Propagation Methods and Daily Care Tips for Potted Ardisia crenata
Ardisia crenata is a common wild plant in the mountain forests of southern China. It prefers shady sites and is also cultivated in gardens and nurseries, mostly as a potted ornamental. It is regarded by floral authorities as "the anticipated product that will surpass kumquat, currently the best-selling ornamental fruiting flower product in China."
Ardisia crenata is a common wild plant in the mountain forests of southern China. It prefers shady sites and is also cultivated in gardens and nurseries, mostly as a potted ornamental. It is regarded by floral authorities as "the anticipated product that will surpass kumquat, currently the best-selling ornamental fruiting flower product in China." Below, the editor of Huinong Net will study with everyone the propagation of Ardisia crenata as a New Year ornamental fruiting houseplant.
I. Propagation Methods
The main propagation methods for Ardisia crenata are seeding and cutting.
1. Seeding method
For the seeding method, the seeds used must be harvested after the fruit is fully ripe. Pile and ferment them for several days, then remove the seed coat and wash them clean with water. After harvesting, Ardisia crenata seeds are stored in moist sand. That is, store them layer by layer, one layer of seeds and one layer of sand, in a place with no standing water and a relatively low temperature. The sand must not be too wet; it should hold together when squeezed in the hand and crumble at a touch. Before sowing, the seeds need to be pre-germinated to improve the uniformity of seedling emergence in the plug tray. For seed pre-germination, use the simple soaking method: soak the seeds in warm water at 20°C to 30°C for 2 to 3 hours, then remove them and place them in moist sand to germinate.
After the germination treatment, the seeds sprout in about 10 to 20 days. When the sprout grows to 2 to 3 mm, they can be sown point by point into plug trays. When sowing, select healthy germinated seeds and use tweezers to place the seeds into each cell, maintaining a fixed sowing order to prevent missed or repeated sowing. The sowing depth should be about 1 cm below the substrate surface, then water with a spray bottle until the substrate is thoroughly moistened.
After sowing in plug trays, the main management task is to control the moisture of the substrate to prevent waterlogging and root rot. Since the plug trays are placed in a shaded greenhouse, the light is weak and the temperature is relatively low, so the substrate loses water slowly. Unless there are consecutive sunny days, generally no spraying is needed. About 20 days after sowing, the seedlings emerge. When the seedlings have true leaves, apply foliar fertilizer, combining topdressing with pest and disease control. The specific ratio of pesticide and fertilizer is 0.15% urea + 0.1% KH2PO4 + 1000-fold dilution of thiophanate-methyl. Spray once every 15 to 20 days. After emergence, as the temperature rises and leaf transpiration increases, increase the frequency and amount of spraying to ensure normal seedling growth.
2. Cutting method
From late spring to early autumn, when the plant grows vigorously, select robust current-year branches as cuttings. After cutting the branches off, choose the sturdy parts and cut them into sections 5 to 15 cm long, each section carrying more than 3 leaf nodes. You can also cut semi-lignified young shoots as cuttings, insert them into a prepared sand bed, keep them moist and warm, and place them in a semi-shady spot.
The suitable temperature for Ardisia crenata cuttings to root is 20°C to 30°C. Below 20°C, rooting is difficult and slow. Above 30°C, the cut end of the cutting is prone to infection by pathogens and rot, and the higher the temperature, the greater the rot. If low temperatures occur after cutting, cover the sand bed used for cuttings with plastic film to keep warm. If the temperature is too high after cutting, shade the cuttings with 50% to 80% light blockage. After cutting, maintain the relative air humidity at 75% to 85%. Therefore, spraying should be used to reduce water evaporation from the cuttings. Under shaded conditions, spray the cuttings 3 to 5 times a day; the higher the temperature on sunny days, the more frequent the spraying, and the lower the temperature on rainy days, the less frequent or no spraying. However, excessive spraying makes the cuttings prone to infection by pathogens and rot. After cutting, shading is essential; after the root system grows out, gradually remove the shade net. On sunny days, remove the shade net at 4 p.m. each day and cover it again before 9 a.m. the next day.
