Lechang微笑 Transplanting and Maintenance Techniques
Today, let's introduce the transplanting and maintenance techniques of Lechang smile and related introductions about the best time for transplanting green plants and flowers. Let's take a look together.
Lechang smile (Michelia chapensis Dandy), also known as Jinglie smile, southern white magnolia, and large-leafed smile, is a species of evergreen tree in the magnolia family, with a straight trunk, beautiful crown shape, elegant flower fragrance, and lush greenery throughout the year. It is widely used in street trees, courtyard shade trees, and landscape trees, especially suitable as a species for configuring landscape forests and favored by the landscape greening departments. Lechang smile also has characteristics such as a straight trunk, straight wood grain, low density, small shrinkage differences, easy drying, no warping, no cracking, and rapid growth, meeting the goals of timber forest cultivation and being an ideal alternative to coniferous species such as马尾松 and cedar. However, due to the long-term predatory use of Lechang smile natural forests, the natural forest resources of Lechang smile in the southern forest areas have been severely damaged, and the natural forest resources of Lechang smile are now increasingly scarce. Therefore, vigorously promoting the afforestation of Lechang smile and the development of its industrial raw material forests is of significant practical importance for adjusting the species structure of artificial forests in the south. The author summarizes the afforestation techniques of Lechang smile as follows.
1. Biological and Ecological Characteristics
Lechang smile is an evergreen tree, 15-30 meters high, with a diameter of up to 1 meter; the bark is grayish-white to gray-brown and smooth. Young buds and nodes are covered with grayish-brown pubescence. The leaves are thin and leathery, obovate or oblong-obovate, acuminate or sub-acuminate at the apex, with petioles 1.5-2.5 cm long and no stipule scars. The tepals are in 6.2 whorls; the gynoecium is 7 mm long. The aggregate fruit is about 10 cm long, oblong or ovate, flattened and slightly oblique, with sparse and inconspicuous lenticels. The seeds are ovate or oblong-ovate. The flowering period is 3 months, and the fruiting period is 7-8 months. Lechang smile is widely distributed in China, horizontally distributed from the mountains of southeastern Guizhou to the hilly areas of Yifeng, Jiangxi, in the evergreen broad-leaved forests, north to the Pingtingpu area of Hunan, and extending to the Huiji area of Guangdong, including Jiangxi, Hunan, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, and Guizhou. It covers the range of 25°55' to 28°42'N and 107°14' to 114°47'E, stretching 4.37 degrees north-south and 7.33 degrees east-west. Its natural distribution is most dense in the Naling area, which is the central distribution area. Due to the impact of human deforestation, Lechang smile is now mostly scattered and discontinuous, with small communities still found in Zixing and Liling in Hunan, Yifeng in Jiangxi, and Shaowu in Fujian, while in other areas, it is mostly scattered or in small clusters.
In Fujian, Lechang smile is mainly distributed in the northern region. There are a large number of natural forests of Lechang smile in Shaowu, Fujian, which usually grow naturally in "V"-shaped valleys with high humidity and good water and fertilizer conditions near small streams. The soil of its distribution is mostly mountainous yellow-red soil developed from granite, sandstone, and other parent materials, with a thin soil layer but high organic matter content. It is mostly scattered in the evergreen broad-leaved forests of gullies at altitudes of 350-450 meters in northern Fujian. Its main associated species include Cyclobalanopsis glauca, Cyclobalanopsis myrsinaefolia, Lithocarpus, and others. Fund Project: Fujian Provincial Forestry Department Science and Technology Promotion Project "Promotion of Native Broad-leaved Tree Species such as Betula luminifera and Davidia involucrata (Minlin 2004 Science 10).
2. Seed Collection Techniques
There is a significant difference in the fruit and seed yield of individual mother trees of Lechang smile at different ages. Studies have shown that the seed yield of mother trees of Lechang smile is highest at 29 years old, followed by 41 years old, and the lowest at 18 years old. The seed quality of 29-year-old mother trees is the best, with a seed weight per 1000 seeds, indoor germination rate, and field germination rate of 64.26 kg, 86.79%, and 83.49%, respectively, all higher than those of 18-year-old and 41-year-old mother trees. Under normal conditions, an average mother tree of Lechang smile can produce 16-19 kg of paniculate fruits, and about 8 kg of fruits can produce 1 kg of seeds with shells, with a seed yield of 2-2.5 kg per mother tree. Lechang smile seeds have a very small embryo, high water content, and a dormant period; they are easily lose viability during the drying process. If not processed in time, not only will the germination be delayed, but the germination rate will also be low. Since the seeds have a fragrant smell and oil, they must be protected from rodent damage during storage.
