at an air temperature of 10 ° C. Usually this is the end of April - mid-May, depending on climatic conditions. The appearance of berries occurs in several stages:

  • pollination first (5 to 10 days);
  • further berry ripening (from 1 month for early varieties and 2 months for later ones).

Features of the fruit tree

Cherries love warmth and are therefore not suitable for growing in cold areas. At the same time, it does not tolerate strong moisture, which is why rot and fungi can develop in the root system, which ultimately leads to the death of the tree.

Popular varieties

According to some reports, there are more than 150 cherry varieties, which differ in size, growing band, shape, self-pollination ability and fruit ripening time. The most popular species grown in the middle lane, including the Moscow region, include:

  • Anthracite is a small cherry variety (up to 2 m high) that is highly resistant to cold, drought and many diseases. She has dark burgundy fruits weighing up to 5 g.
  • Kharitonovskaya is a tree with good cold resistance and disease resistance. Average height (about 3-4 m), red berries with light pulp, having a sweet and sour taste.
  • Chocolate Maker is an early cherry type that is well adapted to heat and cold. The height is 3-4 m, but it can be higher. The berries are dark burgundy with a characteristic sourness.

    Chocolate girl

  • Volochaevka is a tree that bears large sweet berries, but has a weak frost resistance and intolerance to high humidity. It reaches a height of 5 m.

Cherry moniliosis disease: how to treat

Cherry moniliosis is a disease in which the leaves, flowers and fruits of a tree are damaged. It is provoked by a fungal pathogen that appears during rainy and cool weather. The bark on the branches becomes like a burnt one, it is a monilial cherry burn, the treatment of which must be carried out as soon as possible.

The fungus of moniliosis appears in old fruits, and then infects the branches, which begin to wilt, dry out, and eventually the tree dies.

Moniliosis manifests itself in two forms:

  • drying out of branches, flowers and leaves;
  • decay of fruits until they are fully ripe.

The first signs of the disease

The first signs of the disease appear in early spring. The presence of moniliosis is indicated by:

  • unripe fruit in summer;
  • burnt bark;
  • drying and darkening of branches;
  • a clear boundary appears between the healthy and the infected area.

If cherry moniliosis is "diagnosed", how to treat it? There are special tools for this.

Drugs for treatment

Chemical

Chemical drugs are drugs that use chemical elements, such as copper sulfate or boric alcohol. Many of them contain antibiotics and antifungal agents, which can save you from the root cause of the disease. In specialized stores, you can purchase such effective products as:

  • horus fungicide;
  • zineb;
  • Cupid;
  • topsin-m.

Horus fungicide

It is necessary to plant the product strictly according to the instructions, otherwise the tree can be damaged even more.

Biological

To cure cherries without using chemicals, herbal preparations can be used. Biological medicines are less effective, but they have a good advantage - they are less toxic to the tree. This preparation is sprayed only once without re-treatment.

The most popular and effective are:

  • phytolavine;
  • phytosporin.

Note! The use of biological products is allowed during flowering, but chemical ones, on the contrary, are prohibited.

Processing cherries in spring from moniliosis with folk remedies

There are gardeners who do not recognize store-bought products at all, considering them to be a poison, therefore they are fighting against cherry disease with folk remedies. These include:

  • liming the trunk in autumn;
  • spraying with iodine solution (4 drops per 1 liter of water).

Prevention methods

In order not to treat the tree, you need to periodically carry out preventive treatment:

  • Leave enough space between trees. This is necessary so that the roots do not rot and have enough space for development. It is important to take into account that the root system is 2 times the size of the crown.
  • Do not damage the tree mechanically.
  • Remove weeds and parasites as they can carry this fungus.

    Remove weeds and parasites

  • Perform spring pruning. This will help get rid of dead branches that may become infected after winter.
  • Treat cherries in advance in the spring against moniliosis with special antifungal agents.
  • Don't water too much. Cherry trees do not like a lot of moisture, so watering must be controlled.
  • Various fertilizers can also be used to prevent disease.

Important!The best preventive measure is to plant a cherry variety that is resistant to moniliosis.

Cherry varieties resistant to moniliosis

Research in the field of breeding has shown that the most susceptible varieties of cherries to this disease are: Ballad, Brunetka, Vladimirskaya, Molodezhnaya. Also especially common is the moniliosis of felt cherries, which belong to the genus plums. However, there are cherry varieties that are resistant to moniliosis and coccomycosis:

  • Shokoladnitsa adapts well to frost and heat and has a strong immunity to moniliosis;
  • Novella is a tree with good resistance to many types of fungi, but it is susceptible to spring frosts;
  • The toy is an excellent cherry variety that is resistant to all fungal diseases, besides, it is frost-resistant;
  • Nochka is a crossed variety with cherries, tolerates heat and cold well, and is resistant to fungal infections.

Night

What else can damage cherries

In addition to fungus, various insects and other diseases can damage cherries.

The most common diseases include:

  • clotteropsoriasis, which appears as brown spots and holes on cherry leaves;
  • coccomycosis is a disease in which gray spores appear on the fruits, as a result of which frost resistance and yield decrease;
  • scab is a disease in which dark spots appear on the leaves caused by fungal spores.

In addition to fungal diseases, cherries can be attacked by various insects, which include:

  • cherry sawfly - a pest that destroys the leaf frame;
  • cherry weevil - a pest beetle that feeds on young leaves and ovaries of a cherry tree, lays eggs in berries;
  • aphids attack foliage, suck out sap, almost completely dehydrating the tree.

Aphid

In order to avoid problems with diseases and pests of cherries, preventive measures must be carefully followed. When the first signs appear, you need to immediately begin treatment and control of pests or fungi. For this, various pesticides, antifungal agents, pruning and traditional antiquated methods are suitable. Such simple measures will not only cure, but also prevent the death of the tree.