How to care for osmanthus trees
Today I bring you some small life experiences on how to care for osmanthus trees and the precautions for growing potted osmanthus plants. Let's learn about them together below.
When cultivating osmanthus, you can mix 5 parts of decomposed leaf soil or peat soil, 3 parts of wood ash, and 2 parts of sandy soil to prepare the substrate for potting. Watering should be done in small amounts each time to maintain soil moisture at about 50%. Keep the soil dry during the autumn flowering period, and apply well-rotted cake fertilizer every 10 to 15 days.
I. Methods for growing osmanthus
1. Acidic soil
Soil environment is one of them. Osmanthus prefers to grow in slightly acidic soil. Generally, when potting, you can mix 5 parts of decomposed leaf soil or peat soil, 3 parts of wood ash, and 2 parts of sandy soil to prepare the substrate. Wood ash can be replaced with humus soil, which allows the roots to get sufficient nutrient environment.
2. Reasonable watering
Osmanthus does not need to be watered frequently during growth. It is best to follow the principle of small amounts multiple times. Each watering should be done in small amounts. During the dry seasons of summer and autumn, the water volume can be slightly increased. Usually, maintain soil moisture at about 50% during regular maintenance, keep the soil dry during the autumn flowering period, and reduce watering during rainy days.
3. Skillful application of top dressing
After the seedlings sprout in spring, apply a well-rotted cake fertilizer solution every 10 to 15 days to promote the growth of new buds. By July, you can add 1 to 2 times of diluted dung water solution or fish offal fertilizer solution, and also add an appropriate amount of superphosphate mixed spray. Fertilization in early September mainly focuses on phosphorus fertilizer.
4. Proper pruning
Pruning is needed after the autumn flowering. Mainly cut the long branches that grew in the summer and autumn by about 15 centimeters, leaving only the strong short branches. The second pruning is done during the spring sprouting period, usually removing the weak, diseased, and dense branches to facilitate photosynthesis.
II. Precautions
1. Overwintering management
Since osmanthus has poor cold resistance, measures for preventing cold should be taken in winter, and exposure to cold winds should be avoided, otherwise the branches and leaves will produce few flowers and may freeze the plant. It is also important to frequently strengthen the circulation of the surrounding air. Winter watering should mainly be done at noon when there is sunshine.
2. Loosening soil and weeding
In spring and autumn, when the plants are in good growth, it is necessary to add a small amount of herbicide when fertilizing, and also manually remove weeds. Before entering winter, it should be done once more, painting the stems white to increase the plant's cold resistance. It is best to remove weeds 2 to 3 times a year.
The above is a comprehensive explanation of how to care for osmanthus trees and the precautions for growing potted osmanthus plants, hoping to help you.