Apple sowing and seedling raising method

Apple trees are deciduous trees belonging to the genus Malus in the Rosaceae family. They are one of the most widely planted fruit trees in the world. They prefer cool climates and have a wide temperature range suitable for growth, but the most suitable temperature is when the annual average temperature is between 8°C and 15°C. Let’s take a brief look at the method of sowing and raising apple seedlings .

1. Sowing time and method

1. Timing of sowing

Spring sowing of apple rootstock seeds is usually carried out in late March to early April.

2. Seed soaking and germination

To delay seed germination, 5 to 7 days before sowing, place the sand-stratified seeds in warm water at about 45°C, stir and soak for 2 to 4 hours, or soak them in water at 25°C for 24 hours. Then dry it and mix it with sand, place it indoors or in a greenhouse at around 20℃, and it will germinate in 5 to 7 days. When about 60% of the seeds turn white, they can be sown.

3. Sowing method

Generally, double-row strip sowing is adopted, with a wide row of 40 to 50 cm and a narrow row of 20 to 25 cm. Before sowing in spring, water and shallowly plow the soil, level the land, dig furrows according to the row spacing, with a depth of 2 to 3 cm, sow the seeds evenly and cover with soil. If ground film is used for covering, the covering soil should be appropriately thickened to prevent high temperature from burning the tender shoots.

4. Seeding amount

Seeding rates will vary depending on rootstock variety, seed purity, germination rate, and sowing method. Generally, the seeds are sown in flat beds, with 1 to 1.5 kg of Sansevieria and 1 to 2 kg of Malus multiflora sown per mu.

2. Management of rootstock seedlings

Use wheat straw or rice straw to cover the sowing bed surface, and remove the covering material in time when 10% to 20% of the seedlings have emerged from the soil. When using ground film for covering, tear off or remove the film in time. Thinning out the seedlings begins when they have 2 to 3 true leaves. When they have 4 to 5 true leaves, plant them at a spacing of 10 to 15 cm, leaving about 8,000 seedlings per acre. It is best to transplant the seedlings with soil on a cloudy day or in the evening. After transplanting, when the seedlings grow 5 to 6 true leaves, apply 0.1% urea foliar fertilizer 2 to 3 times. When the seedlings grow to 8 to 10 true leaves, apply a small amount of diammonium phosphate to the roots, about 15 kilograms per mu. To promote the thickening growth of seedlings, pinch off the tops of the seedlings when they are 15 to 20 cm tall, removing 3 to 5 cm. Then apply fertilizer and add soil to make the stems thicker to reach the thickness required for grafting. Before grafting, remove branches and leaves below 10 cm from the base, and promptly prevent and control pests and diseases, such as apple aphids, beetles , boat caterpillars, etc., by spraying 2000 times diluted high-efficiency pyrethroids for prevention and control.

3. Grafting and management of grafted seedlings

The T-shaped bud grafting method is often used in production, and the best time is mid-to-late August. During the operation, first wipe off the dirt on the smooth windward side of the rootstock 4 to 5 cm from the ground, make a horizontal cut with a bud grafting knife, deep into the wood, with the width of the blade about half the circumference of the rootstock trunk, then make a vertical cut downward in the middle of the blade, making the vertical blade slightly shorter, and then cut the grafting bud. The scion should be selected from one-year-old branches from mother trees of excellent varieties, strong, and free of diseases and insect pests. Make a horizontal cut 0.6 cm above the scion bud, with the width of the cut about half the diameter of the scion. Then cut obliquely upwards from 1 cm below the bud, from shallow to deep to the upper part of the horizontal cut. Gently pinch it with the thumb and index finger of your left hand, and the bud can be removed. Immediately pick open the skin of the rootstock, quickly insert the grafted bud, align the horizontal edge of the bud with the horizontal edge of the rootstock, and wrap it with 1 cm wide plastic film. Spray alginate iodine after grafting to enhance disease resistance. The survival rate of this grafting method can reach over 95%. Check the survival status 7 to 10 days after grafting, and those that fail need to be re-grafted. After the seedlings survive, the bindings are removed and the stock is cut before budding in early spring of the following year. The cutting position of the stock should be about 0.5 cm above the horizontal edge of the grafted bud. Then routine management such as removing suckers, removing buds, setting up supports, fertilizing, irrigating, loosening the soil, and controlling diseases and pests are carried out to ensure the healthy growth of the seedlings and meet the first-class seedling standards.

The above is an introduction to the methods of sowing and raising apple seedlings. If you want to sow and raise apple seedlings yourself, it will take a certain amount of time. Usually, many fruit farmers buy apple seedlings directly.