Cultivation Methods and Key Technical Points for Chicory 'Commander' Forage
AbstractSowing time: spring sowing is from early March to late April, autumn sowing is from mid-September to early October. Sowing method: first plow the soil deeply to 20-30 cm, and dig drainage ditches well, apply 10-20 kg of compound fertilizer per mu, the row spacing for drilling is 30-40 cm, the depth is 1 cm, and the sowing rate is about 100-200 g per mu. Cultivation management: pay attention to weed control during the seedling stage, and after cutting, 5-10 kg of urea needs to be applied.
Chicory 'Commander' forage is a perennial miscellaneous Asteraceae forage, with broad and emerald-green leaves, rich nutritional value, good palatability, and a high digestion rate. It is suitable for feeding all kinds of livestock and poultry, and chicory 'Commander' forage has strong disease resistance, strong adaptability, and is easy to obtain high yields. It can be cut 5-8 times throughout the year, and the yield per mu can reach as high as about 12000 kg, greatly reducing the feed cost for livestock and poultry.
I. Sowing Time
For spring sowing, early March to late April can be chosen, and for autumn sowing, mid-September to early October can be chosen.
II. Preparing for Sowing
Before sowing, the land needs to be prepared by plowing the soil deeply to 20-30 cm, and after raking it level, digging drainage ditches well. 10-20 kg of compound fertilizer can be applied per mu.
III. Sowing Methods and Sowing Rate
Chicory 'Commander' forage can be broadcast sown, drilled, or grown as seedlings for transplanting. Generally, the drilling method is adopted. The suitable row spacing for drilling is 30-40 cm, the sowing depth must not exceed 1 cm, and the sowing rate is about 100-200 g per mu.
IV. Later Management
During the seedling stage of chicory 'Commander' forage, weeds should be controlled in time, which helps maintain good soil moisture. For drilling or seedling transplanting, transplanting can be chosen when the seedlings grow to 5-7 leaves. Generally, after cutting chicory 'Commander' forage, 5-10 kg of urea needs to be applied as a top dressing per mu, and during this period irrigation can also be carried out according to soil moisture conditions.
V. Utilization Methods
1. For those sown relatively early in autumn, when chicory 'Commander' forage grows to 30-45 cm in that same year, 1 cutting can be carried out, with a stubble height of about 5 cm during this period. In the north, it should not be later than early December, while a few areas in the south may do so. In areas with frost, no top dressing is needed after cutting, and timely top dressing can be chosen in the spring of the 2nd year.
2. To avoid bolting in chicory 'Commander' forage, the cutting height should not be too high. Chicory 'Commander' forage has relatively high nutritional value. The dry matter of the rosette leaves contains 5% crude fat, 15%-32% crude protein, 13% crude fiber, 1.5% calcium, and 0.42% phosphorus, and it is also rich in various amino acids and trace elements.
3. The nutritional value of chicory 'Commander' forage is similar to that of alfalfa, but its digestibility and mineral content are higher than those of alfalfa. The digestibility of its rosette leaves can reach as high as about 90%-95%. Chicory 'Commander' forage is suitable for feeding all kinds of poultry and livestock, and helps improve the conversion rate of meat and fat.
4. Using chicory 'Commander' forage to feed pigs, rabbits, and others has achieved good farming profits. Therefore, farmers can try planting and feeding first, and after success, plant chicory 'Commander' forage on a large scale, which helps improve the benefits of planting and farming.