How to cultivate winter red fruit
This article provides an overview of knowledge about cultivating and caring for winter red fruit, including its maintenance and management. Next, let's introduce it to netizens.
Winter red fruit belongs to the Rosaceae family, Malus genus, deciduous shrubs or small trees. The plant is relatively short and, when the fruit matures, it turns bright red, which is very pleasing to the eye and has strong ornamental value, so it is often used as a potted plant for display.
Many gardening enthusiasts find winter red fruit appealing and, after purchasing it from the flower market, discover that they are not very familiar with its growth habits and are unsure about the type of soil that is best for its cultivation. Below, we introduce the type of growing medium that is best for cultivating winter red fruit.
I. Growth habits of winter red fruit
Winter red fruit is a deciduous shrub or small tree of the Malus genus, which is relatively cold-tolerant. Its growth habits are similar to those of apple trees, preferring loose, fertile, well-drained, and well-ventilated sandy loam. During the growing period, the soil should be kept moist, with the flowering and fruiting period requiring the soil to be dry and wet. In winter, watering should be controlled.
During the growing period, to ensure vigorous plant growth, it is necessary to apply a decomposed organic fertilizer or compound fertilizer every two weeks. When entering the bud differentiation stage, stop applying nitrogen fertilizer and apply a few times of dilute potassium dihydrogen phosphate to promote flowering and fruiting.
Winter red fruit is also a plant that loves sunlight. Whether in the growing period or the flowering and fruiting period, it should maintain adequate sunlight. If the plant is exposed to insufficient sunlight for a long time, it will also affect normal flowering and fruit yield.
II. What type of soil is not suitable for planting winter red fruit?
Winter red fruit is not very particular about soil requirements. As long as the soil is not alkaline or entirely clayey, it can generally grow well.
1. Avoid using alkaline soil
Winter red fruit prefers loose and breathable slightly acidic soil. Potting soil should avoid using alkaline soil, as this type of soil can easily form a hard crust after potting, preventing plant growth and causing yellowing and falling leaves, making it difficult to bear fruit.
2. Soil with too much clay
In addition to avoiding alkaline soil, do not use soil that is too clayey. When potted, it is difficult to water thoroughly each time, and overly clayey potting soil can affect root respiration and normal nutrient absorption, leading to poor plant growth.
III. What type of soil is good for potted winter red fruit?
The growing medium for potted winter red fruit can be completely prepared by collecting some substrates. As long as the growing medium is loose, breathable, and well-drained and rich in nutrients, it can promote vigorous plant growth.
Preparing the growing medium
When preparing the growing medium, collect some decomposed leaf soil or pine needle soil, dig some garden soil, and add a small amount of coarse sand or calcined coal cinder. Mix them evenly and then plant the winter red fruit. The mixing ratio can be 4 parts of decomposed leaf soil, 3 parts of garden soil, and 2 parts of coarse sand or coal cinder. To increase soil fertility, you can also add 1 part of decomposed sheep or rabbit manure, which will make the plant grow more vigorously.
Disinfection of the growing medium
After preparing the growing medium, do not use it directly for planting winter red fruit. It is best to disinfect and sterilize it first. Since decomposed leaf soil and garden soil in the wild carry bacteria and eggs, if not sterilized, they can easily breed bacteria and small insects in the pot, harming the plant's growth.
You can spread the prepared growing medium on a concrete floor and let it dry in the sun for two days to sterilize the soil. Alternatively, you can use potassium permanganate or carbendazim for disinfection.
IV. Points to consider when potting
1. Root treatment
Newly potted winter red fruit should have its roots treated before potting, trimming messy roots, removing old and rotten roots, and trimming the remaining roots neatly to make the cut smooth. Then, soak the roots in a 0.2% potassium permanganate solution for sterilization. This prevents root rot.
2. Prepare a good drainage layer
When potting the plant, first cover the bottom of the pot with tiles to create a drainage layer, then add a layer of well-drained and breathable medium, such as coarse sand, coal cinder, or decomposed tree bark, followed by the growing medium. This increases the soil's permeability and prevents root rot and yellow leaves due to excessive watering.
The detailed introduction to how to cultivate winter red fruit and its maintenance and management, have you understood it now?