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How to grow Ardisia crenata
Ardisia crenata, also known as Da Luo San and Fugui Zi, and called Jin Yu Man Tang by many people, belongs to the Myrsinaceae family, genus Ardisia, among the angiosperms. Ardisia crenata likes humid or semi-dry climatic environments and requires the relative air humidity of the growing environment to be 50 to 70%. When the relative air humidity is too low, the lower leaves turn yellow and drop, and the upper leaves lose their luster. Because Ardisia crenata is native to subtropical regions, it has strict temperature requirements for winter, and growth stops when the ambient temperature is below 8°C.Ardisia crenata has a strong ability to adapt to light. When kept indoors, place it in a spot with bright light as much as possible, such as a well-lit living room, bedroom, or study. After keeping it indoors for a period (about one month), move it to an outdoor shaded spot (with winter insulation conditions) for a period (about one month), and alternate back and forth in this way.
For potted plants, in addition to adding organic fertilizer when potting, appropriate fertilizer and water management should also be carried out during routine care.
Spring, summer, and autumn: These three seasons are its peak growing seasons. Fertilizer and water management follows the cycle of "Hua Bao" - clear water - "Hua Bao" - clear water, with an interval of about 1 to 4 days. The interval is shorter on sunny days or during high temperatures, and longer or no watering on rainy days or during low temperatures.
Winter: During the winter dormant period, the main task is to control fertilizer and water. Fertilizer and water management follows the cycle of "Hua Bao" - clear water - clear water - "Hua Bao" - clear water - clear water, with an interval of about 3 to 7 days. The interval is shorter on sunny days or during high temperatures, and longer or no watering on rainy days or during low temperatures.
For field-planted plants, apply fertilizer and water 2 to 4 times in spring and summer according to drought conditions: first open a small trench in a ring 30 to 100 cm away from the root crown (the larger the plant, the farther from the root crown), with the trench 20 cm wide and 20 cm deep. Sprinkle 25 to 50 jin of organic fertilizer, or 1 to 5 liang of granular compound fertilizer (chemical fertilizer), into the trench, then water thoroughly. After winter begins and before spring begins, apply fertilizer once more in the same way, but do not water.
In winter, when the plant enters dormancy or semi-dormancy, prune off weak, pest- or disease-affected, dead, and overly dense branches. Branch trimming can also be combined with cutting propagation.
Repotting: As long as care is proper, it will grow very fast. When it grows to a certain size, consider giving it a larger pot so it can continue to grow vigorously. For the potting soil and component ratios used for repotting, you can choose one of the following: vegetable garden soil : furnace slag = 3:1; or garden soil : medium-coarse river sand : sawdust (mushroom residue) = 4:1:2; or one of paddy soil, pond mud, or leaf mold.
Ornamental Value and Cultivation Care of Fugui Zi
Fugui Zi (Ardisia crenata Sims f. hortensis (Migo) W. Z. Fang et K. Yao), also known as Zhu Sha Gen, Hong Liang San, Da Luo San, Tie Liang San, Liang San Zhe Jin Zhu, etc., is an evergreen small shrub in the Myrsinaceae family, genus Ardisia. The plant stands gracefully, and its fruit does not fall for a long time, making it a rare shade-tolerant ornamental fruiting flower. It is deeply loved by flower enthusiasts. Placed indoors as a potted plant, it fully displays an image of auspiciousness, festivity, wealth, and glory. If planted in groups under urban overpasses, in parks, courtyards, or under landscape forests, the green leaves and red fruits set each other off beautifully, charming and pleasing to the eye. I. Biological Characteristics 1. Morphological CharacteristicsBecause its fruit is extraordinarily beautiful, like red pearls hidden among verdant leaves, and when placed indoors during festivals it presents the auspicious and wealthy scene of a "green umbrella sheltering golden pearls," it is called "Fugui Zi." And because the xylem in the cross-section of its roots is often covered with cinnabar-red blood spots, it is also called "Zhu Sha Gen."
