How to Grow Blood Oranges? The Latest Planting Techniques and Methods Tutorial
The blood orange is a newly emerged citrus variety in recent years. Its flesh and juice are deep red, resembling blood, which is how it got the name blood orange. Its variety advantages are large fruit with no seeds, high yield, and a taste that has consistently won praise from consumers on the market. So how should this citrus be grown? Let's take a look together.
1. Site selection and orchard establishment
It is advisable to choose a sunny site with deep soil, loose and fertile texture, and slightly acidic soil for establishing the orchard. The slope of the orchard should be less than 25 degrees. In addition, the orchard site should have convenient transportation and be close to a water source, which facilitates transport, drainage and irrigation, and water storage during planting. After choosing the orchard site, clear the ground of weeds and leftover plant debris, cover the soil once to make it loose, then make a good orchard plan and prepare for planting.
2. Planting
The planting time is generally from September to November or from February to March. When planting, you can buy saplings; the current market price of saplings is about 8 yuan each, or you can raise seedlings yourself. On flat land, planting can be started at a density of 3×4 m spacing between plants and rows, generally planting 50-60 plants per mu; if the terrain is terraced, planting can be started at a density of 2.5×3 m, planting about 80 plants per mu.
The planting holes should be 80 cm in both height and width, then apply basal fertilizer in each hole, backfill half of it, and then plant. When planting, trim the sapling's root system slightly, place it in the middle of the planting hole, spread the roots out without twisting them together, hold it upright, and while filling the soil, gently lift the sapling so that the roots and soil are closely connected. After covering with soil and firming it down, water thoroughly, and cover the area near the roots with straw to retain moisture.
3. Fertilizer and water management
To meet the growth needs of blood oranges, the supply of fertilizer is essential. It is recommended to apply more organic fertilizer, reasonably combine it with inorganic fertilizer, and fertilize according to the plant's growth condition. When fertilizing, soil application is the main method, supplemented by foliar spraying. For young trees, nitrogen fertilizer is the main type; in the year of planting, fertilize 5-6 times before and after shoot growth, applying 100-400 grams of nitrogen fertilizer per plant each time, along with a small amount of phosphorus and potassium fertilizer. For mature trees, apply budding fertilizer, fruit-setting fertilizer, fruit-strengthening fertilizer, and post-harvest fertilizer well. For the first three, apply 2-4 jin of compound fertilizer per plant each time, and for the post-harvest fertilizer, apply 50-100 jin of organic fertilizer per plant together with 1-2 jin of chemical fertilizer to increase yield and quality. Water management is relatively simple: water during drought and drain during waterlogging.
4. Pests and diseases
During cultivation, blood oranges may suffer from anthracnose, root rot, mites, scale insects, aphids, longhorn beetles, and other pests and diseases, all of which affect the growth and development, yield, and quality of blood oranges. Therefore, pest and disease control must be done well during planting. For example, for anthracnose, during the spring and summer shoot growth periods and before fruit ripening, spray mancozeb, zineb, chlorothalonil, and other agents for control. For insect pests, manual capture and chemical control can be used; commonly used agents include abamectin, cartap, cyhalothrin, and others.
The above is an introduction to blood orange cultivation techniques. We hope it helps you. To learn more about related cultivation techniques, please stay tuned to us.