What water-saving cultivation techniques are there for vegetables, rice, and fruit trees?

Everyone knows that crop production cannot do without water, and water-saving cultivation refers to cultivation techniques and measures that achieve the goal of increasing crop yields with the least amount of water.So what water-saving cultivation techniques are there for vegetables, rice, and fruit trees?

Water-saving techniques for vegetables:

1. Irrigate and conserve water according to the water requirement patterns of vegetable plants. Before sowing, water thoroughly to ensure seed germination; at emergence, supplement with one watering or cover with soil several times to reduce soil moisture evaporation and ensure uniform emergence. During the seedling stage, water lightly or not at all, while also taking care to prevent excessive vegetative growth. Each time seedlings are transplanted, water for transplanting and for recovery after transplanting; once the seedlings have established, loosen the soil, conserve moisture, and harden the seedlings. When setting in the final position, water thoroughly to promote root development and recovery. After recovery, water once while carrying out intertillage and seedling hardening. For vegetables with storage organs, after the rosette stage, apply one heavy irrigation, then intertill to conserve moisture and harden the seedlings, but seedling hardening must not be excessive, and a certain level of soil moisture must be maintained during the hardening period. During the peak growth period of the product organs, water frequently and abundantly to obtain high yields.

2. Irrigate and conserve water according to the growth characteristics of various vegetables. For vegetables with shallow roots that like moisture and fertilizer, such as Chinese cabbage and cucumber, ensure plenty of fertilizer and frequent watering. For vegetables with deeper root systems, such as solanaceous fruits and beans, first keep moist then dry. For fast-growing vegetables, ensure a constant supply of fertilizer and water. For fruit vegetables in which vegetative growth and reproductive growth occur simultaneously, avoid watering at the beginning of the flowering stage; "water the vegetable, not the flower"; for seed-producing plants with purely reproductive growth, water when flowers appear, and keep dry before seed harvest; "water the flower, not the vegetable."

3. Irrigate according to soil quality and seedling morphology.

(1) Soil characteristics: Sandy soil should be watered more frequently, and organic fertilizer applied to improve the soil and help retain water; clay soil should be sown with hidden water; low-lying land should be watered lightly and frequently, with drainage to prevent alkalinity.

(2) Seedling plant appearance: For greenhouse chives, check in the morning whether there is exudate at the leaf tips. For greenhouse cucumbers, observe the posture and color of the stem tip (the growing point); for open-field cucumbers, in the morning check whether the leaves curl upward or droop, at noon check whether the leaves wilt and to what degree, and in the evening check how quickly they recover. When the leaves of tomato, cucumber, carrot, etc. are dark and slightly wilted at noon, and cabbage and onion leaves are blue with more wax powder and appear crisp and hard, this indicates water shortage and immediate irrigation is needed; otherwise, if the leaf color is pale, there is no wilting at noon, and the stem nodes are elongating, this indicates excessive water and requires drainage and drying.

4. Promote water-saving irrigation at key periods and moisture-conserving mulching techniques, giving priority to meeting the water supply of fruit vegetable crops in the flowering and fruit-setting stage. Vigorously promote plastic film mulching and straw mulching techniques to reduce soil moisture evaporation and achieve moisture conservation.

5. Apply more organic fertilizer. Applying more organic fertilizer can reduce the amount of water used per unit of production; on dryland, applying sufficient organic fertilizer can reduce water use by 50%-60%. Where organic fertilizer is insufficient, implement straw mulching to improve the soil's drought resistance. Apply chemical fertilizer rationally to improve soil water use efficiency..

6. Deep plowing and deep loosening. Store water in the soil through deep plowing and deep loosening, break through the plow pan, thicken the active soil layer, increase water permeability, increase soil water storage, reduce surface runoff, and store and use natural precipitation to a greater extent.

