Detailed Explanation of Dragon Fruit Planting Methods and Management Techniques
I believe everyone is very familiar with dragon fruit, because we can buy it in fruit shops big and small in our daily lives, and it is a relatively common fruit. Although everyone is especially familiar with the taste and appearance of dragon fruit, the vast majority have never seen the dragon fruit plant! Now let's learn about dragon fruit planting together!
Dragon Fruit Planting and Management Techniques
Dragon fruit is a shallow-rooted plant. During cultivation, there is no need to repot it. Containers with good water and air permeability, such as clay pots and wooden boxes with a diameter of 25-35 cm, can be used. It is best not to use containers with poor air permeability, such as plastic pots and porcelain pots. Before planting, the containers must be disinfected. New clay pots do not need disinfection. However, they must be soaked in clean water for several hours to allow the foul gas in the pores on the pot walls to be released; otherwise, normal root growth will be affected.
Dragon fruit is not strict about the growing medium, but the soil must be loose, airy, and well-draining. Neutral or slightly acidic soil is acceptable, but it does not like alkaline soil. For home potting, the growing medium can be mixed at home. Use 6 parts leaf mold, 2 parts manure soil, and 2 parts coarse river sand, and mix them evenly together. Pile it for more than half a month before use.
For potted dragon fruit, it is best to use cuttings. As long as the seedling has roots and sends out new branches, it can be transplanted into a pot. First, place two staggered broken clay pot pieces over the drainage hole at the bottom of the pot, then place a 3-5 cm thick layer of small stones or large coarse sand at the bottom of the pot as a drainage layer. Then add more than half a pot of the prepared growing medium. At the center of the pot soil, pile up two steamed-bun-shaped mounds side by side, place two seedlings on the mounds, with a plant spacing of no more than 5 cm, and spread the seedling roots around the mounds. Then insert a stick between the two seedlings and tie the seedlings and the stick together. At this time, adjust the direction of the seedlings so that the sunny side of each seedling faces south (the triangular stem of dragon fruit has a shady side and a sunny side; among the three ridges, the side where two are the widest, have the largest angle, and are slightly lighter in color is the shady side, while the opposite ridged side is the sunny side). Then add soil up to 3 cm below the rim of the flower pot, gently press the soil around the plant with your hands, then water once thoroughly. After 1 week of recovery, move it to the balcony for normal management, and when placing it, also pay attention to facing the sunny side south.
Dragon fruit is a drought-tolerant plant. It is better to keep it dry than wet, and do not water until the soil looks dry. Water once a week with an organic fertilizer solution mainly based on nitrogen fertilizer, but do not make it too concentrated. Although dragon fruit is a sun-loving plant, it should also be properly shaded at noon when the summer sun is too strong. Also remove at any time the newly sprouted lateral buds on the stems and branches, keep only the terminal bud, and encourage it to grow taller. When the plant height reaches about 1 m, cut off about 3 cm of the stem tip at the top to encourage lateral branches to emerge at the top. When the top lateral branches grow to about 50 cm, insert 4 bamboo poles of about more than 1 m around the edge of the pot, tie a crossbeam at the top of the bamboo poles, and tie the lateral branches to the crossbeam so that they extend flat or hang naturally. When the lateral branches exceed 80 cm, cut off about 3 cm of the stem tip to reduce nutrient consumption, promote flower bud differentiation, and make it bloom and bear fruit earlier. With good management, it can bloom in 7-8 months.
Dragon Fruit Grafting Methods
1. Flat grafting: Use a sharp knife to make a horizontal cut at an appropriate height on the three-ridged stem of the climbing cactus, then cut the three ridge peaks at 30-40 degrees. Insert a sterilized cactus spine into the vascular bundle in the middle of the rootstock, connect the flat-cut scion to the other end of the spine, and use the spine to connect the scion and rootstock. Keep the rootstock and scion as close as possible without leaving gaps, to avoid bacterial infection that is unfavorable for healing. Then add one spine on each side to secure it, and then tie the base tightly with fine thread.
2. Wedge grafting: Use a sterilized small knife to make a vertical slit at the top of the rootstock, but it should not be too deep. Then cut the lower part of the scion into a duckbill shape with a sterilized blade, insert it immediately into the slit of the rootstock after cutting, fix it with plastic adhesive tape, and then cover it with a plastic bag to maintain air humidity and help it survive. After 20 days, observe the grafting growth. If it remains fresh and green, it has survived. After one month, it can leave the nursery.
Dragon Fruit Growing Environment
Dragon fruit is a tropical and subtropical fruit. It likes light and tolerates shade, tolerates heat and drought, likes fertilizer and tolerates poor soil. It grows rapidly in a warm, humid environment with sufficient light. During open-field cultivation in spring and summer, it should be watered more to keep its root system in vigorous growth. During continuous rainy weather, it should be drained in time to avoid infection by pathogens that causes stem flesh rot. Its stems can also grow attached to rocks. The plant has extremely strong wind resistance, and as long as the support is firm, it can resist typhoons. It can tolerate low temperatures of 0°C and high temperatures of 40°C, and the most suitable temperature for growth is 25-35°C. It can adapt to many kinds of soil, but neutral soil and weakly acidic soil rich in humus and good at retaining water and fertilizer are best.
Common Solutions for Dragon Fruit Pests and Diseases
Dragon fruit generally does not get sick often, but the following two diseases may occur:
1. Branch anthracnose. The symptom is dense small red-yellow spots. If not treated, it will gradually infect the whole branch with small spots, and the branch will rot. Some targeted anthracnose fungicides can be used.
2. Rot disease. The symptom is that small yellow round spots appear on the branch in the early stage. The round spots gradually expand, and the fleshy part of the branch becomes water-soaked, turns yellow, and rots. This disease generally appears in hot and humid seasons or seasons with large temperature changes. If found early, use the tip of a small knife to dig out the diseased round spots. If found late, when the branch is water-soaked and rotten, gently scrape off all the rotted fleshy part with a small knife, and be careful not to damage the main stem of the branch.
Having said this, I believe everyone now understands dragon fruit planting techniques. In fact, the dragon fruit plant belongs to the cactus family of succulents. With good management, you can grow a pot at home. In the early stage, its ornamental value is very high, and in the later stage, it will also bloom and bear fruit. Isn't it especially good! Rather than just being tempted, take action, choose a beautiful flower pot, and plant dragon fruit!