What conditions are needed for growing honeysuckle?

When honeysuckle is grown as a Chinese medicinal herb, it is planted in large areas in fields, has a very wide range of uses, and also holds an important place in landscaping. It can be used as a hedgerow, flower corridor, flower trellis, and other three-dimensional greening plants in scenic gardens. The most important point is still that honeysuckle can be made into potted plants for people to enjoy. Now let us take a look at what conditions are needed for growing honeysuckle!

Soil conditions

Honeysuckle is not strict about soil requirements and can grow and bloom on coarse skeletal soil of gravelly mountains, calcareous brown soil, and general saline-alkali land.

Water conditions

Honeysuckle has extremely strong drought resistance. On coarse skeletal soil with a soil moisture content of about 10%, general tree species are already wilted, while honeysuckle still grows and blooms normally. When soil moisture conditions are suitable, the plants grow vigorously, have a large crown width, and produce high yields. When soil moisture is too high, the leaves tend to turn yellow and fall off.

Temperature conditions

Honeysuckle has a very wide range of temperature adaptation. In winter it can overwinter safely at minus 30 degrees. In spring, when the temperature rises above 5 degrees, it begins to sprout and unfold leaves. In summer, at 20 to 30 degrees, new shoots grow fastest.

Light conditions

Honeysuckle likes light. With sufficient light, the plants are robust, the number of flowers is large, and the yield is high. With insufficient light, the branches and shoots are slender, the leaves are small, and the yield is low. Therefore, honeysuckle should be planted on sunny slopes or field embankments, and is not suitable for cultivation under forest, in valleys, or on shady slopes.

Summary: That is all the editor has to introduce about the environmental conditions for growing honeysuckle. But why does the honeysuckle planting project cause many investors to lose all their capital and ruin their families? In fact, developing honeysuckle cultivation also requires some other conditions. Now let us continue to take a look!

Suitable geographical and climatic conditions

In central regions such as Henan, Hebei, and Shandong, honeysuckle can produce four crops a year, and the quality is good. In southern regions, it can produce five crops a year. With good management, after five years, during the peak production period, the yield per mu can reach more than 100 kg. If planted in cold northern regions, although it can grow, it can only produce one to two crops a year, and the yield is very low. Therefore, investment in severe cold regions should still be made cautiously.

Abundant labor in the planting area

The flower buds of honeysuckle are dense and small. When picking, it is like ants moving house, extremely difficult and exhausting. In the peak production period, about ten days before the first crop, each mu needs eight to ten people to pick. If there are not enough hands for the buds that should be picked that day, by the next day they will open. First consider the local number of laborers. Plant as much land as you can find people for. Like cooking rice, measure the rice according to the number of people. Do not expand blindly.

Local labor prices must not be too high

Honeysuckle is currently picked entirely by hand. According to a survey by Honeysuckle Home, a slow picker can pick three to five jin a day, and a fast picker only about twenty-odd market jin. How much a worker can earn in a day you can calculate yourself according to the local labor price. In some places, although the population is dense, if the labor price is too high, it will still affect the picking cost of honeysuckle, and the benefits for flower farmers will be greatly reduced or they will lose money. Therefore, places with excessively high labor prices do not have the conditions for growing honeysuckle.

Equipped with screening and grading tools

Picking honeysuckle is already labor-intensive and time-consuming, and it is hard to find people. If the picking quality requirements are too strict, even fewer people will pick for you. If the quality requirements are not strict, and green buds, white buds, flowers, and leaves are all gathered together, it is very difficult to sell at a good price. Manual sorting is costly, and traditional screening machines are inefficient.

Drying equipment must be available

If honeysuckle is well managed, after five years, during the peak production period, in the first ten days of the first crop, each mu can produce 50 to 60 kg of fresh flowers per day. Many places use sun-drying. Not only is the price low, but due to weather reasons, the quality simply cannot be guaranteed. Dryers are expensive and costly, and many growers are deterred and cannot afford them. Therefore, it is recommended that building a baking room is the best policy. The investment is small and the cost is low. Drying one jin of dried flowers costs no more than one yuan in coal money.