Culture methods and matters needing attention of cardinals

Cardinals are also called corals, slippers, millipedes and cardinals. Common species are cardinals, variegated cardinals and curly cardinals, as well as white sparrow corals of the same subject, whose shape is somewhat similar to that of cardinals, but the leaf midrib is not prominent and the leaves are thinner. There are irregular white patches in the green. Cardinals are native to the Central American West Indies.

Morphological characteristics of cardinals:

Cardinals are perennial herbs with a height of about 40-70 cm. They are often used for decoration on several cases and desks. The branches of cardinals have milky juice, fleshy and green, and are often twisted in zigzag shape. Leaves ovate to ovate rectangular orbicular, fleshy, leaf surface is not very neat, apex mucronate, margin undulate, Cymes terminal, involucre symmetrical, closed. The color is bright red or purple. The florescence is usually between December of each year and June of the following year.

Planting and care of cardinals:

Cardinals are native to tropical America. They like warmth and endure shade. They are favorable to blossom in semi-shade environment and are suitable for growing in sunny but not very strong, well-ventilated environment. Semi-overcast conditions can also be adapted, not cold-resistant. The suitable temperature for the growth of cardinals is 20-30 degrees Celsius, and the room temperature in winter should be kept above 10 degrees Celsius. Cardinals do not have strict requirements on soil, and the best is well-drained and fertile sandy soil. Potted plants are often cultivated with rotten leaf soil or pond mud. During the growth period, it is necessary to control the amount of water, keep the soil slightly moist, and generally water once again after the soil is dry. Cardinal corals do not have high requirements for fertilizer, fertilizing once or twice a month, chemical fertilizer and organic fertilizer are available, mainly nitrogen fertilizer, properly combined with compound fertilizer.

Cultivation and reproduction of cardinals:

Cardinals are often propagated by sowing or cutting. if sowing, it is necessary to select good seeds, that is, seeds with full grains, complete shape, no deformity, no diseases and insect pests. The selection of good seeds is directly related to the success of sowing and the robustness of the seedlings.

Culture methods and matters needing attention of cardinals Chinese scientific name cardinals

Binomial Pedilanthus tithymaloides

The plant kingdom.

Euphorbiaceae

Cardinal corals

Distribution area West Indies

Cardinals, evergreen shrubs. Stem green, often curved growth in zigzag shape, fleshy, containing white poisonous milk. Leaves alternate green, ovate-lanceolate, leathery, midrib prominent below keel. Cup-shaped inflorescences arranged in terminal Cymes, involucre bright red, flowering in summer. Red or purple flowers bloom throughout the year, the tree is shaped like coral, so it is called "cardinal coral".

1. Alias

Twisted grass, slipper flowers, hundred-foot grass, cardinal palm

2. Life habits

There are cardinals, cardinals and curly corals. White sparrow corals of the same genus are similar to cardinals, but the leaf midrib is not prominent, the leaves are thin, and there are irregular white patches in the green. Originally from Central America and the West Indies. Sexual preference for warmth, suitable for living in sunny but not too strong and well-ventilated places. If the temperature is too high, the semi-overcast condition can also be adapted. The cultivated soil is required to be loose, fertile and well drained.

4. Cultivation and propagation

Before sowing, we should first select the seeds. Whether the seeds are good or not is directly related to the success of sowing.

1. It is best to choose the seeds harvested in the same year. The longer the seed is preserved, the lower the germination rate is.

2. Choose full seeds without defective or deformed seeds.

3. Select the seeds free from diseases and insect pests.

Disinfection contains two concepts, one refers to the disinfection of seeds, and the other refers to the disinfection of sowing substrate. Families usually soak the seeds in hot water for about 60 ℃ for a quarter of an hour, and then use warm hot water to accelerate germination for 12 to 24 hours. The best way to disinfect the substrate used for sowing is to stir-fry it in a pan so that any diseases and insects can be scalded to death.

Soak the seeds in warm hot water (the temperature is about the same as facial wash) for 12 to 24 hours until the seeds absorb water and swell up. For common seeds that germinate easily, this work does not have to be done.

