How Many Years Until Sterculia Nobilis Bears Fruit, Its Price Per Jin, and a Detailed Explanation of Its Effects and Functions

There is a wild fruit that is very rare in the countryside. It looks especially like a peach, but it has no flesh, only skin and seeds. The black seeds inside are like little black pearls, bright and dazzling, so they are also called “phoenix eyes,” and the fruit is called “Sterculia nobilis”. Little do people know that this wild fruit is actually a wellness medicinal herb! So, can Sterculia nobilis be planted? How many years until it bears fruit? How much is it per jin? What effects and functions does it have?

In fact, “Sterculia nobilis” also has a formal name, “pingpo.” It can be seen in rural areas of Guangdong, Guangxi, Fujian, Yunnan and other places in China, mostly growing wild and in scarce numbers. Do not underestimate this thing; it is a rare wellness delicacy, with a taste as sweet as chestnuts.

Sterculia nobilis has high wellness and medicinal value. It is widely used in traditional Chinese medicine to treat some common stomach diseases, such as gastritis, gastric ulcers and other common stomach diseases. In addition, some traditional Chinese medicine practitioners use the bark of the Sterculia nobilis tree to treat asthma, with very good results.

Sterculia nobilis is sweet in taste and warm in nature. It has effects such as nourishing the liver and gallbladder, improving eyesight and removing eye films, relieving cough and reducing fever, dispelling wind pathogens, relieving irritability and reducing internal heat, and reducing inflammation and pain. It is mainly used to treat stomach pain, gastroenteritis, heatstroke, diarrhea, hemorrhoids and other diseases, and is deeply loved by many traditional Chinese medicine practitioners.

The current domestic market price of Sterculia nobilis is about 20-30 yuan per jin, so can Sterculia nobilis be planted?

In Guangdong customs, Sterculia nobilis is an offering for the Seventh Sister's Birthday, and if none is available, a fake substitute is used. Because the annual output of Sterculia nobilis is small and the sacrificial custom has faded, there are rarely orchards planted on a large scale, only scattered planting.

Sterculia nobilis is a native tree species originating in China. In terms of planting development, it has many advantages such as strong ecological adaptability, resistance to pests and diseases, and abundant materials for propagation and genetic improvement. It is an economic forest tree with both ecological and economic benefits. At the same time, it is also a unique maternal food crop of the south and a dry fruit tree species with great development potential.

Its characteristics, such as liking light, preferring a warm and humid climate, being able to grow in fertile acidic, neutral or calcareous soils with good drainage, being relatively tolerant of barren soil, having a developed root system, and being fast-growing, also provide convenient conditions for its widespread development.

Sterculia nobilis likes sunlight and prefers a warm and humid climate. It is not strict about soil requirements and has a developed root system. Although it can grow well in barren and gravelly soil, sandy loam with good drainage and deep soil layers is best. Sufficient sunlight is required. It likes high temperatures and humidity, and the suitable growth temperature is about 23—32℃.

The main propagation methods of Sterculia nobilis include cutting propagation, air layering propagation, root sucker propagation and seed sowing propagation.

Cutting propagation

The branches of Sterculia nobilis root easily, and cutting propagation is mostly used. Semi-lignified branches, lignified branches and even old branches can all survive as cuttings. Generally, 2-3a lignified branches are selected, and the cuttings are cut to about 15cm and inserted into the seedbed in spring and autumn.

To increase the survival rate, rooting hormone treatment can also be used, and the cuttings are inserted about 3cm into the soil. As long as the humidity of the air and soil is maintained well, roots can develop in about 1 month.

Seed sowing propagation

Seed sowing propagation is also one of the commonly used propagation methods. When the follicle fruit matures and splits, take out the seeds in time and sow them immediately after collection to avoid sun exposure and dehydration. The sand bed should not be too wet; the ideal sand moisture is when it forms a ball in the hand without water dripping from between the fingers. Before sowing, the sand bed and seeds can be sterilized with thiophanate-methyl or chlorothalonil, and sowing is done by the spot sowing method. After sowing, be careful to provide shade and keep moist. Sprouting occurs after 7d, and by the second spring the plants can reach 20-40cm, and they can be transplanted in March-April.

Field planting

Spring is suitable, and a plant-to-row spacing of 4 m × 5 m is more appropriate, with 33 plants per mu. The digging hole size is 80 cm × 80 cm × 60 cm. Organic fertilizer is mainly used, combined with a small amount of chemical fertilizer, and base fertilizer is applied to promote early growth and rapid development of the seedlings and early production.

Field management

Sterculia nobilis is not strict about soil requirements, has a developed root system, and is fast-growing. Although it can grow well in barren and gravelly soil, sandy loam with good drainage and deep soil layers is best. According to the growth habits of the Sterculia nobilis tree, it is tolerant of waterlogging but not drought, commonly known as “mango on sunny days, Sterculia nobilis on rainy days.” Therefore, during the flowering and young fruit stages, it should be watered frequently to keep the soil moist; in drought weather, the entire tree canopy needs to be sprayed with water to help flowering and fruit setting and increase the number of fruits. The cultivation of Sterculia nobilis is very simple, especially after field planting, survival and shaping, when management becomes even more extensive. The trunk of the Sterculia nobilis tree has strong sprouting ability, so it should be properly shaped and pruned, cutting off the upper part of overly tall main branches to promote the sprouting of side branches, so that the whole tree shape is elliptical, which is conducive to fruiting and fruit harvesting.

Sterculia nobilis generally blooms for the first time in April each year, and the first crop of fruit matures in mid-to-late July, but sometimes it blooms a second time from August to October, and the fruit matures in December.