Detailed Explanation of Key Technical Points for High-Yield Ginger Cultivation and Management
I. Pre-planting Preparation 1. Fine land preparation and adequate base fertilizer. It is advisable to choose plots with fertile soil, good irrigation conditions, and no ginger blast disease, and to avoid continuous cropping as much as possible. On the basis of winter plowing, carry out fine land preparation early in spring, so that the soil has no visible or hidden clods and is loose on top and firm below. Increase the application of organic fertilizer, using high-quality chicken manure, disease-free residue-free barnyard manure, cake fertilizer, and plant ash in combination, and broadcast 4 cubic meters of high-quality decomposed chicken manure or 5,000-10,000 kg of high-quality barnyard manure as base fertilizer in combination with land preparation. In high-fertility and high-water plots, open furrows at a row spacing of 60-65 cm for sowing, and apply 100 kg of soybean cake, 50 kg of ternary compound fertilizer, 50 kg of potassium sulfate, 2 kg of zinc fertilizer, and 1 kg of boron fertilizer in the furrows as seed fertilizer.
I. Pre-planting Preparation
1. Fine land preparation and adequate base fertilizer. It is advisable to choose plots with fertile soil, good irrigation conditions, and no ginger blast disease, and to avoid continuous cropping as much as possible. On the basis of winter plowing, carry out fine land preparation early in spring, so that the soil has no visible or hidden clods and is loose on top and firm below. Increase the application of organic fertilizer, using high-quality chicken manure, disease-free residue-free barnyard manure, cake fertilizer, and plant ash in combination, and broadcast 4 cubic meters of high-quality decomposed chicken manure or 5,000-10,000 kg of high-quality barnyard manure as base fertilizer in combination with land preparation. In high-fertility and high-water plots, open furrows at a row spacing of 60-65 cm for sowing, and apply 100 kg of soybean cake, 50 kg of ternary compound fertilizer, 50 kg of potassium sulfate, 2 kg of zinc fertilizer, and 1 kg of boron fertilizer in the furrows as seed fertilizer.
2. Carefully select ginger seeds and cultivate strong sprouts. About 30 days before sowing, take the ginger seeds out of the cellar, remove the soil from the ginger pieces, and select healthy ginger pieces that are plump, full, bright in skin color, fresh in flesh, not shriveled, not rotten, not frostbitten, hard in texture, and free of pests and diseases as seeds. Strictly eliminate seed ginger pieces that are thin and weak, shriveled, brown in flesh, or soft. Each individual seed ginger piece is required to weigh 50-75 grams, and generally 400-500 kg of seed ginger is used per mu.
3. Sun-drying and resting the ginger. In early March, choose a sunny day, at around eight or nine o'clock at noon, place the carefully selected ginger seeds on ground with sufficient sunlight to dry, bring them indoors at night, and cover them with straw curtains to maintain humidity and darkness, promoting the decomposition of nutrients in the ginger pieces. Sun-dry the ginger for 2-3 days and rest the seeds for 8-9 days, maintaining the temperature at 10-15°C. During this period, nutrient decomposition and promotion of bud differentiation are the main focus.
4. Sprout promotion. For the carefully selected and sun-dried ginger seeds, soak the seeds for 10 minutes in a 200-fold solution of pesticides such as Jiangwen San, Shengjiang Bao, and Luba to achieve sterilization and disinfection, then dry them and promote sprouting. Place ginger pieces in baskets surrounded with wheat straw for warmth, and promote sprouting in sheds or sunny beds, maintaining air humidity at 80-85% and temperature at 22-25°C, with higher temperature first and lower temperature later. After 20 days, when the ginger sprouts grow to 0.5-1 cm, sow in batches according to sprout size.
II. Key Management Points from Sowing to Emergence
1. Sowing and film mulching. According to local air temperature, soil temperature, and the timing of late frost, plastic film cultivation can be carried out 20-30 days earlier than conventional sowing. In the central region of our province, sowing begins around May 1, and in the southern region of our province, sowing can be done from April 25-30. Before covering the film, use 100-150 grams per mu of a dedicated herbicide and spray with water to eliminate weeds under the film. The plastic film can be selected with a thickness of 0.005-0.006 mm and a width of 120 mm.
2. Appropriate sparse planting to enlarge ginger pieces. Appropriately reduce planting density, increase per-plant yield, and promote large and uniform ginger pieces. The suitable planting density for high-yield plots is about 6,500 plants/mu, with a row spacing of 50-55 cm and a plant spacing of 25 cm. For medium-fertility and medium-water plots, the row spacing should be 45 cm and the plant spacing 20 cm, with about 8,000 plants per mu, and the seed quantity is generally about 500 kg per mu.
3. Timely shading to promote growth. When 50% of the ginger has emerged, shade the ginger field in time to promote robust growth of the ginger seedlings. Use shade nets for shading, which provide uniform shade, do not damage the integrity of the plastic film, facilitate field management, and make the ginger seedlings grow vigorously. The specific method is as follows: make the shade net into strip-like curtains and stretch them between ginger rows, fixing both ends with bamboo poles, with a width of 60-65 cm, and a shade net with a shading rate of 40% can be selected. Try to avoid shading with firewood and grass. This is because firewood and grass often carry disease and pest residues, especially corn borers overwintering in corn stalks brought into the ginger field, which increases the base number of borers in the ginger field and is not conducive to disease and pest control.
