How to hand-pollinate persimmons? A detailed guide to the latest methods
The persimmon is a parthenocarpic fruit tree and does not itself require hand pollination, but because cultivation and management are continuous, or in order to improve the fruit set rate, many fruit growers adopt the method of supplementary hand pollination to raise its fruit set rate and achieve a high yield. So how should persimmons be hand-pollinated? Let's take a look.
1. Collecting pollen
Hand pollination first requires collecting pollen. Once the male flowers of the persimmon open, they begin shedding pollen at noon that same day and shed it very quickly, so the best time to collect pollen is when the buds have already matured and the pollen quantity is at its greatest; when the petals turn yellow and are about to open, collecting pollen before noon is most suitable. Pick the male flowers, remove the petals, take out the anthers, lay them on smooth paper, and place them in a well-lit environment; after a day of drying, the pollen can be obtained. Freshly collected pollen has high viability, and its germination rate will decline as time passes, so pollen that will not be used for the time being should be placed in the refrigerator for cold storage.
2. Pollination time and method
The female flowers of the persimmon have the ability to be fertilized 3-4 days after opening, and pollination is best done within 1-2 days of the first flowering, with the best time being 7-10 am. Use a brush or cotton swab to dip up pollen and smear it on the stigma of the female flower to complete pollination, but this is rather time-consuming and laborious, so in order to save labor, the spray method is generally used: mix pollen with boric acid, brown sugar, a pollen suspension, and clean water in a certain ratio to make a solution, then spray the female flowers with a sprayer; this method is applicable in many regions and the effect is excellent.
3. Reasonably matching pollinizer trees
Most persimmons do not need hand pollination, as they are parthenocarpic, but the flowers of excellent persimmon varieties are single female flowers and their parthenocarpic fruit-setting ability is relatively weak, so in addition to hand pollination, pollinizer trees can also be reasonably planted in combination, which has an obvious effect on raising yield and quality. Taking sweet persimmon as an example, it is best to pair it with varieties such as Zheng Yue that produce a large amount of pollen, have a longer flowering period, and have strong compatibility with the main cultivated variety as pollinizer trees. Generally, one pollinizer plant is paired with 6-8 trees, and the best pollination distance is within 30 m.
4. Releasing bees
The persimmon is an insect-pollinated plant. Releasing bees in the orchard during the pollination period can raise the fruit set rate by 15%-20%. At present, the best pollinating insects are the horned mason bee, the concave-lipped mason bee, and the bean small bee. Generally, before flowering, place one beehive every 30-40 mu in the orchard, and it is best to choose the Chinese honeybee, which is tolerant of low temperatures and has strong stress resistance, as the bee species.
The above is an introduction to how persimmons are hand-pollinated. We hope it can help you. To learn more related knowledge, please stay tuned to us.