How to Plant Eucommia Seeds? Detailed Planting Methods and Tips

Eucommia is a rare and endangered Class II protected plant unique to China, and it is also an excellent landscaping ornamental and economic tree species that can be cultivated artificially. Its cultivation management is mainly divided into two stages: seed seedling raising and cutting seedling raising. So, how do you plant Eucommia seeds?

1. How to plant Eucommia seeds?

Spring sowing is carried out in March to April when the weather is stable above 10°C. On a prepared seedbed, open furrows 2 to 3 cm deep at a row spacing of 25 to 30 cm, sow the Eucommia seeds evenly into the furrows, cover with 2 cm of fine soil, level the bed surface, and cover with grass to retain moisture and warmth. The sowing rate is 6 to 8 kg per mu. After sowing, keep the seedbed soil moist, and seedlings can emerge in about 15 days. After 1 to 2 years of cultivation, when the seedlings are 80 to 100 cm tall, they can be planted out.

2. Management after planting Eucommia trees

After the seedlings are planted, loosen the soil and weed in time, and fertilize and water according to the growth conditions of different seedlings.

When the seedlings grow 2 to 4 leaves, in order to keep the distance between each seedling from being too close, excess seedlings need to be pulled out, and the first topdressing should be carried out, applying 22.5 to 30.0 kg of urea per mu, mainly potassium fertilizer;

When the seedlings grow 5 to 6 leaves, remove the excess seedlings while adjusting the plant spacing, and fill them in where they are sparse, keeping 300,000 to 450,000 plants per mu.

In addition, Eucommia seedlings are prone to dying in the later stage of seedling growth. Before sowing, the soil should be sprayed with 0.5% Bordeaux mixture once every 10 days, and after 1 month, spray with 0.1% Bordeaux mixture once every 15 days for disinfection, repeating 2 to 3 times. Pests such as cutworms and mole crickets can be trapped and killed with poison bait. It also needs 2 times of intertillage and weeding each year.

The trunk of Eucommia is relatively straight, with strong upright growth, a compact crown that is very dense, and a large shading area. The bark is grayish white or grayish brown, and the leaves are thick and green, beautiful and harmonious, providing a very good resource for landscaping and street trees.