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Useful Information About Dwarf Cherry Trees

Loveleena Rajeev
Growing a dwarf cherry tree is quite advantageous, as they not only produce better yields and but are also more pest resistant.
A commercially viable fruit, cherries are widely cultivated for its fleshy, juicy natural sweetness. The cherry tree is also a popular ornamental tree with its beautiful blossoms.
The scientific name for a dwarf cherry tree is Prunus, and this genus has over 60-70 species, natural and cultivated. The health benefits of consuming this fruit are enormous and their flowers are equally nourishing.
With dwarf cherry varieties, one can have plenty of options to choose from - semi-dwarf to dwarf, flowering or non-flowering or fruiting or non-fruiting. Dwarf or semi-dwarf species grow up to around 12 to 25 feet.
Dwarf cherry varieties are being favored over the full sized ones for smaller gardens, and container gardening as well. As they are small, they take less space, require little effort to prune and harvest full-grown cherries, and they fruit earlier than their full sized counterparts.
One needs to decide whether one wants the cherry for ornamental purpose or a yield, because although almost all cherry trees bear flowers and fruits, the cultivated ones emphasize only one feature. There are some bush like dwarf cherry plants too that look lovely as hedges.

Planting the Tree

One of the flowering trees, cherry trees are hard to root, probably the reason why most people prefer to pick them from plant nurseries. They are grown from cuttings. Take a healthy cutting in spring, from a new growth, about 8 to 10 inches long, dip it in a rooting hormone solution, and push the cutting gently in a moistened sowing medium in a container.
Keep the container in a shaded area and the soil moist until the cutting shoots new roots. Transplant in a nutrient amended soil, and build a berm around it to hold the water. Avoid soil that has heavy clay. Cherries should be planted in well drained compost added soil.

Tree Care

Regular watering is important in the first year for established roots. Then, water as per the climate. Mulching is required to keep the soil moist and weeds in control. Proper fertilizer, high in nitrogen and potassium ensures good flower and fruit yield.
A dwarf cherry is susceptible to get infected with brown rot and the leaf spot, both of which can be controlled with a systematic use of insecticides and germicides. Other pests such as aphids, maggots, etc. too can cause extensive damage to the tree.
So always look for natural ways to get rid of them. Birds are another problem, especially when the tree is fruiting. The dwarf variety has a major advantage over other cherry trees over this problem, because a small tree or bush can easily be netted.

Pruning

The dwarf cherry tree has tender stems that are quite prone to breakage, hence a light prune before the onset of flowers and fruits is quite helpful. Prune when the tree is young to establish a strong structure for it.
Prune the branches to allow air and light circulation, this will help in reducing the incidence of infection to your tree. Prune all broken, dead, damaged, and diseased branches.
Harvest the cherry tree in early spring, or enjoy its white or pink blooms with just little care. And don't forget to use those tarty and sweet cherries in yummy desserts.