Sow tiny seeds that are difficult to pick up with hands or other tools, wet one end of the toothpick with water, stick the seeds one by one on the surface of the matrix, cover the substrate 1 cm thick, and then put the seeding flowerpot into the water. the depth of the water is 1 inch 2x3 at the height of the flowerpot, allowing the water to soak up slowly (this method is called "pot immersion"). For larger seeds that can be picked up by hand or other tools, put the seeds directly into the substrate and order them at a distance of 3 × 5 cm. After sowing, the substrate was covered, and the thickness of the cover was 2-3 times that of the seed. After sowing, you can wet the sowing matrix with sprayers and fine-hole showers. Later, when the basin soil is slightly dry, you should still pay attention to the watering strength so as not to wash the seeds up.

Management after sowing after sowing in late autumn, early spring or winter, when you encounter a cold wave and low temperature, you can wrap the flowerpot with plastic film to keep warm and moisture. after the seedlings are unearthed, the film should be opened in time, and before 9:30 every morning, or after 3:30 in the afternoon, let the seedlings receive the sun's light, otherwise the seedlings will grow very weakly. After most of the seeds come out, they need to plant seedlings properly: pull out the diseased and unhealthy seedlings, so that the seedlings left behind have a certain space between each other; when most of the seedlings have three or more leaves, they can be transplanted. Cuttings are often used in late spring and early autumn for softwood cuttings, or in early spring with last year's branches for old wood cuttings.

Cutting substrate is used for cutting nutrient soil or river sand, peat soil and other materials. Family cutting is limited to the conditions, it is difficult to get an ideal cutting substrate, using medium and coarse river sand is also fine, but it should be washed with clean water several times before use. Do not use sea sand and river sand in saline-alkali areas, they are not suitable for the growth of flowers and plants.

Selection of cutting branches

When the tender wood cuttings were carried out, the sturdy branches of the current year were selected as cuttings when the plants were growing vigorously from the end of spring to early autumn. After cutting off the branches, select the sturdy parts and cut them into segments 5-15 cm long, each with more than 3 leaf nodes. When cutting cuttings, it should be noted that the upper cut is cut flat at about 1 cm above the uppermost leaf node, and the lower cut is about 0.5 cm below the lowest leaf node, and the upper and lower cut should be flat (knife should be sharp). When hardwood cuttings are carried out, after the temperature rises in early spring, last year's robust branches are selected as cuttings. Each cuttage usually retains 3-4 nodes, and the cutting method is the same as that of softwood cuttings. Management after cuttage [temperature] the optimum temperature for rooting of cuttings is 20 ℃ ~ 30 ℃, which is lower than 20 ℃, and it is difficult and slow for cuttings to root; when the cuttings are higher than 30 ℃, the upper and lower cuttings are easy to be infected by bacteria and rot, and the higher the temperature is, the greater the proportion of rot is. When there is a low temperature after cutting, the heat preservation measure is mainly to wrap the flowerpot or container used for cutting with thin film; when the temperature is too high after cutting, the cooling measure is mainly to shade the cuttings, to cover 50-80% of the sun, and at the same time, spray the cuttings 3-5 times a day, with more times of spraying when the temperature is higher in sunny days, lower temperatures and higher temperatures in rainy days, but less or no spraying times.

[humidity] the relative humidity of the air must be kept at 75-85% after cutting. The basic requirement for cuttings to take root is to ensure that cuttings are fresh and tender and can be used to produce rooting substances before they take root. However, cuttings without rooting can not absorb enough water to maintain their water balance, so it is necessary to reduce the water evaporation of cuttings by spraying: under shaded conditions, the cuttings are sprayed 3-5 times a day. The higher the temperature in sunny days, the more the times of spraying, the lower the temperature in cloudy and rainy days, the less or no spraying. But with excessive spraying, cuttings are easy to be infected by bacteria and rot, because many kinds of bacteria exist in the water.

How to raise cardinals Culture methods and cultivation techniques of Cardinals

How to raise cardinals? Cardinals are evergreen shrubs and tree-shaped corals, so they are called cardinals. Cardinals, native to Central America and the West Indies, are warm and suitable for sunny, less intense and well-ventilated places. If the temperature is too high, the semi-overcast condition can also be adapted. The cultivated soil is required to be loose, fertile and well drained. Next, learn more about the culture methods and cultivation techniques of cardinals.

