Detailed Explanation of the Key Points of the New Technique for Raising Goji Berry Seedlings by Cuttings

Goji berry (Lycium barbarum) belongs to the Solanaceae family and is a perennial deciduous small shrub, about 2 m tall, with angular and thorny branches; the single leaves are alternate or clustered on short shoots, lanceolate or rhombic, with entire margins; the flowers are purple-red; the berry is orange-red, ovate or oblong. Goji berry prefers cool, moist, fertile soil and is cold-tolerant, drought-tolerant, and tolerant of wind and rain, but not of high temperatures, and it can also grow normally beside poor roads, ditches, and canals.

Goji berry can be propagated by seed, and also by division, layering, and cuttings; the facility cutting seedling method is mainly described here: 1. Land preparation and bed making: in combination with land preparation, apply 5000 kg of farmyard manure per mu, 100 kg of ternary compound fertilizer or 150 kg of compound mixed fertilizer, require a plowing depth of more than 30 cm, harrow the soil fine, level the land, mix the fertilizer evenly, and then make flat beds 1 m wide, with north-south beds preferred. 2. Cutting of cuttings: in late February, cut 1-year-old branches of the current year's growth that are well developed and free of pests and diseases from the goji berry tree, cut them into 15 cm long cuttings, with the upper cut flat and the lower cut slanted, tie them in bundles of 100 each, and store them in sand indoors for later use, keeping the room temperature at about 5°C. 3. Covering with film: in early March, choose a sunny and windless day, cover the plastic film over the shed to warm the ground and raise the shed temperature. 4. Management of cutting seedlings: in late March, take out the cuttings, soak them in running water for 1 day and night, then insert them vertically or obliquely on the beds in the shed, requiring about 10 cm into the soil, with 5 rows per bed, at a plant and row spacing of 10 cm×20 cm, and water thoroughly after insertion. By uncovering and covering the shade cloth, ventilating, and other measures, control the shed temperature above 12°C, keep the soil surface moist, and germination can occur in about 25 days; after germination, control the shed temperature above 10°C and keep the soil surface slightly moist (or a relative humidity of 75%). When grass grows on the beds, shallow intertillage and weeding can be carried out to raise the ground temperature. In mid-April, after ventilating and hardening the seedlings for a period, the shed film can be removed; if insects occur, 3000-fold decamethrin can be used for control, and other management is the same as for open-field seedling raising.