Lechang Smile Transplanting and Maintenance Techniques
Lechang smile seed collection should be done from mother trees about 30 years old, which are strong and free of diseases and pests. The fruits mature in the same year, with the fruit maturity period in early October, and should be collected around October each year. If the seeds are collected before maturity, the seed maturity is poor and the germination rate is very low. Due to the favorable market conditions for Lechang smile in recent years, many forest farmers are worried that their seeds will be collected by others, so they start collecting before the seeds are mature, resulting in seeds with greenish-yellow pericarps that hardly germinate. Therefore, Lechang smile seeds should be collected when the aggregate fruit shells change from green to light yellow to dark brown, which is when the seeds are about to mature, starting in early October and observing the seed morphology every 3-5 days to master the maturity period and collect seeds in time. The maturity period of seeds of Lechang smile varies with different site conditions (altitude, aspect, etc.). In the low mountain areas of Shaowu, Fujian, with sufficient sunlight at an altitude of 500 meters, the seed maturity period is around October 10th, while in the mid-mountain areas above 500 meters, the seed maturity period is delayed by 5-10 days, and seeds in sunny slopes mature earlier, while those in shady valleys or humid environments mature later.
3. Seedling Raising Techniques
Lechang smile can be propagated by播种育苗 (seed sowing) and 无性抨插育苗 (vegetative propagation). In areas where seed sources are guaranteed, seed sowing can be used. The key technique of seed sowing for Lechang smile is to collect seeds immediately after they mature. To reduce seed waste and cultivate large seedlings, dense sowing in the winter of December is recommended, followed by transplanting with soil in March, 15-30 days after the seedlings emerge. The transplanting spacing is 10cm x 22cm, with a density of 45 seedlings per square meter, producing 225,000 seedlings per hectare. These key measures not only reduce seed waste but also cultivate large seedlings, basically solving the technical problems of seed sowing for Lechang smile afforestation, providing sufficient seedlings for large-scale Lechang smile afforestation in the southern forest areas. In areas where seed sources are difficult to obtain, vegetative propagation can be used. The key technique of vegetative propagation for Lechang smile is to select the tips and middle parts of the current year's seedlings and perform winter rooting, followed by transplanting after the roots have developed in the spring. Cut 10cm long branches in mid-November, remove 2/3 of the leaves, dip them in a plant root-promoting agent slurry, and root them in sandy loam seedbeds in winter, with a spacing of 4cm x 5cm, 25 plants per row. In mid-March, all the rooted cuttings are transplanted to the field for seedling raising, with a spacing of 10cm x 22cm and a transplanting depth of half the height of the seedling, producing 225,000 seedlings per hectare.
4. Afforestation Techniques
Lechang smile has strict requirements for the forest land. It grows better on the shady slopes with deep, moist, and fertile soil. Therefore, artificial afforestation of Lechang smile should choose better sites. The seedlings of Lechang smile are large and have a well-developed root system, so artificial afforestation can use a 60cm x 40cm x 40cm hole-shaped site preparation. Depending on different management objectives, Lechang smile can be planted by seedling planting and sprout regeneration. Seedling planting should be done with careful site preparation, with a planting density of 2000-3000 plants per hectare. Considering the shade tolerance of Lechang smile seedlings, the planting density can be increased appropriately. Before planting, the seedling branches and leaves should be pruned to reduce moisture loss. Planting should be done on cloudy or light rainy days, with roots dipped in mud, planted deeply, compacted, straightened, and planted more than 4 cm above the root collar. The survival rate of Lechang smile planting is generally 80%-90% or higher. On logging and burning sites, the strong sprouting ability of Lechang smile can be utilized for closing mountains and natural regeneration, allowing it to regenerate into a forest or promoting natural regeneration artificially. The maintenance of Lechang smile seedlings is crucial for their growth. Before the seedlings are closed, maintenance should be strengthened, with soil loosening and weeding twice a year for the first 3 years after planting, and removing excess sprouts. In the 4th and 5th years, grass should be cut once a year. If no maintenance is done in the 4th and 5th years, it will severely affect the growth of young trees, so maintenance for Lechang smile seedlings must be done for 5 years. After the stand is closed, appropriate pruning and thinning should be carried out based on the growth condition of the trees to promote trunk growth.
This article shares the techniques for transplanting and maintaining Lechang smile and describes the best time for transplanting. We hope it can bring you help. Don't forget to visit the Green Plant Enthusiast website for more experience and knowledge!