Planting management of rat thatch in orchard

Rat thatch is a kind of herbaceous plant that can endure severe cold but not high temperature. the introduction of rat thatch into orchard has the effect of preventing grass, preserving water and soil moisture, increasing soil organic matter content, improving soil permeability and reducing production cost.

The seedlings of rat thatch passed through the cold winter like wheat seedlings, the prosperous period was from March to May in the second year, and died together with the roots in the middle and late June. The thickness of the withered grass was about 7 cm. The scattered seeds sprouted and unearthed after autumn, which could inhibit the growth of various weeds for a long time and maintain the good ventilation of the soil. It can reduce the labor cost of weeding and loosening soil 5-6 times a year, and supplement the dry amount of organic matter in the soil 600-700 bus per mu. The root system of rat thatch is generally up to 30 cm deep, with a maximum depth of 60 cm for deep ploughing.

The lodging and death period of rat thatch occurred earlier, and the time of competing for water and nutrition with fruit trees was short. During the growing period and after the root system died and rotted, it maintained soil permeability and ventilation, prevented stagnant water on the ground, enhanced the waterlogging resistance of fruit trees, and at the same time covered the ground for a long time to prevent soil water evaporation and sun exposure on the ground. enhance the drought resistance of fruit trees.

In recent years, the planting technology of rat thatch in orchard has been vigorously popularized, and the fruit yield and quality of grass-covered orchard have been greatly improved.