The latest tutorial on cultivation techniques and methods for Coral Tree

Coral Tree, also known as French Viburnum and Early Rice Tree, is an evergreen shrub or small tree of the genus Viburnum in the Caprifoliaceae family. It is native to China and is also distributed in India, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam. It has strong fire resistance and can serve as a forest fire barrier. Its wood is fine and soft and can be used for hoe handles, etc. In formal gardens it is often trained into green walls, green doors and green corridors. Now let us take a look at the cultivation techniques for Coral Tree!

Growth Habits of Coral Tree

Coral Tree grows in shaded places beside streams in dense mountain valleys, in sunny spots in open woods, or in shrubs on flat ground. It prefers warmth and is slightly cold-tolerant, prefers light and is slightly shade-tolerant. It grows rapidly and vigorously in moist, fertile neutral soil, and can also adapt to acidic or slightly alkaline soil. It has a well-developed root system and strong sprouting ability, tolerates pruning, and has strong resistance to toxic gases.

Seedling Raising Techniques for Coral Tree

1. Propagation methods: Coral Tree is mainly propagated by cuttings or sowing. Cuttings can be taken throughout the year, but spring and autumn are best, as roots form quickly and the survival rate is high. The main method is to select robust, upright stem nodes, and from May to June cut mature branches 15-20 cm long and insert them into a seedbed or sand bed. Roots form 20-30d after insertion, and they are transplanted into the nursery in autumn. For sowing, seeds are collected in August, sown in autumn, or stored in sand over winter and sown in spring the following year. After sowing, they germinate and grow into seedlings in 30-40 days.

2. Nursery site selection: The nursery site should be chosen in a sheltered, sunny area with convenient transportation and easy drainage and irrigation, with complete supporting facilities for ditches, roads, canals and electricity. The site should have flat terrain, deep, fertile soil, good drainage, sufficient light, and slightly acidic to slightly alkaline (pH6.5-7.5) sandy loam or loam, with the groundwater level below 1.5 m.

3. Land preparation and plowing: Before raising seedlings, the nursery land must be carefully prepared, deeply plowed and finely leveled, with weeds and tree roots removed, to improve the soil, increase fertility, maintain soil moisture, and create an environment for seedling growth. Winter fallow land should be plowed and harrowed three times, to a depth of 25-30 cm. Spring plowing land should be plowed and harrowed twice, with a plowing depth of 20 cm as appropriate.

4. Soil improvement: For barren soil, organic fertilizer should be applied increasingly year by year. For acidic soil, lime, plant ash and bone meal should be applied appropriately. For alkaline soil, acidic fertilizers should be applied more. For clayey soil, sandy loam should be mixed in. For sandy soil, burnt soil should be added. Before making beds, apply 15000-30000 kg/ha of decomposed organic fertilizer, or 1500-2250 kg/ha of decomposed cake fertilizer, and 375-750 kg/ha of phosphate fertilizer or compound fertilizer, incorporated into the plow layer during plowing.

5. Soil treatment: Before raising seedlings, the soil should be disinfected and treated for pest control. For sterilization, ferrous sulfate at 300-450 kg/ha can be applied 20 days before insertion, or zineb at 22.5-30 kg/ha can be mixed with an appropriate amount of fine soil to make poisoned soil and spread into the soil. For pest control, 50% phoxim emulsifiable concentrate at 20 kg/ha can be mixed with fine soil to make poisoned soil and spread into the soil.

6. Bed making and weeding: The specifications of the seedbed depend on management requirements and nursery conditions. Generally, the seedbed is 100-120 cm wide, 20-30 cm high, with a 45-50 cm wide path. The length of the seedbed depends on the situation, generally 10-20 m. Beds are best oriented east-west, with a level surface and the center higher than the sides to avoid local water accumulation. After the bed is made, spray napropamide at 1125-1350 mg/ha on the soil surface to kill weed seeds. The soil should remain moist before and after spraying to ensure efficacy. If it rains after application, pay attention to drainage to avoid phytotoxicity.