An introduction to Cardinals

Cardinals are evergreen shrubs with green stems, often growing in a zigzag shape, fleshy and containing white poisonous milk. Leaves alternate green, ovate-lanceolate, leathery, midrib prominent below keel. Cup-shaped inflorescences arranged in terminal Cymes, involucre bright red, flowering in summer. Red or purple flowers bloom throughout the year, tree-shaped like coral, so it is called cardinal coral.

Finch tongue coral, also known as iron cloves, belongs to Euphorbiaceae, cardinals. Evergreen shrubs. Stem green, often curved growth in zigzag shape, fleshy, containing white poisonous milk.

Cardinals, native to Central America and the West Indies, are warm and suitable for sunny, less intense and well-ventilated places. If the temperature is too high, the semi-overcast condition can also be adapted. The cultivated soil is required to be loose, fertile and well drained.

Morphological characteristics of cardinals

Cardinals are evergreen shrubs with green stems, often growing in a zigzag shape, fleshy and containing white poisonous milk. Leaves alternate green, ovate to ovate moment round, dorsal midvein dragon-shaped protruding, irregular leaf surface, apex mucronate, margin waveform, ovate-lanceolate, leathery, midrib protruding below in keel shape. Cup-shaped inflorescences arranged into terminal Cymes, involucre symmetrical, closed, bright red or purple, flowering in summer.

Red or purple flowers bloom throughout the year, tree-shaped like coral, so it is called cardinal coral. Cardinals, native to Central America and the West Indies, are warm and suitable for sunny, less intense and well-ventilated places. If the temperature is too high, the semi-overcast condition can also be adapted. The cultivated soil is required to be loose, fertile and well drained.

Cardinals leathery, midrib protruding below in keel shape. Cup-shaped inflorescences arranged in terminal Cymes, involucre bright red, flowering in summer.

Ecological habits of cardinals

Finch tongue coral likes warm and dry environment, suitable growth temperature is 15-25 ℃, afraid of cold, wind blowing, like light, but also resistant to semi-shade, requiring loose soil and good drainage.

Finch tongue coral likes to be warm and is suitable for places where the sun is abundant but not too strong and well ventilated. If the temperature is too high, the semi-overcast condition can also be adapted.

Culture methods of cardinals

1. Key points of maintenance

Cardinals like to be warm, drought-tolerant and fertile at temperatures ranging from 23 ℃ to 30 ℃. After freezing, the leaves will whiten and fall off. It is shade-tolerant, the cultivation site is semi-overcast is conducive to flowering, and the leaf color is more beautiful. It is afraid of the wind and is suitable for growing in a dry and windless environment. The cultivated soil should choose sandy loam with good drainage and good ventilation. Turn the basin every year or every other year, and if the branch is too long, it should be truncated or supported by a pillar. If there are few branches, you can prune the branches as appropriate to promote more lateral branches.

The amount of water should be controlled during the growth period, and the soil should be watered after drying. Organic fertilizer or a small amount of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium fertilizer can be used for fertilization. The supply of fertilizer and water should be reduced in winter. Cardinals are propagated by cuttings. Cuttings can be used all year round in greenhouse, but it is better to cut in warm season. Take the stem tip or tender stem and cut it into 10 cm long stem segments as cuttings. Cuttings should be dried first, or cut into dry ash, dry soil, so that the slurry is absorbed, and then cutting. The medium can be yellow sand, perlite or rice bran ash. After the cuttings take root, they can be transplanted into the pot.

2. Daily maintenance

Lighting: Cardinals are not very strict with light, their leaves are reddish in strong light and green in semi-shade. But don't let the strong sunlight shine directly in summer, and don't put it in too dark places indoors.

Temperature: Cardinal coral likes warmth and is suitable for growth at room temperature in spring, summer and autumn. The leaves turn white and fall off when the winter temperature is lower than about 13 degrees Celsius.

Watering: Cardinal coral is a succulent plant with strong drought tolerance. It has to wait until the pot soil is half dry in the growing season before watering. Water a small amount of water when the basin soil is dry in winter. Too much watering can cause mildew and, more seriously, rot at the base of the stem.

Fertilization: compound fertilizer can be applied to the plant once a month during the growing period.

Basin soil: Cardinal coral is suitable for sandy loam with good drainage, loose and fertile soil.

Propagation: Cardinal coral can be propagated by cuttage with a stem segment of 15 cm in length. Like other Euphorbiaceae plants, cardinals shed white milk once cut, which can be stopped if the incision is immersed in water. The cuttings should be dried in the shade for a day, and then inserted into the matrix after the incision is dried.

