How to Grow Chinese Water Chestnut? Planting Time, Methods and Fertilization Techniques

Chinese water chestnut, also known as horse's hoof, water chestnut, black taro and so on, is a perennial herbaceous plant with a perennial root system. It can be eaten raw or cooked as a vegetable. It originated in China and is now widely cultivated around the world. However, to grow Chinese water chestnut well, fertilization is very important. Let's take a look at the fertilization techniques for Chinese water chestnut together.

Planting Methods:

1. For planting Chinese water chestnut, generally people still prefer the early planting method (the specific time range is in spring). By about autumn, the Chinese water chestnuts will roughly have formed, and then you wait for the Chinese water chestnuts to mature, harvest them and select seeds, and the selected seeds are used for seedling raising the following year.

2. Chinese water chestnut does not have very high requirements for fertilizer and water. Generally, before planting, a base fertilizer needs to be applied once, and care should be taken to mix it into the surface cultivation soil. Be careful not to make the concentration too high; ensuring nutrient supply in the early stage is enough. Then comes the fertilizer and water management during the growth period of Chinese water chestnut. Generally, fertilizer is applied two to three times during the stages of cultivating and weeding, and afterward one additional application of compound fertilizer is enough.

3. Watering Chinese water chestnut should be moderate. Generally, it is basically enough to keep the surface cultivation soil moist. The surface water depth should preferably not exceed two to three cm. If it is during the growth period of Chinese water chestnut, then the water depth should be kept at about 8 cm, which can effectively ensure the normal growth of Chinese water chestnut.

4. When transplanting young Chinese water chestnut plants, pay attention to the transplanting time and planting density. Generally, transplant as early as possible during the transplanting period, and note that the planting density can be a little lower. The holes for transplanting seedlings are generally about five to six cm deep; do not make them too deep or too shallow.

5. Chinese water chestnut relatively does not suffer from serious pests and diseases. The main manifestation is the common stem blight, which often occurs in late summer and early autumn each year. For prevention, first, when selecting seeds, choose good disease-resistant varieties; then, when sowing, soak the seeds in medicinal solution; and if disease symptoms appear during the growth period, immediately carry out diluted spraying of the relevant insecticide (specialized insecticides are available on the market). Of course, be sure to burn the stems after harvest each year to reduce residual eggs.

6. For harvesting Chinese water chestnut at maturity, generally you wait until the aboveground stems, leaves and other parts of the Chinese water chestnut have withered, and then you can collect them, because the part we want is the underground corm, which is already mature at this time. Of course, you can also choose not to harvest now and wait until next spring to harvest for market.

Fertilization Techniques:

1. Apply sufficient base fertilizer

Some farmers apply little or no base fertilizer when planting, which causes Chinese water chestnut to emerge slowly and grow weakly, resulting in thin and weak plants and low yield. Therefore, the base fertilizer must be applied sufficiently. Generally, more than 1000 kg of decomposed farmyard manure per mu is applied as base fertilizer. At the same time, nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium fertilizers should also be appropriately supplemented. If conditions permit, 1-2 kg of borax and 1 kg of zinc sulfate per mu can be applied, which can increase trace elements in the soil and promote plant growth.

2. Topdress in time

In the early growth stage, in order to promote the growth of aboveground stems and leaves, nitrogen fertilizer must be applied in the early stage, while in the later stage potassium fertilizer is mainly used to promote corm expansion and increase yield. After transplanting and survival, fertilizer should be applied once in combination with cultivating and weeding. Generally, 6-8 kg of urea per mu is applied, which can promote plant tillering. When the plants are tillering, fertilizer should also be applied once in combination with cultivating and weeding, with 20 kg of potassium sulfate compound fertilizer per mu. One month after transplanting, fertilizer should also be applied once, likewise in combination with cultivating and weeding, with 50 kg of potassium sulfate compound fertilizer. These are the topdressing times for the growth of Chinese water chestnut.

3. Apply heavy fertilizer for corm formation

In September-October, a heavy application of fertilizer for corm formation must be made to provide sufficient nutrients for the fruit. Generally, 40 kg of potassium sulfate compound fertilizer and 15-20 kg of potassium sulfate per mu are applied. Fertilization must be carried out after the dew has dried, so that the fertilizer does not stick to the leaves, dissolve in the dew and then be absorbed by the stems and leaves, causing excessive vegetative growth. You can also choose to do it in the evening or on a cloudy day.

The above is an introduction to the fertilization techniques for Chinese water chestnut. We hope it can help you. If you want to learn more related knowledge, please stay tuned to us.