Fugui Zi is an evergreen small shrub with a plant height of 0.4 to 1 m; when potted, it should preferably be controlled at about 0.6 m. The bark is slightly red, the stem is upright, and the top branches. The leaves are alternate or clustered at the branch tips, elliptical or oblanceolate, thick, smooth, and glossy. The leaves are 6 to 10 cm long and 2 to 4 cm wide, with wrinkled or wavy blunt serrations at the edges, and raised black glandular dots between the teeth; both sides are hairless. Leaf color varies by variety: one type has green leaves on both sides; another has green upper leaf surfaces and red lower leaf surfaces.
It blooms in summer (June to July). The flowers are axillary, in umbel-like inflorescences, borne on the lower half of the plant. The flowers are white or pale red, with a slight fragrance; the corolla is 5-lobed, and there are 5 stamens. The pedicels and calyx are both purplish red.
The fruit is spherical, about the size of a pea, about 7 mm in diameter, with a persistent calyx and a slender style; when ripe, the fruit is bright red and crystal clear, borne among the ring-like branches and leaves on the lower half of the whole plant, dazzling and resembling ripe red cherries, and it does not fall for a long time. The fruiting period is from October to December and even through the Spring Festival. Often, the fruit set the previous year has not yet fallen, and the next year it blooms and sets new fruit again, so the fruit can be enjoyed all year round. Under artificial cultivation, the red-fruit period can reach more than 6 months, covering New Year's Day, the Spring Festival, and the entire spring.
2. Ecological Adaptability Fugui Zi is native to Zhejiang, Hunan, Shanxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, Guangdong, and other places in China. It is suitable for growing in valley forests, under broad-leaved forests, or in shaded, moist shrub thickets on hills. It is mostly distributed on both sides of shady, moist gullies in fertile soil rich in organic matter. It likes warm, humid, acidic soil environments with ample scattered light and good drainage. It does not tolerate high temperatures and strong light in summer, is afraid of cold in winter, and dislikes dry heat and drought; these are its main ecological habits. The suitable growing temperature is 16°C to 28°C, and the winter room temperature should be kept at 5°C to 8°C.
II. Ornamental Characteristics and Applications
Each Fugui Zi plant bears 200 to 1000 fruits, each uniform in color and quality, forming a strong contrast with the green leaves. The clusters layer upon one another, creating the delightful scene of green leaves holding up red fruits. It can be used as a shade-tolerant ornamental plant in various green spaces and under tree clusters in woodlands, and can also be potted for indoor decorative plant arrangements.
1. Understory planting Fugui Zi is a shade-loving shrub, suitable for arrangement in garden tree belts or dense forests, forming a multi-layered structure. In addition, its fruit is food for birds and can attract birds to forage and roost, which both increases biodiversity and adds the pleasure of birdwatching and listening to their songs. It can also be used in rock gardens, flower beds, and flower borders.
2. Courtyard clump planting Fugui Zi is naturally shade-tolerant, and its fruit is bright red, making it suitable for arrangement under tree shade in courtyards or in shaded corners. Planting several plants in clumps or groups according to local conditions allows you to enjoy the fruit and beautify the environment while also improving ecological benefits, so it is a rare shade-tolerant native tree species for courtyard greening.
3. Greening under bridges Because it mostly grows in shady, moist environments such as under forests, in valleys, and beside streams, it is extremely shade-tolerant and is an excellent foliage groundcover plant for shady, moist environments. It can be used in shady, moist spots under patch forests and in shrub thickets, and is a new favorite groundcover under urban overpasses and elevated bridges. If planted in groups under urban overpasses, in parks, courtyards, or under landscape forests, the green leaves and red fruits set each other off beautifully, charming and pleasing to the eye and refreshing to the mind.
