How to Grow Sea Buckthorn: A Detailed Guide to Planting Methods and Precautions

The sea buckthorn tree is a plant with low soil requirements, which is why it can survive in desert areas. However, cultivating sea buckthorn in ordinary environments differs from the desert environment, so we need to pay attention to certain issues, and at the same time you will know which stages of sea buckthorn growth need attention after reading this article.

How to Grow Sea Buckthorn

1. Sea buckthorn is a heliophilous tree species that loves light. It can grow under open woodland, but it cannot adapt to forest areas with high canopy density. Sea buckthorn is not very strict about soil requirements. It is distributed on chestnut-calcic soil, gray-calcic soil, brown-calcic soil, meadow soil and black loessial soil, and it can also grow on gravelly soil, mildly saline-alkali soil, sandy soil, and even in arsenic sandstone and half-rock half-soil areas, but it does not like overly heavy clay soil.

2. Sea buckthorn has certain requirements for precipitation, generally above 400 mm of annual precipitation. If precipitation is less than 400 mm, it can still grow in places such as river floodplains and hilly gullies, but it does not like standing water. Sea buckthorn is not very strict about temperature requirements; the extreme minimum temperature can reach —50°C, and the extreme maximum temperature can reach 50°C, with annual sunshine hours of 1500-3300 hours.

3. Sea buckthorn seedlings are rather delicate, fearing strong light, high temperatures and exposure, and also fearing standing water. But once the seedling roots spread out, their adaptability increases. One-year-old seedlings 5-8 cm tall can overwinter safely. Sea buckthorn growth accelerates from the second year, with the first growth peak between 4 and 6 years, after which growth slows. After an interval of 4-6 years, a second growth peak appears. However, due to different environments in different regions, the growth peak periods also differ. For example, in the Qilian Mountains region, the first growth peak is between 8 and 10 years, and the second growth peak appears after an interval of 8-10 years.

4. Sea buckthorn usually begins to bear fruit at 3 years old, and enters the full fruiting period at 5 years old, lasting about 4-5 years, after which the branches partially dry up, the inner canopy becomes hollow, and tree vigor weakens. After about 3 years, the branches renew, tree vigor strengthens again, and a new full fruiting period can be welcomed. The fruit yield per plant of sea buckthorn varies greatly with conditions in different regions, and during the full fruiting period the yield per plant is 2-5 kg.

Sea Buckthorn Planting Methods and Precautions

I. Cultivation Methods for Sea Buckthorn

1. Light and temperature

Sea buckthorn is not strict about temperature and is extremely tolerant of cold and heat, withstanding a minimum of —50°C and a maximum of 50°C. Sea buckthorn is a heliophilous tree species that loves light, and annual sunshine hours of 1500-3300 hours are suitable.

2. Water

Sea buckthorn tolerates poor soil and requires annual precipitation above 400 mm, but if planted in valleys or river floodplains and similar sites, it can also grow normally. In addition, care should be taken to avoid standing water, and drainage should be done promptly during the rainy season.

3. Fertilization

During the bud stage and fruit stage of sea buckthorn, Zhuangguodiling should be sprayed promptly to increase nutrients, which helps prevent flower drop, improves the fruit-setting rate, and at the same time speeds up fruit expansion, ensuring high quality and high yield of the fruit.

4. Soil

Sea buckthorn has strong soil adaptability. It is suitable to choose gravelly soil, sandy soil and similar soils with good aeration, but overly heavy clay soil should be avoided.

II. Precautions

1. Pruning the tree shape

When sea buckthorn grows to about 2-2.5 m tall, the top needs to be cut. Cut horizontally, not lengthwise; remove the old and keep the new; prune where dense; keep vigorous branches in gaps; clear the inner canopy and cut back the base properly, and the crown will be full and the yield high.

2. Pest and disease control

Drying-shrink disease is the main disease of sea buckthorn, while common pests of sea buckthorn include sea buckthorn aphids, spring cankerworms, apple small leafroller moths and so on.

For the specific control of sea buckthorn drying-shrink disease, disease-resistant varieties should be selected when planting sea buckthorn, while management should be strengthened, soil should be loosened regularly, soil aeration should be improved, and the disease resistance of the plants should be enhanced. From late April, chemical control can be carried out, with hole irrigation of 40% carbendazim suspension concentrate at 500 times dilution or thiophanate-methyl at 800 times dilution, once a month for 3-5 consecutive times.

For aphid damage, spraying 10% imidacloprid at 2500-3000 times dilution can be used for control. For damage by apple small leafroller moths and spring cankerworms, spraying 20% fenvalerate at 3000 times dilution can be used, and 25% methamidophos at 2500 times dilution can also be used for control.

Cutting Propagation Methods for Sea Buckthorn

1. Preparation before sea buckthorn cuttings

Before carrying out sea buckthorn cuttings, three things need to be prepared: first, soil; second, cuttings; third, water.

First, let us talk about soil. The soil requirements for sea buckthorn cuttings are loose, fertile and well aerated, and the soil should not easily compact. If conditions permit, the soil should be sterilized before cutting. On the one hand, this can remove weed seeds contained in the soil, and on the other hand, it can eliminate insect eggs in the soil. In this way, the probability of sea buckthorn being infected by pests and diseases after growing up can be greatly reduced.

The second is the selection of cuttings. The cuttings are cut from healthy mother branches of sea buckthorn. Generally, one cutting should contain three to five young buds, and the length of each cutting should be ensured to be between 5 and 8 cm.

The last is water. Needless to say, after cutting is completed, sufficient water should be applied for maintenance.

2. Specific operation of sea buckthorn cuttings

Insert the selected cuttings into the prepared soil, let the soil cover about one third of the cuttings, gently pat the potting soil with your hand, then water thoroughly and maintain carefully. Generally, rooting can occur in one week.

Growth Habits of Sea Buckthorn

Sea buckthorn is a relatively cold-tolerant plant, and it can tolerate salinity, alkalinity and poor soil, with extremely tenacious vitality. Sea buckthorn is a very precious economic tree species. Because it contains a very high vitamin content, it has extremely high nutritional value and can be eaten in many ways. In addition, it has a developed root system and nitrogen-fixing root nodules, so it is often used as a tree species for windbreak and sand fixation and for soil and water conservation, and its ecological value is also very high.

Sea buckthorn is a plant with strong survival ability. As long as it is given sufficient light, it can survive relatively well, so when we plant sea buckthorn, we do not need to fertilize and water excessively. We only need to provide sufficient light and then carry out appropriate management.