Is it possible to spray a Christmas tree? Some tips on how to keep a live Christmas tree at home longer. Protecting conifers from pests: how to treat plants

Scale insect and false scale insect

Quite a common pest indoor plants Can also affect coniferous trees. Shield is small insect, which belongs to the superfamily of scale insects. The pest got its name due to the presence of a mini-shell that covers its entire body.

It is worth knowing that scale insects and false scale insects have a number of differences. In addition to the fact that they belong to different families, they also differ in structure (the shell is part of the body of the false scale insect, and in the scale insect it is separated).

Did you know? In bad conditions, more male pseudoscale insects are born, and in good conditions, more female ones. This is due to the fact that males have wings and can fly to other plants where there is more food.

You can make sure that the spruce is affected by the false scale insect by the following signs:

• sticky secretion (liquid) on needles and shoots;
• small rounded tubercles on the shoots, which are adult scale insects;
• inhibition of young plant growth;
• falling off of needles or buds.

If children play near the tree or pets run around, then it is better to start treatment with proven folk methods. Scale insects can be removed mechanically by moistening a cloth with alcohol and soapy water. For this purpose, 5 l warm water take 75 g liquid soap and 50 ml of denatured alcohol.

Important! The secretion secreted by false scale insects is called honeydew. A sooty fungus settles on this sweetish liquid, which aggravates the activity of false scale insects.

If a colony of false scale insects numbers several thousand individuals, then easy cleaning won't help anymore. For complete destruction, chemical agents are used: “Aktara”, “Aktellik”, “Phosbecid”, “Admiral”, “Biotlin”, “Confido Extra”.

If you observe all the described signs of aphid activity on your tree, it means that you urgently need to start fighting the pest. Before we talk about killing aphids, it is worth remembering the reason for the appearance of the insect. The aphids eat the spruce, and the ants eat the sweet secretions of the aphids and use them as livestock. It follows from this that, in addition to aphids, you also need to fight ants.

Important! Before dousing or rubbing the spruce with soapy water, you need to cover the roots, otherwise the tree will suffer greatly from the substances that make up the soap.

The fight should always start with traditional methods to protect yourself and your pets from toxic substances:

1. Using green potassium soap, you can eliminate a small population of aphids. To do this, dissolve a bar of soap in 1 liter of water and rub the affected areas with the resulting solution.

2. To get rid of aphids, you can use the bark of citrus fruits. To do this, pour 300-400 g of crusts into 1 liter of boiling water and let it brew for 3-4 days in a dark place (but not in the cold). The resulting infusion should be completely sprayed on the tree.

3. Tobacco and shag repel aphids no worse than insecticides. To obtain the medicine, soak 150-200 g of tobacco in 5 liters of water for a day. Next, spray the diseased plant with a spray bottle.

This pest is very difficult to notice, since the lesion is located in a place inaccessible to us.

Important! Root aphids are very different from ordinary ones, which means that the methods of dealing with them will be different.

You can overcome root aphids in various ways:

• agrotechnological;
• chemical;
• biological.

Let's start with agrotechnological methods that do not involve the purchase of drugs or their manufacture:

1. Kill all weeds near the tree. Especially henbane, pigweed and chicken millet, since it is on these plants that aphids often develop.
2. Disposal of all waste (roots, shoots, leaves) near the spruce.

Did you know? There are species of Hermes that force the plant to create a “nursery” for their larvae. A strange cone grows on the tree, which resembles a pineapple fruit. The larvae live and feed in it until they mature.

The spruce leaf roller is one of those pests that eat cones of spruce and other coniferous trees. The leaf roller is a small butterfly with a wingspan of up to 1.6 cm and a dark color. Adults appear in late May - early June. Favorable temperature for pests is 20-22 °C. Before you get ready to eradicate butterflies from your site, it is worth understanding that it is not the insects themselves that cause harm to coniferous trees, but their larvae. Thus, spruce budworm caterpillars are the main pests of spruce, damaging up to 90% of cones, from which it is then impossible to collect viable seeds. During the mating period, the butterfly lays eggs in the scales of the buds female plants. Subsequently, the caterpillars live and feed in the cones.

You can tell that a leaf roller has settled on a spruce tree by looking at the resin on the scales of the cone. A rusty coating also appears on the needles. If you look closely, you can see the fibers that intertwine the needles. The caterpillars not only damage the cones and spoil the seeds, but also gnaw through the needles at their base, after which the tree begins to lose its green cover abundantly.

Important! The affected cone does not open after falling off.