Cultivation Techniques for Coral Tree

1. Transplanting and pruning: From March to April each year, transplant dug-up small seedlings with native soil, and large seedlings must be transplanted with a soil ball. They must be transplanted as soon as they are dug up, and after transplanting they must be watered sufficiently and thoroughly. In dry years, they must be watered frequently to ensure survival. After survival, topdressing can be applied 1-2 times to promote seedling growth. In addition, annual shaping and pruning should be carried out, and pruning can be done according to the requirements for green walls, hedges, green doors and green corridors. For potted Coral Tree, the grown seedlings can be transplanted into pots or vats, followed by daily management such as watering, topdressing, pruning and shaping.

2. Timely irrigation: Coral Tree grows vigorously and takes up a large amount of water, so it is best cultivated in fertile, moist soil. After initial planting, water thoroughly to settle the roots, and thereafter water or irrigate appropriately according to soil or weather conditions. Irrigation should be flexibly controlled according to local climate, site conditions, soil moisture and seedling growth, and can be done by watering, spraying or ditch irrigation, preferably in the morning and evening. In the early growth stage from April to May, water little and often. In the rapid growth period from June to August, water thoroughly each time. In the late growth stage, irrigation should be controlled, and generally no irrigation is needed except in cases of exceptional drought.

3. Weeding and loosening soil: Weeding should follow the principles of removing early, removing small, removing completely, and not damaging the seedlings, keeping the nursery land free of weeds. Manual weeding should be done after rain or irrigation has dried. Actively promote chemical weeding. For paths, Roundup or glyphosate can be used, but spraying on the seedlings must be prevented. For grassy weeds, because the early weeds are tender, haloxyfop or quizalofop-p-ethyl can be used. When using herbicides for the first time, test first before use to avoid phytotoxicity. Loosen the soil along with weeding, 4-6 times per year, from shallow to deep, shallower near the seedling roots and between plants, and deeper between rows.

4. Fertilizing and shaping: During the plum rain season, apply about 750 kg/ha of compound fertilizer and about 300 kg/ha of urea deeply. Thereafter, from May to August each year, urea can be applied several times. With sufficient water and fertilizer, growth is vigorous. Coral Tree has strong sprouting ability and can naturally form a barrel-shaped crown, and the lower branches do not easily die, so generally no pruning is needed. If used as a hedge, prune 2-3 times before spring budding and during the growing season.

5. Disease control: For root rot and black rot of Coral Tree, spray or drench with 1000 times dilution of 10% antibacterial agent 401 acetic acid solution. For stem rot, leaf spot and angular leaf spot, spray with 600 times dilution of 75% chlorothalonil wettable powder.

6. Pest control: The main and more serious pests of Coral Tree are mainly scale insects and slug moths, such as Drosicha corpulenta, cottony cushion scale, Planococcus kraunhiae, and Thosea sinensis.

① Manual control: In winter or early spring, combine with pruning, cut off infested branches and burn them to reduce the overwintering pest population. For scale insects on individual branches or leaves, gently brush them off with a soft brush, or dip a writing brush or similar object in kerosene and apply it to kill them. For slug moths, the adult phototaxis can be used by setting black light traps to kill adults.

② Chemical control: For scale insects during the hatching period of young nymphs (February to April each year), contact insecticides can be sprayed, such as 3000-5000 times dilution of 2.5% deltamethrin (Decis), 80% dichlorvos emulsifiable concentrate, 50% fenitrothion emulsifiable concentrate at 3000 times dilution, etc. Spray again after 7-8 days for a very good control effect. During the period when the insects are fixed, parasitic, secreting wax and causing damage (February to April each year), systemic agents should be selected for control by scraping bark and painting trunks, or by root application and drenching. The commonly used agent is 50% phoxim emulsifiable concentrate at 5-10 times dilution. Slug moth larvae have weak resistance to chemicals and can be sprayed with 90% trichlorfon, 80% dichlorvos emulsifiable concentrate, or 50% phoxim emulsifiable concentrate at 1500-2000 times dilution, or sprayed with pyrethroid pesticides at 5000 times dilution. Red spider mites can be controlled by spraying 20% tetradifon wettable powder at 1000 times dilution. Aphids, leafhoppers and scale insects can be controlled by spraying 5% fenitrothion emulsifiable concentrate at 1000 times dilution.