7. Use sprinkler irrigation where conditions permit. Sprinkler irrigation is currently a relatively ideal irrigation method for field crops; compared with surface water conveyance irrigation, sprinkler irrigation can save 50%-60% of water. However, the pipes used in sprinkler irrigation require high pressure, involve relatively large equipment investment, consume relatively large amounts of energy, and have relatively high costs, so they are suitable for application in high-efficiency cash crops or areas with good economic conditions and a relatively high production level.

8. Water-saving cultivation tips for vegetables:

(1) Form the vegetable plot into beds about 75 cm wide and about 10 cm high, and open a small ditch lengthwise in the middle of the bed surface with a top width of 15 cm, a bottom width of 10 cm, and a depth of about 10 cm. On top of the small ditch, place a small bamboo branch (or small wooden branch) about 20 cm long horizontally every 50 cm or so, then bury its two ends respectively into the soil at the sides of the small ditch and press them firmly.

(2) Before planting vegetables, first apply sufficient base fertilizer, then take plastic film of appropriate width to cover the entire bed surface, and pull it tight to avoid it hanging down against the walls of the small ditch; seal and press the surrounding edges tightly, then leave an openable "live opening" at one end of the small ditch on the bed surface for irrigation or applying water-soluble fertilizer.

(3) When planting vegetables, use two rows per bed, that is, plant one row on each side of the small ditch on the bed surface, with plant spacing determined according to the requirements of different vegetable types. For the planting method, directly open planting holes in the plastic film on the bed surface, plant the vegetable seedlings (or seeds) into the holes, and seal the gaps around the holes firmly with mud. Thereafter, during the vegetable growth period, if irrigation or fertilization is needed, the "live opening" at one end of the small ditch on the bed surface can be opened, then water and fertilizer poured in from this "live opening," and resealed after irrigation.

Rice:

1. Through water conveyance, convert water source water into paddy field soil water;

2. Through absorption by rice roots, convert soil water into rice plant water;

3. Through physiological processes within the rice plant, the water absorbed by rice participates in metabolic activities to form rice yield. In all three processes, there is ineffective dissipation of water.

How to reduce the amount of water ineffectively dissipated in these processes and use it effectively is where the water-saving potential of rice lies. Regarding water saving in the first conversion process, the main approach is through water conveyance, water distribution, and other water conservancy engineering and management measures to reduce conveyance losses and improve the effective utilization rate of irrigation water.

Fruit trees:

1. Select drought-resistant tree (cultivar) species and rootstocks. Different fruit tree species have different drought tolerance, so cultivated species should be chosen according to the water requirements and drought tolerance of different species. At present, among cultivated species, pomegranate, jujube, fig, and stone fruit trees have the strongest drought tolerance. Walnut, plum, grape, etc. have medium drought tolerance. Apple, pear, persimmon, and other species have the weakest drought tolerance. The drought resistance of the rootstock root system has a great influence on the drought tolerance of fruit trees, so in drought-resistant cultivation of fruit trees, cultivars grafted onto drought-resistant rootstocks should be selected. Among vigorous rootstocks, Malus baccata, Malus micromalus, Xinjiang wild apple, Malus prunifolia, mountain pear, mountain peach, mountain grape, etc., and among dwarf rootstocks, M7, M106, etc., are relatively drought-resistant.

2. Strengthen cultivation management. Adopting reasonable cultivation techniques also plays an important role in the drought resistance of fruit trees, mainly including the following aspects:

(1) Reasonable close planting. Under site conditions with little rain and water shortage, reasonable close planting can enable fruit trees to obtain sufficient water and nutrients and achieve high quality and good harvest. Usually, medium-density planting is carried out, that is, spacing of 2.5-3 m × 4 m, with the orchard site as level as possible, and planting in large pits (1 m square).

(2) Reasonable pruning. The relatively ideal tree forms for drought resistance are the free spindle and the slender spindle. At the same time, in pruning, make fewer wounds and leave more protective stubs. After pruning, promptly apply pruning sealer or skin-care oil to the pruning and saw wounds to avoid sap evaporation, promptly remove excess sprouts in spring, and thin out ineffective growing branches in summer, etc.