Let's move on to traditional methods that can also help in the fight against the pest. In spring, spruce should be sprayed with tobacco infusion or wormwood decoction. However, this must be done before the butterfly lays eggs, otherwise everything will be in vain.

Butterflies remain sitting on the tree during the daytime, so another option is adhesive tape, which is wrapped around a tree. The leaf roller is attracted by the smell. Small jars of kvass or beer are hung around the spruce tree. Butterflies fly to the smell and fall into a trap. If the above methods do not help, then you should use pesticides such as Accord, Fatrin, Desant and their analogues.

Important! Spruce must be treated with insecticides several times to completely get rid of the caterpillars.

It is quite simple to understand that a tree is affected by a mite: a barely noticeable web appears on the needles, they become covered yellow spots and crumble over time. Also, after plucking a shoot, you can examine small pests through a magnifying glass.

Important! After treatment with alcohol, only adults and larvae die, the eggs remain unharmed.

A similar method is to treat the entire above-ground part with a soap solution. It should be remembered that soapy water should not fall on the ground near the root collar. Using garlic infusion. For 1 liter of water, take 2 medium heads of garlic, chop them and add water. Place the vessel in dark place and leave for about 5 days. Next, dilute it half and half with water and spray the entire plant with a spray bottle. If the tree is large or the tick has an “army” of thousands, then you only need to fight it with chemicals. The following drugs help to completely destroy the tick: “Fitoverm”, “Aktellik”, “Fufanon”, “Apollo”.

There are biological drugs, the main advantage of which is not only the destruction of adults, but also eggs. Such drugs include the predatory mite phytoseiulus. Each individual destroys 5 adult ticks and 10 eggs per day.

Important! Phytoseiulus is completely safe for people and animals.

Since the coniferous bug may well destroy the tree, treatment of spruce against the pest must begin immediately. A small number of scale insects can be removed with a sponge dipped in soapy water. During cleaning, it is necessary to remove not only the pests themselves, but also the whitish coating on which the fungus develops. A week after mechanical removal pest, you need to spray the entire tree with a solution of green soap. The procedure must be carried out several times with a break of 10 days.

Chemical preparations “Calypso”, “Confidant”, “Mospilan”, “Fitoverm” work well against scale insects. If possible, chemical treatment should be carried out after mechanical cleaning of the pest. Also, for the best effect of the drugs, it is necessary to re-treat the spruce. If possible, two or three types of insecticides should be used to prevent the bug from adapting.

There are several folk remedies that will help drive out the worm:

1. Garlic infusion. Take 1 head of garlic per 500 ml of water. The garlic is crushed and poured with boiling water. The resulting solution is left to brew for about 5-6 hours. After this, apply it to the needles using a brush.
2. Olive oil. For 5 liters of water take 10 tbsp. l. olive oil and the resulting emulsion is sprayed on the tree.

In nature, the coniferous bug has several enemies that destroy the pest in the thousands without harming the plant. These include Anagyrus, Aphitis, Coccophagus, Leptomastix, Leptomastidea. Finding these insects is quite difficult, but the effect from them will be at the level of chemical treatment.

Pine-eating pests of spruce

Another name for the pest is spruce borer. This is a type of butterfly that feeds on the needles of pine, spruce, larch or fir. Spruce moth is colored in grey colour with glimpses of white. The wingspan is up to 6 cm. In spring, the butterfly lays eggs between spruce needles. The hatched caterpillars mercilessly destroy the greenery on the tree. If the damage is severe, the spruce may be left without needles at all.

Caterpillar activity occurs at the end of spring. The caterpillar's feeding period is up to 50 days, after which it pupates and after 15 days turns into a butterfly. Each adult can lay up to 300 eggs, which are collected in one heap. The activity of the spruce moth can be determined by the needles wrapped in cobwebs and the bare branches of a coniferous plant. Also, moth eggs can be easily seen with the naked eye.

Did you know? The French astronomer Trouvelot brought silkworm eggs from Europe to America for study. Several caterpillars escaped during the research. After 30 years, the pest affected more than 10 thousand square meters. miles of tree planting.

Important! If you do not destroy the caterpillars before pupation, the butterflies emerging from the pupae will destroy all the trees and shrubs within a kilometer radius. In this case, no means of struggle will help.

Important! When severely affected by moth, the tree becomes bald and dries out.

In order to prevent your favorite coniferous tree or even the entire planting from drying out, you need to start destroying the moth. To drive out this pest without using chemicals, you will need to work with your hands. You need to start by removing all the needles from under the tree into a separate pile. Next, it is advisable to burn the collected dry needles or simply take them outside the site. If you have goats or pigs, then you need to tie them near a tree so that, while digging in the ground, they find and eat moth pupae.

