Is Growing Winter Jujube Profitable? A Detailed Guide to Cultivation and Management Techniques

Winter jujube (also known as Yanlaihong, apple jujube, rock sugar jujube, Huanghua winter jujube, Miaoshang winter jujube, Zhanhua winter jujube) generally ripens and comes to market naturally in October-November of the Gregorian calendar. Because northern China turns cold early, it is named “winter jujube&rdquo.Is growing winter jujube profitable? How do you grow winter jujube trees? How do you manage them?

I. Prospects for Growing Winter Jujube Trees

1. Winter jujube is nutrient-rich

Winter jujube is a very nutrient-rich fruit. According to measurements, winter jujube contains sugar, protein, organic acids, pectin, vitamin A, vitamin E, iron, potassium, and a variety of other vitamins and minerals. Each 100 grams contains 303.8 mg of vitamin C.

Medical research has shown that the abundant vitamin C in winter jujube can soften blood vessels and is an ideal remedy for preventing high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, and arteriosclerosis. Regular consumption of winter jujube can improve overall human health.

Research has also found that winter jujube contains a biologically active substance called cyclic adenosine monophosphate, which has a strong destructive and inhibitory effect on cancer cells in the human body. Since ancient times, China has had the saying “three jujubes a day, and the complexion never ages.”

2. Winter jujube has strong adaptability

Winter jujube is drought-resistant, waterlogging-tolerant, cold-resistant, and heat-tolerant. The optimal temperatures for its growth and development: the average daily temperature in spring is 13°C-14°C, the average daily temperature in summer is 18°C-25°C, and the average daily temperature in winter is not lower than minus 15°C.

However, winter jujube is extremely adaptable to temperature. During the winter dormant period, it can safely overwinter even at minus 30°C, and it can still flower and bear fruit at an absolute high temperature of 45°C. At the same time, winter jujube can adapt to both rainy, humid climates and dry, rain-scarce climates. Winter jujube is not strict about soil requirements. Whether on hillsides, plains, or sandy beaches, both acidic and alkaline soils can be used to establish an orchard.

Southern China is rich in barren hill resources. Developing winter jujube production not only avoids competing with grain for land, but winter jujube also has a long lifespan. Cultivating winter jujube can also expand vegetation, conserve soil and water, and improve the ecological environment. It is an excellent tree species that combines economic and ecological benefits, and is praised as “woody grain, iron-rod crop.” Its development prospects are very attractive.

3. Winter jujube production has high returns

Winter jujube fruit is tender and juicy, sweet and fragrant, and very popular with consumers. In addition, winter jujube comes to market during the off-season for fruit, so its market price has always been high. This is especially true in large and medium-sized cities in southern China, where prices are even higher because they must be shipped in from the north every year. In recent years, the retail price in Hunan Province has been 10 yuan-16 yuan per kilogram, and in Guangzhou 20 yuan-24 yuan per kilogram. According to reports, winter jujube is extremely scarce on the international market and in short supply, with South Korea at 36 US dollars per kilogram and the European and American markets averaging as high as 1 US dollar each. The market is very broad. Therefore, some experts believe that developing winter jujube production in the south will become a “golden industry” in agricultural structural adjustment.

4. How much investment is needed per mu for winter jujube

Winter jujube has a small canopy, grows relatively slowly, and flowers and bears fruit early, so dense planting is generally used. Row and plant spacings are generally 2×3 m, 3×3 m, 2×4 m, or 3×4 m, with 56-111 trees planted per mu. It is recommended to first use a density of 2×3 m, which can achieve early high yields. After more than ten years, thinning or transplanting can be carried out to avoid excessive density. Plant after purchasing seedlings sprayed with enzyme fertilizer, and no replanting is needed. After that, spray enzyme fertilizer monthly and drip-irrigate or flush-apply full-element liquid fertilizer weekly. According to Master Guo, a jujube farmer in Zaoyuan Village, Huangsheng Town, Zhanhua County, winter jujube costs nearly 1,000 yuan per mu.

II. Winter Jujube Tree Cultivation Techniques

1. Site selection and orchard establishment: When establishing an orchard, choose high-quality virus-free seedlings that are robust, have well-developed root systems, and are free of pest and disease damage. The orchard site should preferably have fresh air, clean water, unpolluted soil, flat terrain, open topography, sufficient sunlight, fertile soil, good drainage and irrigation conditions, soil free of harmful and toxic substances, soil minerals within normal ranges, and no pesticide residues or contamination.