4. Potted ornamental use Fugui Zi has a short trunk, graceful form, remains evergreen through the four seasons, and is strongly shade-tolerant. In autumn and winter it is covered with red fruits, bright and lovely. As a potted fruiting plant for decorating halls and rooms, it is most suitable. Its best ornamental period spans New Year's Day, the Spring Festival, and the Lantern Festival, making it an excellent ornamental fruiting and foliage plant for indoor arrangements during festive holidays. Placed indoors, it fully displays a scene of wealth and is deeply loved by everyone.
With the development of ecological cities and ecological landscaping, attention to the use of native tree species is gradually increasing. In the future, Fugui Zi, this excellent shade-tolerant shrub with ornamental value, will have broad application prospects in production.
III. Propagation
Seedlings can be grown by sowing, cutting, or division. The more commonly used propagation methods are sowing and cutting.
1. Propagation by sowing Sowing can be done immediately after harvest or in spring after sand storage. Wait until the fruit is bright red and fully ripe in December, then pick it. After picking, soak the fruit in clean water and rub off the fruit skin, wash and remove the seeds, and dry them in the shade before sowing.
Because the seed coat of Fugui Zi is hard and not easy for water to penetrate for germination, it is best to rub and grind the seeds before sowing, then soak them in warm water for one day, and then sow them in points or broadcast them in a seedbed with loose soil. Alternatively, first soak the seeds in warm water at 25°C to 30°C for 24 hours, then place them in moist river sand for low-temperature pre-germination, and sow them in the coming spring after the seeds crack.
Before sowing, finely prepare the land and rake it level, then open trenches on the seedbed for drilling, with a trench depth of about 4 cm and a row spacing of 7 to 8 cm. The trench depth must be uniform. Water thoroughly, sow the seeds evenly along the trenches, with each seed about 5 cm apart, and cover with 2 to 3 cm of soil after sowing. The covering soil should be loose and fine; it is best to use sandy soil mixed with fertilizer. The covering soil should be of uniform depth, and after covering, press it down lightly.
Fugui Zi is a shade-loving plant, so after sowing, build a shade net over the seedbed and add a covering of rice straw to keep the soil constantly moist. When the temperature is 25°C to 30°C, seedlings emerge in half a month. After the sprouts emerge, remove the covering straw in 2 to 3 stages, and promptly build a shed for shading.
For small-scale seedling raising, you can also sow in pots. Sow in a shallow pot, and after covering with soil, cover the pot surface with glass or plastic film to reduce water evaporation. Keep the soil moist and control the temperature between 18°C and 24°C. In about 20 days, roots will form and seedlings will emerge, and the germination rate can reach more than 85%. When the seedlings have 3 true leaves, stop watering and harden the seedlings for several days, then lift the seedlings and pot them.
During the seedling stage, pay attention to shading, topdressing, weeding, watering, and other management tasks. During the growing season, apply a thin manure water topdressing once every half month. Stop fertilizing when the temperature is above 35°C or below 15°C. Seedlings grown for 2 years can bloom and bear fruit normally.
2. Propagation by cutting The best cutting times are from late May to mid-June or from late August to early September. This is because the temperature at these times is around 25°C to 30°C, which is most suitable for plant growth. Select robust, pest- and disease-free current-year semi-lignified and one-year-old leafy branches as cuttings.
Pay attention to the chemical treatment of the cut wounds on the cuttings. After trimming, they can be dipped appropriately in rooting agents, such as vitamin B1, vitamin B12, or other rooting chemicals. The cuttings are generally about 5 to 10 cm long, with 3 to 4 leaves, and the lower cut is located 0.2 cm below a node. After cutting, insert them into a prepared seedbed.
The cutting substrate can be half rice husk ash and half moist sand, or half peat soil and half perlite. Insert the cuttings to a depth of 1/3 to 1/2 of the cutting length. After watering thoroughly, cover with plastic film to retain moisture, maintain the suitable rooting temperature of 20°C to 25°C, and place them in an environment with 60% shading. In about one month, they will root.