In addition, the soil around the tree must be dug up so that the remaining pupae are destroyed. In the spring, when butterflies appear, the spruce is sprayed with drugs (neonicotinoids or peritroids). After the caterpillars appear, baits (made from the bottom half of a bottle) with kvass or beer are placed on the tree, which lure the caterpillars. It is also worth understanding that the natural enemies of caterpillars and pupae are ants, birds, moles and some insects.

It is precisely because of the abundant number of natural enemies that the use of chemicals in summer time may do more harm than good. Therefore, we recommend that treatment be carried out at the moment the first caterpillars appear and over the next 10 days.

Important! It is necessary to use insecticides only when per 1 sq. m of crown there are at least 2 pupae. Spraying is carried out after the first caterpillars appear.

Important! One pest outbreak produces a huge number of caterpillars over the next 5-7 years.

You can spot the sawfly in May. If you notice that there are a lot of damaged needles on the tree (eaten or completely missing), this is a signal that a caterpillar has appeared on the spruce. The pest can be destroyed using chemicals, agrotechnological methods or the involvement of natural enemies. If you notice several caterpillars on a tree, hang 1-2 bird feeders nearby. Initially attracting birds can have the same effect as using chemicals. Ants, tahini flies and rodents are natural enemies of caterpillars. If they do not harm you or other vegetation on the site, then try to lure them to the affected tree, and the result will not be long in coming.

If the tree is not tall or the caterpillars accumulate en masse in one place, then they can be collected manually or simply cut off the branch (after cutting it must be burned). Effective methods are installing adhesive plates or wrapping shoots with tape, which prevent the larvae from climbing to the tree needles.

Massive sawfly infestation is “treated” with the drugs “Chlorofos”, “Karbofos” or “Kinmiks”. They should only be used when the caterpillars appear. Spraying is carried out several times with a short period of time. After the larvae begin to disappear from the tree, you need to deal with the spruce litter. It is collected in a heap and burned outside the site. The soil around the tree is dug up to get rid of the pupae.

Spruce stem pests

The harmfulness of the bark beetle in the spruce forest can be compared with the activity Colorado potato beetle in a potato field. If you do not deal with the pest in a timely manner, it may well destroy several dozen trees in a season. The cause of the appearance of the beetle is drought or fires. In general, everything that entails the appearance large quantity dry or damaged trees.

Signs of spruce bark beetle activity:

• a large number of small holes in the bottom of the tree;
• patterns on the bark left by the pest;
• wood debris around or on the trunk (chopped wood obtained during the process of making passes).

All these signs make it clear that your food is at risk. To get rid of bark beetles they use various methods. First, inspect your area and remove dry or diseased plants from it. After the examination, you need to make sure that the tree is healthy and does not need feeding. With a small population, the bark beetle will not touch a strong tree. The topographer bark beetle is very difficult to destroy. The use of insecticides does not give results, since the pest hides under the bark. There is only one chemical drug, which gives the “Clipper” effect, but its cost of around $20 is not acceptable for everyone.

The most effective ways destruction - injection into the tree and traps with pheromones. Injections are given only by specialists, and they are quite expensive, but you can make a trap yourself. For the trap you will need a funnel with a diameter of 25-30 cm, medium a plastic cup, 2 plates with dimensions of 35x45 cm and a dispenser with pheromones (purchased in the store).

We make a cut on one plate and insert another to form a cross-shaped figure. A bag of pheromones is hung from below the plates. A funnel is attached to the edges of the plates, and a cup is glued to the bottom. The glass is secured so that it can be removed and insects can be removed. Holes are made at the bottom of the glass to prevent rainwater from collecting.

This method of collecting pests is used in many European countries, as it is the cheapest and quite effective.

The pest appears at the end of June and continues its activity until the beginning of September. The female makes a hole in the bark and inhabits it with larvae, which feed on the phloem ( internal part bark).

Important! Bark beetle larvae begin to reproduce only 2 years after emergence, which gives more time for their destruction.

The pine beetle is not able to quickly destroy a spruce, but its activity greatly weakens the tree and makes it vulnerable to frost and disease. It is possible and necessary to fight the pest. Various methods and means are used to treat spruce. First, cut down dead trees and trim diseased branches. Feed the tree and do a thorough inspection. The pest can only be combated directly using subcortical injections or spraying the lower part of the trunk with an insecticide. As in the case of the spruce bark beetle, the drug “Clipper” gives a good effect.