III. Key Management Points in the Middle and Late Growth Stages
1. Apply light seedling-promoting fertilizer and heavy branching fertilizer. Apply supplemental autumn fertilizer in early to mid-June combined with watering, applying 25 kg of urea per mu with the water to promote ginger seedling growth. In early to mid-July, remove the plastic film and apply 50 kg of ternary compound fertilizer per mu. Before August 20, apply an additional 30 kg of potassium sulfate per mu, and water promptly after topdressing. In mid-September, according to the growth of the ginger seedlings, apply an appropriate amount of potassium fertilizer or nitrogen fertilizer, and carry out foliar topdressing on the aboveground part, using potassium dihydrogen phosphate, spraying once every 7-10 days for 3-4 consecutive times, to prevent disease and premature aging and extend the functional period of leaves in the late growth stage.
2. Scientific watering. Because ginger likes a humid environment, there must be sufficient water in the field. To ensure smooth emergence of ginger, on the basis of watering thoroughly before sowing, generally do not water before emergence, but wait until 70% of the ginger seedlings have emerged before watering. The specifics should be flexibly controlled according to weather, soil texture, and soil moisture conditions. If the first watering is too late, the ginger seedlings suffer drought and the buds are prone to drying up. Because plastic film has a good moisture-preserving effect, it is not advisable to water too frequently during the seedling stage, and it is best to water lightly under the film. In summer, watering in the morning and evening is best; do not water at noon. At the same time, pay attention to timely drainage after rain. Around the Beginning of Autumn, ginger enters a period of vigorous growth and its water demand increases. During this period, water once every 4-5 days to always maintain a moist soil state. To ensure that ginger has less mud attached after harvest and is easier to store, the last watering can be given 3-4 days before harvest. After applying branching fertilizer, according to the growth of the ginger, carry out hilling in 2-3 separate operations in time to ensure the growing parts do not emerge above the soil surface and promote rapid growth of the ginger pieces.
IV. Control of Major Diseases and Pests
1. Ginger blast disease. It is a devastating disease and also a major factor restricting the development of ginger. Integrated control measures should be the main approach, and crop rotation can be used; dig drainage ditches to drain and prevent waterlogging; or chemical control can be used, soaking roots with 1,500-2,000-fold solutions of Yaofeisu, Shengjiang Bao, Jiangwen San, Luba, etc. When diseased plants are found, pull them out promptly, treat the soil with the above solutions, and mark the spot with lime. After ginger harvest, deeply bury the soil at that spot.
2. Insect pests. The main insect pests during the growth period include ginger borers, beet armyworm, and ginger thrips. Do a good job of timely pest monitoring and carry out chemical control before major outbreaks. Spray control can be done with pesticides such as Yee Bisha, Kuaishaling, and imidacloprid, once every 7-10 days.
V. Timely Harvest When the temperature in late autumn is 8-18°C, with clear autumn skies, sufficient light, and large day-night temperature differences, this is the key period for yield formation. Appropriately extending the growth period can increase yield. According to experiments, after Frost's Descent, for each additional day of delayed harvest, the average yield increases by 30-60 kg per mu. In the central part of our province, the best harvest period for field-grown ginger should be around October 20-25, and in the southern part of our province it can be appropriately delayed by 3-5 days. Harvesting ginger at this time will neither freeze the ginger pieces nor fail to make full use of this golden period for late-stage yield increase. Therefore, the optimal harvest timing must be grasped, and harvesting too early must be avoided. To facilitate storage and nutrient return, about 3 cm of stem can be left.
To increase yield, the autumn delay method can also be used. Before the first frost, build an arched shed over the ginger field and cover it with agricultural film to protect and delay, extending the ginger growth period by 20-30 days before harvest, which can increase yield by more than 1,000 kg per mu, reaching more than 6,000 kg per mu.
VI. Deep-Well Cellar Storage Ginger storage mostly uses pit storage, which is a method with low investment, easy management, and simple operation. Storing 20,000 jin of ginger costs only 200-300 yuan. Generally 5-7 meters deep, dig 2-3 ginger storage caves, keep the temperature inside the cellar at 11-13°C, and maintain relative air humidity above 90%. Before the ginger is put into the cellar, thoroughly clean the ginger caves and the bottom of the cellar. If it is too dry inside, sprinkle an appropriate amount of water to keep it moist. When putting the ginger in, keep the ginger roots facing downward. After all of it is put in, cover the top with a layer of white sand to retain moisture. To prevent ginger maggots and keep the ginger pieces and ginger heads fresh, fungicides such as chlorothalonil and carbendazim can be applied in advance to treat the cave. After the ginger is put into the cellar, keep the entrance open and seal it before Minor Snow.