Cultivation techniques of Cardinal Coral

Potted cardinals should be planted once a year or in steel pots before leaving the house in spring. the basin soil is usually mixed with pond mud, rotten leaf soil and sand. Flowerpots should also be smaller than normal pots, and a layer of charcoal can be put at the bottom of the pot to strengthen drainage. Usually watering should not be too much, should be properly dry, should be poured after the arsenic is dry. It is better to have three hours of light every day. Finch tongue coral requires a high level of fertilizer, which can be irrigated 1-2 times a month in the growing season. In winter, if you stay indoors for more than 5 ℃, you can pass the winter safely. at this time, do not have too much humidity, otherwise it is easy to rot the roots.

The cultivation site of cardinals should be ventilated and transparent, and the humidity should not be too high. Watering normally during the growing period, but not too wet, depending on the growth of the plant, fertilizer should be applied. As long as the leaves are of normal color and the branches are green, no fertilizer can be applied. Summer shade, avoid the hot sun exposure. When the plant is semi-dormant in winter, keep the basin soil dry, place it in the sunny place indoors, and maintain lO ℃ at room temperature, but not too high. To change the basin every spring, it is necessary to add some new fertile soil. It is often pruned to promote branching and cultivate plump plant shape.

1. Humidity management

Like the humid or semi-dry climate environment, the relative temperature of the air in the growing environment is required to be 50-70%. When the air relative humidity is too low, the lower leaves yellowing and falling off, and the upper leaves are not glossy.

2. Temperature management

Because it is native to the subtropics, it has strict requirements for winter temperature and stops growing when the ambient temperature is below 8 ℃.

3. Lighting management

The ability to adapt to light is strong. Put in indoor maintenance, as far as possible in places with bright light, such as well-lit living room, bedroom, study and other places. After indoor maintenance for a period of time (about a month), it should be moved to an outdoor place with shade (heat preservation in winter) for a period of time (about a month), so alternately.

4. Fertilizer and water management

For potted plants, in addition to adding organic fertilizer when potting, proper fertilizer and water management should be carried out in the usual maintenance process. The three seasons of spring, summer and autumn are its peak growing seasons. Fertilizer and water management circulates according to the order of "Huabao"-- clear water-- "Huabao"-- clear water. The interval period is about 1-4 days, and the interval period is shorter during sunny or high temperature days. The interval period is longer or not watered during rainy or low temperature days. In winter, during the dormant period in winter, the main task is to control fertilizer and water. Fertilizer and water management circulates according to the order of "Huabao"-- clear water-- "Huabao"-- "Huabao"-- clear water, and the interval period is about 3-7 days. The interval period is shorter in sunny or high temperature days, longer or unwatered in rainy days or low temperature days.

For ground-planted plants, fertilizer and water were applied 2 to 4 times in spring and summer according to drought conditions: first, a small trench was opened at 30cm to 100cm outside the root neck (the larger the plant, the farther away from the root neck), the width and depth of the ditch were both 20cm. The ditch is sprinkled with 25-50 jin of organic fertilizer, or 1-5 two-grain compound fertilizer (chemical fertilizer), and then poured with water. After the beginning of winter, before the beginning of spring, fertilize again according to the above method, but do not need watering.

5. Pruning

When the plant enters the dormant or semi-dormant period in winter, the branches such as thin, disease and insect, withered and overdense should be cut off. The branches can also be arranged in combination with cuttings.

6. Change the basin

As long as it is properly maintained, it will grow very fast, and when it grows to a certain size, we should consider changing it to a larger basin so that it can continue to grow vigorously. The culture soil and composition ratio for basin change can be selected as follows: vegetable garden soil: slag = 3RU 1; orchard soil: medium coarse river sand: sawdust = 4RU 1RU 2; or one of paddy soil, pond mud, rotten leaf soil.

7. Take off the basin

Put the flowers that want to change the pot on the ground, first pat the four sides of the basin with a slap, so that the root system is shaken and separated from the basin wall, put the flowerpot upside down on the left hand, gently clamp the plant with the index finger and middle finger of the left hand, hold the edge of the basin with the wrist and fingertip, hit the bottom of the basin with the right hand, and then use the mother finger to top the root soil down from the bottom hole to let the plant come off. After taking it off, gently pat the basin soil with both palms to let the excess soil fall off.