There is one folk method, which was used before the advent of chemicals. The solution was made from cow dung, lime, animal blood and tobacco. The resulting mixture was coated bottom part spruce trunk

Unfortunately, if the methods described above do not help, then severely affected trees must be cut down and burned.

Important! The spruce longhorned beetle often causes damage to other trees, such as maple, birch and aspen.

The natural enemy of the beetle is woodpeckers, which easily remove pests from under the bark. You can attract birds using bird feeders. This method fight is very effective, since a very small amount chemicals can help fight the beetle.

If no methods help, then it is worth purchasing specialized insecticides. They should be used only in the form of injections, since surface treatment will not give results. The solution is injected into the holes made by the beetle. If possible, pour the chemical into all holes on the bark.

Another insect that loves to feast on wood and pine bark. The woodcutter beetle is up to 2 cm long and black or dark brown in color.

Important! There are aberration individuals that are colored shades of brown.

The spruce lumberjack damages felled trees, as well as those that have been weakened or susceptible to damage. The pest eats away the bark and gnaws through the wood, making it unsuitable for processing into furniture or use in construction.

The woodcutter appears in May and begins to mate by mid-June. Eggs are laid under bark scales, from which after 2 weeks the larvae hatch and begin to eat the spruce bast. It is worth remembering that the beetle does not touch young trees, damaging only old ones or those that are discarded for cutting.

Let's move on to insect control measures. It's worth starting by doing sanitary rules: cutting down old and diseased trees, removing bark, sawdust and parts of wood. Regular monitoring coniferous plantings will help prevent the beetle population from increasing.

As in previous cases, attracting natural enemies– birds. Woodpeckers can remove both larvae and adults from under the bark, reducing the pest population. If no measures help reduce the beetle population, then the affected trees should be cut down and burned.

Cone pest: pine pine borer

This spruce pest often visits coniferous plantings. Many people confuse the moth with an ordinary moth. They are almost identical in color and size. The butterfly is colored gray with a brownish pattern and flashes of white. The wingspan is up to 3.5 cm. The moth appears in June-July. Damages cones and lays eggs in them. The caterpillars are dirty red in color and reach a length of 2.5 cm.

The caterpillars make passages in the cones, feeding on the base of the scales and the seeds. After the activity of the caterpillars, the cone turns brown and falls off (reddish excrement is visible on the cone). In addition to the generative organ, the moth damages the apical shoots of spruce and gnaws wood.

If a moth has settled on your spruce, you will observe the following signs of its activity:

91 once already
helped

Having bought a cut down Christmas tree at the market, each of us wants it to look fresh and attractive throughout the holidays. We offer several simple tips that will help preserve live Christmas tree at home longer. This does not require any special means, just a grain of knowledge on choosing, installing and caring for a Christmas tree.

From the article you will learn:

• 1 How to save christmas tree so that it doesn't crumble?
  • 1.1 Choosing a quality tree
• 2 Correct installation live Christmas tree
  • 2.1 Installation of the Christmas tree
  • 2.2 Several recipes for a nutrient solution to extend the life of a Christmas tree
• 3 The Christmas tree is installed. What to do next
  • 3.1 We also recommend reading:

How to preserve a Christmas tree so that it does not fall off?

Choosing a quality tree

Let's start with choosing a Christmas tree. If you buy a tree that has been sitting for a month from the seller, believe me, no matter what you do with it later, trying to preserve it. appearance, the beautiful Christmas tree will not stand for long. The needles will fall off simply from time to time.

choosing a Christmas tree

When buying spruce or pine before the New Year, check with the seller about the time of felling, asking for documents for the goods.

If they are not there, first of all pay attention to the color of the needles. Yellow tint will indicate that the tree is far from young and will soon begin to crumble. Experts also advise running your palm forcefully along the branch: if needles remain in your hand, the tree was cut down a long time ago and it is better not to pick it up. When running your hand along the branch, the needles should be flexible and remain on the tree.

To preserve your Christmas tree for as long as possible, pay attention to the trunk and branches of the tree. The branches should be elastic and unbreakable. The surface of the trunk should be covered with needles; there should be no wide dark border on the cut.

The freshness of the Christmas tree is evidenced by the elasticity of its branches and the bright, rich green color of the needles. If you rub several needles in your fingers, a strong spruce smell should appear, and the surface of the skin will become oily.

Proper installation of a live Christmas tree

If you decide to keep a live Christmas tree at home longer, do not rush to install it indoors immediately after purchase. Allow the tree to acclimate slightly. A sharp change in temperature can cause the tree to lose all its needles. For successful acclemation, place the tree in a cold garage or balcony.

installation of a live Christmas tree

While the Christmas tree gets used to the change in temperature, we will prepare a place for its installation. First, the wood should be kept away from open flames or heat sources that can dry it out prematurely. Secondly, place the tree out of the reach of pets.

