How to grow cherry seedlings? A detailed explanation of the key points of seedling cultivation techniques
Cherries are a relatively expensive fruit on the market today, but their market demand is extremely high, and they have always been in a state of supply falling short of demand. Because of this, it has driven a boom in artificial cultivation of cherries, which in turn has promoted the development of cherry sapling cultivation. So today let us briefly learn about cherry seedling cultivation techniques.
1. Selection and preparation of the seedling site
The seedling site for cherries is generally required to be flat but with a certain slope, though the slope is generally no higher than five degrees, so that such a seedling site drains easily. Next, the soil of the seedling site should be loose, so sandy loam is best; soil that easily becomes compacted or soil with high clay content is not very suitable for seedling cultivation. Also, it is best not to use land whose previous crop was cherry or cherry trees for seedling cultivation, as it is very prone to disease. Before land preparation, apply three thousand jin of farmyard manure, then carry out deep plowing, fully mix the soil and fertilizer, and finally level it, open drainage ditches, and make raised beds about one meter wide.
2. Seedling cultivation methods
There are many methods for cherry seedling cultivation, but here the editor will only briefly introduce them to everyone. First is the traditional seed seedling method: evenly scatter the seeds in the seedling site, cover with soil to bury the seeds, water once, and wait for seedlings to emerge. Next is division propagation, which is a commonly used cherry seedling cultivation method at present; it mainly uses layering to grow seedlings, selecting robust cherry branches, mounding soil over the branches or layering them horizontally, and once the cherry branches grow new roots, the seedlings can be transplanted and planted. There is also cutting propagation, which is also very simple: first select robust cherry branches of good quality, cut the branches to about fifteen centimeters, soak them in a rooting agent, and then insert them into the seedling site. Finally, there is grafting propagation, which requires selecting the cherry rootstock and scion, and then grafting by cleft grafting or bud grafting.
3. Seedling stage management
Different cherry seedling cultivation methods also require different management during the seedling stage. For seed seedling cultivation, we need to keep the field soil moist and just avoid water accumulation in the seedling site; after the cherries emerge, if fertility is insufficient, just apply additional fertilizer, and management is very simple. Layering seedling cultivation is also very simple; we only need to pay attention to whether the branches are firmly pressed down, and if not, adjust them, while also fixing the branches well. Cutting seedling cultivation requires attention to field water management; during the seedling cultivation period, do not water too much, to avoid the cuttings rotting, but there should not be dryness either, because that would cause the branches to wither. The most troublesome is grafting management: after grafting, do not water for twenty days, and it is best to avoid rain so that no water intrudes. Next, after new buds sprout, apply additional fertilizer to promote the growth of branches and leaves; at this time watering can be carried out. Finally, wait until the new cherry branches grow to about ten centimeters before loosening the binding.
The scale of cherry planting is still expanding at present, which means the demand for cherry saplings is also increasing, so we must continuously improve seedling cultivation techniques to thereby improve the quality of cherry saplings.