Monk fruit planting conditions and methods

Luo Han Guo , a perennial climbing plant belonging to the Cucurbitaceae family, is known as the "Oriental Magic Fruit" and "Fairy Fruit". This fruit is rich in sweetener, vitamin C, mannitol, multiple amino acids, flavonoids, active protein kinases, proteins, lipids, and 26 trace elements such as manganese, iron, nickel, selenium, tin, iodine, and molybdenum. Monk fruit seeds also contain a variety of ingredients such as oleic acid and squalene. The application range of monk fruit is very wide. It not only plays an important role in the medical field, but is also often used to make tea, beverages and seasonings . Especially as a sugar substitute, it is widely welcomed in the market. Let’s learn about the conditions and methods of growing monk fruit.

1. Planting conditions

Temperature conditions: Monk fruit is sensitive to temperature and is neither resistant to heat nor cold. Vines grow best in temperatures between 22 and 28 degrees Celsius. If the temperature exceeds 34 degrees Celsius, plant growth will be inhibited, and above 35 degrees Celsius, plants will not be able to pollinate effectively. When the temperature drops below 15 degrees Celsius, the plant's growth almost stops.

Humidity requirements: Monk fruit prefers a humid and foggy environment with a large temperature difference between day and night. It requires relative humidity in the air to be maintained between 75% and 85%, as well as sufficient and evenly distributed rainfall. Monk fruit cannot tolerate waterlogging, so avoid waterlogging.

Light requirements: As a semi-day plant, monk fruit only needs 7 to 8 hours of light per day, with morning sun and afternoon shade being the best.

Soil selection: Monk fruit has strong adaptability to soil. Except for sandy soil and clay, both yellow soil and black soil are suitable for its growth. It particularly prefers soil that is rich in humus, loose and fertile (organic matter content exceeds 3%), deep and moist, and the soil pH should be between 5.5 and 6.5.

Site selection: The ideal planting site should be a mountain with shade from trees or bamboo forests (slope not exceeding 45°), preferably a windproof and southeast-facing slope to ensure sufficient sunlight and humidity. Fields in mountainous areas are also a good choice as long as the drainage conditions are good. It is best to have more broad-leaved forests around the planting site to increase the air humidity.

2. Planting Method

1. Plot selection

Choose mountains, dry land or dry fields with an altitude of no more than 700 meters, sheltered from the wind and facing the sun, with obvious temperature difference between day and night, good drainage conditions, deep, loose and fertile soil, and easy irrigation to grow monk fruit. The selected plot should not have been planted with crops such as melons, peppers, eggplants, tomatoes, beans (except peanuts) and monk fruit in the past 2 to 3 years to avoid the occurrence of diseases. The soil texture should avoid being too sandy or too clayey to prevent drought damage, premature aging, root-knot nematode disease, and soil compaction and poor permeability. The best choice is a plot of land surrounded by lush forests.

2. Seed selection

It is recommended to use tissue culture seedlings or cuttings for planting. Growers can carefully choose based on the seedling quality performance provided by various seedling companies in recent years.

3. Land preparation and soil treatment

(1) Land preparation : When planting in mountainous areas or dry land, first clear the trees or weeds on the ground, and then dig planting pits with a length and width of 1 meter and a depth of 30 to 40 centimeters according to the planting specifications (row spacing of about 2.5 to 2.6 meters, plant spacing of about 2.2 to 2.4 meters, and about 110 to 120 plants per mu), and break up the soil in the pits. When planting in dry fields, the soil is plowed and ridges are made with a width of 1.8 to 2.0 meters and a height of 0.3 to 0.4 meters. Ensure that the drainage ditches on all sides are unobstructed. Cross ditches are also required for large fields.

(2) Soil disinfection : After digging a planting pit or plowing the land, spread about 0.5 kg of quicklime per pit or about 50 kg of quicklime per mu on the ground and turn it into the soil for soil disinfection and to adjust the soil pH. Afterwards, the hay can be piled in a pit or burned on the ground. Land preparation and soil disinfection should be completed one month before planting.