If you plan to use garlands to decorate your Christmas tree, place the tree close to an outlet. If this is not possible, you will need to use an extension cord. Make sure that the extension cord runs along the wall and does not come into contact with moisture and does not pose a fire hazard to the wiring.

If you want to keep your live Christmas tree fresh for a long time, forget about metal and plastic cross stands into which the wood is secured with nails or screws. Buy a special stand into which you can pour water or select deep container, where you can pour water, pour wet sand or put pebbles. It should be deep enough so that the tree does not fall or tilt to one side.

Keep in mind that you will need some form of water to keep the wood fresh. So that she doesn't harm you floor covering and furniture, cover the area where the Christmas tree will be installed with cloth or light paper. You can also cover the container in which the Christmas tree is installed with something. With the help of tinsel, rain and others New Year's decorations everything can be organized as a great Christmas tree decoration.

Christmas tree installation

When installing the tree, remove the lower branches (they are perfect for a New Year's wreath or bouquet for decoration festive table). Clean the trunk by 10–20 cm. Be sure to renew the cut area. This is necessary so that the trunk can absorb moisture.

Note! On some sites you can find a recommendation to drill several holes in the barrel before installing it in water. It is assumed that this way the tree will absorb moisture better. However, experts do not recommend doing this - no particular benefit has been noticed from this, but such experiments can damage the stability of the tree.

Place the tree in the container

Place the tree in a container filled with damp sand or water. Instead of sand, you can collect small pebbles, install a Christmas tree in them and fill them with water. You can also wrap the cleaned part of the trunk with any loose cloth and regularly moisten it with water or a specially prepared solution.

In any case, no matter which way you choose to keep a living Christmas tree at home longer - in water, among pebbles or in sand, make sure that the tree stands stable. Stores sell special stands that contain a container for water. If there is no such stand, take an ordinary bucket, only make sure that the tree rests against the edges with its lower branches or secure it with rope guys. They are easy to hide under New Year's decor.

Several recipes for a nutrient solution to extend the life of a Christmas tree

To extend the life of a New Year's tree, make its water more nutritious and take measures to prevent the proliferation of pathogenic bacteria. Here are a few simple recipes that will help you with this:

• The simplest option is hot water And acetic acid. Boiling water will open the pores of the wood, and vinegar will protect against pests that live under the bark. In addition, the essence will act as a preservative, prolonging the life of the tree.
• The second option is a solution of water and 2-3 tablespoons of liquid glycerin. This solution will protect the trunk from rotting.
• The third method is a solution of cold water, sugar (2 tablespoons) and aspirin (2 pcs.). Sugar will feed the tree, and asperin will act as a preservative for the water. It won’t bloom, it won’t smell bad, and the tree will last longer.

Note: as folk remedy To replenish the Christmas tree, you can find advice to add cola or lemonade to the water. This product of the chemical and food industry, according to folk chemists, should extend the life of the Christmas tree. I don’t know how effective this is, but if you decide to try this remedy, be careful not to flood the Christmas tree, furniture and floors with sweet water. In addition, you should not use this product if you have a small dog or other sweet-loving animals in the house. They will definitely want to know what smells so delicious there and you will be tired of driving them away from the tree.

The Christmas tree is installed. What to do next

So you've done everything necessary measures to keep your Christmas tree alive at home longer. Now all you have to do is monitor the water level in the container with the tree, if it is installed in water, or the humidity of the sand, if the tree is installed in a container with sand. To do this, look into the container and add water. The sand should be moist and the water level should not fall below the base of the tree.

In addition to feeding the tree from the trunk, it is advisable to spray the branches of the tree from a spray bottle from time to time. This should be done a few hours before turning on the electric Christmas decorations.

Important! When choosing garlands for the New Year tree, buy those equipped with new LED bulbs. They will not dry out the tree much during operation and it will last longer.

What lasts longer at home for the New Year: a live Christmas tree or fir or spruce? What is the best way to install, in what solution to keep the Christmas tree and Christmas tree branches so that it lasts longer. How long should a tree stay up after Christmas?

Of course, we all want the tree to stand and delight us as long as possible, but what to do if the needles quickly dry out and fall off? Besides the spoiled festive mood in this case, we get a lot of trouble, since cleaning up fallen needles is not an easy task. IN this material we will talk about which tree is better to give preference to and how to actually ensure that the symbol of the New Year lasts in your home for as long as possible.

