Latest Key Points of Water Caltrop Planting and Management Techniques

Water caltrop is the fruit of the rhizome of a perennial aquatic plant, with multiple dietary therapeutic effects, and can be eaten fresh or processed into many forms of food. Therefore it is deeply welcomed in various places, so it can also be cultivated artificially, and can be grown as long as a certain water area is available. However, this aquatic fruit is very different from what we usually call fruit in terms of planting and management, being close to other aquatic plants, so I wanted to introduce it to everyone separately.

1. Water Layer Regulation

A water layer 30 cm to 2 m deep is suitable for planting shallow-water varieties, and then places with water up to 2.4 m deep are suitable for planting deep-water varieties. But in self-built water caltrop ponds where the water level can be regulated, you can freely choose the varieties to plant, and freely regulate the suitable water level yourself throughout the entire growth period of the water caltrop. In order to promote the growth of water caltrop, the place where water caltrop has just been planted should maintain a shallower water layer, which is good for respiration, and old water caltrop of many years can be grown in deep water.

2. Fertilization

Fertilization and topdressing are mainly for shallow-water planting. Generally, fertilization begins when the main stem forms clusters, mainly applying nitrogen fertilizer to promote leaf growth, with about 20 jin of urea per mu. Do not apply too much; urea has high purity and easily causes excessive growth, so first mix the fertilizer with mud, then dig open the underground mud layer and bury it at a depth of 10 cm, making it easy to absorb without being lost with the water and becoming unavailable. Then, during the flowering and fruiting stage, phosphorus and potassium fertilizers need to be applied, mainly to supply the growth of the stems and water caltrop. To prevent loss, and because phosphorus and potassium fertilizers are convenient for foliar spraying, use 0.2% monopotassium phosphate for foliar spraying, spraying 2 to 3 times continuously, once every half a month, which can guarantee what the water caltrop needs. For deep-water fertilization, generally more fertilizer should be applied before planting or after harvesting when the water layer is shallow, to fertilize the pond and accumulate nutrients, and then mainly spraying fertilizer during the flowering and fruiting stage is enough.

3. Weeding

Planting in water will grow more weeds than open-field planting, because there are rich types of aquatic plants, which grow easily in the water environment, and mostly grow in connected patches and spread, possibly even shading the water caltrop pond. Therefore, weeding is important work in water caltrop management. When planting water caltrop, you can first spray a round of herbicide to kill aquatic plants and seeds. Then after planting, as soon as weeds are seen, pull them out quickly while they are small; do not wait until they age to pull them out, as the seeds may already have fallen into the pond. Then, for stubborn weeds that spread easily, pull them out as soon as they are found. For large-area weed occurrence, herbicide can be sprayed, but it is best to carry out manual salvage and pull them out by the roots.

4. Preventing Pests and Diseases

Water caltrop is affected by aphids, leafhoppers and so on. In the early stage of damage, you can use 90% crystalline trichlorfon 800-fold solution or 5—6 tubes of Decis mixed with 50 kg of water for spraying, spraying once every 10 days, about three consecutive sprays is roughly enough, but it depends on the specific pest situation. When water caltrop suffers from water caltrop blight, the leaves will rot. In the early stage of the disease, use 400 g of 5% jinggangmycin plus 200 g of carbendazim mixed with 50 kg of water for spray treatment; generally it is best to spray three to four times every five days to prevent spread.

The above are the planting and management techniques for water caltrop. Generally, whatever is planted, planting is only a prerequisite, but management is the important guarantee condition. Water caltrop management differs from open-field fruit planting, and management work must grasp the characteristics of water caltrop to proceed.