4. Preparation before planting

Preparation of base fertilizer: Monk fruit likes fertilizer and is resistant to fertilizer, and requires more nutrients during its growth process. To ensure healthy growth of the plants and high yield and quality, sufficient basal fertilizer must be applied. The base fertilizer is mainly organic fertilizer , supplemented by chemical fertilizer, such as poultry and livestock manure, tung bran, tea bran and biogas residue. Chemical fertilizers are mainly phosphate fertilizer, silicon-calcium fertilizer and potassium sulfate compound fertilizer, which can be mixed and composted before application.

Seedling preparation: Place the purchased seedlings indoors or in a shed for hardening. When the seedlings grow more than 3 leaves and the temperature is stable at above 12℃, they can be planted.

6. Planting

The planting time is usually from the end of March to the beginning of April, which is around the Qingming Festival. Cultivating strong seedlings in advance is conducive to early fruit maturity, increasing yield and economic benefits. Before planting, mix the farmyard manure with the soil to form a soil-fertilizer pile about 20 cm above the ground and about 80 to 100 cm in diameter. Dig a planting hole in the center of the soil pile that is the same height as the nutrient cup and about 30 to 40 cm in size. If the soil is too dry, water it first. When planting, take the seedlings out of the nutrient cup, place them in the center of the planting hole, fix and compact them with finely crushed fertile soil to ensure full contact between the soil and the root system, and water them once to help them take root. After planting, insert small wooden sticks or bamboo sticks around the seedlings and cover them with special nylon bags to prevent insects. Before planting, it is best to use 600 to 800 times dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane or other liquid medicine for comprehensive ground spraying to eliminate ground pests.

7. Build a scaffold

Monk fruit is a climbing vine that requires a shed to guide the growth of the vines, making management easier and increasing yields. The trellis should be built before the vines grow to 1 meter high. The wooden stakes should be made of fir with a diameter of 4 to 6 cm and a length of 2.2 to 2.4 meters to ensure that the height of the shed is 1.7 to 1.9 meters. The spacing between wooden stakes is about 3×3 meters or 2.5×3 meters, and about 90 wooden stakes are required per acre. Nail an iron nail about 2 inches long in the center of the upper end of the wooden stake, tighten it with No. 14 to 16 iron wire and tie it to the iron nail at the end of the wooden stake to form the skeleton of the shed. Then lay the special nylon net and fix it with thin wire.

8. Field management

Bag management: In the early stage of planting, pay attention to protecting the seedlings. In case of cold weather, rain or heavy rain, use pins to tie the top of the bag tightly to keep warm or prevent rain from washing the seedlings. In case of long-term rainy weather, open the bag and ventilate for about 2 hours every two days when there is no rain. When the weather is clear, open the bag. If you find that the seedlings are wilting, you should use branches or other objects to provide shade. In hot weather, lay the bag flat on the ground. When the fruit seedlings grow to 20 cm, the bags can be removed.

Water management: During the seedling period, there is more spring rain, so it is necessary to prevent water accumulation at the roots. When the soil is dry on sunny days, water it frequently to keep the roots moist. After the seedlings are planted and survive, water management should be carried out according to weather and soil moisture conditions. There is more rain in the early stage of growth, so the focus is on strengthening drainage and flood prevention; after July, the temperature rises and the rain decreases, entering a high temperature and drought season. At this time, the monk fruit vines have covered the shed surface, requiring a large amount of water, so the focus is on drought resistance. You can use weeds to cover the area around the roots (do not cover within 20 cm of the roots) and water frequently depending on the drought situation. For planting in fields, water can be poured into the fields to allow the water to naturally seep into the soil and keep the soil moist. However, it should be noted that it is not advisable to suddenly water the plant with large amounts of water after a long drought, so as to avoid causing diseases and physiological fruit cracking.

The above is an introduction to the planting conditions and methods of monk fruit. You can refer to it according to the actual situation. If you have any questions, you can consult agricultural experts.