How to keep a Christmas tree at home longer: ways

With the approach of such a wonderful and family holiday as New Year Many people are starting to think about buying a Christmas tree or pine tree. Anyone can purchase or drag with my own hands bring this green beauty into your home so that she will delight the household with her appearance. Decorations and tinsel on the Christmas tree give a special atmosphere to the whole house, and the smell of pine needles only enhances the feeling of the upcoming holiday.

This question has always been and remains relevant. There is no single correct answer to this, but there are many ways that can extend the life of the green beauty in your home. So let's get started:

• Initially, even when purchasing a tree, pay attention to the elasticity and resilience of the branches. If you notice that the branches bend too easily and at the same time crack (even slightly), then you should not take such a tree. All of the above signs indicate that the tree is already dry and most likely old, and from this we can conclude that at room temperature all the needles will begin to fall off. That is, you only need to buy a tree whose branches are green and whose needles are fragrant.
• To forest beauty does not begin to crumble immediately after you place it in the house, give it the opportunity to adapt to new environment a habitat. Do not bring the tree into the house; a sudden change in temperature can play a cruel joke. Let the tree stand on the veranda or balcony for a while.

• If you still haven’t looked through it and purchased a spruce tree that already has even slightly yellowed needles, they must be removed immediately. This is very simple to do - hit the floor with the barrel several times.
• The following procedure will also extend the life of the tree. Before placing it in the house, treat the tree trunk. To do this, you need to use a knife to clean it (by 15 cm) and plan it.
• To keep your spruce looking as fresh as possible, you need to spray it with water from time to time.
• Also save beautiful view The forest guest will be helped by an ordinary damp rag, which must be tightly wrapped around the tree trunk.

What to put a live Christmas tree in at home so that it lasts longer and does not crumble: composition of the solution, amount of sugar in the solution

As far as practice shows, a live Christmas tree tends to be stored in an apartment for two weeks, that is, its period of “prosperity” lasts almost until the Old New Year, or even longer. It is important to understand that what you put the tree in directly determines how long it will last.

In order for the tree to stand longer, a variety of components are added to the water or a certain solution is made that can support the life of the beauty:

• The most basic way to prevent a Christmas tree from drying out quickly (and the most common, one might even say primitive) is to add aspirin or citric acid. They saturate the water nutrients, which our beauty so needs.
• The second method is also considered quite simple and anyone who cares about the freshness of the tree can handle it. All you have to do is mix hot water with acetic acid and immerse the tree in this liquid. The fact is that hot water helps open the pores on the tree trunk, and acetic acid fights pests that have settled under the bark and are sucking the life out of the poor tree. Thanks to this method, the tree will last several days longer than in ordinary water, or in a mixture of water and citric acid.
• The next option is suitable for those who want the tree to take root and take root. To do this, you need to use either soil for indoor plants or regular sand.

• Find a sturdy pot that can support your tree. Fill it with sand or soil. Add water to the sand, in which you have previously dissolved a few tablespoons of sugar and a couple of aspirin tablets.
• If the spruce appreciates your careful efforts, it may take root, and this in turn will allow you to plant it outside in the spring.
• This will save you money - you won't need to buy a new tree for the next holiday. Convenient, isn't it?
• If you want your tree not to rot (which sometimes happens), then you can prepare a simple solution, which consists of components such as plain water (preferably cold or just cool) and liquid glycerin. It’s worth taking just a couple of tablespoons of glycerin. l. This solution will really protect the trunk of your Christmas tree, it will not rot and the tree will last longer.
• For those who always have it at hand large capacity like a bucket and a few kilograms of sand, special offer - just put the tree in this bucket filled with sand and water it daily. The main thing is that the tip of the wood does not touch the bottom. That's the whole point. This is quite simple for those who live in a private house.
• Perhaps everyone may have some potassium permanganate lying around in their first aid kit. She is also coming into play. Just dissolve a small portion of potassium permanganate in water and place your tree in it.

How long does a live Christmas tree last at home, and how long is it stored?

• As mentioned above, a live Christmas tree can live in a house for about 2 weeks. This will be its lifespan if you do not use any of the above methods.
• If you use one of the methods to maintain the life of the Christmas tree, then the chance that it will live longer will increase several times.
• Unfortunately, drying and shedding of needles cannot be avoided, no matter how much you want it. However, when proper care the green beauty will be able to please you for at least 3 weeks.
• The main thing is to repeat the watering procedure daily so that the tree does not need moisture. It is its absence that contributes to the rapid death of needles.

What lasts longer at home for the New Year - a live Christmas tree, fir or pine?

