Chinese chestnut

Classification of families and genera

Domain: Eukaryotic domain

Field: the plant kingdom in the plant kingdom

Door: angiosperm magnolia door

Class: Subclass Dicotyledonous Magnolia

Objective: To study the beech order of the genus Beech.

Family: FAGACEAE/FAGACEAE.

Genus: Castanea mollissima

Brief description

Castanea mollissima is the general name of trees or shrubs of Castanea in beech family. There are about 8-9 species, which are native to temperate regions in the northern hemisphere. Most species of chestnut are deciduous trees, with a height of 20-40 meters, and only a few are shrubs. All kinds of chestnut bear edible nuts, with simple leaves, oval or oblong shape, length 10-30 cm, width 4- 10 cm, and bristles on the edges. Monoecious, the male flowers are erect catkins, and the female flowers are single or several in the involucre. Nuts are enclosed in the involucre of dense panicle, the diameter of involucre is 5- 1 1 cm, and there are 1-7 nuts in one involucre.

Chestnut was once the main tree species in the eastern United States, but it was almost extinct after being infected by a fungal disease, and chestnut trees in Europe and West Asia were also susceptible to infection. However, chestnut trees from China and Japan are resistant to this fungus, so they are now introduced to the United States to cultivate hybrid trees that can resist the fungus.

[Edit this paragraph] Distribution

The genus is distributed in Asia, Europe, America and Africa in the northern hemisphere. The main cultivated varieties are European chestnut and Japanese chestnut.

[Edit this paragraph] In China.

Chestnut is one of the earliest cultivated fruit trees in China, with a cultivation history of about 2000 ~ 3000 years. The leaves are lanceolate or oblong, and the leaf margin is serrated. Flowers unisexual, monoecious; Male flowers are inflorescences. When ripe, the involucre splits and chestnuts fall off. Nuts are purple-brown, yellow-brown or nearly smooth, and the flesh is yellow. Fruit contains sugar, starch, protein, fat, vitamins and minerals.

Chestnut varieties in China can be roughly divided into two categories: northern chestnut and southern chestnut. Chestnut in North China has small nuts and waxy flesh, which is suitable for frying. The famous varieties are Ming chestnut, Jian tou you chestnut and Ming Jian chestnut. Chestnut in South China has large nuts and japonica pulp, which is suitable for vegetable use. There are nine varieties, such as Li Kui, Chestnut with shallow thorns and so on. This tree is very strong. The root system is developed with mycorrhiza. Drought-resistant and barren, suitable for mountain cultivation. Suitable for acidic soil. Multi-row sowing can also be grafted and propagated. Wood is dense, hard and moisture-proof. Branches, barks and involucres contain tannins, and tannin extracts can be extracted.

Chestnut has a long history. Sima Qian in the Western Han Dynasty clearly recorded that "Yan, Qin Li, ... were all waiting with thousands of families in Qian Qian." In Historical Records and Biography of Huo Zhi. In the Biography of Su Qin, there is a saying that "Qin said to wait for Japan: the south has the favor of Jieshi Yanmen, and the north has the benefit of jujube and chestnut. Although the people don't work hard, they are full of dates and chestnuts, which is called abundance. " Lu Ji also commented on the Book of Songs in the Western Jin Dynasty: "All five parties have chestnuts, but those born by Yuyang and Fanyang are sweet and delicious, and the place is not as good as that." It can be seen that the working people in our country have planted chestnuts as early as 6 thousand years ago. Chestnut is mostly born in low hills and gentle slopes and floodplains, and Zhen 'an in Hebei, Shandong and southern Shaanxi is a famous chestnut producing area.

Chestnut in Laixi is a deciduous tree. Before fruiting, young trees grew vigorously, with strong branches and straight trees. Results After that, the growth gradually slowed down and the crown was semicircular. After entering the full fruit stage, the growth is moderate, the branches are short and the crown is round. The leaves are large, rectangular and serrated, and the whole leaves are flat along the main veins. The fruit is big, with an average weight of 25g, which is 2.5 times that of Hong Guang chestnut. Early fruiting, high and stable yield. Grafting on annual rootstock, the seed setting rate in the second year is 665438 0.5%, and grafting on three-year rootstock, the seed setting rate in that year is 37.5%; The yield of three-year-old young trees is115 hectares, which is 1. 1.8 times that of Hong Guang chestnut. 12 years, the output of spanning trees per hectare reached 382.8kg, which was 13.8% higher than that of Hong Guang chestnut. Sweet and glutinous, superior in quality, superior to Hong Guang chestnut. Among them, the content of vitamin C is 36.5 mg per100g fresh sample, the content of soluble total sugar is 65438 0.54 mg per100g fresh sample, and the dry sample contents of starch, crude protein and crude fat are 26.57%, 7.24% and 65438 0.745% respectively. It has strong resistance and adaptability. It can be planted under the conditions of soil PH value of 6.5~7.5 and salt content less than 0.2%, with high and stable yield, less pests and diseases, and wide adaptability to rainfall and climate. Mainly distributed in Yuan Shang Town and Malianzhuang Town, Laixi City.

