How to Cultivate Milkvetch and Precautions
Comprehensive analysis of how to cultivate milkvetch and the precautions for green plant maintenance. If there are any mistakes, please feel free to correct them!
How to Cultivate Milkvetch and Precautions
Milkyvetch should be placed in a sunny location all year round, with a suitable temperature of 20°C to 25°C. Both hardwood cutting and softwood cutting can be used for propagation. It prefers a slightly acidic environment, and the water used for watering should be tap water that has been left to stand for a day or two, or clean surface water. Regularly apply a compound fertilizer. For daily pruning, remove the tender branches that grow from the soil, and after flowering, remove the withered flowers. Ensure sufficient lighting time and timely fertilizer supplementation.
Growth Habits of Milkvetch
Milkyvetch thrives in warm, humid, and sunny environments, is not cold-tolerant, slightly shade-tolerant, and prefers loose, fertile, slightly acidic soil. The winter temperature should not be lower than 10°C. It is commonly found in sparse forests or shrublands at low altitudes. Milkyvetch requires sufficient sunlight all year round. Placing it in a garden or on a balcony with ample light and good ventilation, with daily sunlight exposure of 8 to 12 hours or more, will result in darker green leaves, thicker branches, more frequent flowering, brighter yellow flowers, and a stronger fragrance. The optimal growth temperature for milkyvetch is 20°C to 25°C, which is similar to spring conditions and is suitable for its growth.Method of Cultivating Milkvetch
Soil: It prefers a slightly acidic environment; for northern alkaline soil, add some sulfate fertilizer or vinegar to the water when watering; Temperature: Provide a growth environment of 25-30°C, and the temperature should not drop below 10°C. Humidity: High humidity is required, and the plant should be sprayed with water; Watering: Water appropriately, avoiding excessive dryness or long-term waterlogging; Fertilization: Apply fertilizer once a week during the growing season. The best way to water milkyvetch is to use tap water that has been left to stand for a day or two, or clean surface water. In the open air during summer, water daily, while indoors, the watering frequency can be extended. Watering should be done when the soil temperature, water temperature, and air temperature are similar, and the leaves should be sprayed with water frequently to increase humidity. The pot soil should be kept slightly moist, avoiding excessive or insufficient watering.What kind of fertilizer should be used for milkyvetch? Apply a compound fertilizer. Before flowering, milkyvetch has a long period of vigorous growth, which is mainly for nutrient accumulation to ensure good flowering. Various growth elements should be supplemented, ensuring the application of nitrogen fertilizer without bias. Fertilization is also important during the flowering period of milkyvetch. Although nutrient accumulation is no longer necessary during flowering, insufficient fertilization can reduce flowering and aroma, and some flower buds may not open. During the flowering period, phosphorus fertilizer should be the main type, applying it every 15 days to ensure abundant flowering.How to prune milkyvetch for a better appearance:1. Seedling stage pruning: Retain a trunk of 15-20 cm, pruning once every two years to promote the growth of new lateral branches from adventitious buds below the main branches.2. Growing stage pruning: Shorten the overly tall branches and remove the top buds and flower buds during the flowering stage.3. Spring pruning: Cut off dead, diseased, and weak dense branches to enhance ventilation and light.4. Daily pruning: Remove tender branches growing from the soil and withered flowers after flowering.How to propagate milkyvetch through cutting:1. Milkyvetch can be propagated using both hardwood and softwood cuttings.2. For hardwood cuttings, use one or two-year-old milkyvetch branches, cut into 8-10 cm segments, and perform the cutting from April to May; for softwood cuttings, select semi-hardened branches of the current year, which can be done from June to August, with cuttings 10 cm long, retaining the top 2-3 leaves and cutting off half to reduce water evaporation and nutrient consumption. The cutting medium can be clean sand, perlite, peat soil, or well-drained sandy soil.3. When cutting, make holes in the medium with a bamboo stick, insert the cuttings, gently press them to ensure a tight fit with the medium, water thoroughly, and provide shade for maintenance. If conditions allow, use a full-spectrum automatic misting cutting bed.4. In the north, cuttings are usually done from April to June, while in the south and greenhouses, it can be done all year round. Generally, it takes 3-4 months to root and grow into seedlings. If maintaining a temperature of 25-28°C, roots can form in 50-60 days, and at 30-32°C, roots can form in 40 days. However, high temperatures must be accompanied by high humidity, which should reach 85-95%, otherwise, the cutting leaves may wither, leading to cutting failure. Using hormones before cutting can promote earlier rooting.Precautions for Milkvetch Maintenance
1. Control sunlight exposure: Milkyvetch requires sunlight all year round, preferably 12 hours of sunlight per day. Therefore, it is best to place milkyvetch in an outdoor or sunny balcony area to ensure green leaves and beautiful flowers.2. Timely fertilizer supplementation: Milkyvetch enjoys fertilizer. If fertilizer is not supplemented in a timely and reasonable manner during the growing period, the plant may wither. Milkyvetch blooms many times a year and consumes nutrients quickly, so it is necessary to supplement fertilizer after flowering to prepare for the next bloom. Fertilizer during the growing period can be slightly concentrated, and the frequency of fertilization can be increased during the flowering period.3. Reasonable watering: Watering milkyvetch is very important. If there is a lack of water, the plant will not grow, but too much water can cause yellowing leaves and root rot, affecting milkyvetch flowering. It is recommended to water every 2-3 days.The above information introduces how to cultivate milkyvetch and the precautions, for everyone to learn and understand!