Every lover of pine needles wants this magical smell to linger in the house for as long as possible, and for the prickly beauty to blink with bright lights before their eyes.

• For most people, the choice of tree is obvious - spruce. It is big, fragrant and so familiar. Yes, Christmas tree, this is the standard. It costs a couple of weeks and that’s enough for most people. But it must be said that trees such as fir or pine are also used for variety.
• The fact is that such a wonderful tree as a fir can survive much longer than an ordinary Christmas tree. Its needles do not fall off so quickly, and they wither more slowly. And with proper care, it will please you for a very long time.
• For comparison, fir lives even longer than « blue spruce » , which is known for its endurance - it withers just as slowly and the smell of pine needles lingers in the house for a long time.
• What about the pine tree, its life period is slightly different from the life period of the Christmas tree. At good care, practically no different from caring for a Christmas tree, the pine will emit a very strong smell of pine needles and will last for at least 3 weeks. She also loves wet sand. The main nuance is that over time its trunk becomes thinner and dries out. Therefore, you need to make sure that your pine tree does not tip over by accident, because few people will like the process of cleaning up fallen needles.

Drawing conclusions, we can say that the most best option for those who like the long presence of wood in the house, this is, of course, fir. And what about unchanging traditions? You can choose any tree between a Christmas tree and a pine. Care is almost the same. The only difference is the strength of the pine scent. Here pine definitely has the advantage.

How long should a tree stay up after Christmas?

Opinions about New Year's traditions have their own nuances. The most common question is: “When should I throw away my Christmas tree?”

• For some, it doesn’t even survive until January 3 (just imagine how you can torture unhappy tree). And for some it lasts almost until spring.
• If we talk about traditions, then green beauty should leave your home no earlier than the Old New Year. That is, at Christmas the tree should certainly delight you with its presence.
• It is customary to remove the green guest after the Old New Year. According to the calendar, it occurs on January 13-14, a week after Christmas.
• Also, there is a theory that the tree should stand throughout the New Year holidays, and this also includes Epiphany - January 19th. And if this is the case, then the life of the tree in your house needs to be extended for another week.
• However, we would like to draw your attention to the fact that it is not necessary to keep a tree in the house if it has completely withered and looks like a crooked bush. If the tree didn’t live to see the last holiday, it doesn’t matter. The main ones are still New Year and Christmas.

How to store a Christmas tree on the balcony after the New Year?

Some people, due to circumstances or simply personal preferences, leave the tree in the house only for the duration of the actual celebration, and then move it to the balcony.

In order for the tree to continue to please you, even in such a place, you must adhere to some rules and recommendations.

• You need to free up quite a bit of space on the balcony, preferably in a corner, so that the tree does not get in the way too much under your feet when you need to take something important on this very balcony. To protect yourself, perform this entire ritual of parting with the tree wearing protective gloves - the needles very easily dig into the skin of your palms.
• To avoid littering too much, you can wrap the tree with film or paper, after laying some kind of covering under the trunk.
• In this form, the tree can stand on the balcony until spring, and for the laziest - even until summer. Some jokers keep the Christmas tree on the balcony for several years - this depends on the sense of humor and endurance of the owner of the balcony.

If your Christmas tree is still alive, but for some reason you need to get rid of it and you don’t see another exit, like a balcony, you should do one simple ritual:

• We find a container in which the tree can exist stably, fill it with sand or soil (the second option is better) and insert the trunk of the tree there.
• After this, you should water the tree with water. room temperature and put it on the balcony. TO sub-zero temperature Christmas trees, as we know, are treated adequately, the main thing is not to forget to “feed” them - the same water with sugar, glycerin or aspirin. Do not forget that you need to water not hot or warm water– this is too large a temperature difference. This way your tree can live longer and even take root.

As you can see, there are more than enough ways to extend the life of a coniferous tree; all you need is your desire and very little time. Use our tips and enjoy the beauty of the forest guest.

Video: How to preserve a Christmas tree longer?

This morning I burned myself in the kitchen while taking a pie out of the oven. It’s good that I always have a bottle of vodka and Panthenol spray on hand. I quickly washed the burn with vodka and lathered it generously with Panthenol. No terrible blisters, no long-term pain and redness.

What should you keep in your garden medicine cabinet to save you from... sunburn Favorite conifers?

I won’t write about what should have been done to protect against burns, but what’s more, the train has left. And here it is April, and traces of sunburn are already visible on the thujas and fir trees, junipers and cypress trees. Don’t wait for the needles to turn completely red and begin to crumble. Start resuscitation measures immediately. Yes, the damaged needles cannot be saved, but it is possible to stimulate the growth of young shoots and their rapid overgrowth with needles.

