A complete guide to orchard management essentials in September, fruit growers don't miss it
In September, the weather gradually enters the Autumn Equinox period, and the climate turns cooler. For fruit growers, this is not only the harvest season, but also the most important period of the year. A slight mistake may cause a serious decline in yield and quality. So how should orchards be managed in September? Let's take a look.
1. Shaping and pruning
In September, for dense trees and canopy shading, reasonable branch thinning should be carried out. The targets for thinning are upright branches, sprouted branches, competing branches, etc. on the auxiliary branches, to increase light inside the canopy and promote fruit coloring. In order to ease tree vigor, balance branch and bud growth and development, and increase light penetration in the inner canopy, for vigorous-growing trees with small branch angles and a dense inner canopy, the angles must be opened in time for branch bending. When new shoots are close to growth or have already become woody, promptly soften by bending 3 — 5 current-year upright new shoots sprouted below the lower part of the central leader extension or branches on the back of main branches.
2. Drainage and waterlogging prevention
In September, the temperature turns cooler, and it is also the season of continuous autumn rain. With more rainfall and higher soil moisture, it is very easy to cause pests and diseases as well as root rot. Therefore, drainage and waterlogging prevention should be done in time to keep the soil loose and well aerated, create a suitable environment for root growth and development, and improve fruit quality.
3. Bag removal
The greatest benefit of fruit bagging is improving appearance quality and reducing pesticide residues. The improvement in appearance quality is especially shown in smooth surface and coloring, and it is a commonly used technique in current fruit tree planting. September is also a good period for bag removal. For double-layer red fruit bags, it is best to remove the bags in two steps. The best time for bag removal is on cloudy or partly cloudy weather. On sunny days, bag removal should be carried out from 9 to 12 o'clock and from 3 to 7 in the afternoon. In addition, in high-altitude areas, bags can be removed 10 to 15 days before the normal fruit harvest.
4. Spraying to prevent disease and supplement calcium fertilizer
After bag removal, the fruit skin is delicate and very susceptible to red spot disease. Stomata enlarge, leading to cracking. Combined with calcium deficiency, calcium deficiency disorders and other diseases are very likely to occur, causing cracks on the fruit surface and reducing storage life and marketability. Therefore, after bag removal, spray 1-2 times with fungicide and calcium supplement fertilizer in time, and if necessary, spray organic potassium fertilizer, which can promote earlier coloring and pigmentation of the fruit. Timely harvest of cracked fruit is also very important. Generally, the picking time is determined by the fruit's growth period, that is, the number of days from petal fall to maturity.
The above is an introduction to the essentials of orchard management in September. We hope it can help you. If you want to learn more related knowledge, please follow us.