Things to know when growing cinnamon

There are hundreds of species in the genus Cinnamomum native to tropical and subtropical regions. They are somewhat different in shape, some are tall trees and others growing cinnamon as smaller shrubs.

The foliage of the cinnamon tree is typically glossy green to yellow-green, and they produce small flowers. Both the bark and leaves are fragrant thanks to their oils. it is the inner bark of many different species that are used to make spices. Cinnamon species are generally slow to medium growing and can be planted in spring or early fall.

Cinnamon is one of the plants that grow very strongly in tropical climates in Asian countries in general and Vietnam in particular. Currently, Cinnamon is also considered one of the medicinal plants contributing to the development of the economy in many localities in the country.

When exploiting Cinnamon trees, they are almost entirely exploited from the trunk, bark, leaves, and fruits.

Cinnamon belongs to the camphor family, also known as Jade Cinnamon. In addition, there are places also called Nhuc cinnamon or Gia Tan Nhuc cinnamon. In the literature it also has the scientific name Cinnamomum cassia blume.

Cinnamon is a large tree with green leaves all year round. Stems upright, 7-10 meters tall, bark brown to reddish brown. The bark is spongy and rough, and the young branches of the tree are 4-sided, covered with yellow villi.

Cinnamon leaves are alternate, petioles are hairy, leaves are shaped from wide lanceolate to long oval. The length is from 13 to 16 centimeters, with 3 distinct veins running along the leaf. The upper surface of the leaves is green, glossy, the back side has short villi, the leaf tail is pointed.

In the past, people used to choose the big, fat, and strong cinnamon trees of the low cinnamon forest to take care of them separately. About 20-30 years later, the skin will be peeled and processed and made medicine. But the quantity of such cultivated cinnamon is very small and the quality is not guaranteed. To ensure quality as well as to satisfy the demand for medicine. People organize to plant cinnamon into a forest to make it easier to get the bark.

The land for planting cinnamon forests must choose a place with a gentle slope toward the sun and enough light. Before planting, it is necessary to make the whole soil, clean the weeds. Planted in rows of 5 meters, plants should be spaced 3.5 meters apart. Dig a hole about 1 meter wide, about 67cm deep, each hole fertilizes with about 15kg of garbage and manure as fertilizer.

At the beginning of the lunar year, choose cinnamon trees that grow normally in low cinnamon forests. Straight trunk about 1.3 meters high, dug up and cut off the canopy, wrapped a piece of the trunk, leaving a 13 -17cm section above for the tree to sprout.

When planting, first fill the hole with half of the soil, then lift the stump slightly. Continue backfilling, backfilling to level with the ground. The soil in the hole needs to be tight. After planting, water the plants.

Taking care of the tall cinnamon forest

The purpose of planting tall cinnamon forests is to harvest the bark and leaves to extract the best quality cinnamon oil. Therefore, special attention must be paid to care techniques.

Intercropping

The comprehensive exploitation of forest land intercropped with agricultural crops is not only beneficial for the cinnamon tree but also can harvest some food. In general, it is possible to intercrop continuously for the first 3-4 years. After stopping intercropping, weeding and plowing a few times a year should be done. The soil shouldn’t have a lot of weeds that will affect the yield and value of cinnamon.

Type of Manure	Fertilize	Tree Age
		1-2	2-3	2-3	3-8
NPK	200-250	250-300	300-350	300-350	350-400
Manure	2000-3000
Feces from animal carcasses				2000-3000	2000-4000

 

It is necessary to fertilize once a year, the fertilizer is mainly rich in humus and ash. In early summer, fertilize each trench around the base of the tree and then backfill with soil. When the tree is over 17cm tall, fertilize with a lot of phosphorus and organic matter. fertilizing animal carcasses is the best to promote the formation of essential oils.

Pruning growing cinnamon

At the beginning of planting, the trees were spaced 4×6 cm apart. After 10 years, the tree will close the canopy, so it is necessary to timely prune. Cut trees in places that are too thick, otherwise it will affect bark formation and bark yield. After every 3-4 years, pruning again. Finally, when half of the trees are left, there is no need to prun them anymore.

Choose varieties

It is recommended to choose the seeds of cinnamon essential oil and use the seeds of this plant to propagate. Select trees for seedlings that are over 10 years old, healthy, and free from pests and diseases. Seedlings need to be marked with the number of stamps on the tree for monitoring, if the recording schedule does well, the growth process of the tree will serve as a basis for future selection.

Plants that are selected for breeding need to be enhanced with special care, pest control, and weed control. Apply a lot of phosphate fertilizer during the flowering period to promote seed development and ensure good seeds.