What Fertilizer Is Best for Navel Oranges? Introduction to Scientific Fertilization Methods

The most attractive thing about navel oranges is their orange-red appearance, which makes them look appetizing at a glance. A glass of orange juice every day can also supplement many of the vitamins the human body needs, making it a beverage people often drink in daily life. If you want to eat delicious oranges, you cannot do without the grower's routine management.

What Fertilizer to Apply to Navel Oranges

Navel oranges are generally given organic fertilizer, with sufficient basal fertilizer applied, and organic fertilizer to supplement nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, organic matter, and so on. In addition to the fertilizers above, it is also necessary to supplement important nutrients such as calcium, magnesium, zinc and boron. Calcium supplementation promotes root growth and strengthens the tree; magnesium supplementation reduces yellow leaves and leaf drop; zinc and boron supplementation builds up nutrition for flower bud differentiation over the years, promoting more flowers, stronger flowers and more fruit set, and preventing alternate bearing. Micro-supplement Beili granules, containing highly concentrated calcium, magnesium, zinc and boron, are buried together with organic fertilizer and can effectively prevent the yellow-leaf and yellow-tree phenomena caused by nutrient deficiency in navel oranges, keeping the tree vigorous. At the same time, foliar spraying of Micro-supplement Bili plus Zhuangli comprehensively supplements various quick-acting nutrients such as macro, secondary and trace elements, protects the leaves and restores tree vigor.

Fertilization Methods for Navel Orange

1. Ring trench fertilization. According to the size of the canopy, with the trunk as the center, open a ring trench near the outer edge of the canopy; the depth of the trench depends on the depth of root distribution and is generally 20-30 cm deep and 30 cm wide. The advantages of ring fertilization are that it saves fertilizer and is simple and easy to carry out, but the area is small and it easily injures roots, so it is often used for fertilizing young trees.

2. Radial fertilization. According to the size of the canopy, dig 4-6 radial trenches in the tree basin, with a trench width of about 30 cm; it should be shallow near the trunk and gradually deeper outward. This method injures fewer roots; change the fertilization site every other year or every other time to expand the fertilization area.

3. Strip trench fertilization. Open strip trenches between the rows or between the plants of navel orange trees, 30 cm deep and 30 cm wide; after fertilizing, cover with soil and level it off, rotating the trench opening between plants and rows in different years. It is suitable for fertilizing mature navel orange orchards, especially closed-canopy navel orange orchards.

4. Hole fertilization. Evenly dig 4-8 holes at the outer edge of the canopy, 20-30 cm deep and 30 cm wide; apply fertilizer into the holes and cover with soil after it seeps down. Hole fertilization is simple and injures fewer roots, but the fertilization area is small, so it is suitable for applying liquid fertilizer.

5. Whole-orchard fertilization: evenly broadcast fertilizer over the whole orchard, then turn it into the soil. It is suitable for mature navel orange orchards whose roots fill the whole orchard, but the fertilization depth is shallow and it easily causes roots to grow upward, so it should be used alternately with other methods.

Foliar Topdressing Methods for Navel Orange

1. Foliar topdressing is also called leaf surface fertilization. The nitrogen fertilizers used for foliar spraying are mainly urea, ammonium sulfate and ammonium nitrate, among which urea is the best. Phosphorus fertilizers are mainly ammonium phosphate (a mixture containing monoammonium phosphate and diammonium phosphate), superphosphate, monopotassium phosphate, dipotassium phosphate, and so on, among which ammonium phosphate has the best effect.

2. When superphosphate is used for foliar fertilization, soak it in water for a full day and night before use, then prepare it at the required concentration. Potassium fertilizers are mainly monopotassium phosphate, potassium sulfate, potassium chloride, potassium nitrate and dipotassium phosphate, among which monopotassium phosphate is the best.

3. When fertilizing, in order to save labor, different fertilizers are usually mixed and applied, simultaneously meeting the comprehensive nutrient requirements of navel orange growth and development, and sometimes a proper mix of fertilizers can improve fertilizer efficiency.

When to Fertilize to Increase Navel Orange Yield

1. Young trees: once each in early March, early April, late May to early June, late July, and mid-November.

2. Fruiting trees: apply bud-promoting fertilizer about 15 days before spring buds sprout between February and March, accounting for 15% of the total annual fertilization amount; apply quick-acting nitrogen fertilizer at flower drop as fruit-setting fertilizer, accounting for 15% of the annual amount; apply fruit-strengthening fertilizer in early to mid-July, mainly nitrogen and potassium combined with phosphorus fertilizer, accounting for about 35% of the annual amount; for fruit-picking fertilizer, it is best to apply it before harvest for weak trees and those bearing many fruits, while for trees bearing few fruits, concentrate on applying heavy basal fertilizer after harvest, accounting for about 35% of the annual amount, and the organic fertilizer for the whole year can be applied concentrated in this period. It can also be applied twice a year: apply basal fertilizer after fruit harvest and before spring shoot sprouting, with the whole year's organic fertilizer and half the chemical fertilizer applied concentrated at this time, and apply the remaining half of the chemical fertilizer after fruit setting in July.

There are quite a few fertilization methods for navel oranges, and fruit trees at different stages need different fertilizers, which is how the yield of navel oranges is increased. Navel oranges have a rich taste and high nutritional value and are deeply loved by consumers. It is believed that as long as you put in the effort and manage the planting well, you can grow high-yielding navel oranges and also bring good returns.