How to Grow Water Pepper? A Detailed Guide to the Latest Planting Methods
Water pepper is also called smartweed, and in some places it is also known as red knotweed, spicy grass, and so on. It is very common in rural areas, and its vitality is extremely tenacious. The older generation in rural areas generally use it to make an essential material for brewing wine. In fact, it also has many other uses, such as treating rheumatism, reducing swelling, stopping abdominal pain, athlete's foot, and detoxifying. Water pepper currently sells fairly well on the market, so how should water pepper be grown? Today, let's learn the planting methods for water pepper together with the editor.
1. Land selection and land preparation
The reason water pepper is also called smartweed is that it has a very strong preference for water, so the water source of the planting site is generally relatively abundant, and at the same time both the soil and the water source are free of pollution. The soil fertility of the planting site is generally relatively abundant, and the soil's moisture retention capacity must be strong, because it is extremely intolerant of drought. When preparing the land, we only need to carry out deep plowing, then spread sufficient base fertilizer, and finally open the furrows well and wait for sowing.
2. Sowing at the right time
Water pepper is generally sown around March or April each spring, when the soil temperature has basically risen back to around 10°C to 15°C, which is suitable for the germination and growth of water pepper seeds. When sowing, we generally use the drill sowing method, or broadcast sowing. However, field operations in the later period will be more convenient with drill sowing. Generally, furrows are opened at a row spacing of about 25 cm, then the seeds are evenly scattered in the field, and finally the seeds are covered with soil. What should be noted here is that when sowing, the moisture in the field must be relatively sufficient, as this can speed up seed germination.
3. Density management
The row spacing for water pepper planting is generally already determined at the time of sowing, but the water pepper within each row also needs a certain spacing, otherwise when they grow to a certain height, the field will become overcrowded, leading to sudden disease outbreaks. When the water pepper grows to 10 to 15 cm tall, we need to thin the seedlings, even out the seedlings, and fill in gaps. Generally, about 7 to 8 water pepper plants are retained per hole, with a spacing of about 20 to 25 cm.
4. Field management
When thinning and filling in seedlings, we need to carry out intertillage and weeding as well as reasonable topdressing. The first topdressing is mainly urea or manure and urine water. When the water pepper seedlings grow to a height of about 20 to 25 cm, a second round of intertillage, weeding, and topdressing is needed. Since water pepper is mainly grown to promote the growth of its branches and leaves, we can still use urea, but generally speaking, farmyard manure has a better effect, as it will not affect the quality of the water pepper. Finally, field moisture is the most critical condition for the growth of water pepper. The moisture in the field should generally be maintained at around 75 to 85 percent, so that water pepper can grow more vigorously.
The above is all the content the editor wants to share with everyone today. It mainly talks about a relatively intermediate and very common planting method for water pepper. I believe many growers are very familiar with it, so the editor will not introduce it in too much detail. If everyone wants to learn more about water pepper, remember to follow us.