How to Grow Eucommia ulmoides Trees: A Detailed Guide to Planting Methods and Techniques

The Eucommia ulmoides tree is an economic tree species, widely planted in the central regions of China, so how do you grow a Eucommia ulmoides tree? Let's take a look!

I. Basic Introduction to the Eucommia ulmoides Tree

The Eucommia ulmoides tree belongs to the genus Eucommia in the family Eucommiaceae. It is a deciduous tree that can grow up to 20 m tall.

The bark of Eucommia ulmoides is grayish-brown and rather rough, containing rubber; when broken and pulled apart, it shows numerous fine threads. The leaves are elliptical, ovate, or oblong, thinly leathery, 6-15 cm long and 3.5-6.5 cm wide. The flowers grow at the base of the current year's branches, and the male flowers have no perianth.

Eucommia ulmoides is mainly distributed in Henan, Hubei, Sichuan, Shaanxi, Gansu, Hunan, and Zhejiang, among other regions of China.

II. Planting Techniques for Eucommia ulmoides Trees

1. Raising seedlings: Select high-quality mature seeds, dry them in the shade, and then pre-sprout them; once the seeds have sprouted, they can be used for cuttings.

The specific pre-sprouting steps are as follows: soak the seeds in warm water at 45°C, stirring constantly; once the water has cooled, remove the seeds, then soak them in cold water for 2d; once the seeds have swollen, remove them and mix them with fine sand.

Place the mixed seeds into a pre-prepared pit, sprinkle with water to keep them moist, and finally cover with a layer of plastic film. Stir once every 1-2d. Once the seeds show young sprouts, the seedling-raising work is complete.

The cutting steps are as follows: cut 1-year-old, pest- and disease-free branches from 3-5-year-old Eucommia ulmoides trees into 10-15 cm cuttings with 3-4 buds; remove the leaves from the lower 1-2 nodes; soak the lower 2-3 cm of the cuttings in a 50 mg/L naphthaleneacetic acid solution; remove them after 2h; insert them into the soil at a spacing of 6-10 cm between cuttings, burying 2/3 of each cutting; firm the soil and water thoroughly; cover with plastic film and keep moist at all times; transplant in the spring of the following year.

2. Site selection

Choose sunny, fertile, loose soil with good drainage for planting.

Sandy loam is best. After the site is selected, apply 3500 kg of barnyard manure, 100 kg of cake fertilizer, and 50 kg of superphosphate per mu, then plow deeply to 30 cm, harrow finely, and level the soil to make raised beds 1.2 m wide and 20 cm high.

3. Planting

Spring sowing is generally carried out in March-April, planting on the seedbed at the specified row spacing.

With a row spacing of 25-30 cm, open furrows 2-3 cm deep, sow the seeds evenly into the furrows, cover with 2 cm of fine soil, level the bed surface, and cover with grass to retain moisture and warmth.

The sowing rate is 6-8 kg per mu. Keep the bed soil moist at all times; seedlings can emerge in about 15d. After 1-2 years of cultivation, when the seedlings reach 80-100 cm, they can be planted out.

When planting, first mix a layer of soil with base fertilizer and spread it at the bottom of the hole, then place the seedling in; do not plant too deep. Cover with a small amount of soil, gently lift the seedling so the roots spread out, then fill the hole with soil, firm it finally, cover with fresh soil, and water.

4. Other management

After the saplings grow, operations such as weeding, fertilizing, and watering are also needed.