The Latest Fertilization Methods and Technical Key Points for Bamboo Shoots

We are certainly no strangers to bamboo shoots; since childhood we have heard the phrase "springing up like bamboo shoots after a rain." Today's bamboo shoots include not only spring shoots but also winter shoots; they are all nurtured by mother bamboo, and their reproduction rate is quite fast. In the past, bamboo shoots were basically dug up in the mountains, but now there are dedicated bamboo forests for planting, specifically for growing bamboo shoots. So how is fertilization carried out for artificially planted bamboo shoots? Let us follow Qinnong Web to take a look.

1. Rhizome-stimulating fertilizer

Rhizome-stimulating fertilizer is generally applied during the spring and summer each year, preferably from early May to the end of June, because during this period the remaining bamboo shoots gradually grow larger and become bamboo, so we can speed up their growth rate and thus enter the rhizome-producing stage more quickly. The more bamboo rhizomes produced, the more shoots will emerge later. First, we can irrigate near the bamboo with manure and urine water as well as urea; second, we can apply quick-acting organic fertilizer or farmyard composted manure. Generally, trenches about 20 cm deep are opened around the bamboo for deep application, which is more conducive to the growth of bamboo rhizomes.

2. Shoot-bearing fertilizer

Shoot-bearing fertilizer is generally applied from the end of August to mid-September each autumn. At this time the bamboo rhizomes have basically fully developed. If fertilizer is added at this time, small bud points can grow on the bamboo rhizomes, and if cultivated well later, these bud points will all grow into bamboo shoots. During this period, we should sprinkle manure and urine water, and can appropriately broadcast compound fertilizer. Compound fertilizer is also applied by opening trenches, but this time the trench depth only needs to be about 8 to 10 cm, and then covered with soil to prevent nutrient loss.

3. Shoot-development fertilizer

Shoot-bud fertilizer is mainly intended to promote the growth of shoot buds and improve their survival rate, so it is generally applied when the shoot buds begin to develop, usually around late November to early December. Shoot-bud fertilizer is mainly organic fertilizer, supplemented by an appropriate amount of livestock manure and urea. To prevent the shoot buds from being damaged, this fertilization is mainly carried out by broadcasting or piling.

4. Pre-shoot fertilizer

Pre-shoot fertilizer generally refers to the time when shoot buds poke out their tips, that is, around early February each year. If you go to the bamboo forest at this time, you will see small cracks appearing one after another in the soil, and on closer inspection you can see the small shoot tips. In order to speed up the growth rate of bamboo shoots and prolong their growth period, so that the bamboo shoots increase in weight while remaining fresh and tender, we generally use urea or manure and urine water to promote growth. The fertilization method is generally to mix with water and then irrigate them one by one.