A detailed guide to silk tree flower planting techniques: master cultivation and care methods
Silk tree, also known as ronghua tree, night-closing tree, and Maying flower, is a deciduous tree. It is native to the Yellow River basin and areas to the south in China. In summer it bears pale red flowers shaped like fluffy balls, with a refreshing fragrance. Its leaves close at sunset and open at sunrise. The leaf shape resembles that of mimosa, slender and feathery, and the flowers and leaves are elegant and unusual. The silk tree has a beautiful form, with green shade like an umbrella and red flowers in clusters. It can be planted beside courtyard ponds or used as shade trees and street trees, and is a beautiful ornamental greening tree species. Take a look at the planting techniques for the silk tree, a flower with such a lovely name and appearance.
Silk tree flowers usually bloom in June and July. After blooming, the main axis of the inflorescence can continue to extend upward, constantly producing bracts and flower buds, just like a monopodial branch, so it is also called a monopodial inflorescence. Most are red or pink, occasionally white, and the shape looks like a fan, fluffy, very similar to a dandelion.
1. Propagation method: Propagate by sowing seeds. Sowing can be done in spring and autumn. Before sowing, soak the seeds in 35°C warm water for 24 hours, sow in shallow pots in holes, cover with 1-2 cm of soil, water by the bottom-soaking method, and keep moist. At 15-20°C, seedlings emerge after 7-10 days, and when the seedlings are 5 cm tall, pot them up. When collecting seeds, select robust mother plants, strengthen management, and collect as they ripen during the fruiting period. The pods will split open automatically when mature.
2. Water and fertilizer management: Silk tree flowers are tolerant of dryness and not tolerant of waterlogging. Do not water too much during care, so as to avoid waterlogging and root damage. Silk tree flowers can be managed extensively and do not have high requirements for water and fertilizer; they may grow very vigorously even in poor areas. However, note that they do not like noise or dust, so this must be carefully controlled during cultivation.
3. Shaping and pruning: Only dense planting of silk trees can ensure a straight trunk. During the seedling stage, side branches must be pruned in time. If side branches are found, remove them by hand from the base of the branch as early as possible, because cutting side branches with a knife is often incomplete and leads to the side buds sprouting again. For small seedlings with leaning trunks, the trunk can be cut back to ground level in the second year to promote a thick, straight main trunk. Transplanting small seedlings should be done before budbreak, and when transplanting large seedlings, a sufficient soil ball must be kept. When planting for greening projects, remove side branches and leaves, leaving only the main trunk to ensure survival, and set up supports to prevent wind from blowing them over.
4. Pest and disease control: Silk tree flowers are mainly harmed by canker disease. When the disease occurs, spray with 2000-3000 times diluted Pengkejun solution, 800-1000 times diluted Bijunsha solution, or 800 times diluted 50% Tuzhengte solution. Pests include longhorn beetles and psyllids. Use 1 kg of kerosene plus 50 g of 80% dichlorvos emulsifiable concentrate to kill longhorn beetles. For psyllid damage, spray with 1500-2000 times diluted 25% puchongling solution or 1500 times diluted 40% dimethoate emulsifiable concentrate.
Silk tree seeds can be pressed for oil, and the bark and flowers can be used medicinally, with effects of calming the nerves, relieving depression, promoting blood circulation and relieving pain, and stimulating appetite and regulating qi. The extracted extract is used externally to treat fractures, painful abscesses, swelling and pain, and other conditions. Silk tree has strong resistance to hydrogen chloride and nitrogen dioxide, and certain resistance to sulfur dioxide and chlorine gas. The silk tree also differs in yin and yang, is called a sensitive plant, and has been listed as a preferred tree species for earthquake observation.
