Fig Cultivation Techniques: What Causes Fig Fruit Drop?

Figs have become more and more common on the market in recent years. Because of their strong effects and good taste, they are deeply loved by people. Nowadays, many people want to cultivate figs, but if the planting techniques are not mastered well, some problems may arise, and the most common one is fruit drop. So how should they be planted to achieve the best results?

Fig Cultivation Techniques

1. Orchard establishment. When establishing an orchard, suitable varieties should be selected according to different requirements and site conditions. For example, yellow varieties should be selected for canning processing, cold-resistant varieties should be selected in places with low winter temperatures (around minus 15 degrees), salt-resistant varieties should be selected for tidal flat land, and large-fruited varieties should be selected for fresh fruit markets. Continuous cropping is prohibited in the orchard.

2. The planting distance is generally 3 m to 4 m. In areas with good soil or a warm climate, the tree canopy is large, so the row spacing can be expanded to 5 m to 7 m. As for planting time, both autumn planting and spring planting are acceptable in the Yangtze River Basin. Autumn planting should be earlier, and spring planting is suitable in mid-to-late March. Coastal tidal flat land is suitable for autumn planting, while the Huaibei region is suitable for spring planting.

What Causes Fig Fruit Drop?

1. Nitrogen deficiency reduces the number of differentiated flower clusters. Early fruit shape may still be normal, but the fruit becomes smaller, the ripening period is earlier, and the quality is good. However, because many nutrients in the leaves are transferred to the fruit under nitrogen deficiency, the leaves fade noticeably, and fruit drop is severe on the upper part of fruiting branches. After topdressing, branch growth will recover, but the fruit is prone to browning and dropping.

2. Severe potassium deficiency can cause leaf scorch, stop shoot growth, and often produce gourd-shaped fruit. Potassium deficiency can cause poor root growth, blackening, peeling and rotting, which in turn leads to fruit drop.

3. Magnesium deficiency first causes chlorotic symptoms on vigorously growing leaves. As the symptoms worsen, the leaves turn yellow-white except at the petiole, and large brown spots appear. As the symptoms intensify, root growth is inhibited and premature fruit drop occurs.

4. Figs have a large demand for calcium. When calcium is deficient, the uppermost unfolded leaves suddenly turn white and develop brown spots, leading to defoliation. Lower leaves grow normally, while branches become dark brown and shrink. In severe cases, root elongation is obviously inhibited, the roots are prone to rot and have a special strong organic acid odor, and the fruit blackens and drops early.

How to Prevent Fig Fruit Drop

1. Pay attention to pest and disease control. Pests and diseases will weaken fig trees and affect their absorption of nutrients. Nutrient-deficient fig trees are very prone to fruit drop. Therefore, we should frequently observe fig trees to see whether there are pests. Once pests occur, they should be dealt with immediately. Use relevant insecticides and kill the pests promptly according to the instructions to prevent fig fruit drop.

2. Spray growth hormones reasonably. When the temperature suddenly drops, the ripening time of figs will be delayed, which will cause fig fruit drop. In this case, we can spray relevant growth hormones to promote the fig fruit to ripen at a reasonable time. Doing so can not only prevent fig fruit drop, but also improve the quality of the fig fruit.

Field Management of Figs

After the plants survive planting, loosen the soil and remove weeds. To promote more branching, fertilize promptly after pruning. Figs are fruit trees that are relatively tolerant of fertilizer, so fertilization should be heavy, mainly with phosphorus and potassium fertilizers, which can quickly promote the growth of branches and leaves. Fig trees are cold-resistant but not waterlogging-tolerant fruit trees. Apart from the great demand for water during the fruit enlargement period, they do not need much watering at other times. If its root system remains in a waterlogged environment for a long time, it will cause root rot and lead to flower drop, fruit drop, leaf drop, and even death of the plant. Therefore, drainage measures should be well implemented, especially on rainy days.

When planting figs, first choose a good location, then master the planting density well, and after planting, management also needs to be strengthened. If fruit drop occurs, first find out the cause and then solve it at the root, so as to ensure its growth.