What to Do About Alternate Bearing in Lychee? Practical Control Methods

There are many lychee varieties, and due to physiological and climatic reasons, alternate bearing is common, and alternate bearing in lychee severely affects growers' profits. Therefore, avoiding or reducing alternate bearing is a particular concern for growers, so what should be done about alternate bearing in lychee? Let's take a look together.

1. Do a good job of fertilizing

Apply heavy fertilizer to promote shoots, mainly to restore tree vigor and promote the emergence of autumn shoots; at this time, fertilizer should be mainly quick-acting fertilizer, combined with high-quality organic fertilizer. The fertilization time is immediately after fruit harvest, so that the tree can absorb the fertilizer effect and quickly restore vigor, thereby avoiding death or failure to produce autumn shoots due to the nutrients taken away by the fruit. In addition to high-quality organic fertilizer, these nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium fertilizers account for 50%, 40% and 20% respectively. This fertilization requires 2 autumn shoots to be produced; if 3 shoots are to be produced, additional chemical fertilizer is needed. After the last shoot flush, the amount of nitrogen fertilizer applied should be controlled to avoid the emergence of winter shoots.

2. Prevent drought

Water is an indispensable resource for lychee production. If water is insufficient, lychee will not produce shoots or will produce poor-quality shoots, and the fertilizer solution cannot be absorbed by the root system. Therefore, during long-term drought, water should be pumped for irrigation in time; otherwise, the fruit tree cannot produce shoots or produces short, small shoots, especially late-emerged shoots, namely the fruiting mother branches of the next year. When encountering drought or the north wind, the fruiting mother branches are very likely to become short and small, directly affecting the next year's fruiting, and because the fruiting mother branches are short and small, the fruit produced is smaller in shape and the yield is lower.

3. Moderate pruning

Pruning is an indispensable part of lychee production. Through pruning, the canopy structure is changed, air and light permeability is improved, nutrient accumulation is increased, and at the same time the nutrient consumption of ineffective branches is reduced, promoting the sprouting of new branches. Attention should also be paid to the pruning time. Young trees and young fruiting trees should be pruned early, immediately after fruit harvest, generally with heavy pruning; while mature trees and trees that will bear fruit the next year are generally pruned after the first autumn shoot grows, with light pruning. The main targets of pruning are dense branches, shaded branches, crossing branches, drooping branches, diseased and insect-damaged branches, etc. When pruning, remove the branch tips from the base, starting from the large branches inside the canopy and proceeding toward the outer canopy.

4. Prevent pests

After autumn shoots grow out, they will inevitably be harmed by pests, and in order to ensure robust growth of autumn shoots and dense fruiting branches, pests must be controlled well. The main pests in this period are scarab beetles, leaf rollers, etc. To control them well, first of all, choose good pesticides; it is advisable to choose high-efficiency, low-toxicity pesticides, and use them alternately to avoid resistance.

  The above is an introduction to what to do about alternate bearing in lychee. I hope it can help you. To learn more related knowledge, please follow us.