Detailed Explanation of Key Points for High-Yield Cultivation Techniques of Shatang Mandarin
We are all familiar with Shatang Mandarin. It tastes quite sweet, ranking among the sweetest of citrus fruits, and has a delicate texture with no residue after eating, making it extremely popular with consumers on the market. However, due to geographical and climatic limitations, its planting area is limited, and given the growing market demand, the only way to address this is by increasing yield. So how can Shatang Mandarin achieve high yields? Let's take a look at the high-yield cultivation techniques for Shatang Mandarin.
1. Seedling Selection
To achieve high yield, the first step is to select pure-variety, disease-and-pest-free strong seedlings. In addition, early-maturing varieties have better variety traits and yields, and grafting techniques can also be used to leverage the advantages of varieties. Seedlings using trifoliate orange as rootstock produce dwarfed plants with high fruiting and higher yields; seedlings using sour mandarin as rootstock produce tall, upright trees that bear fruit later. Therefore, the graft union height of the seedlings should reach 0.6 cm, the height should reach 50 cm, and it is best to have more than 3 complete branches with an intact root system, so that high-quality varieties can be grafted.
2. Reasonable Close Planting
Shatang Mandarin itself has the characteristics of early fruiting and high yield, so reasonable close planting and planned use of early-stage land can increase orchard yields. Generally, this method can double the yield. When planting, choose a loose, fertile, and moist soil environment, planting 200-300 plants per mu, with a plant-to-row spacing of about 2×1.5 m. In addition, practical production has shown that dwarfed close planting is also an important technique for achieving early fruiting and high yield.
3. Management During the Young Tree Stage
The stage from planting to flowering is the young tree stage for Shatang Mandarin, generally lasting 2 years. During this time, what needs to be done is to strengthen tree nutrition, cultivate the canopy and root system, and carry out reasonable pruning. After field planting, pruning should be carried out, leaving 5-6 short branches on the main branches, strengthening fertilizer and water management to promote new shoot sprouting. After new shoots sprout, select 3-4 shoots with consistent growth and even distribution as auxiliary main branches. After the new shoots mature, cut them back again to promote sprouting, repeating this multiple times to form the canopy. Summer is the peak growth season for young trees. In order to bear fruit earlier, buds should be removed to promote shoots, so that summer shoots emerge uniformly. In the second year, the main task is reasonable pruning to expand the canopy. In addition, the fertilizer amount during the shoot period should be more than double that of the first year, to promote early canopy formation.
4. Management During the Fruiting Stage
After management during the young tree stage, the canopy of Shatang Mandarin has basically taken shape. It begins to bear fruit in the third year and reaches full fruiting stage in the fifth year. The most important thing during this period is measures to protect flowers and fruits. Shatang Mandarin produces a large number of flowers but is very prone to flower drop, so foliar fertilizer should be sprayed in a timely manner during the flowering period to protect flowers. The foliar fertilizer is mainly made by mixing borax or monopotassium phosphate with water to form a solution for spraying. In addition to flower drop, Shatang Mandarin also has two natural physiological fruit drop periods, especially the second physiological fruit drop, which is greater. At this time, after most flowers have faded, gibberellic acid should be sprayed throughout the orchard to protect fruits. When physiological fruit drop is still severe, ring cutting can be carried out to promote flower bud differentiation and improve fruit quality.
The above are the high-yield cultivation techniques for Shatang Mandarin. We hope this can help you. To learn more about fruit cultivation knowledge, please stay tuned to us.