Silk tree flower cultivation techniques
The filaments of silk tree flowers are pink, and the pods are flat. It is a street tree and ornamental tree in cities. The heartwood is yellow-gray-brown, and the sapwood is yellow-white. It is durable and mostly used for making furniture; the young leaves are edible, and the old leaves can be used to wash clothes; the bark is used medicinally and has deworming effects. It also has a calming effect, mainly treating stagnation and chest tightness, insomnia and forgetfulness, nourishing yin and tonifying yang, eye diseases, neurasthenia, and other conditions. As an ornamental, in the past there were only small-flowered varieties, but now there are large and beautiful varieties.
Growth habits
A light-loving tree species, slightly shade-tolerant. Tolerant of dry and poor soil, it is suitable for fertile, moist, well-drained sandy loam and limestone mountain areas. Not tolerant of waterlogging, with strong cold resistance. Fast-growing, low-branching, shallow-rooted tree species. Weak sprouting ability, sparse branches, not tolerant of pruning.
Propagation method
Propagate by sowing seeds. Sowing can be done in spring and autumn. Before sowing, soak the seeds in 35°C warm water for 24 hours, sow in shallow pots in holes, cover with 1--2 cm of soil, water by the bottom-soaking method, and keep moist. At 15--20°C, seedlings emerge after 7--10 days, and when the seedlings are 5 cm tall, pot them up. When collecting seeds, select robust mother plants, strengthen management, and collect as they ripen during the fruiting period. The pods will split open automatically when mature.
Cultivation techniques
There are no special requirements for care and management. It can be cultivated in ordinary soil. It does not need much fertilizer during the growing period; applying dilute liquid fertilizer 2--3 times is enough. Fertilizer should not be excessive; it is enough for the leaves to be green and the growth robust. Do not let it become leggy, because mimosa is mainly a novelty foliage plant and is best kept small.
The planting techniques for silk tree flowers are simple, and management is extensive. It has no strict requirements for climate, sunlight, or soil, but fertile, loose sandy loam is best, and it prefers a warm, humid environment.
Introduction to silk tree flower cultivation techniques
The filaments of silk tree flowers are pink, and the pods are flat. It is a street tree and ornamental tree in cities. The heartwood is yellow-gray-brown, and the sapwood is yellow-white. It is durable and mostly used for making furniture; the young leaves are edible, and the old leaves can be used to wash clothes; the bark is used medicinally and has deworming effects. It also has a calming effect, mainly treating stagnation and chest tightness, insomnia and forgetfulness, nourishing yin and tonifying yang, eye diseases, neurasthenia, and other conditions. As an ornamental, in the past there were only small-flowered varieties, but now there are large and beautiful varieties.
Growth habits
A light-loving tree species, slightly shade-tolerant. Tolerant of dry and poor soil, it is suitable for fertile, moist, well-drained sandy loam and limestone mountain areas. Not tolerant of waterlogging, with strong cold resistance. Fast-growing, low-branching, shallow-rooted tree species. Weak sprouting ability, sparse branches, not tolerant of pruning.
Propagation method
Propagate by sowing seeds. Sowing can be done in spring and autumn. Before sowing, soak the seeds in 35°C warm water for 24 hours, sow in shallow pots in holes, cover with 1--2 cm of soil, water by the bottom-soaking method, and keep moist. At 15--20°C, seedlings emerge after 7--10 days, and when the seedlings are 5 cm tall, pot them up. When collecting seeds, select robust mother plants, strengthen management, and collect as they ripen during the fruiting period. The pods will split open automatically when mature.
Cultivation techniques
There are no special requirements for care and management. It can be cultivated in ordinary soil. It does not need much fertilizer during the growing period; applying dilute liquid fertilizer 2--3 times is enough. Fertilizer should not be excessive; it is enough for the leaves to be green and the growth robust. Do not let it become leggy, because mimosa is mainly a novelty foliage plant and is best kept small.
The planting techniques for silk tree flowers are simple, and management is extensive. It has no strict requirements for climate, sunlight, or soil, but fertile, loose sandy loam is best, and it prefers a warm, humid environment.