Honey pomelo and other citrus trees have a long flowering and fruiting cycle. Under natural growth conditions, it usually takes 8 to 10 years to flower and bear fruit. Therefore, flowering of honey pomelo is not easy, and fruit setting after flowering is even more challenging. To avoid low flowering rates, it is necessary to adopt certain flowering promotion methods to increase the fruit setting rate. So what are the methods to promote flowering? Let's find out.
Methods to Promote Flowering in Honey Pomelo
-
Girdling to Promote Flowering: Girdling aims to reduce the absorption of water and nutrients by the roots, regulate the reproductive growth of fruit trees, and promote flower bud differentiation. Specific steps: Hoeing around the drip line of the crown about 20-30 centimeters. For trees with abundant fruiting in the current year, shallow hoeing about 10 centimeters, for trees with less fruiting, hoeing about 15-18 centimeters deep, and for trees without fruiting, hoeing about 20 centimeters deep. Flowering is more effective after 4-5 days of root exposure.
-
Girdling to Promote Flowering: The purpose of girdling is to temporarily block the transport of organic substances produced by photosynthesis to the underground parts, allowing nutrients to accumulate in the branches and buds, thereby promoting flower bud formation. Specific steps: Generally, a position about 30-50 centimeters above the ground is appropriate for girdling. Use scissors or a knife to completely cut off the bark and woody part, forming a ring-shaped wound. The width of the wound should be about 1-2 centimeters, and the depth should reach the woody part. Immediately after girdling, apply methyl tobutylthiophos to prevent resin disease and other pathogen infections. After 1 month, apply a protective seal to the girdling wound.
-
Fertilization to Promote Flowering: Proper fertilization ratios can effectively control the nutritional growth of the tree, promote the transition of the growth center to reproductive growth, and thus promote flower bud differentiation. Specific steps: Fertilization should be done before flower bud sprouting, mainly with nitrogen fertilizer, and supplemented with phosphorus, potassium fertilizer. At this time, the amount of fertilizer applied accounts for about 20% of the total annual fertilization. After physiological differentiation, supplement appropriate amounts of phosphorus, potassium, boron, zinc, and other nutrient fertilizers.
-
Application of Plant Growth Regulators: Applying plant growth regulators to promote flowering, such as paclobutrazol, ethephon, can inhibit shoot growth and promote flower bud differentiation. Specific steps: The dosage of paclobutrazol is suitable at 50 kilograms of water mixed with 250 grams of 15% paclobutrazol; the dosage of ethephon is suitable at around 40 grams of ethephon.
In summary, the common methods to promote flowering in honey pomelo are the above four. Pay attention to the specific operational details, and you can effectively increase flower quantity, promote fruiting, and thus enhance planting benefits.
