A Complete Guide to Selecting and Growing August Melon Seeds

August melon is the fruit of Akebia trifoliata of the genus Akebia in the family Lardizabalaceae. Also known as ox kidney fruit, dog kidney, August cracker, September cracker, and so on, it is named for its fruit ripening and splitting open in August. It is a pollution-free green food, known as the "earth banana," and is very popular in the market. So how do you select August melon seeds? What are the seedling growing methods? Let's take a look together below.

1. How do you select August melon seeds?

When the August melon fruit ripens from September to October, pick the fruit, eat the flesh, and keep the seeds for timely autumn sowing. First rub and wash the seeds with alkaline water, rinse them clean with clear water, drain off the water, and dry them in the sun. Around the 11th lunar month, store them in sand for 50-70 days, and in early February of the following spring, sow them promptly in a prepared seedbed. Seed propagation is simple and easy to carry out, but the nursery stock produced bears fruit late, generally only after 3 years. It is generally not used in production.

2. What are the seedling growing methods for August melon?

1. Planting time

Plant according to the root growth conditions of the seedlings obtained by different propagation methods, and water thoroughly after planting. Field planting time for cutting seedlings and layering seedlings should be in spring and winter; spring planting should be before budding, and winter planting should be after leaf fall. For cutting and layering propagation seedlings, lifting and transplanting can be carried out in December or early March of the following year, while seed-grown seedlings can be transplanted in all four seasons.

2. Planting technique

At 15-20 cm vertically from the projection of the trellis wire, dig planting holes 30-40 cm in diameter and 25-30 cm deep. Mix the excavated soil with decomposed farmyard manure and backfill half of it into the hole, build a steamed-bun-shaped mound of soil at the bottom of the hole, place the seedling in the hole, spread out the roots, then backfill the remaining soil. The plant and row spacing should be 90 x 130 cm for planting. Do not plant randomly; it must be standardized.

3. Seedling management

If cutting propagation is used, after the cutting sprouts but before it has rooted, it cannot absorb water and mainly relies on the water supply within the cutting itself. At this time, shade and watering should be done well to prevent the cutting from drying up due to leaf water evaporation. Especially in southern China between April and May, there is often a period of high-temperature weather, which is the stage with the highest death rate of cuttings. At this time, spraying can be used to achieve the purpose of cooling and preserving moisture. For layering propagation, external conditions generally have no obvious effect on it, and management at the seedling stage is relatively simple. Sexual propagation mainly uses seed seedling growing, which is mainly carried out in a greenhouse. Management during the seedling period is relatively simple; as long as it is watered regularly, the operation is very simple. However, in high-temperature seasons, attention should be paid to ventilation to prevent excessively high temperatures from causing seedling scorch.

4. Young seedling management

For the seedling grown from seed, management during the young seedling stage is mainly weeding. After seed seedling growing, cutting, or layering propagation, a small amount of base fertilizer should be applied in the planting hole at transplanting, but the base fertilizer should be mixed evenly with the soil to prevent the fertilizer from being too concentrated and affecting rooting of the cuttings and growth of young roots. After planting, it enters the young seedling stage. This is the period of rapid growth for August melon, with relatively high requirements for water and fertilizer. At this time, sufficient base fertilizer should be applied before budding, mainly farmyard manure, along with compound fertilizer, mainly nitrogen fertilizer and potassium fertilizer.

The above is an introduction to August melon. Farmers can choose to harvest on a sunny day, after the morning dew has disappeared, using pruning shears and sharp knives to harvest.

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