What is the scientific name of the Elaeagnus fruit? What are its growing conditions?
The Elaeagnus fruit is a local specialty of Dehong City, Yunnan Province. The Elaeagnus fruit is the ripe fruit of Elaeagnus conferta, a plant in the family Elaeagnaceae. It is a perennial evergreen climbing plant; the ripe fruit is bright red to purplish red, eaten fresh, with the edible portion accounting for 91%, sweet and sour, moderately palatable, full of moisture, and bright in color, and can be made into juice, canned goods, and candied fruit.What is the scientific name of the Elaeagnus fruit? What are its growing conditions?
I. What is the scientific name of the Elaeagnus fruit?
The Elaeagnus fruit is also called cow tick fruit, Yangshanmi tree, and goat milk head. The fruit is sweet and sour; besides being eaten raw, it is generally eaten pickled with salt and chili. If made into fruit leather with sugar, it becomes delicious. The Elaeagnus fruit is now sometimes cultivated, though in the past most were wild. The Elaeagnus fruit can be grown by sowing seeds or by cuttings, and is relatively easy to plant.
II. What are the growing conditions for the Elaeagnus fruit?
The Elaeagnus fruit has relatively strong cold resistance; in the southern part of North China it can overwinter in the open field and can endure an absolute low temperature of around minus 8°C. Its optimum growing temperature is 24-34°C, and it tolerates high temperatures and summer heat. Although in its place of origin it grows under sparse forests on hillsides and in shady, damp valleys, it is not afraid of exposure to the sun and also has fairly strong shade tolerance. It is not demanding about soil and can grow in neutral, acidic, and calcareous soils; it is tolerant of drought and poor soil, but not of waterlogging.
1. Sowing: In mid-to-late May each year, after the fruit is harvested, pile it up; after a period of ripening it rots on its own, then wash the seeds clean and sow them immediately. The seed germination rate is only about 50%, so the sowing rate should be appropriately increased. Use the furrow drilling method, with a row spacing of 15-20 cm and a soil covering depth of 1.5 cm; after sowing, cover with grass to preserve moisture. After sowing, summer has already begun, and the temperature is relatively high; all seedlings can emerge within a little over a month. A shade frame should be built immediately, and fertilizer should be applied 2 times that year. In the early spring of the next year, the seedlings are divided and transplanted, and after another 1-2 years of cultivation they can leave the nursery.
2. Cuttings: Elaeagnus fruit cuttings are mostly taken in early April. Cut full 1-2-year-old branches as cuttings, cut them into sections 12-15 cm long, retain 1-2 leaves, and insert them 5-7 cm deep into the soil. If cutting in an open-field seedbed, a shade frame needs to be built; if cutting in pots, they should be placed under a shade frame for care. They root in about 2 months, and can continue to be grown into large seedlings in an open-field seedbed, or can be grown in pots.
3. Afforestation: The Elaeagnus fruit has strong adaptability to the environment and a small crown, and is suitable for close planting, generally 1×1.5 m, with 6000-7500 plants per hectare. Before planting, dig planting holes 60-80 cm in diameter and depth, use farmyard manure as base fertilizer, and water thoroughly after planting the seedlings.
4. Management: In the year of planting, the Elaeagnus fruit should be cultivated and weeded at the right time and topdressed with fertilizer to promote seedling growth. After that, cultivate and weed 1-2 times each year. After the stand is established, prune overly dense branches each autumn. It can be managed in a clumping-branch tree form, cutting away drooping branches and tiller shoots to maintain ventilation and light penetration. After 3 years it enters the fruiting stage.