Key Technical Points for Winter Field Management of Asparagus
As the weather gradually turns colder, you have surely felt the chill of winter. Now that winter is gradually setting in, many asparagus growers are also making preparations for overwintering their asparagus one after another. Although asparagus is tolerant of low temperatures, without proper management it will still have a certain impact on the quality and yield of the asparagus. So how should asparagus be managed in winter? Today, the editor brings you the winter field management methods for asparagus. Let's take a look!
1. Clean the field in time
Autumn is the season for harvesting asparagus, and after harvesting, the field should be cleaned in time. If there are completely withered stems and branches in the field, they should be pulled out by hand in time; those that are not completely withered should not be pulled out, otherwise it will waste the nutrients in the field and affect the yield and quality of the next year. In addition, stems and branches that show no signs of withering should be kept intact to prevent damage to the bud scales, which would cause certain harm to the new stems and branches of the next year. When cleaning the field, do not cut with a knife, otherwise new growth will sprout again at the cut, consuming nutrients in the field. After pulling out the withered stems and branches, clear them out of the garden together with some fallen leaves and take proper disposal measures.
2. Disinfection and disease prevention
Cleaning the field is only a surface-level task; many pathogens and insect eggs still lie hidden in the field, and when the temperature rises in spring they will emerge and harm the growth of the asparagus. Therefore, in order to reduce the pathogens in the field and lower the incidence of various pests and diseases, after the field cleaning is completed we should also carry out soil disinfection in time. Although soil disinfection cannot completely eliminate pathogens, it can still greatly reduce the number of pathogens. For soil disinfection, chemicals such as chlorothalonil can be used for spraying and root drenching, and then an appropriate amount of carbofuran can be spread on the soil, which can effectively reduce the incidence of disease.
3. Water and fertilizer management
After cleaning and disinfecting the field, in order to ensure that the asparagus can successfully overwinter, we should strengthen the water and fertilizer management in the field. Fertilizer trenches can be dug on both sides of the asparagus, and the fertilizer can be decomposed farmyard manure and compound fertilizer; pay attention to the nutrient ratio in the fertilizer. When fertilizing, avoid direct contact between the asparagus roots and the fertilizer to prevent the roots from being burned by the fertilizer. After applying the base fertilizer, water immediately to promote the dissolution of the fertilizer and make the soil fertility uniform. This gives the asparagus enough nutrients and water support during the overwintering process and improves the overwintering survival rate of the asparagus.
4. Loosening the soil and weeding
After fertilizing and watering, properly loosen the soil and remove weeds to enhance the soil's moisture-holding capacity, increase soil temperature and humidity, and allow the soil to fully mix with the fertilizer. Moreover, loosening the soil can effectively improve soil aeration, promote root growth and development, and make nutrient absorption stronger. Loosening the soil can be done together with weeding. Weeds have very strong growth ability, and if they are not removed in time, most of the asparagus's nutrients will be taken away by them, causing the asparagus to be unable to grow normally. When weeding, you can pull the weeds by hand, or use herbicides such as fluazifop for chemical weeding.
The above is a brief introduction to the winter field management methods for asparagus. Growing asparagus requires different management methods in each season. Now that winter has arrived, preparations in all aspects must be done well to help the asparagus overwinter successfully so that its yield and quality will not be affected. That is all for today's introduction. This article is for reference only. Thank you for reading and supporting.