2. Timely planting: Winter jujube has strong adaptability, tolerates drought and poor soil, and is not strict about fertilizer and water requirements. Orchard establishment should use dense, dwarfed cultivation. Generally 2 to 3×3 to 4 m, with 56 to 111 plants planted per mu, which has an obvious effect on increasing the early yield of young trees. Winter jujube has relatively high light requirements, and the row direction should preferably be north-south.

3. Fertilizer and water management: Winter jujube has a relatively high demand for phosphate fertilizer. When planting, apply 0.5 kg of superphosphate and 25 kg of organic fertilizer per tree. Apply chemical fertilizer once each in late May, late June to early July, and early August. In autumn, apply organic fertilizer in trenches, with 50 to 70 kg of farmyard manure and 0.5 to 1 kg of nitrogen and phosphate fertilizer or the same amount of three-element compound fertilizer per tree. Irrigate thoroughly once each before bud break, before flowering, during the young fruit swelling stage, and before overwintering. At other times, irrigate appropriately according to drought conditions, drain promptly during the rainy season, and cultivate and weed promptly after rain. In autumn, plow and turn the tree.

4. Flower and fruit management: First, pinch the tips of jujube heads at the early full-bloom stage. According to growth vigor, leave 3 to 5 secondary branches and pinch their tips. Second, spray clear water. From the early flowering stage to the full-bloom stage, spray clear water once every 1 to 3 days, for a total of 3 to 5 sprays. Third, hormone treatment: spray 1 to 2 times with 10 to 15 mg/L gibberellin at the early full-bloom stage. Fourth, girdling and scoring: for young vigorous trees, perform trunk scoring at the full-bloom stage. When the trunk diameter reaches more than 5 cm, perform girdling, with a girdling width of 0.5 to 1 cm. Large trees in the fruiting stage can be girdled on the trunk, while young trees beginning to bear fruit are generally girdled on the main branches, so as to achieve both fruit production and tree maintenance. The wound should preferably heal in about 20 days, so as to intercept nutrients on the tree and protect the fruit.

5. Training and pruning: The tree shape of winter jujube depends on planting density. For 55-100 plants per mu, a small canopy and sparse-layered shape should be used to maintain ventilation and light penetration. The trunk height at planting should be 70 to 80 cm, and 5 to 6 main branches should be gradually developed year by year. During winter and summer pruning, promptly remove water sprouts, shorten extension branches, and thin and shorten overly dense and weak branches to maintain tree vigor balance, keep the canopy ventilated and light-transmitting, and promptly retract overly long fruiting branches. This allows local branches to be renewed and rejuvenated.

6. Disease control: The main pests and diseases of jujube trees include spider mites, peach fruit moth, jujube looper, jujube rust, jujube fruit shrinkage disease, and jujube witches' broom. During the bud break and leaf expansion stage, spray 40% omethoate emulsifiable concentrate at 1000 times 1 to 2 times to control jujube looper. From late May to early June during the spider mite occurrence period, spray 15% saomanjing emulsifiable concentrate at 2500 times 1 to 2 times. From mid-July to mid-August, spray pyrethroid pesticides 2 to 3 times to control peach fruit moth and jujube looper. In July, August, and September, spray fungicide once every 15 to 20 days. A 200-times lime sulfur mixture or Bordeaux mixture can be alternated with carbendazim 800 times or thiophanate-methyl wettable powder 1000 times to control jujube rust and fruit shrinkage disease. If jujube witches' broom is found, prune out diseased branches in mild cases and remove them promptly in severe cases.

7. Harvest and storage: Winter jujube is a fresh-eating variety and is mostly picked by hand. Winter jujubes on the same tree have different ripening periods, so they can be harvested in 2-3 batches according to conditions. Harvesting in stages can not only increase yield but also improve quality. After harvest, they are generally stored fresh in cold storage. Low-temperature conditions can inhibit ethylene production in winter jujubes. The best cold storage temperature is about 1°C, and the relative humidity should be maintained at about 98%, to supply the market around New Year's Day and the Spring Festival.

III. Stage-Based Management of Winter Jujube Trees

1. Dormant period (November to March of the following year)

(1) After leaf fall, remove the grass bundles, scrape the bark, prune out diseased, pest-infested, dead, and damaged branches, sweep up dead branches and fallen leaves in the jujube orchard, and burn them in a centralized manner to eliminate overwintering pests and diseases.

(2) After scraping off old bark, whitewash the trunk (whitewash formula: 0.5 part vegetable oil, 3-5 parts lime sulfur stock solution, 0.1 part salt, 10 parts quicklime, 30 parts water). Along with whitewashing, brush off overwintering tortoise wax scale and San Jose scale on the trunk.

