In addition to planting flowers and vegetables, the balcony can also grow fruits. Usually, it can be greened, and when the result is real, there are endless sweet fruits, which is really killing two birds with one stone. Today Hua Hua will tell you how to plant dragon fruit on the balcony.
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Dragon fruit can be planted with seeds or cuttings.
In the dragon fruit we usually eat, those small black particles mixed with the flesh are the seeds of the dragon fruit. When we eat, we dig a spoonful, wrap it in gauze, rub it a few times, and rinse it with water a few times to separate the seeds from the pulp. The separated seeds can be taken to sow.
However, it is still difficult to eat dragon fruit by sowing seeds, generally it takes 4 or 5 years to eat the fruit, and whether the dragon fruit can grow to that time is another matter. Therefore, it will be faster to use cuttings.
Planting dragon fruit with cuttings is relatively fast, and some flower lovers can eat their own dragon fruit as soon as half a year.
Select the cuttings. The cuttings should be selected as healthy and thick branches with a better appearance and color. Branches of dragon fruit can be purchased online or cut off from a friend who has planted it.
Handling of branches. The branches of the cuttings should preferably be kept a little longer, so that the growth process of the dragon fruit will be shortened accordingly, and we can eat the fruit earlier. Before planting, we need to cut off the leaf flesh at the bottom of the branch to reveal the woody part of the middle of the dragon fruit, which will serve as the root of the dragon fruit.
The cut branches are left to dry freely in the shade and ready to be cut.
Select and arrange planting grounds. We choose to plant the dragon fruit on the balcony, we have to prepare a larger pot, because the dragon fruit grows rapidly, the branches are thick, the overall will be relatively tall, if the pot is smaller, it will soon have to be changed, the bottom of the pot should have a water permeability, because the dragon fruit itself is not very moisture-resistant.
If the dragon fruit enters the normal growth stage, the pot should be placed on the balcony near the railing, so that the dragon fruit can receive sufficient light and provide sufficient room for growth.
Set up potting soil. Dragon fruit does not have too high requirements for soil, as mentioned above, dragon fruit is not resistant to moisture, so the potting soil only needs to choose loose and breathable soil.
Cut the plant. The cut head is pointed down, and the exposed lignification is buried in the soil as long as it is buried to a depth that keeps the dragon fruit upright. If the planted branches are relatively long and cannot remain upright after being buried for a while, a wooden stick can be inserted to provide support for the branches.
The support of the wooden stick is more necessary, because the dragon fruit of the cuttings is top-heavy before the roots grow up, and when the roots are fully grown, it can stand on its own.
Maintenance after cuttings. Do not water the dragon fruit after cuttings, you can properly sprinkle some water to keep the soil moist, but do not water, watering is easy to make the roots of the dragon fruit not fully rotten. Freshly cut dragon fruit is suitable for growth in a well-distributed and ventilated environment.
Post-rooting care. In about a month or so, the dragon fruit is almost rooted. After rooting, dragon fruit can be used for daily maintenance. Timely follow-up of water and fertilizer, appropriate application of some organic fertilizer, has a miraculous effect on the growth of dragon fruit. At the same time, to ensure sufficient light, to keep the temperature above 8 degrees, in order to allow the dragon fruit to grow normally.
Pollination and insect repellent. The difference between planting fruit and planting flowers is that we have to pollinate the fruit trees. In general, domestic fruit trees rarely have animals to help them pollinate, so we can only do it artificially, pollinate well, and the fruit will bear more. All we need to do is use a cotton swab, wipe it on the stamens to collect the pollen, and then apply it to the other pistils.
After receiving the powder, wait for the result. As a result, remember to put a bagging on the fruit so that it can avoid being pecked by insects and birds.
Today, Huahua told you about planting dragon fruit on the balcony, have you been moved? If you are interested, you can try it at home!