The first thing to do is, immediately after thawing the soil under the plants, lightly loosen it and feed it with mullein solution (you can buy it in the form of a concentrate at the garden center). If we're talking about about mullein infusion made independently. then you need to take it in a ratio of 1 to 9. The concentrate is diluted at the rate of 500 ml per 10 liters of water. Be sure to take warm water. Under a young tree or bush you need to pour 4-5 liters, under an adult - 10 liters.

Immediately after feeding trunk circle mulch with crushed bark or peat chips, or even better, pine litter from the nearest forest. The exceptions are Cossack juniper and mountain pine. It is better to mulch them with crushed stone or gravel, because they need an alkaline soil reaction.

The second and very important measure for saving plants is spraying the crown with a solution of Ferovit + Epin. This combination allows you to stimulate the growth of new shoots if there are at least a few green twigs left on the plant, because only such a plant will be able to absorb the drugs. As practice shows, the plant can be restored in 1-2 seasons.

Starting in April, we carry out full spraying of the crown every 2 weeks, alternating Ferovit with Epin. We start with Ferovit (1.5 ml per 1 liter of water). Then spray with Epin (1 ml per 5 liters of water). There should be a total of 4 sprayings with each preparation per season. It is highly advisable to water the plants once again with Zircon solution (1 ml per 10 liters of water) to prevent an outbreak of diseases. We complete processing no later than August 15th. Already the first spraying causes the awakening of dormant buds.

Be sure to pinch the growing shoots so that a dense crown is formed.

And further little secret. For the successful growth of young coniferous plants, the presence of mycelium in the soil is very important. Take a walk to the nearest pine or spruce forest, pick up a bag of soil from under the plants, fill half a bucket of this soil with water, stir well and let it sit for 2-3 hours. Water your coniferous plants with this solution.

To ensure that a living Christmas tree pleases you with its beauty and aroma for as long as possible, do not rush to bring it into your apartment immediately after purchasing it: due to a sharp temperature change, the needles of a living Christmas tree may fall off.

Keep the live Christmas tree on the balcony for a while. To make the dried needles fall off, knock the Christmas tree on the floor, and only then place it in the room. The best place for the New Year's beauty - away from the battery.

From the trunk of a living Christmas tree, you should saw off the lower part 2-3 cm long or remove the bark from the lower 5-10 cm and place the Christmas tree in a container with water, adding one aspirin tablet, a pinch table salt and a tablespoon of sugar. Aspirin plays the role of an antiseptic that prevents putrefactive bacteria from developing, and salt and sugar serve as food for a living Christmas tree.

There is another way: a live Christmas tree is placed in a bucket of sand and regularly watered with water with aspirin (1/4 tablet per 3 liters of water) or several crystals of potassium permanganate.

Extends the life of the Christmas tree when added to a bucket of water or sand. ready-made fertilizers for indoor plants in accordance with the instructions supplied with them.

How to keep a Christmas tree in a pot

To ensure that the decorated Christmas tree stays in the pot for as long as possible, it is recommended to water and spray it, since coniferous trees suffer the most from dry air. Watering is carried out with water at room temperature as the soil dries and ensures uniform soil moisture. And to increase air humidity, the needles must be sprayed.

Spruce is a tree that overwinters in the cold. It should be installed near ventilated places and as far as possible from heating devices. If the spruce is in a pot in an apartment for a long time, then you cannot immediately take it out into the cold, as it may die. Therefore, it is necessary for the tree to gradually get used to lower temperatures.

After finishing New Year's holidays It is best to take a Christmas tree in a pot to glass balcony, having previously insulated the pot in a circle. For example, wrap him in a blanket or do it in another way. On the balcony the air is more humid, and at temperatures close to zero, a Christmas tree in a pot will not freeze. Optimal values temperatures for coniferous trees in winter range from −5 to +5 degrees.

Those wishing to grow a Christmas tree in an apartment should remember that the tree will not live in a pot for more than 3-4 years. Every year the tree needs to be replanted in a new container, soil and fertilizer, for example, “root”, must be added.

For further development of the root system, it is necessary to increase the size of the container. But it is very difficult to create a water-temperature regime in it that is favorable for the tree, as well as to provide it with the necessary nutrients.

If there is not enough space for the plant’s root system and it is not timely transplanted into open ground, this can lead to the death of the Christmas tree in the pot.

Small plants are much more likely to take root than older ones. On average, it is 80%, subject to the conditions of maintenance and transplantation.