Growth characteristics

Like light, insufficient light can cause branches to die or bear no fruit. Not strict with the soil, like fertile, moist, well-drained sandy or callose loam, and have strong resistance to harmful gases. Avoid stagnant water and sticky soil. Deep roots, developed lines, strong germination, pruning resistance and many pests. In addition, its varieties are cold-resistant and drought-tolerant. The service life is over 300 years.

Cyclobalanopsis has dense branches and leaves, dense shade and full crown. Suitable for shading trees, 2 ~ 3 trees are planted in clusters and can be arranged in the shade of buildings. Tree species with evergreen forest as the keynote have the effect of seclusion in the mountains. Greening in industrial and mining areas can be used as sound insulation, wind prevention, fire prevention forest or high wall hedge, which is suitable for forming scenic forests with colorful tree species in scenic spots.

Seeding or grafting propagation

Seedlings begin to blossom and bear fruit in about 6 years, which is late in flowering and low in yield. In production, 2-3-year-old seedlings are often used as rootstocks and grafted before and after leaf opening. Don't plant too deep, it is better to expose the root neck of the seedlings. Treat pests in time.

[Edit this paragraph] Nutritional value

Sweet and delicious, containing starch 5 1 ~ 60%, protein 5.7- 10.7%, fat 2-7.4%, sugar, starch, crude fiber, carotene, vitamins A, B, B: C, calcium, phosphorus, potassium and other minerals, which can be absorbed and utilized by human body up to 98%. Calculated by ten grains, the calorie is 204 calories, and the fat content is less than 1 g, which is the lowest in the shelled fruit. Widely used in food processing, cooking banquets and non-staple food. Chestnuts are suitable for raw and fried. Sugar-fried chestnuts and roast chicken are delicious. They can be ground into powder or made into various dishes, cakes, cans and so on. Chestnut is easy to store and keep fresh, which can prolong the market supply time. Chestnut is mostly produced on hillside, which is called "healthy food" abroad, and belongs to the first-class fruit of invigorating stomach and kidney and prolonging life.

Other values

Chestnut is a treasure, which can be processed into dried chestnut, chestnut powder, chestnut sauce, chestnut pulp, cakes, canned food and so on. Chestnut soup is a kind of nutritious candy suitable for all ages. Chestnut tree is hard, straight, corrosion-resistant and moisture-resistant, and it is a good material for manufacturing military industry, vehicles, boats and furniture. Branches and leaves, bark and thorns are rich in tannin, and baking gum can be extracted; Flowers are a good source of honey. All parts of chestnuts can be used as medicine. Chestnut can invigorate the spleen and qi, and eliminate damp-heat. The shell is called astringent to cure nausea, the bark decoction washes erysipelas, and the root can cure kidney qi and other diseases.

Chestnuts are widely used as food in Europe, Asia and America. In medieval southern Europe, it was the main source of carbohydrates in the food of residents living in forests.

Chestnut wood is very durable, not easy to be corroded, black in color and beautiful in pattern, and it is a very good decorative and furniture material. However, due to the slow growth of chestnut trees, the price of large-size chestnut trees is very expensive.

Tannic acid and tannin extract can be extracted from chestnut bark, which is an important raw material for leather industry. Leaves can be fed to tussah.

★ chestnuts should not be eaten more. Raw food is not easy to digest, and too much cooked food is easy to stagnate. People with diabetes should eat less or not, because chestnut has a high sugar content.

curative effect

As a kind of food, the most popular method in China at present is to stir-fry chestnuts with sugar and mix brown sand with chestnuts, so that chestnuts are heated evenly and the sugar in chestnuts is not easy to lose. Fried chestnuts are sweet and delicious. There are steamed buns with chestnut noodles in Beijing snacks, which are said to come from the palace and are appreciated by Empress Dowager Cixi.

