After the Start of Autumn, it's the perfect time to plant fennel - harvest in just two months

When I think of fennel, I think of the steamed buns my mother made with fennel filling. I really can't stand that flavor, but my mother absolutely loves it. Every year, we have to set aside part of our garden to grow fennel for her.

When to plant fennel?

Fennel prefers a cool, mild growing environment. It can be sown in either spring or autumn. Spring sowing is generally from March to April each year, and autumn sowing is generally from July to August each year. Right now is exactly the time to do it.

Fennel's growing habits

Fennel is cultivated in many regions of China. It likes a growing environment with plenty of sunlight, a cool and mild climate, and it should not be too hot. It has a certain cold tolerance and is also drought-tolerant. Its growing period is very fast - generally about two months after planting, it can be harvested. It is very suitable for home cultivation. It has low soil requirements - fertile, loose, and well-drained soil is best.

Growing fennel at home

As mentioned above, fennel grows very quickly, so planting some at home means you can harvest it soon. Fennel is also nutritious, rich in vitamins and carotene, and can aid digestion and help prevent colds. The planting time right now is just right, so you can give it a try.

First, you need to prepare fennel seeds. Fennel seeds are quite small, so before planting, you can soak them in clean water first, which helps with sprouting. The soaked fennel seeds can be scattered directly into the flower pot, then covered with a little soil. If the weather is relatively cold, you can cover the pot with a layer of plastic film, which is better for sprouting. Generally, fennel will sprout in about a week.

If you find this step too troublesome, you can also take purchased fennel seedlings with roots and replant them directly. However, their growth is generally not as good as those grown from seed. Pay attention to watering as usual, but don't overwater. Give them plenty of sunlight, and generally in a little over two months, they will be ready to harvest.

Growing fennel in the field

First is also the seed issue. Growers need to purchase high-quality fennel seeds. Before sowing, seeds can be treated with a seed dressing agent to improve fennel's disease resistance later on. For the plot, generally choose fertile, well-drained sandy soil for planting. Before planting, apply sufficient base fertilizer. Generally about 2500 kg of farmyard manure and about 15 kg of diammonium phosphate are needed. Deeply plow the soil. Both drilling and hole sowing are fine. Generally about 5 kg of seeds are needed per mu.

Generally, seedlings emerge in about a week after planting. After emergence, timely intertillage and weeding should be carried out. When fennel seedlings grow to about 5 cm, thinning should be done promptly, removing the weaker seedlings. When fennel grows to about 20 cm, apply a topdressing of nitrogen fertilizer once, generally together with watering, using about 10 kg per mu. Generally in about two months, when fennel grows to 30 cm, it can be harvested.

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