Cultivation Methods and Technical Key Points for Leaf Mustard

I. Selection of the cultivation season for mustard:

Leaf mustard is not tolerant of heat or severe cold and is suitable for cultivation under cool and humid climate conditions. Early sowing can be done at the end of August to early September, and late sowing can be done in late September, generally with harvest to be carried out in March to April of the following year.

Leaf mustard generally yields 6000——8000 jin per mu, with high yields of 12000 jin. It is advisable to select varieties that are not prone to bolting, raise seedlings in a cold frame, and transplant after the last frost.

If the autumn sowing date is moved earlier, the seedling stage occurs under relatively higher temperature conditions, its growth speed and growth amount increase, the root system develops better, and the yield can be raised.

However, with early autumn sowing, because the temperature is still high and the conditions are relatively dry, aphid damage is more severe and virus disease is easily transmitted, so varieties with relatively strong disease tolerance can be sown appropriately early, while susceptible varieties should be sown appropriately late.

II. Sowing and seedling-raising methods for leaf mustard:

Leaf mustard is mostly grown by raising seedlings and transplanting. The seedbed should preferably be selected in a place relatively far from vegetable production bases, especially far from cruciferous vegetables, to reduce the spread of virus disease by aphids. The soil should preferably be loam with good water and fertilizer retention; sandy soil heats up quickly and loses water quickly, which does not meet leaf mustard's requirement for stable, moist soil and easily leads to the occurrence of virus disease.

After the seedbed soil is plowed, it should be fully sun-exposed, and 45000 kg of compost per hectare plus phosphate fertilizer, plant ash, and other materials should be applied as base fertilizer, so that the soil is loose and nutrients are sufficient, which is beneficial to seedling growth. Before sowing, rake it level, make beds 1.3 m wide and 15 cm high, and water thoroughly to saturate the bottom layer. Use 50 g of seed per mu of field, with a sowing rate of 0.5 kg per mu.

For early autumn sowing, because the climate is hot or there are showers, which affect emergence and seedling growth, the sowing rate can be appropriately increased; for late sowing, because the climate is mild and the seedling survival rate is high, the amount can be appropriately reduced. The seedlings raised per mu of seedbed are about enough for planting 15-20 mu of land.

After sowing, cover with fine soil about 0.5 cm thick. For early sowing, it is advisable to cover with grass to retain moisture and avoid rainwater compacting the soil and hindering emergence. When emergence begins, the covering must be removed in time. When the first true leaf appears, carry out the first thinning; when there are 2-3 true leaves, carry out the second thinning, with a seedling spacing of about 15 cm, and apply dilute liquid fertilizer. During the seedling stage, special attention should be paid to thoroughly controlling aphids to reduce virus disease.

III. Transplanting methods for leaf mustard:

Leaf mustard does not have strict soil requirements and can be cultivated in all types of soil, but when cultivated in seasons or regions with relatively high temperatures, it is best to choose moist loam with good water and fertilizer retention. Sandy soil does not retain water and fertilizer well, easily heats up, is prone to virus disease, and the plants grow poorly. The row and plant spacing for transplanting varies by variety.

Generally, for early-maturing varieties and those with a smaller plant spread, the row spacing is 33-40 cm and the plant spacing is 25-33 cm; for mid- and late-maturing varieties and those with a larger plant spread, the row spacing is 40-46 cm and the plant spacing is 25-33 cm

. After transplanting, leaf mustard roots slowly. How quickly it survives after transplanting is related to whether the seedlings are robust and to transplanting technique. When transplanting, injure the roots as little as possible, do not let the roots become twisted or suspended in air, and be sure to spread the root system out in the soil layer to facilitate growth. After transplanting, water promptly to settle the roots. Generally, 8000——10000 plants are transplanted per mu, and 6000 plants when intercropped in cotton fields.

IV. Field management of leaf mustard:

In autumn and winter there is more cloudy and rainy weather, so irrigation is generally not carried out, and attention should also be paid to drainage. Leaf mustard is grown for its leaves, so fertilization should be mainly nitrogen fertilizer, but it should also be appropriately combined with phosphorus and potassium fertilizer to improve disease resistance and increase yield; especially for leaf mustard whose main product is thickened midribs and petioles, phosphorus and potassium fertilizer should be applied.

Generally, in addition to the base fertilizer of 15000 kg of compost per hectare, 300-450 kg of superphosphate, and 1500-2250 kg of plant ash, topdressing should also be applied 3-4 times during the growing period. From after transplanting and survival to before the product organs thicken, apply 2-3 times, from dilute to concentrated, requiring about 60000 kg of livestock manure and 300-450 kg of urea.

Before fertilizing, carry out intertillage and weeding. For leaf mustard cultivated in early autumn, because the temperature is relatively high in the early stage and growth is fast, timely topdressing is needed. In cold winter, fertilization is not advisable, otherwise it is prone to freezing damage; for late-maturing varieties, after spring warms up, fertilization and irrigation should be carried out in time to avoid early bolting. Stop topdressing and irrigation before harvest to avoid excessively high water content in the product.

V. Harvesting of leaf mustard

Late-maturing varieties sown in autumn or late autumn are harvested from February to April. The suitable harvest time should meet processing requirements. They should be harvested after fully thickening and maturing.

Leaf mustard for processing has its own harvest standards depending on the type of processed vegetable. For example, the large-leaf mustard used as the raw material for Guizhou yansuan cai is harvested when the shortened stem and flower stalk are thick, sturdy, crisp and tender, and the petioles are fully thickened; the small-leaf mustard used as the raw material for Sichuan Yibin yacai is harvested when the petioles and midribs are fully thickened and before the flower stalk is drawn out; the large-leaf mustard used as the raw material for Nanchong dongcai should be harvested when the shortened stem is 7-16 cm high and before the flower stalk is drawn out; heading mustard is harvested when the head is fully compact.