Chestnut has the functions of nourishing stomach, strengthening spleen, tonifying kidney and strengthening tendons. Compendium of Materia Medica: "Chestnuts are sweet and warm, and enter the spleen, stomach and kidney meridians." "Sun Simiao in the Tang Dynasty said:" Chestnuts are also the fruit of kidney, and kidney disease should be eaten. "Compendium of Materia Medica points out:" Chestnuts can cure kidney deficiency, weakness of waist and legs, tonify kidney and strengthen stomach. " "Some people have cold inside and diarrhea, so it is good to eat twenty or thirty chestnuts. "Su Dongpo's younger brother Su Zi once wrote a poem praising the curative effect of chestnuts." Old age increased my back and feet, and Shan Weng passed it on to me. For the guests, the morning is prosperous and the evening is prosperous, and the white jade slurry is harvested three times. "Eating chestnut can replenish qi and blood, nourish the stomach, tonify the kidney and strengthen the spleen; Raw food also has the effect of treating waist and leg pain, relaxing muscles and activating collaterals. Chestnuts contain high starch, which can provide high calories, while potassium helps to maintain the normal heartbeat law, and cellulose can strengthen the intestine and keep the excretory system working normally.

Because chestnuts are rich in soft dietary fiber, diabetics can also taste them in moderation. However, chestnuts are difficult to digest when eaten raw, and cooked food is easy to lag, so it is not appropriate to eat more at once. It is best to treat chestnuts as snacks between meals, or eat them during meals, rather than eating them in large quantities after meals, so as not to consume too many calories, which is not conducive to maintaining weight. Fresh chestnuts are prone to mildew and deterioration, and eating moldy chestnuts will be poisoned, so spoiled chestnuts cannot be eaten.

Chinese medicine believes that chestnut is sweet and warm, non-toxic, and has the medical functions of strengthening the spleen and liver, strengthening the body and strengthening the bones. Regular consumption of raw food can cure waist and leg weakness, and shell and bark have astringent effect; Fresh leaves can be used externally to treat skin inflammation; Flowers can cure carbuncle, diarrhea and hernia. Chestnuts are often used in folk remedies. Eating one or two chestnuts raw every morning and evening can cure kidney deficiency and dysuria in the elderly. Raw chestnuts are mashed into mud and applied to the affected area, which can cure traumatic injury, swelling and pain of bones and muscles, and have the functions of relieving pain, stopping bleeding and absorbing sepsis.

It contains a lot of nutrients such as starch, protein, fat and B vitamins, and is known as the "king of dried fruits". Can be used for preventing and treating diseases such as hypertension, coronary heart disease, arteriosclerosis and osteoporosis.

At the same time, regular eating is good for children's oral ulcers and adult oral ulcers that are difficult to heal for a long time.

Chinese medicine believes that chestnuts can tonify spleen and stomach, tonify kidney and strengthen tendons, and promote blood circulation to stop bleeding. It has a good curative effect on kidney deficiency, so it is also called "the fruit of kidney", especially for diarrhea due to kidney deficiency in the elderly. Regular consumption can strengthen the body and cure diseases.

Public goods

C. alder leaves

Japanese chestnut

American chestnut

Pearl chestnut

China chestnut

American hazelnut chestnut

American dwarf chestnut

European chestnut

C. Seghini

[Edit this paragraph] Planting techniques:

First, the reproductive characteristics:

Chestnut has a wide range of adaptation to climate and soil conditions. The suitable annual average temperature is10.5-265438 0.8℃. Excessive temperature will lead to insufficient hibernation, poor growth and development, and low temperature will easily lead to frostbite. Chestnut likes moist soil, but it is afraid of rain and waterlogging. If there is too much rainfall, the soil will accumulate water for a long time, which will easily affect the growth of roots, especially mycorrhiza. Therefore, it is not suitable to develop chestnut orchards in low-lying and waterlogged areas. Chestnut is sensitive to soil PH value, and is suitable for growing in slightly acidic soil with pH value of 5-6. This is because chestnut is a high manganese plant, which can activate nutrients such as manganese and calcium under acidic conditions, which is beneficial to the absorption and utilization of chestnut. Xuzhou is located in the southern edge of Huangtan, with an annual average temperature of13.7-14.1℃ and an annual precipitation of 782-946 mm, which is suitable for the growth and development of millet trees.

Second, the cultivation management technology:

(a) chestnut garden selection:

Chestnut orchard should choose sandy loam with low groundwater level and good drainage. Avoid planting in places with saline-alkali soil, low humidity and strong wind. In order to open up millet orchards in hilly areas, we should choose areas near mountains with gentle terrain and thick soil layers, and then gradually expand to areas with poor conditions.