8. Prepare the flowerpot

Choose a flowerpot of appropriate size, and the bottom hole of the pot should be covered with two tiles or thin foam sheets, not only to ensure that the soil is not washed out by water, but also to allow excess water to flow out in time. A layer of ceramsite or broken red brick is placed on the tile or foam to serve as a filter layer, about 2cm to 3cm thick. On the drainage layer, there is machine fertilizer, which is about 1cm thick, and a thin layer of matrix on the fertilizer, which is about 2cm thick to separate the root system from the fertilizer. Finally, the plant is put in and the nutritious soil is filled, leaving about 2cm from the mouth of the basin.

The mode of reproduction of cardinals

Finch tongue corals are mainly propagated by cuttings, which can be carried out all the year round in the greenhouse, especially in May and June. Take the stem tip of 2-3 nodes about 8 cm long, wait for the cut milk to dry, after a little contraction, cut into the sand and other substrates, the matrix should have a certain humidity, do not water temporarily after insertion, do not cover the film, put it in a semi-shady place, pour water once after 2 days, and then keep it moist for about 40 days.

Finch tongue coral is often used for cutting. in spring, the top branches are cut for cuttings. the cut sections are smeared with charcoal powder or scorched, and inserted in the sandy soil. The soil should have a certain humidity, and the depth of direct insertion should be 1/2 of that of cuttings. After insertion, it will not be watered for the time being, and it will be thoroughly watered once after two days, and it will take root in about 30 murmurs for 45 days.

First, sowing and reproduction

For small seeds that are difficult to pick up with hands or other tools, wet one end of the toothpick with water, stick the seeds one by one on the surface of the matrix, cover the substrate 1 cm thick, and then put the seeding flowerpot into the water. the depth of the water is 1 foot 2 feet 2 tap 3 of the height of the flowerpot, allowing the water to soak up slowly (this method is called "pot immersion"). For larger seeds that can be picked up by hand or other tools, put the seeds directly into the substrate and order them at a distance of 3 × 5 cm. After sowing, the substrate was covered, and the thickness of the cover was 2-3 times that of the seed. After sowing, you can wet the sowing matrix with sprayers and fine-hole showers. Later, when the basin soil is slightly dry, you should still pay attention to the watering strength so as not to wash the seeds up.

Before sowing, we should first select the seeds. Whether the seeds are good or not is directly related to the success of sowing.

1. It is best to choose the seeds harvested in the same year. The longer the seed is preserved, the lower the germination rate is.

2. Choose full seeds without defective or deformed seeds.

3. Select the seeds free from diseases and insect pests.

Disinfection: disinfection includes two concepts, one refers to the disinfection of seeds, and the other refers to the disinfection of sowing substrates. Families usually soak the seeds in hot water for about 60 ℃ for a quarter of an hour, and then use warm hot water to accelerate germination for 12 to 24 hours. The best way to disinfect the substrate used for sowing is to stir-fry it in a pan so that any diseases and insects can be scalded to death.

Sprouting: soak the seeds in warm hot water (the temperature is about the same as facial wash) for 12 to 24 hours until the seeds absorb water and expand. For common seeds that germinate easily, this work does not have to be done.

Management after sowing: after sowing in late autumn, early spring or winter, when you encounter a cold wave and low temperature, you can wrap the flowerpot with plastic film to keep warm and wet; after the seedlings are unearthed, the film should be opened in time, and before 9:30 every morning, or after 3:30 in the afternoon, let the seedlings receive the sun's light, otherwise the seedlings will grow very weakly. After most of the seeds come out, they need to plant seedlings properly: pull out the diseased and unhealthy seedlings, so that the seedlings left behind have a certain space between each other; when most of the seedlings have three or more leaves, they can be transplanted.

2. Cutting propagation

It is often used for softwood cutting in late spring and early autumn, or old wood cuttings with branches from last year in early spring.

1. Cutting substrate

Is used for cutting nutrient soil or river sand, peat soil and other materials. Family cutting is limited to the conditions, it is difficult to get an ideal cutting substrate, using medium and coarse river sand is also fine, but it should be washed with clean water several times before use. Do not use sea sand and river sand in saline-alkali areas, they are not suitable for the growth of flowers and plants.

