Cultivation Techniques and Benefit Analysis of Green Sichuan Pepper, an Aromatic Spice

Green Sichuan pepper, also known as Jiuyeqing, is a major specialty of Jiangjin. Green Sichuan pepper belongs to the Rutaceae family and is a traditional aromatic spice. When cooking, it enhances aroma and removes fishiness, and it also has medicinal value for dispelling cold and removing dampness, which is why it is welcomed by everyone. So do you know how to grow green Sichuan pepper? And what are its cultivation benefits?

I. How to grow green Sichuan pepper?

1. Propagation techniques for green Sichuan pepper

The propagation techniques for green Sichuan pepper have an important impact to a large extent on the high-yield management of green Sichuan pepper. At the same time, the propagation techniques of green Sichuan pepper directly determine its yield and quality, so the propagation techniques of green Sichuan pepper are very important. In the process of selecting green Sichuan pepper, if considering from the perspective of the mother leaf, the seed trees to be retained should grow healthily and be located on land facing the sun. Choose a suitable seed collection period. Generally, the seed collection period is the time when the fruit turns from green to red, that is, from late August to early September. The specific seed collection measure is: after the green Sichuan pepper fruit matures, use scissors to cut off the fruit clusters of the green Sichuan pepper, and at the same time place them in a cool and dry place as soon as possible so that they dry and complete seed removal. Generally, the location for raising green Sichuan pepper seedlings is gently sloping land, which should have the characteristics of smooth drainage, flat terrain and fertile soil. At the same time, the pH value of the gently sloping land should be within the range of 6-7.5. In addition, the removal of debris from the green Sichuan pepper seedling site and the application of base fertilizer must be carried out thoroughly. When sowing green Sichuan pepper, try to choose October to November for planting green Sichuan pepper.

2. Key techniques for high-yield cultivation and management of green Sichuan pepper

① Planting time

Generally, people choose to plant green Sichuan pepper in spring and autumn. If you choose to plant green Sichuan pepper in spring, then plant when the buds of the seedlings just show signs of growth; if you choose autumn, it is best to choose October for planting.

② Lifting seedlings

If the work of lifting green Sichuan pepper seedlings is to officially begin, then watering of the nursery must be carried out thoroughly 5 days in advance. After the soil in the nursery dries, formally begin lifting the seedlings, lift the seedlings along the direction of the nursery beds, and strictly control the number of damaged roots to avoid damage to the root system to the greatest extent. For the main root of the seedling, keep 20-25 cm. During the process of lifting seedlings, strictly grade the seedlings, tie the seedlings into different bundles, with the number in each bundle controlled at 50-100 plants, and finally complete the packaging work.

③ Planting density

The determination of planting density should be completed on the basis of terrain, soil and planning. If the soil quality of the planting land is good, plant at a planting density of 110-120 plants/mu; if the quality of the planting land is poor, plant at 160-170 plants/mu.

④ Planting method

In the process of planting green Sichuan pepper, generally dig planting pits according to the standard of a depth of 60-70 cm and a diameter of 50-60 cm. Before planting, clean the damaged roots of the seedlings thoroughly. At the bottom of the planting pit, backfill the deep soil mixed with farmyard manure. At the upper part of the planting pit, backfill surface soil, spread the roots out, and strictly control the planting depth. Generally, the planting depth is controlled based on the standard that the root crown of the seedling is slightly above the ground. After the planting work of green Sichuan pepper is completed, pour an appropriate amount of water into the tree basin. After the water seeps dry, use soil reasonably to complete the sealing of the tree basin, avoid cracks in the tree basin, and reduce water evaporation as much as possible.

3. Fertilization management techniques for green Sichuan pepper

① Fertilization time

Fertilization of green Sichuan pepper should be maintained at 4-5 times per year. Growers should pay attention to the fertilization time and frequency of the recovery fertilizer, the monthly mother fertilizer, the flower-promoting and bud-strengthening fertilizer, and the fruit-strengthening fertilizer. The recovery fertilizer, namely the bud-promoting fertilizer, generally begins 10-15 days before the fruit is formally harvested, using diluted clean manure water for irrigation or broadcasting, so as to ensure the overall fertilization effect; for the monthly mother fertilizer, August to October is usually chosen as the fertilization time, and fertilization should be completed before or after rainfall as much as possible, mainly applying organic fertilizer to the soil, while also including compound fertilizer and oil cake (decomposed); for the flower-promoting and bud-strengthening fertilizer, fertilization generally begins from early January to early February; for the fruit-strengthening fertilizer, fertilization is usually carried out in early April, mainly applying phosphate fertilizer, potassium fertilizer, etc.

② Fertilization methods

Ring fertilization, broadcasting and foliar fertilization are all fertilization methods for green Sichuan pepper. Ring fertilization means digging a ring-shaped trench around the trunk of the green Sichuan pepper, avoiding damage to its roots during digging, controlling the depth of the trench according to the standard of 20 cm, controlling the width of the trench according to the standard of 20-50 cm, while carrying out fertilization and keeping the soil surface level; broadcasting means using rainfall to scatter fertilizer near the roots of green Sichuan pepper and using a small amount of soil to cover the shallow root area of green Sichuan pepper; foliar fertilization means leaf surface fertilization, spraying on the leaves of green Sichuan pepper according to a certain ratio; strip fertilization means carrying out digging between the rows of green Sichuan pepper trees while carrying out fertilization.

II. What are the cultivation benefits of green Sichuan pepper?

Green Sichuan pepper cultivation is not a variety with high per-mu returns, but generally speaking, the profit per mu from growing green Sichuan pepper is four to five times the income from growing corn, and an income of around 5,000 yuan per mu is no problem. For the profit per mu from growing thornless green Sichuan pepper, the profit per mu of Jiuyeqing green Sichuan pepper will increase substantially by about 1-1.5 times, that is, a per-mu return of 10,000 yuan is also possible.

Green Sichuan pepper trees in dry land live longer, while irrigated land is not as ideal as dry land. New green Sichuan pepper trees bear fruit in three years. It is best to plant no more than 100 per mu, otherwise too many will make fruiting unsatisfactory and picking inconvenient. After five years, a mu yielding three to four hundred jin is no problem.

About 70 green Sichuan pepper plants are planted per mu. They bear fruit after two years. After three years, each plant can pick more than 1 jin of dried green Sichuan pepper. After five years, each plant picks an average of 2 jin of dried green Sichuan pepper. After 8 years, each plant picks an average of about 4 jin of dried green Sichuan pepper. According to this year's price, each jin of dried green Sichuan pepper is 36 yuan. After three years, the income per mu is at least 2,600 yuan; after five years, the income per mu is 4,000 yuan; after eight years, the income per mu is 5,000-6,000 yuan. Overall, the benefits of growing green Sichuan pepper are still quite good.