How to graft bitter melon? Detailed method and step-by-step explanation
In recent years, bitter melon grafting technology has gradually been applied in production. The survival rate of grafting is very high, and it can effectively break the obstacle of continuous cropping. It reduces the incidence of pests and diseases, and can also increase the yield of bitter melon, providing very good conditions for pollution-free cultivation and continuous high-efficiency cultivation of bitter melon. So today the editor will introduce the grafting technology of bitter melon to everyone. Let's take a look below!
1. Seed selection and soaking
First, select good seeds according to the main local planting varieties, and avoid choosing shriveled seeds or seeds with pests and diseases, as these will affect planting. Then break the seed shell of the selected seeds, taking care not to damage the seed kernel. Then put the seeds in warm water at about 58°C and soak them for 15 minutes. During the soaking process, stir constantly to ensure the bitter melon seeds are heated evenly. When the water temperature drops to about 30°C, soak them for 9 hours, then take them out and wash the seed mucus clean with clean water. Then wrap the seeds with a wet cloth and place them at a temperature of about 30°C for germination. During the germination process, wash the seeds at least twice to remove mucus and improve the germination rate. When most of the seeds have sprouted, they can be sown.
2. Cultivating rootstock
The rootstock for bitter melon grafting can use pumpkin, so before grafting, pumpkin seedlings should be raised in nutrient pots. Before sowing, pumpkin seeds should be treated the same way as bitter melon seeds. The nutrient soil should mainly consist of soil that has not previously grown cucurbit vegetables and decomposed compost. Then apply sufficient base fertilizer in the nutrient soil. The base fertilizer should mainly be farmyard manure and compound fertilizer, and an appropriate amount of fungicide can be added. After mixing, seal the nutrient soil and pile it up for fermentation and disinfection. After fermentation, spread it out to dry for about a week, then evenly fill it into nutrient pots and sow for seedling raising. When raising bitter melon seedlings, clean soil should also be selected to prevent soil-borne diseases during the bitter melon seedling stage.
3. Timely grafting
When the pumpkin seedlings grow true leaves and the bitter melon seedlings grow to one heart leaf, grafting can begin. When grafting, choose a windless cloudy day with relatively humid weather. Before grafting, water the seedbed thoroughly. Grafting methods include top insertion, needle style, and others. The commonly used grafting method is needle grafting. First, cut flat the true leaves of the pumpkin seedlings, then remove the hypocotyl of the bitter melon, then use a grafting needle to insert into the bitter melon hypocotyl and connect it to the top of the pumpkin seedling. Ensure the bitter melon hypocotyl fully contacts the pumpkin seedling. After doing this, use a special grafting clip to fix the leaves.
4. Management after grafting
After grafting, shade work should be done well. Within 3 days, the seedlings must not be exposed to direct sunlight, and keep them warm and moist. Then the shading time can be properly controlled according to weather changes, but at least 5-6 hours of such time must be ensured every day. The temperature after grafting should be controlled at about 31°C, and the nighttime temperature should also be kept at 20°C as much as possible. Seedlings after grafting have a relatively high water requirement, so the humidity in the shed should be increased to 90%. After one week, remove the shading measures and carry out ventilation and hardening of the seedlings, properly lowering the temperature, with day and night temperatures reduced by about 5-6°C. After two weeks, remove the grafting clips. After the seedlings survive, promptly remove the new sprouts from the rootstock. When the seedlings grow to 5 true leaves, they can be transplanted.
The above is a brief introduction to bitter melon grafting technology. After the grafted seedlings survive, they can be managed according to the management methods for the bitter melon seedling stage. As long as they are carefully managed, the survival rate of grafted bitter melon can almost reach 100%, and it has very promising development prospects in bitter melon cultivation. That is all for today's introduction. This article is for reference only. Thank you all for reading and supporting.