Blood Orange Planting Methods Explained in Detail, Teaching You to Grow the Nobility of Oranges Well
Blood orange, also called red orange, is a variety of orange, with deep red flesh and juice, sweet and juicy, mostly seedless, and in our country it is mainly distributed along the Yangtze River area. So, what planting methods does blood orange have? Let's take a look together!
1. Site selection and orchard establishment
For planting blood orange, it is suitable to choose a sunny site with deep soil layers, loose and fertile soil texture, and slightly acidic soil as the orchard site. The slope of the orchard should be less than 25 degrees. In addition, the orchard site should have convenient transportation and be close to a water source, which is beneficial for transportation, irrigation and drainage, and water storage during planting. After choosing the orchard site, clean up the weeds and residual plant debris on the ground, cover the soil once to make it loose, then make a good orchard plan and prepare for planting.
2. Planting
The planting time is generally from September to November or from February to March. When planting, you can buy saplings. The current market price of saplings is about 8 yuan per plant. You can also cultivate seedlings yourself. On flat land, planting can be carried out at a density of 3×4 m between plants and rows, generally planting 50-60 plants per mu. If the terrain is terraced, planting can be carried out by digging holes at a density of 2.5×3 m, and about 80 plants can be planted per mu.
The specifications of the planting hole are 80 cm in both height and width. Then apply base fertilizer in each hole, backfill half of it, and plant. When planting, trim the root system of the sapling slightly, place it in the middle of the planting hole, spread the root system out, do not let it twist together, hold it upright, and gently lift the sapling while filling with soil. This can make the root system and soil closely connected. After covering with soil and pressing it firm, water thoroughly, and cover the area near the root system with rice straw to retain moisture.
3. Fertilizer and water management
In order to meet the growth needs of blood orange, the supply of fertilizer is essential. It is recommended to apply more organic fertilizer, reasonably combine it with inorganic fertilizer, and fertilize according to the growth condition of the plant. When fertilizing, soil application is the main method, supplemented by foliar spraying. For young trees, nitrogen fertilizer is the main type. In the year of planting, fertilize 5-6 times before and after shoot growth, applying 100-400 grams of nitrogen fertilizer per plant each time, along with a small amount of phosphorus and potassium fertilizer. For mature trees, apply bud-promoting fertilizer, fruit-preserving fertilizer, fruit-strengthening fertilizer, and post-harvest fertilizer well. For the first three, apply 2-4 jin of compound fertilizer per plant, and for the post-harvest fertilizer, apply 50-100 jin of organic fertilizer per plant together with 1-2 jin of chemical fertilizer to improve yield and quality. Water management is relatively simple: water during drought and drain during water accumulation.
4. Pests and diseases
During cultivation, blood orange will suffer from the damage of pests and diseases such as anthracnose, root rot, mites, scale insects, aphids, and longhorn beetles, which will affect the growth and development, yield, and quality of blood orange. Therefore, pest and disease control must be done well during planting. For example, for anthracnose, during the spring and summer shoot growth periods and before fruit ripening, spray agents such as mancozeb, zineb, and chlorothalonil for control. For insect pests, manual capture and chemical control can be used. Commonly used agents include abamectin, cartap, and cyhalothrin.
The above is a brief introduction to the planting methods of blood orange. I hope it can help you!