The Latest Chrysanthemum Cultivation Techniques and Methods Tutorial

Chrysanthemum is a plant of the Asteraceae family, with its flower heads used as medicine. It is a major commonly used traditional Chinese medicine, with the effects of dispelling wind and dissipating heat, and clearing the liver and improving vision. It mainly treats externally contracted wind-heat, dizziness and headache, and other conditions. Regularly drinking chrysanthemum tea has the benefits of preventing heatstroke and relieving restlessness, calming the mind and improving vision. Chrysanthemum is cultivated throughout the country, among which the famous ones are Bozhou chrysanthemum from Anhui, Hangbaiju from Zhejiang, Huai chrysanthemum from Henan, and Qi chrysanthemum from Hebei, which are important export Chinese medicinal materials in China, sold as far as to Hong Kong, China, Macao, China and Taiwan, China. Chrysanthemum prefers a warm climate and a sunny environment, can tolerate cold, and fears waterlogging, but the seedling stage and flowering stage cannot lack water. Chrysanthemum is a short-day plant and is very sensitive to day length. Only with no more than 10 hours of light per day can it form buds and bloom.

Planting and Cultivation Techniques

1. Land selection and land preparation: The land for planting chrysanthemum has no strict requirements for soil, but it is best to choose well-drained, fertile, loose soil rich in humus for growth. Clay land and low-lying land are not suitable for planting, saline-alkali land is not suitable for planting, and continuous cropping is contraindicated.

2. Propagation methods: There are division propagation and cutting propagation.

① Division propagation: After harvesting chrysanthemum in November, cut the chrysanthemum stems level with the ground, select robust and disease-free plants, dig out all their roots, and replant them on a fertile plot, apply a layer of farmyard manure, and keep warm for winter. In March to April of the following year, uncover the manure and soil, water, and in April to May, when the chrysanthemum seedlings grow to 15 cm high, dig out the whole plant, divide it into several plants, and immediately plant them in the field. When planting, the spacing between plants and rows is 40 cm, dig holes, plant 1-2 seedlings per hole, cover with soil and press firmly after planting, and water to settle the roots. Generally, one mu of old seedlings can plant about 15 mu of production field.

② Cutting propagation: In April to May or June to August, select thick, disease-free new shoots as cuttings. Take the middle section, cut it into small sections of 10-15 cm, treat the cuttings with plant hormones, then insert the cuttings into the seedbed, with a row spacing of 20-25 cm and a plant spacing of 6-7 cm, press firmly and water. Roots will develop in about 20 days. Apply human and livestock manure water once every one month. When the seedlings are 20 cm high, they can be transplanted out of the nursery.

③ Transplanting: Division seedlings are transplanted in April to May, and cutting seedlings in May to June. Choose a cloudy day or after rain or the evening of a sunny day. On the prepared seedbed surface, dig holes at a spacing of 40 cm between rows and plants, with a hole depth of 6 cm. Then dig up the seedlings with soil. Plant 1 plant per hole for cutting seedlings, and 1-2 plants per hole for division seedlings. After planting, cover with soil and press firmly, and water to settle the roots.

Field Management During Planting

1. Cultivation and weeding: After the chrysanthemum seedlings survive transplanting, 4-5 weedings should be carried out before budding. Each weeding should be shallow rather than deep, and soil should be banked up at the same time to prevent the chrysanthemum seedlings from lodging.

2. Topdressing: Chrysanthemum likes fertilizer. In addition to applying sufficient base fertilizer, 5 topdressings should be carried out during the growing period. The first time is after transplanting and regreening, apply 10-15 kg of urea to promote seedling growth. The second time is when the plants branch, apply cake fertilizer and human excrement and urine per mu. The third fertilization is at the budding stage.

3. Bud removal: After chrysanthemum branches, around Xiaoman, when the seedlings are 25 cm high, carry out the first pinching, choosing a sunny day to remove 1-2 cm of the terminal bud. After that, pinch once every half a month, and stop after Dashu, otherwise there will be too many branches, poor nutrition, and the flower heads will become small and fine, which instead affects the yield and quality of chrysanthemum.

4. Pest and disease control: Common diseases of chrysanthemum include root rot, downy mildew, brown spot, and others. In rainy seasons, chrysanthemum is prone to withering of the whole plant's leaves. When pulled up, the root system is seen to be rotten, and there are root-knot nematodes, seriously affecting the growth of chrysanthemum. The control method is to treat chrysanthemum seedlings and planting holes with carbofuran before transplanting, which can avoid rot; in addition, diseased plants should be removed in time; and field water should be drained in time during the rainy season. Other pests and diseases can be treated by conventional methods.

Harvesting and Processing

Generally, harvesting is done from Frost's Descent to the Beginning of Winter. The suitable harvesting time is when the flower center has opened 2/3. Chrysanthemum harvesting should be done on a sunny day, and after harvesting, it should be processed in time to prevent rot and discoloration. Each production area has traditional processing methods. The processing method of Bozhou chrysanthemum is as follows: When the flowers are in full bloom and the petals are generally white, cut them together with the stems, tie them into small bundles, hang them upside down in a ventilated and dry place to dry. They must not be exposed to the sun, otherwise the fragrance will be poor. When dried to 80 percent, the flowers can be picked off, placed in a fumigation room and fumigated with sulfur to whiten, and after fumigation, spread thinly and sun-dry for 1 day to dry. Then box them. The processing method of tribute chrysanthemum is: dry them directly in a drying room, using smokeless charcoal as fuel, with the drying room temperature controlled between 40-50°C. Spread the chrysanthemums on bamboo curtains. When the flower color is dried to ivory white, take them out of the drying room, and then place them in a ventilated and dry place to dry until completely dry. The yield per mu of chrysanthemum is generally about 100 kg. The best quality is large flowers, white or bright yellow flowers, plump petals or many and tightly arranged petals, and a fresh fragrance.