Many people dream of growing their own Christmas tree for their summer cottage. She not only decorates the site in itself, but also serves as an excellent symbol of the New Year - it can be dressed up for a holiday. It is nicer than an artificial tree, and more humane than a felled tree, which will die after the holiday.

Growing a tree from seeds is quite simple. In three or four years it will reach half a meter in size, and in ten years we will get a good tree over a meter in height. It is worth recalling that the Christmas tree and other conifers are grown only from seeds, vegetative propagation is not available to them (one of the few exceptions is larch, which can be propagated by layering). In some cases, the tree can be propagated by grafting, but still the main method of reproduction for it is seed.

So what does it take to grow a real tree from a seed? First of all you will need:

1. Cones.
2. Refrigerator with freezer.
3. Soil and pots.
4. Patience.

Cones and seeds

First you need to find cones of a Christmas tree in the forest. They should not be revealed yet. You can collect cones from December to spring, but the best time is when the snow begins to melt. Found cones need to be dried - on a radiator, stove or in another warm place; they should be allowed to dry until they open. The tree seeds are laid out in some container and covered with snow. The vessel must be placed in the freezer and kept there for a long time - from a week to a month; it is advisable, of course, not to rush and let the seeds freeze thoroughly. Then the container is transferred from the freezer to the refrigerator for several hours, and then the seeds of the Christmas tree must be soaked in a solution of potassium permanganate. Now they can be planted in the ground.

The process of freezing the seeds of a Christmas tree is necessary to simulate as much as possible the conditions in which a spruce grows in nature.

Soil selection

The soil for the tree is usually collected in the forest, in the same place where the cones were found. You can also buy conifer soil at the store. The planted seeds must also be sprinkled with coniferous needles or at least sawdust. Coconut flakes can also be used as soil for the tree.

Planting a Christmas tree

The seeds of the Christmas tree are planted in the prepared soil shallowly - about a centimeter. From above, they are sprinkled with soil mixed with pine needles or sawdust. Now the soil must be constantly moistened and kept in a lighted place, but not in direct sunlight. It is important to remember that ate, unlike many flowering plants, needs coolness to germinate. To create the desired microclimate, you can make a small greenhouse. To do this, sticks are stuck into the ground (for example, matches or toothpicks), and a plastic wrap is placed on top of them.

I must say that the seeds of a Christmas tree sprout for a long time - over several months. For those who until now have dealt only with vegetables, fruits and garden flowers, such a period may seem unusual. You should not rush things, you need to wait patiently before the seedlings appear above the ground. By the way, ate sprouts also do not look like the usual tomatoes or cucumbers: instead of two cotyledons, they have several young needles.

Pots for fir trees are advised to be selected in such a way that they can grow in them for several years, since it is undesirable to transplant young Christmas trees. However, others say that the first transplant can be done when the plants have reached two centimeters in height.

Be that as it may, young Christmas trees are kept in the same conditions as seedlings: coolness, light and high humidity. You can keep trees on the balcony, and if they are grown in an apartment, then you do not need to place them near a radiator, stove or other heating system; there must be a container of water next to the pot.

The next tree transplant is done a year later, and then three years later. It is necessary to transplant in cold weather.

At the age of three or four, when the tree has already grown half a meter, it can be planted in open ground. Before this, for a long time, the plant must be accustomed to the outdoor air, periodically taking it out of the room during the day; and when it reaches the age of three months, you can take it out at night.

After planting in the open ground, the tree must adapt to the new place. To make it easier for her to get used to it, you need to pour a little earth from the forest into the hole, which is well known to our tree. Until it takes root, it needs to be watered from time to time.

Small Christmas trees are advised to keep in the house. They saturate the air with oxygen and phytoncides - odorous substances that are useful for the body, and also emit a pleasant pine aroma.

How many years do Christmas trees live?

I must say that among conifers, Christmas trees cannot be called centenarians: they rarely live up to three hundred years of age. They usually live up to 150 years; age depends on the type of spruce and the place of growth. However, the roots remaining from the dead trunk can give rise to new clone shoots; if all clones from one root are considered one plant, then the spruce's lifespan increases significantly: the oldest such tree, Old Tikko, lives for almost 10 thousand years. It is located in Sweden, on Mount Fulufjellet. It is the oldest woody organism on Earth.

Since the branches of the Christmas tree, like the araucaria, are located in "floors", you can determine the age of the tree by counting the "floors", each of which corresponds to one year, and adding 3 - 4 years required for the formation of the first "floor".

Fir trees grow in the forest quite close to each other, which makes the fir forest the darkest among all other types of forests. In summer, it is never hot in it, since most of the sun's rays do not penetrate into it. This feature of spruce trees was one of the reasons for the cold resistance of the plant - a cool temperature is needed for the spruce seed to germinate.

The Christmas tree is an evergreen tree, but in the fall it sheds one seventh of its needles. Of course, in this sense, larch is more effective, which sheds all the needles for the winter, which is why it got this name. Spruce needles are used to prepare fortified feed for livestock, however, an infusion of needles will also be useful for humans.

Grow a tree from seeds and let it never cease to delight you!