The oil tea tree is a treasure from top to bottom: a detailed guide to its cultivation techniques

The oil tea tree is also called tea seed tree or tea oil tree; its seeds are an excellent material for pressing oil and its economic benefits are substantial. Today, the editor will introduce to you the cultivation techniques for the oil tea tree.

1. Choose improved varieties

First, we need to select high-quality seedlings, choosing seeds according to the local climate and soil conditions. Next, the selected oil tea trees should have the same flowering cycle. Finally, choose improved varieties identified by the relevant national authorities, with large fruit but thin skin, a high oil yield, and strong resistance. Oil tea cultivation generally uses seedling cuttings or grafting, so when selecting seedlings, choose relatively sturdy, disease-free seedlings; only then will the survival rate and subsequent yield be high.

2. Land selection and soil preparation

The soil for planting oil tea trees is best slightly acidic, so that the survival rate will be high. Next, the soil should be relatively fertile, preferably red soil or sandy soil. Also, oil tea trees are relatively shade-loving in the early growth stage, but later they need sufficient sunlight, so it is best to choose a sunny semi-sunny slope, or a sunny slope is also acceptable. Soil preparation should be carried out according to the specific situation: on flat land, the whole area needs to be plowed, while on sloping land, you can choose to plow only the small area to be planted, which can reduce labor and also prevent damage to the vegetation.

3. Rational planting

Oil tea trees are generally planted in October each year or in February of the following year; planting at this time gives a much higher survival rate than usual. Next, the planting density is best controlled at about one hundred trees per mu, that is, about 2 m between each plant and about 3 m between each row. You can use seed sowing or seedling cuttings or grafting, but seed sowing has a relatively long growth cycle; however, basically all take about two and a half to three years to bear fruit.

4. Scientific fertilization

Fertilization should be divided into three stages. First, fertilization at the seedling stage is mainly nitrogen fertilizer, that is, the commonly known urea, mainly to promote the growth of the oil tea tree. The second stage is oil tea trees that have reached three full years and begun to bear fruit; at this time the oil tea tree is in its prime, so fertilization needs to be carried out in three steps: first, apply a growth fertilizer once in spring, then apply a flower-promoting fertilizer once when it blooms, and finally apply a fruit-strengthening fertilizer once when it bears fruit. The third stage is when the oil tea tree has some years on it; on the basis of the second stage, we need to add one maintenance fertilizer, that is, after the oil tea harvest. The growth fertilizer is mainly nitrogen fertilizer, the flower fertilizer is mainly potassium fertilizer and phosphorus fertilizer, and the fruit fertilizer is mainly boron fertilizer.

The above are the cultivation techniques for the oil tea tree. I hope they can help you!