Detailed Explanation of Key Cultivation Techniques for New Varieties of Honeysuckle

Site selection and land preparation. Jin Cuilei, Yin Cuilei and Baiyun prefer sunlight and are not tolerant of shade, so they should be planted on sunny sandy loam with relatively deep soil layers, fertile and loose soil, good aeration and drainage, and a slope below 15°. These 3 new varieties have vigorous growth, compact crowns, and easily form flower buds. They have the characteristic that newly grown shoots of the current year can develop into flowering branches, and they can bloom in the same year of planting, with good high-yield traits. They are suitable for dense planting, and the plant spacing is preferably 2 m x 2 m or 2 m x 1.5 m. When preparing the land, holes can be dug, with a size of 70 cm x 70 cm x 70 cm. Apply sufficient base fertilizer: per mu, apply 4000-5000 kg of compost, straw or green weeds, and 150-300 kg of calcium magnesium phosphate fertilizer, or apply 0.2-0.3 kg of rapeseed cake and 0.15 kg of compound fertilizer per hole, or 15 kg of farmyard manure.

Propagation: Division and layering propagation can be used, but they are labor-intensive and time-consuming, have a low propagation coefficient, and may also affect the growth and yield of the mother plant. Grafting can also be carried out using Lonicera macranthoides, Lonicera japonica, or Lonicera hypoglauca as rootstock, but the survival rate is relatively low, about 30%-50%, and the seedling-raising cycle is relatively long. When cuttings are treated with plant hormones and inserted under full-sun intermittent mist, the survival rate is 20%-40%. At present, the Hunan Academy of Forestry has developed tissue culture rapid propagation technology and used the "propagate seedlings from seedlings" technique to greatly increase the propagation coefficient and reduce the production cost of tissue culture. According to on-site inspection and verification by experts, the proliferation rate of tissue-cultured seedlings of the new honeysuckle varieties reached 4.5, the rooting rate was 98%, and the transplanting survival rate was 94.8%.

Fertilizer and water management: Jin Cuilei, Yin Cuilei and Baiyun have wide adaptability, are drought-tolerant and barren-tolerant, but during cultivation, the supply of fertilizer and water should still be increased, with more organic fertilizer, nitrogen-phosphorus-potassium fertilizer and green manure applied, and combined with pesticide spraying, quick-acting nitrogen-phosphorus-potassium fertilizer and trace fertilizers such as boron, calcium, iron and zinc should be sprayed on the leaves. Topdress 2 times each year and apply base fertilizer 1 time. When buds sprout in early spring, apply a certain amount of fertilizer, with 0.15 kg of compound fertilizer per hole. Applying additional phosphate fertilizer before flower picking can significantly promote growth and increase flower yield, with 0.1 kg of compound fertilizer per hole. In late autumn or when honeysuckle enters dormancy, apply 0.15 kg of cake fertilizer or 5 kg of decomposed farmyard manure per hole.

Training and pruning: The new honeysuckle varieties are suitable for being trained into a round-headed plant shape or an umbrella-shaped shrub form. Because their growth vigor is relatively strong, during the growing season, the tips should be pinched and the shoots topped in time to control excessive vegetative growth of honeysuckle, so as to avoid forming thin and weak hook-like branches. During the dormant season, dead and old branches, diseased and pest-damaged branches, thin and weak branches, and long branches that cross and disrupt the tree shape should also be pruned off, so that nutrients are concentrated on producing new shoots and forming flower buds. Every summer, after flower picking, shoot tips should be pinched multiple times, removing shoots that have already flowered to promote the formation of new flowering shoots, and cutting off sprouting shoots near the roots as well as excessively vigorous branches to reduce nutrient consumption.

Soil management: After honeysuckle planting survives, timely cultivation and weeding should be carried out. In the first 3 years after planting, cultivation and weeding must be carried out 3-4 times each year: the first time when new leaves appear, the second time in July-August, and the last time in late autumn or early winter before frost, combined with cultivation and earthing up to prevent roots from being exposed above the ground. After 3 years, the number of weedings can be appropriately reduced according to the growth of the plants and the growth of weeds, and earthing up should be carried out in spring from February to March and after autumn before winter each year. To prevent soil compaction and improve water and fertilizer retention capacity, the honeysuckle garden should be deep-plowed once every 4 years, with a depth of 40-50 cm. The method is: first open a ditch 20-30 cm from the main trunk, then extend outward in sequence, mix the topsoil and base fertilizer and turn them into the ground, then level the ground. For barren mountainous land, if there is a soil source, soil can be added to thicken the soil layer, creating good conditions for the growth and development of honeysuckle roots.

Pest and disease control: The main diseases and pests are powdery mildew, leaf spot, aphids and honeysuckle leaf wasps.

For powdery mildew, at the early stage of onset, spray 100 g of 50% colloidal sulfur mixed with 20 kg of water, or 2000 times dilution of 15% triadimefon wettable powder; before the bud stage, spray 800-1000 times dilution of 75% Ridomil or chlorothalonil, or 1000 times dilution of 25% fenarimol.

Leaf spot occurs in summer and autumn. When the disease occurs, small yellow spots appear on the leaf surface, gradually developing into small brown round spots, and finally the diseased part dries up and perforates. When disease appears, diseased leaves should be removed in time to prevent spread, and 1:1200 Bordeaux mixture or 400-500 times dilution of 65% zineb wettable powder should be sprayed 2-3 times continuously.

Aphids generally begin to occur around Qingming, mostly on the underside of leaves; around Lixia, on cloudy and foggy days, the damage is more serious, causing leaves and flower buds to curl, growth to stop, and serious yield reduction. Generally, at Qingming and Guyu, spray once each with 800-1500 times dilution of 40% dimethoate emulsion or 2000 times dilution of 80% dichlorvos emulsifiable concentrate, which can effectively control aphids. Honeysuckle leaf wasps chew leaves from April to September; use 1000 times dilution of 0% crystalline trichlorfon to spray and kill them, but it is prohibited during the flowering period.

Harvesting: The best time to pick honeysuckle flowers is when the upper part of the flower bud is swollen and slightly milky white, the lower part is green, and the bud is about to open. Harvesting too early or too late is unsuitable and will affect the medicinal quality of the flowers. After picking, minimize turning and squeezing of the flower buds, and send them promptly for sun-drying or to the drying room. During harvesting, branches, leaves and other impurities must not be brought in.