After cutting, pay attention to watering and spraying. Generally, water 1 to 2 times a day; do not use too much water, just keep the seedbed moist. After the cuttings grow more than 3 true leaves, they can be transplanted, and in June of the following year they can bloom and bear fruit.
IV. Care and Management
Fugui Zi likes cool, humid, neutral sandy soil, likes thin fertilizer applied frequently, dislikes concentrated fertilizer, and tolerates low temperatures. Using an artificial substrate for cultivation can effectively change the root growing environment of Fugui Zi and increase the fruiting rate. The fruit is bright red and dense, the fruiting period reaches 7 months, and the leaves also appear more glossy than those of soil-grown plants.
1. Building a shade shed Fugui Zi is a semi-shade plant and likes a growing environment with loose soil, good ventilation, and short-day conditions. To grow Fugui Zi well, you must create a good environment for it. You can use a plastic greenhouse, or make a shade shed with a shade net, requiring a shading rate of 60% to 90%. In short, as long as it can block sunlight, lower temperature, and increase humidity, it is fine.
From mid-spring to mid-autumn, it can be placed under a shade shed with a shading rate of 50% to 60%. For home cultivation, it can be placed slightly away from a window; scattered light or fluorescent lamp illumination is enough to meet its growth needs. Never expose it to the scorching sun in summer. If left exposed, it is prone to sunscald and may even die.
2. Potting soil You can use purchased nutrient soil or mix your own nutrient soil. You can use 70% to 80% relatively fertile soil (pond mud, humus soil, old garden soil, field soil), 10% to 15% coarse sand, and 10% to 15% decomposed oil-free sawdust or unburned rice husk ash to make nutrient soil.
You can also mix 4 parts leaf mold, 4 parts garden soil, 1 part river sand, and 1 part organic fertilizer. Control the pH value between 5.0 and 6.5. In short, the nutrient soil must be fertile, loose, and well-draining.
3. Transplanting and potting Determine the size of the flowerpot or nutrient pot (bag) according to the size of the seedling. First place a 3 cm thick layer of tile fragments at the bottom of the pot to aid drainage, then place the plant in the center of the pot and add soil, pressing lightly so the root system makes good contact with the potting soil. Then sprinkle a layer of coarse pond mud or spread a layer of moss on the pot soil, taking care not to exceed the pot surface, to prevent the potting soil from being compacted when watered and from overflowing the pot when fertilizing. Place it in a shade shed or a shady, cool spot without direct sunlight, and water thoroughly until water drains from the bottom of the pot. After 10 to 15 days, it can be returned to normal management.
4. Fertilizing Fertilization should be carried out according to the size of the seedling, the different seasons, and whether the plant is a fruiting branch or non-fruiting branch seedling. In summer and autumn, Fugui Zi grows relatively vigorously and needs more nutrients, so more fertilizer can be applied; in winter and early spring, the plant is basically dormant, so less or no fertilizer can be applied. In short, you must both meet the needs of seedling growth and development and prevent excessive vegetative growth that affects ornamental value. Therefore, the best approach is: apply less concentrated fertilizer, apply more thin fertilizer, and apply more phosphorus and potassium fertilizer.
Generally, apply a thin organic fertilizer topdressing once every half month, or apply a mixed solution of 0.1% urea plus 0.1% monopotassium phosphate. During the flowering and fruiting period, spraying a 0.2% monopotassium phosphate solution on the leaves can promote more flowering and better fruit set. When the temperature is too high or too low, fertilization should be stopped to avoid fertilizer damage to the roots. Stop applying nitrogen fertilizer during the flowering period, and once the fruit turns red, there is no need to fertilize further.
5. Watering Water according to the different seasons, weather changes, pot size, drainage performance of the pot, and placement location. In summer and autumn, growth is fast, so sufficient water and good ventilation are required. Water frequently to keep the potting soil moist, and spray water on the leaves and ground to increase air humidity. In winter, when the fruit turns red, the amount of watering should be reduced.