(2) Variety selection:

The selection of varieties should be based on local excellent varieties, such as Paoche No.2, Chen Guo 1, etc., and Shi Feng, Jinfeng, Haifeng, Qingmaoruanci, Chushuhong and other varieties should be introduced appropriately. According to different edible requirements, fried chestnut varieties should be given priority to, and excellent chestnut varieties should be developed appropriately, taking into account foreign trade export and domestic market demand. At the same time, early, middle and late varieties should be reasonably matched.

(3) Rational allocation of pollination trees:

Chestnut mainly spreads pollen by wind. However, due to cross-pollination and self-pollination of chestnut, a single variety often produces empty bracts due to poor pollination. Therefore, new chestnut orchards must be equipped with 10% pollination trees. Practice has proved that it is better to use Chushuhong as pollination tree in our city.

(4) Reasonable close planting:

Reasonable close planting is the basic measure to improve the yield per unit area. It is advisable to use 30-40 plants per mu in plain chestnut orchards and 40-60 plants per mu in mountain chestnut orchards. It is planned to plant 60-11plant per mu in close planting chestnut orchard, and then gradually carry out alternate thinning.

(5) Rational fertilization:

Rational fertilization is an important basis for high yield of chestnut orchard. The base fertilizer should be mainly soil mixed fertilizer, so as to improve the soil, improve the soil's ability to retain fertilizer and water, and provide more comprehensive nutrient elements. The best application time is autumn after fruit picking, during which the temperature is high and the fertilizer is easy to decompose; At the same time, it is in the new root stage, which is beneficial to absorption, thus promoting the accumulation of nutrients in the tree and playing a good role in the differentiation of female flowers in the coming year. Topdressing is mainly available nitrogen fertilizer, combined with phosphorus and potassium fertilizer, and the topdressing time is early spring and summer. Generally, topdressing is 0.3-0.5 kg urea per plant of newly planted fruit trees in spring, and 2 kg urea per plant in full fruit stage. After topdressing, water should be combined to give full play to fertilizer efficiency. Topdressing in summer is carried out from late July to mid-August. At this time, the application of available nitrogen fertilizer and phosphorus fertilizer can promote the increase of fruit grain number, full pulp and improve fruit quality. Top dressing outside the roots can be carried out many times a year, and the key points should be done twice. Spraying 0.3%-0.5% urea and 0.3%-0.5% borax for the first time in early spring when the basal leaves of branches turn from yellow to green, promotes the function of basal leaves, improves photosynthesis and promotes the formation of potted flowers. The second time is to spray 0. 1% potassium dihydrogen phosphate twice at intervals between1month and half a month before harvest, which is mainly used to improve photosynthetic efficiency and promote the transfer of nutrients such as leaves to fruits, and has a significant effect on increasing single grain weight.

(6) Irrigation:

Chestnuts like water. Generally, watering once before germination and once during the rapid growth period of fruit is beneficial to the normal growth and development of fruit trees and the improvement of fruit quality.

(7) plastic trimming:

Pruning of chestnut trees can be divided into winter pruning and summer pruning. Winter pruning from defoliation to germination in the following spring can promote the growth of millet trees and the formation of female flowers. The main methods are cutting short, thinning branches, retracting, slow releasing, pulling branches and carving. Summer pruning mainly refers to germination, pit removal, emasculation and branch thinning in the growing season, and its function is to promote branching, increase female flowers, and improve seed setting rate and single grain weight. 1, shortcut: cut off part of annual branches. Short cutting can promote branching, enhance tree vigor, compact crown, reduce male flowers and adjust nutrient distribution. The leafy trees can be pruned in a delayed way, and they can be cut short after germination. 2. Retraction: it is a short cut of perennial branches. It is mostly used for perennial branches with weak growth, outward displacement of fruit and serious exposure in holes. 3. Drainage: that is, the raw branches, light blocking branches and slender branches in the cavity are drained from the base. 4, wearing a hat scissors: cut short near the new sharp wheel mark in winter, and the coring time is different. Leave 2-4 small buds on the ring mark of the new tip, which is called movable cap pruning. If handled properly, only the small buds on the cap and the big buds under the ring mark can produce fruiting branches. Leaving no short buds on the ring mark of the new tip is called wearing a dead hat to prune, so that the big buds under the ring mark produce fruiting branches. Under normal circumstances, the weak branches wear dead hat scissors, and the strong branches wear live hat scissors. 5, slow release: slow release is not cut. Its main function is to disperse nutrition and relieve tree vigor. Slow-release pruning is often used for lush trees. 6. Branching and scribing: For the strong and vigorous auxiliary branches whose crown is not pitted, flatten them when the juice flows to the bud in spring, and scribble above the bud that needs to germinate, so as to make them grow strong and vigorous branches. When pruning in winter, the slowly released and leveled branches are retracted to the part where the strong branches are drawn. 7. Nucleation: When the new bud grows to 30 cm, remove the top of the new bud. Mainly used for flourishing branches, the purpose is to promote early fruiting of branches. Pick your heart 2-3 times a year. The new buds of the first fruit-bearing trees are long and lush. When the front branches of the fruit grow out, 3-5 buds are left for picking. After the top of the fruit is pitted, about three thick branches can be formed, which increases the proportion of fruiting branches and slows down the outward migration of fruiting parts. 8. castration: only a few male inflorescences are left on the branches, and the rest are gone. Its main function is to control nutrition, promote the formation of female flowers and improve the strength of fruiting.

