How do you select water lettuce seeds? What are the seedling-raising methods?
Water lettuce, also known as water cabbage, is a very typical aquatic plant, generally floating on the surface of rural rivers; its whole plant can be used as medicine, and it can also be used as pig feed. In addition, water lettuce is an introduced exotic species that once ran rampant in rural areas, and now quite a few friends keep it at home as a green plant. So how do you select water lettuce seeds? What are the seedling-raising methods? Let's find out together.
How do you select water lettuce seeds?
At present, water lettuce is mainly introduced and cultivated in China's Hunan, Hubei, Guangdong, Guangxi, Yunnan, Fujian and other places. You can go to these high-quality production areas to buy seeds, or you can buy them online yourself. After the seeds are bought, you should choose excellent seeds with strong stress resistance, strong cold tolerance and no disease for sowing; seeds of unknown origin, or those with damaged grains, should simply be avoided.
What are the seedling-raising methods?
1. Seedling environment
Water lettuce likes still water surfaces with fertile water quality, prefers a high-temperature and humid environment, and is not cold-tolerant. When cultivating, choose robust seedlings, master the appropriate temperature, ensure plenty of sunlight, clean water quality, and maintain a certain fertility.
2. Seed propagation
Besides asexual reproduction, water lettuce can also be propagated by seed. Mature seeds collected in autumn are raised in a hotbed or greenhouse the following spring. First soak the seeds in 4-6cm of clean water, keep the temperature at 30-35°C, and provide plenty of sunlight; they will germinate in 3-5 days.
3. Seedling-stage care
After the seedlings emerge, to keep them from being scorched to death by the sun, build some sun protection for the seedlings as soon as possible. Generally, bamboo poles or tree branches are enough; the height is about 80 cm, form a shape and then cover it with gauze. Remove the shelter one week before the water lettuce matures and apply topdressing at the same time; this makes the water lettuce grow fast and well.
4. Daily management
In places where the temperature does not fall below 10°C, they can be stocked all year round, while in places with frost in winter they need protection to overwinter, and when the spring temperature rises above 15°C they can be taken outdoors for stocking. For large-area stocking, pay attention to fertilizing, preventing and removing weeds, pests and diseases, and harvesting in good time. Water cabbage is a fertilizer-loving plant; the more fertilizer, the higher the yield.
Compared with previous years, water lettuce is now much easier to plant and manage, and there is no need to worry about it running rampant. Besides being used to feed pigs in rural areas, many farmer friends now also specifically grow water lettuce to sell, because it is highly ornamental and also has good medicinal value.
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