Cumin is a common spice and medicinal plant, its fruits, stems and leaves contain volatile oils, which can be used for flavoring, making fennel oil, or indigestion and other symptoms. The cultivation of cumin is not complicated, as long as you master some basic methods and skills, you can grow fragrant cumin at home or in the field. This article will introduce you to the planting time, method and management techniques of cumin, I hope it can help you.
Cumin is suitable for planting in spring or autumn, as the temperature and humidity in both seasons are more suitable for cumin growth. Cumin planted in spring is generally sown in March-April, and cumin planted in autumn is generally sown in August-September. If planted in summer, high temperature and strong light will affect the development of seedlings, and if planted in winter, the temperature is too low, and the seeds are not easy to take root after planting. Therefore, it is recommended to sow seeds in February-May in the spring, or July-September in the summer.
There are several steps to how cumin is grown:
Cumin prefers sunny, well-drained, fertile and breathable soil, so choose a flat land facing the sun, preferably sandy loam or light soil, for planting cumin. Before sowing, it is necessary to apply foot fertilizer, apply manure or compost 1000-1500 kg per mu, and then turn 20-25 cm deep, rake finely leveled, and make 15 meters wide flat furrow. Low-lying and clay land is not suitable for planting.
The seeds of cumin are relatively small and are generally sown or sown in strips. When sowing, the seeds are evenly sprinkled on the soil, and then covered with 1-2 cm of fine soil, and raked flat with an iron rake, which can not only retain moisture but also allow the seeds and soil to better integrate, which is conducive to the emergence of seedlings. When strip sowing, the ditch is made according to the row spacing of 30 cm, the seeds are evenly sprinkled in the ditch, and then the soil is covered and compacted. Sowing should be thin, cumin seedlings are not seedlings and seedlings are not supplemented, so the sowing amount should be appropriate, sowing 8-10 kg per mu. After sowing, water thoroughly to keep the soil moist.
Cumin seedlings can emerge 3-4 days after sowing, and after the seedlings emerge, they should be broken in time to help the seedlings unearth. When the seedling height is 15-18 cm, the seedling is thinned in combination with hoeing, and the plant spacing is 30 cm. In the seedling stage, we should pay attention to the prevention and control of pests and diseases, mainly gray spot, sclerotinia disease, powdery mildew, maggots, aphids, etc., which can be sprayed with corresponding agents for control.
Cumin likes moisture and is afraid of standing water, so it should be watered in time during drought, especially during the flowering and fruiting period, to keep the soil moist, but not too wet, so as not to cause diseases. Cumin on the demand for fertilizer is not large, generally on the basis of the base fertilizer, 1-2 times of nitrogen fertilizer can be applied, the first time in the seedlings grow to 10 cm, drenched once diluted manure, 50-100 kg per mu, the second time 5-10 days before harvest, 10-15 kg of urea per mu.
The fruits and stems and leaves of cumin can be harvested, and the fruits generally ripen in August and October, and the stems and leaves can be harvested at the first or full flowering stage.
When the cumin fruit is ripe, the skin changes from green to yellow-green with black longitudinal groove lines, and it is ready to be harvested. If the peel is yellowed before harvesting, the fruit is easy to fall off and cause losses. Cumin has a long flowering and fruiting period, and the fruits are ripening one after another, so it is best to harvest them in batches. After the fruit is harvested, it can be threshed after 7-8 days in the sun, and it can be continued to dry or dried until it is completely dry, and impurities are removed, that is, cumin fruit is obtained. Each acre can produce 70-120 kg of dried fruit.
The stems and leaves of cumin can be used to make fennel oil or edible, generally harvested in the first flowering period or full flowering period when the stems and leaves grow luxuriantly, and the stubble should not be too high, and the germination of new tillers is not good if it is too high, which affects the yield of the next stubble. It is advisable to leave 3 cm of stubble. After harvesting, the stems and leaves are dried until semi-dry, and then fennel oil is extracted by distillation, or chopped and eaten or preserved.
The above is an introduction to the cultivation method of cumin, I hope you enjoy this article, and I hope you can grow fragrant cumin.
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