In spring, generally water once every 3 to 4 days; in summer, water 1 to 2 times a day; in autumn, water once every 2 to 3 days. After winter begins, reduce watering and maintain 65% to 70% moisture. As for watering time, because temperatures are high in summer and autumn, water in the morning and evening; in winter, it is best to water at noon. In short, pay attention to timely and appropriate watering, keep the potting soil moist, and neither dry nor waterlogged.
For Fugui Zi kept indoors for ornamental viewing at home, watering should follow the principle of more spraying and less watering, maintaining moist potting soil and relatively high air humidity in the surrounding environment, so that the leaves are deep green and the fruit is bright red; especially for potted plants placed in air-conditioned rooms, spray water 3 to 5 times a day.
6. Temperature control The suitable growing temperature for Fugui Zi is 20°C to 28°C. It fears dry heat and high temperatures. When the ambient temperature reaches above 30°C, measures such as shading, spraying, and ventilation should be used to lower the temperature and increase humidity. Fugui Zi fears cold. When the temperature is below 5°C, it can be moved into a simple plastic greenhouse, or directly moved indoors, to avoid cold damage.
7. Plant shape regulation When seedlings grow to 8 to 10 cm tall, remove the growing tip and pinch back to promote branching. Use paclobutrazol spot treatment to control excessive vegetative growth, promote uniform plant height, and keep plant height below 60 cm, with broad, thick, green, and glossy leaves, abundant and plump fruit, and a relatively coordinated ratio of fruiting branches to leafy branches.
8. Pest and disease management Fugui Zi has few pests and diseases. The main diseases found so far are root (stem) rot and leaf spot. Fugui Zi root (stem) rot mostly occurs in flower nurseries where plants are crowded and shading is heavy, and is especially severe in hot, rainy seasons. The main causes of root rot are soil compaction, poor water permeability, improper watering, overly wet potting soil, and improper fertilization. Excessive nitrogen fertilizer, nutrient imbalance in the plant, and lack of organic matter and potassium fertilizer all worsen the damage.
After Fugui Zi is infected, abnormal conditions such as poor growth and yellowing leaves appear in the early stage, after which the infected parts develop brown lesions and begin to rot, ultimately causing the whole plant to wilt and die. If control measures are not taken in time, the mortality rate can reach 20% to 50%, and it may even cause serious economic losses to flower growers.
In production, choose higher terrain with good drainage for planting, carry out good cultivation and control measures, disinfect the substrate before planting or repotting, and maintain reasonable watering and fertilization. Plant at a reasonable density and apply phosphorus and potassium fertilizer to improve disease resistance. If diseased plants are found, immediately pull them out and destroy them, and carry out chemical control in time.
In the early stage of disease, promptly spray 800- to 1000-fold thiophanate-methyl or 1200- to 1500-fold 2.5% suspension seed coating agent - Shileshi - on the middle and lower parts of the plant for control. Spray once every 10 days or so, and 2 consecutive sprays can achieve the ideal control effect.
Potted plants are also prone to brown spot disease. In production, 50% carbendazim wettable powder at 600- to 800-fold dilution can be sprayed for control. For home-potted Fugui Zi, apply Dakenning cream ointment to the lesions, which can effectively control the expansion of the lesions. If there are spots on only 1 to 2 leaves, simply pick off the leaves and destroy them.
The bridge-forming caterpillars that damage leaves and the fruit borers that damage fruit both belong to chewing mouthpart pests and can be killed by spraying systemic insecticides such as omethoate. Damage from bridge-forming caterpillars mainly occurs after the spring temperature rises above 20°C, when eggs parasitic on the plant begin to hatch into larvae that damage the leaves. Therefore, spray once before the eggs hatch, then once a week, and 3 to 4 consecutive sprays can control them. After flowering and fruiting, begin spraying to prevent fruit borers, then once a week, to control the damage of this pest.