(3) Before the soil freezes, deeply turn the tree, pick up cocoons and pupae, eliminate pests overwintering in the soil such as jujube geometrid, green plant bug, peach fruit moth, jujube gall midge, and peach hawkmoth, and water once with freezing water.

(4) In late November and early March, spray the whole tree once each with 5°Be lime sulfur mixture to eliminate overwintering spider mites, scale insects, and stem rot disease.

(5) In mid-to-late March, wrap a 6-10 cm wide plastic band around the lower part of the tree trunk and turn the upper part upward to prevent jujube geometrid from climbing the tree. At the same time, tie on a pesticide ring with 1000-times fenvalerate, replacing it once every half month, to poison jujube geometrid and jujube bud weevil.

(6) Before bud break, apply nitrogen fertilizer together with watering. For 3-year-old trees, apply 150-250 g of urea or diammonium phosphate per tree. For fruiting trees, apply 500-1000 g of urea per tree. In jujube orchards with little leaf disease or yellow leaf disease, apply 500-1000 g of zinc sulfate or ferrous sulfate per tree, using ring-shaped multi-point hole application. For saline-alkali land, spray 20-30 mL of Hekang saline-alkali eliminating agent on the ground around each tree before watering. After watering young trees, cover with plastic film.

2. Bud break period (April)

(1) Before sprouting, carry out training and pruning, cultivate and adjust the framework structure, make the layout reasonable, and ensure ventilation and light penetration. Young trees 1-4 years old generally do not have branches thinned. For trees 5 years and older, remove overly dense branches and water sprouts. For fruiting branch groups 7-8 years old, renew them promptly. For trees whose branches have not been pulled, pull branches to open the angle.

(2) At the early sprouting stage, spray 0.3-0.5°Be lime sulfur mixture to control red spider mites and scale insects.

(3) Use black light traps to kill adult jujube leaf roller moths.

(4) After sprouting, promptly remove jujube heads that are in improper positions or are superfluous.

(5) In mid-to-late April, spray 5% flufenoxuron emulsifiable concentrate at 1000 times or 10% imidacloprid at 4000-6000 times or chlorpyrifos at 1500 times + diflubenzuron No. 3 at 2000 times to control jujube geometrid, red spider mites, jujube leaf roller, jujube bud weevil, green plant bug, jujube gall midge, and others.

(6) In late April, scatter phoxim granules in the tree within 1 m of the trunk and shallow hoe to kill emerging jujube gall midge, jujube bud weevil, and others.

3. Shoot growth and leaf expansion period (early and mid-May)

(1) In early May, spray diflubenzuron No. 3 at 2000 times plus 99.1% Caltex disinsect oil emulsifiable concentrate at 200-300 times (or + guochongdi at 1000 times), to control jujube gall midge, red spider mites, gypsy moth, green plant bug, jujube geometrid, and others, spraying 2 times consecutively at 10-day intervals.

(2) In mid-May, in dry years, irrigate the jujube orchard once before flowering, and apply diammonium phosphate per tree at 150-300 g for young trees and 500-1000 g for fruiting trees. For upright-growing jujube heads, pull branches to open the angle, improve tree ventilation and light conditions, moderate growth vigor, and promote fruit set.

4. Early flowering stage (late May)

(1) In late May, pinch the tips of jujube heads, and pinch the tips of secondary branches from late May to early June. Pinch the tips of jujube in mid-to-late June. The earlier the pinching, the better the effect of protecting flowers and fruit.

(2) Before flowering, spray 10% liuyangmycin at 1000 times + 10% nicotine emulsifiable concentrate + thiophanate-methyl at 800 times or miediejing at 2000 times + thiophanate-methyl at 800 times, to control jujube rust mite, jujube leaf roller, red spider mites, jujube black spot disease, and others.

(3) From late May to early June, preferably after rain, scatter phoxim granules in the tree within 1 m of the trunk to kill peach fruit moth and other pests.

5. Flowering period (June)

(1) When each jujube has 3-8 flowers open, carry out girdling or scoring. Generally, the girdling width is 1/10 of the trunk diameter, and the widest should not exceed 1 cm. Healing in 25-30 days is preferable. Large trees and vigorous trees can be girdled somewhat wider, while small trees and weak trees should be girdled narrower. Trees too thin or too weak for girdling can be scored 2-3 cuts on the trunk or main branches at intervals of 3-5 cm, and then scored 1 more cut after 1 week. Ten days after girdling, apply guochongbike at 1000 times to prevent jujube girdle borer. Generally, a jujube tree can only be girdled once per year; individual overly vigorous trees can be girdled twice.