(eight) thinning flowers and fruits and pollination:

When thinning flowers, you can directly remove young flowers and inferior flowers by hand, and try to keep big flowers and good flowers. Generally, it is advisable to leave 1-3 female flowers per fruiting branch. It is best to use fruit thinning scissors and leave 1 single bract on each node. When thinning flowers and fruits, we should master the principle of leaving more outside the crown and less inside. Artificial pollination should choose varieties with good quality, large grain, early heating period and easy peeling as pollination trees. When the anthers of the male inflorescence on a branch or most flower clusters in the male inflorescence just change from green to yellow, spread the collected male inflorescence on glass or clean white paper before 5 am, put it in a dry and windless place, turn it twice a day, and put the fallen pollen and anthers into a clean brown bottle for later use. When the polymorphic stigma of three female flowers in an involucre completely extends to the inverted yellow stone, dip the pollen on the inverted stigma with a brush or pencil with a rubber head. If the height of the tree is not convenient for dipping, it can be made by shaking gauze bags or spraying powder according to the ratio of pollen 1 serving and sweet potato powder filler of 5 parts.

(9) Harvest and storage:

1. Harvest: There are two ways to harvest chestnuts, namely picking chestnuts and beating millet. The method of picking chestnuts is to pick chestnuts manually after the chestnuts are fully heated and naturally fall to the ground. In order to pick chestnuts easily, weeds on the ground should be removed before chestnut buds break out. When harvesting, shake the tree first, and then pick up all the fallen chestnuts. Be sure to pick it up every morning and evening. The advantages of chestnut picking method are fullness, high yield, good quality and strong storage resistance. The chestnut beating method is to knock down the mature chestnut bracts in batches with bamboo poles, and then pick up the chestnut bracts and chestnuts. Harvesting in this way is usually carried out every 2-3 days. When the buds are opened, tap the twigs inward from the periphery of the crown to shake off the chestnut buds so as not to damage the branches and leaves. It is forbidden to lay all chestnut buds with different maturity at one time. The harvested chestnuts should be treated as soon as possible, because the temperature is high, the water content of chestnuts is high, the breathing intensity is high, and a lot of heat is generated. Chestnuts are easily moldy if they are not treated in time. The treatment method is to choose a cool and ventilated place, spread a thin layer of chestnut bracts with a thickness of 20-30 cm, water them every day, cool down and sweat for 2-3 days, and then thresh them manually.

2, storage: chestnut has three fears: one is afraid of heat, the other is afraid of dryness, and the third is afraid of freezing. At room temperature, chestnut rot mainly occurs within one month after harvest, which is called dangerous period. 2-3 months after harvest, there is little rot, which is a safe period. Therefore, temporary storage before shipment or storage before kiln storage is the key to prevent chestnut rot. A relatively simple and easy temporary storage method is to choose a cold and humid place and build a storage shed with corresponding size according to the number of chestnuts. The roof of the shed is covered with bamboo (wood) poles, covered with reed mats, and surrounded by branches or corn and sorghum stalks to prevent sun drying. The ground in the shed should be leveled, and the river sand with a thickness of about l0 cm should be paved, and then l chestnuts should be mixed according to the ratio of 3-5 parts. The chestnuts should be piled on it with a height of 30-40 cm, and the periphery of the pile should be paved with wet sand of 10cm. Turn it once every 3-5 days at the beginning, and turn it once every 5-7 days after half a month, and pick out rotten chestnuts every time. In order to prevent air drying, we should also pay attention to watering and moisturizing.