A Detailed Guide to the Latest Field Management Methods for Jackfruit

Jackfruit is actually very similar to durian, with extremely high nutritional value, but both have a rather odd smell. However, there is one thing that makes me very curious: why do some people who dislike durian still enjoy eating jackfruit, and say that durian smells bad while jackfruit smells fragrant? Why is that? I am truly curious. But today what I want to discuss with you is not whether jackfruit tastes good, but the field management techniques for jackfruit, in the hope that it will be helpful to those of you who grow it.

1. Fertilizer and Water Management

Jackfruit is a fruit harvested over many years, so its fertilizer and water management differs at different stages. For example, at the very beginning of planting, we need to apply base fertilizer deep in the soil, which means digging a hole about 30 cm deep in the prepared ground, pouring the fertilizer in, and then planting the tree. For this application, livestock manure or other organic fertilizers are generally used. Next, during the seedling stage, jackfruit trees need to be fertilized about once a month, mainly with urea and nitrogen fertilizer as a top dressing to promote the growth of branches and leaves. When the jackfruit tree has grown for about two years, it begins to enter the fruiting stage. During this period, it needs to be fertilized at least three times a year, the most important being the flower-promoting fertilizer and the fruit-fattening fertilizer, generally a compound fertilizer mixed from farmyard manure, potassium fertilizer, phosphorus fertilizer and boron fertilizer, used to promote flowering and fruit growth. Remember that every fertilization should be done together with watering.

2. Cultivation and Weeding

There are several purposes for cultivation and weeding: first, to avoid unnecessary nutrient consumption; second, to enhance soil permeability and improve the immunity of the fruit trees; and third, to promote the growth of the fruit trees and shorten the growing period. During the seedling stage, fruit trees need to be cultivated and weeded four to five times a year on average, which allows them to grow faster. Once the trees are mature, they basically only need weeding three times a year, generally in spring each year, before fruiting, and after harvest. This can improve the fruiting rate and the useful lifespan of the jackfruit.

3. Shaping and Pruning

The purposes of shaping and pruning are, first, to enhance light penetration and ventilation in the orchard; second, to improve the fruiting rate; and third, to prevent branch aging and disease infection. So we need to prune the fruit trees at least once every year. Spring is the most suitable time to prune jackfruit, because cutting off the aged branches, those damaged by pests and diseases, and those with very weak growth allows new branches to grow again in a short time without affecting the fruiting rate. Next, during fruiting, if a single branch bears too many fruits, we should cut off the excess fruits and keep only three or four, so that the quality of the jackfruit is not affected.

4. Disease Control

Common diseases of jackfruit include fruit rot, anthracnose and fruit cracking. Fruit rot and anthracnose are both caused by excessive rainfall. Although jackfruit is a tropical fruit that can only grow under high temperature and rainy conditions, excess rainwater still needs to be drained away at ordinary times, which can provide a certain preventive effect. In addition, fruit rot can be controlled by spraying carbendazim, while fruit rot can be controlled with Bordeaux solution. As for fruit cracking, it can be prevented as long as the fruit's water and light remain in a stable state during the growing period. Its main pests are longhorn beetles and scarab beetles, which can be controlled by spraying trichlorfon or Bordeaux solution, with very good results, basically within two to three applications.

5. Orchard Cleanup

After harvesting jackfruit each year, we need to carry out orchard cleanup, because the weeds, fallen leaves and pruned dead branches in the orchard may carry pathogens after accumulating over a long time. To prevent the fruit trees from being infected by pathogens, we need to clear all these debris out of the orchard and finally burn them into ashes.