(2) In early to mid-June, when jujube flowers reach 5-8, spray 15 mg/kg gibberellin once, and at the same time add 0.2-0.3% borax and 0.5% glucose to increase fruit set rate.

(3) When about 50% of flowers are open, spray clear water 2-3 times consecutively in the evening at 2-day intervals, or add 0.3% urea or 600-times zaotefeng, to help protect flowers and fruit.

(4) In late June, manually capture pests such as scarab beetles, yellow-spotted stink bugs, and jujube bud weevil.

(5) From late June to early July, spray manchongqing at 2000 times + baoer at 2000 times + iprodione at 600 times + zaotefeng at 800 times, to control jujube leaf roller, peach fruit moth, cotton bollworm, beet armyworm, red spider mites, tortoise wax scale, yellow-spotted stink bug, ring rot disease, rust disease, jujube leaf spot disease, and others.

(6) From late June to early July, apply 150-250 g of diammonium phosphate and 500 g of potassium sulfate per young tree, and double the amount for fruiting trees. Irrigate once with fruit-promoting water together with fertilization. After watering, spread 20-25 cm thick wheat straw or weeds in the jujube orchard, and cover the grass with soil and press it firm to prevent wind from blowing it away.

6. Young fruit period (July)

(1) In early July, spray Bordeaux mixture at double strength once to prevent jujube rust. Use black light traps to kill adult leopard moth, and spray BT emulsion at 500 times to control peach fruit moth and also control tortoise wax scale nymphs.

(2) In early to mid-July, thin fruit. For strong vigorous trees, leave 1 fruit per jujube; for moderate trees, leave 1 fruit per 2 jujube; for weak trees, leave 1 fruit per 3 jujube, to increase single fruit weight and reduce fruit drop.

(3) In mid-July, spray jingjunte at 600 times + 100-140 international units of agricultural streptomycin + zaotefeng at 600 times, to control beet armyworm, cotton bollworm, jujube rust, jujube leaf spot disease, ring rot disease, fruit shrinkage disease, and others.

(4) In late July, spray lüdebao at 400 times + baiweite at 1500 times, to control jujube rust, jujube leaf spot disease, ring rot disease, red spider mites, and others.

7. Fruit swelling period (August)

(1) In early August, spray 1% nongkang 751 aqueous solution at 300 times + 100-140 international units of agricultural streptomycin to control jujube fruit shrinkage disease and jujube spot disease.

(2) In mid-to-late August, spray 10% nicotine emulsifiable concentrate or 10% polyoxin to control jujube leaf roller, fruit borers, spot leaf fall disease, and fruit diseases.

8. Fruit coloring period (September)

(1) In early September, spray diniconazole at 1000 times + 140 international units of agricultural streptomycin + zaotefeng at 600 times + Meilin calcium, to control jujube rust, anthracnose, fruit shrinkage disease, peach fruit moth, tortoise wax scale, and others. At the same time, it can improve fruit quality and enhance fruit storage tolerance.

(2) In early September, tie grass bundles at the base of the trunk and large branches to attract overwintering pests such as jujube leaf roller, jujube noctuids, and red spider mites.

(3) In mid-September, spray lunmeijunqing at 600 times + monopotassium phosphate at 300 times, to control ring rot disease.

(4) In mid-to-late September, apply base fertilizer in the jujube orchard. For trees 1-3 years old, apply 10-30 kg of organic fertilizer, 0.25 kg of calcium fertilizer, and 0.15-0.25 kg of urea per tree, using expanded-hole ring-shaped fertilization. For trees 4-8 years old, apply 50-75 kg of organic fertilizer, 0.5-1 kg of calcium fertilizer, and 0.2-0.5 kg of urea per tree. For trees deficient in iron or zinc, additional iron and zinc fertilizers can be applied.

9. Fruit ripening period (October)

(1) In early October, spray yinguo at 600 times + high-efficiency calcium + agricultural streptomycin, to improve fruit quality and storage tolerance and control fruit rot disease.

(2) From early to mid-October, begin harvesting winter jujube in batches. Harvesting is best done after the morning dew has dried.

(3) After harvesting the fruit, spray the tree once with carbendazim at 600 times or thiophanate-methyl at 800 times, and pick up diseased and pest-damaged fruit for centralized destruction to reduce sources of pests and diseases.