A detailed guide to dogwood (Cornus officinalis) seedling-raising techniques, teaching you how to grow dogwood well

1. Seed treatment

In September-October, collect mature dogwood seeds and wash them clean with clear water. Fill a water vat with 2 parts boiling water plus 1 part cold water, filling it to 1/2 of the vat. Pour the washed seeds into the vat, stir slightly, soak for 24-48 hours, then remove and spread them on a concrete floor to dry in the sun, turning them 3-4 times a day. After drying, soak the seeds again in 1 part boiling water plus 1 part cold water for 24 hours, then remove and dry in the sun. When 70-80% of the seeds have split open, mix them with 5 times their volume of wet sand for trench storage. When the seeds mixed with wet sand are filled to 10 cm from the trench opening, cover them with about 10 cm of soil. The sand-stored seeds can be sown in March of the following spring.

2. Nursery site selection

Choose flat terrain with irrigation conditions and relatively high-fertility sandy loam soil, and apply 4000 kg of decomposed organic fertilizer and 50 kg of urea per mu. First spread the fertilizer on the surface, then plow, turn and rake level, and prepare beds 30 m long (can be determined according to the terrain) and 1.3 m wide for sowing. When preparing the land, pay attention to leaving working paths and drainage ditches. If it is a hilly area, it is best to choose sloped land with a gradient not exceeding 15°; in mountainous areas, the gradient should not exceed 25°, and try to make the nursery site convenient for irrigation, well-drained, and with good soil quality (pH 5.6-6.8).

3. Sowing and seedling-stage management

In mid-to-late March or early April, sow the sand-stored, sprouted seeds in concentrated drills in the prepared seedbed. Water before sowing, then evenly scatter the seeds on the bed surface, cover with 2 cm—3 cm of fine soil, and finally set up an arched shed and cover it with film. Sow 40-50 kg per mu. After emergence in about 30 days, ventilate and cool promptly so that the temperature inside the shed does not exceed 30°C. After 4 true leaves appear, remove the film and harden the seedlings for 3 days—5 days before transplanting, planting about 13,000 plants per 666.7 sq m. For direct sowing and seedling raising, thin and finalize the seedlings when the young plants grow to the 6th true leaf, keeping a plant spacing of 15-20 cm. Before winter, water once with freeze-protection water, and in the following year, when the seedlings are about 70 cm tall, lift them from the nursery around “Spring Equinox” and transplant them for final planting.