SMIARC Technoguide RUBBER NURSERY ESTABLISHMENT

SMIARC TechnoguideA publication of Department of Agriculture RFU XISouthern Mindanao Integrated Agricultural Research CenterBago Oshiro, Tugbok District, Davao CityBrochure No. 17 November 2007RUBBER NURSERYESTABLISHMENTI n the culture of rubber, the raising of the seedlings innurseries tending them carefully until the plants are readyfor transplanting or budding and planting in the field is widelyrecognized. This has been viewed as more economical andconvenient than direct field planting.

polybags.Maintenance of the NurseryA. Watering - Water the plants regularly. The availability of the constantsupply is important both ground and polybag nurseries.Germination Stages of Rubber Seedling1. Ungerminated Seed2. Stage A – A radicle has just emerged3. Stage B – Seed have develop spider root4. Stage C - (needle like) Fully developed rootsystem but still without leaves5. Stage D - It has leaves6. Stage E - Seedling with cotyledonB. Manuring - Apply fertilizer mixture two months fromtransplanting until 3-4 months before budding. A totalof 1,000 kg NPK fertilizer mixture apply in 2-3 splitdoses for 1 hectare nursery is sufficient for optimumgrowth.C. Weeding - Regular and careful weeding should beundertaken at least once a month during the first fewmonths.D. Spraying - Spray chemicals when necessary.E. Budding - The brown and green budding are the twotypes of budding which are in current use.Steps in Budding1. Wipe the base of the seedling stock. Make 2 parallel vertical incisionsat 6 mm apart, 5 cm long and 2.5 - 5 cm from the ground.2. Connect the bottom or top portion of lower upper of the parallelincisions with a horizontal cut.3. Open the resulting flap. Partially cut the lower portion leaving onehalfof the flaps.4. Insert the bud patch immediately and hold it firmly.5. Got a bud patch from the bud stick that is smaller than the flap ofthe stock. Slowly strip the flap leaving the bud eye at the middle.6. Do not expose the incisions. Wrap the incision starting from3

the lower cut going upward using 0.2 mm plastic budding tape with 2-3 cm width. Make sure that the edges of the tapes overlap each other.7. Open the tape after 21 days. A green bud patch which can be seenthrough the tape indicates successful budding. It is not successfulwhen patch becomes black.F. Cutting Back1. Cut back successfully budded plants at 3-5 cm from the bud eye (slidecutting) three weeks after budding.2. Apply paint to the newly cut seedlings.3. The bud often bear shoots at 7-10 days.4. Second storey of growth will begin 6 weeks later.5. A 6-8 week old budded seedlings (3 leaf storey) are ready for transplantingto the field.Budwood Multiplication Nursery EstablishmentGenerally, the purpose of establishing a budwood nursery is for the multiplicationof budwood for production of quality rubber planting materials.A. Site selection1. The land should be chosen in the same way as that of the seedlingnursery.2. Preferably flat with a loose friable fertilized soil.3. Near to water source.4. Well drained with a water table of 1/2 m.B. Land PreparationThe land should be cleared of all stumps, large roots and stones.Cultivate to a depth of 60 cm and prepare beds which allow 4 rowsspaced 1 meter apart, leaving a 60 cm margin on both sides.C. Distance of Planting1. Prepare beds/blocks with 4 rows spaced 1 meter at 120 cm apart betweenblocks.2. The rows are spaced 1 meter apart and the planting points marked 120cm apart preferably on the quincunx system. Such system may facilitatepoint to point attention and budwood cutting.3. In case of a temporary nursery for a single crop of budwood, a distanceof 30 cm x 30 cm or 60 cm x 60 cm according to the area availablecan be adapted. 4

4. Wherever necessary a 30 cm wide drainage canal can also be providedadjacent the 60 cm margin.D. Planting1. Planting the budwood nursery should be undertaken during themonths of July-October.2. Budded stumps/high stumps or sprouted seeds can be used as plantingmaterials.3. It is highly essential that the budwood from the nursery should becertified planting materials.4. Important precautions to be undertaken.a. Only certified materials should be used for theinitial introduction of a clonal material of thebudwood nursery.b. Blocks of each clonal material are demarcated withthe display of permanent boards showing thecorrect nomenclature of the clone.c. It is also necessary to prepare plan of thenursery with the planting points of each clonecorrectly numbered and keep safely for5

future reference.E. After Care of Bud Graft1. If the nursery is planted with germinated seeds for laterbudding, the young seedlings in the nursery should becared until the plants are ready for budding.2. All shoots emerging from the stocks should be pinch-offwhile still in a tender stage.3. Pinched off lateral shoots up to height of 2 meters.4. Maintenance of soil fertility by adequate manuring andprotection of the plants from pests and diseases are themost important cultural operations required in budwoodnursery.F. Fertilization1. The aim of manuring budwood nurseries is to develop themaximum quality of good budwood per plant during the periodof 10-20 months.2. For young rubber trees (3-12 months after transplanting),the use of 65 grams of complete fertilizer (14-14-14) isrecommended.3. During the 2 nd year, use 125 grams of 14-14-14 appliedevery 6 months or 2-3 months after cutting back of thebudwood.4. Apply fertilizer on the soil layer within 7.5 cm depth at 15-40 cm from the base depending on the age and size of thetree.G. Weed Control1. Clean-weed the budwood nursery at regular intervals inorder to avoid competition between the plants and weeds.2. Mulch the nursery with dried cutting weeds and other dryplant materials after every round weeding.H. Pests and Diseases ControlNo pests or diseases of serious nature requiring control

However, if pests or diseases has been observed, it isessential to identify the pest or to diagnose the diseases withthe help of experienced planters or technicians to take steps inprotecting the plants.I. Harvesting of Budwood1. A 2.5 to 4 cm in diameter budsticks with brown bark ansufficient development of corky tissue that gives matureappearance are the best for convenient and successfulbud grafting.2. Cut off the leaves at the base of the leaf stalk about oneweek before cutting the budwood.3. Normally, budwood is cut when brown bark reaches heightof two meters4. Cut budwood at 45 degree with a saw within 25-30 m ofthe union making sure that there will be 2-3 buds within a10-15 cm of the cut and from which growth may be renewed.5. Treat the cut end wit a tar or any disinfectant.6. Allow two buds to develop an opposite side from the cutend of the stem after the first crop of budwood has beentaken.7. Do not allow the branches to grow under 2 meters heightfrom the point of regeneration.8. Allow about 15 cm length of stem to grow from the point ofthe last regeneration to become the next crop of thebudwood.9. Allow only one shoot to develop to have quality budwoodto be maintained for 5-6 years. After this period, thenursery should be replanted with new rubber clones.J. Cutting Back of Budwood NurseryIn Mindanao, budding can be done best from April toSeptember. Old budwood are cut back for regeneration offresh budwood.

References:Rubber Nursery Establishment brochure—DA RFU 9 Zamboanga PeninzulaFor more information, please contactDr. Alfredo M. CayabyabChief, Research DivisionDA-SMIARC, Bago Oshiro, Tugbok District, Davao CityTelefax: (082) 293-0109 or (082) 293-0136E-mail : smiarc@yahoo.comProduced by :Knowledge Management-Farmer Information and Technology ServiceCenter (KMFITS),DA– SMIARC, Bago Oshiro, Tugbok District, DavaoCityDepartment of Agriculture XI is a member ofSouthern Mindanao Agriculture and ResourcesResearch and Development Consortium