A Complete Analysis of the Key Cultivation Techniques and Methods for Golden Jujube Persimmon

I. Characteristics and Traits

The golden jujube persimmon, also known as string persimmon or persimmon jujube, has fruit that is golden-yellow when ripe and closely resembles a jujube in shape, hence the name golden jujube persimmon. The golden jujube persimmon is seedless, and after drying it is sweet, crisp and tender, with a rich, mellow flavor.

The tree is 7-10 m tall. Young trees grow vigorously, especially the top 3-4 buds, which have strong sprouting ability, and can send out new shoots 2-3 times a year. As the tree ages, its growth vigor gradually slows, and it sends out branches only once a year; the root system is well developed, with deep main roots, widely spread lateral roots, many fine roots, and long root hairs. Therefore, the golden jujube persimmon is drought-tolerant and tolerant of poor soil; it flowers later than other persimmon varieties, with a flowering period of 10-15 days. Flower bud differentiation begins 1 month after flowering, and the fruit rapidly enlarges after flowering. The fruit is green at first and turns golden-yellow when ripe. The 2 months after flowering are the fruit's swelling period, and the fruit colors and ripens by October, when it again shows an obvious tendency to enlarge.

The golden jujube persimmon prefers warmth and can be planted in areas with an average annual temperature of 11-20°C.

II. Cultivation Techniques

1. Planting. The golden jujube persimmon can be planted at the foot of fields with relatively deep soil. Because it prefers warmth and tolerates moisture, the orchard should be established on mountain gentle slopes with ample sunlight. The planting density is generally 6-8 m between rows and 4-5 m between plants. Dig large holes, apply sufficient base fertilizer, and then transplant.

2. Training and pruning. The trunk delayed-open central leader form is generally used. Because the golden jujube persimmon has soft branches and bears a large amount of fruit, the outer branches tend to droop after fruiting. With the trunk delayed-open central leader form, the trunk height is generally set at 1-1.5 m, and can be appropriately lower in mountainous areas. Intensively managed orchards can use the natural open-center form or natural round-headed form for training, to facilitate early fruiting and high yield.

Pruning of the golden jujube persimmon is mainly winter pruning, generally keeping strong branches and removing weak ones. Attention should be paid to the cultivation and renewal of fruiting branch groups, ensuring a certain ratio of fruiting branches to vegetative branches, and preventing alternate bearing. Young trees should be pruned lightly with few removals and more cuts to increase the number of fruiting branches; for vigorously growing branches, methods such as pinching can be used to promote secondary branches and form fruiting branch groups.

3. Fertilizer and water management. To improve persimmon fruit quality, fertilizer should be mainly organic fertilizer, combined with chemical fertilizer. For young trees, chemical fertilizer can be applied in thin doses and frequently. Base fertilizer is generally applied in October, a flower- and fruit-preserving fertilizer is topdressed in early May, and fertilizer is applied in August-September to promote fruit enlargement. Because young golden jujube persimmon trees grow slowly, legume crops can be interplanted in young persimmon orchards.