Lessons to Remember After Losing Out by Not Applying Organic Fertilizer to Jujube Trees

This year, the selling prices of jujubes varied greatly. The price differences were mainly due to differences in sweetness and crispness, and apart from varietal characteristics, the main reason for the differences in sweetness and crispness was the different types of fertilizer applied.

Currently, it is the second root development period for jujube trees. The first root growth peak occurs from late May to early June after new shoots stop growing, and the second root growth peak occurs from after fruit harvest to early November. From surveys of jujube growers, many farmers are only accustomed to fertilizing fruit trees in spring and neglect applying base fertilizer in autumn. In fact, there are many benefits to applying base fertilizer in autumn. First, it helps the applied organic fertilizer fully decompose and be utilized, allows roots injured during field operations to heal early, and enables the growth of a large number of absorbing roots. Second, the newly grown absorbing roots are very beneficial for promoting photosynthesis of autumn leaves, raising the level of stored nutrients, improving flower bud quality, the plumpness of branches and buds, and their cold resistance. Third, autumn-grown roots become active earlier and absorb fertilizer earlier than spring-grown roots, which is very beneficial for the first peak of spring branch and leaf growth as well as flowering, leaf expansion, and fruit setting, and can significantly improve the photosynthetic efficiency of early leaves. Fourth, applying base fertilizer in autumn can supplement nutrients during the critical nutrient period of fruit trees the following year, avoiding too late spring fertilization, which causes excessive growth of autumn shoots, reduced fruit set rate, and possible freezing damage.

In order to improve the effect of applying base fertilizer to jujube trees in autumn, first, deep plow the empty rows between the fruit tree rows and finely prepare the soil. Second, on the basis of fine preparation, apply fertilizer deeply, with a depth of 40-50 cm. Third, apply fertilizer according to weather and soil conditions, and be sure to apply fertilizer after rain when there is sufficient soil moisture. Fourth, if drought occurs after fertilization, irrigate promptly to regulate fertilizer with water. Fifth, apply fertilizer according to a formula. Each mature jujube tree should be applied with 50 kg of decomposed farmyard manure or barn manure, or 2.5 kg of Heyuan enzyme bacterial bio-organic compound fertilizer, plus 1 kg of phosphate fertilizer and 0.2-0.5 kg of nitrogen fertilizer. The application rate of base fertilizer should generally account for 60%-70% of the total annual fertilizer amount.