2. Selection of cutting branches.

When the tender wood cuttings were carried out, the sturdy branches of the current year were selected as cuttings when the plants were growing vigorously from the end of spring to early autumn. After cutting off the branches, select the sturdy parts and cut them into segments 5-15 cm long, each with more than 3 leaf nodes. When cutting cuttings, it should be noted that the upper cut is cut flat at about 1 cm above the uppermost leaf node, and the lower cut is about 0.5 cm below the lowest leaf node, and the upper and lower cut should be flat (knife should be sharp). When hardwood cuttings are carried out, after the temperature rises in early spring, last year's robust branches are selected as cuttings. Each cuttage usually retains 3-4 nodes, and the cutting method is the same as that of softwood cuttings.

3. Management after cuttage

Temperature: the optimum temperature for rooting of cuttings was 20 ℃ ~ 30 ℃, which was lower than 20 ℃, and the rooting of cuttings was difficult and slow. When the temperature was higher than 30 ℃, the upper and lower cuttings were easily infected and rotted by bacteria, and the higher the temperature was, the greater the proportion of rot was. When there is a low temperature after cutting, the heat preservation measure is mainly to wrap the flowerpot or container used for cutting with thin film; when the temperature is too high after cutting, the cooling measure is mainly to shade the cuttings, to cover 50-80% of the sun, and at the same time, spray the cuttings 3-5 times a day, with more times of spraying when the temperature is higher in sunny days, lower temperatures and higher temperatures in rainy days, but less or no spraying times.

Humidity: the relative humidity of the air must be kept at 750.85% after cutting. The basic requirement for cuttings to take root is to ensure that cuttings are fresh and tender and can be used to produce rooting substances before they take root. However, cuttings without rooting can not absorb enough water to maintain their water balance, so it is necessary to reduce the water evaporation of cuttings by spraying: under shaded conditions, the cuttings are sprayed 3-5 times a day. The higher the temperature in sunny days, the more the times of spraying, the lower the temperature in cloudy and rainy days, the less or no spraying. But with excessive spraying, cuttings are easy to be infected by bacteria and rot, because many kinds of bacteria exist in the water.

Light: cutting propagation is inseparable from sunlight, because cuttings continue to carry out photosynthesis to produce nutrients and rooting materials to supply their rooting needs. However, the stronger the light, the higher the temperature in the cuttings, the more exuberant transpiration of cuttings, and the more water consumed, which is not conducive to the survival of cuttings. Therefore, after cutting, the sun must be shaded by 50% to 80%, and then gradually removed after the root system grows: remove the sunscreen at 4:00 every sunny day, and cover it before 9:00 the next day.

3. Striping propagation

Select a strong branch and peel off the bark from about 15cm to 30cm below the top. The width of the peeled wound is about one centimeter, and the depth is limited to just peeling off the skin. Cut a piece of film 10 cm 20 cm long and 5 cm 8 cm wide, put some wet garden soil on it, and wrap it around like a wound. The upper and lower ends of the film are tightly tied and bulged in the middle. Take root in about four to six weeks. After taking root, cut off the root system along the edge of the branch to form a new plant.

1. Potting or transplanting

When the small seedlings are installed in the pot or the large plants that have been raised for several years are transferred to the basin, a coarse-grained substrate 2cm thick is first put into the bottom of the basin as a filter layer, which is sprinkled with a fully mature organic fertilizer as the base fertilizer, with a thickness of about 1cm to 2cm, and then covered with a thin layer of matrix, which is about 1cm thick, and then put into the plant to separate the fertilizer from the root system and avoid root burning. You can choose one of the following substrates for potting: vegetable garden soil: slag = 3RV 1; orchard soil: medium coarse river sand: sawdust (dregs) = 4RU 1v 2; or one of paddy soil, pond mud, and rotten leaf soil. Pour water once after putting on the basin and keep it in a shaded environment for a week. When transplanting the seedlings, first dig the planting hole, sprinkle a layer of organic fertilizer at the bottom of the planting hole as the base fertilizer (base fertilizer), the thickness is about 46.6 cm, and then cover a layer of soil and put it into the seedlings to separate the fertilizer from the roots and avoid burning roots. After putting it into the seedling, backfill the soil, cover the root system, and trample the soil with your feet and water it once.