Illicium verum is an evergreen tree Its fruit is called star anise, fennel, fennel and so on. It has a fragrant smell and is both a medicinal material and a common seasoning. Illicium verum and its branches and leaves can also extract the famous spice fennel oil, which is a commodity that China has firmly occupied the international market.

Illicium verum, which bears no fruit and lacks care, often has sparse branches and leaves and little or no flowers. For this "premature aging" Illicium verum, pruning and rejuvenation can make it "rejuvenate" and restore its fruiting ability. The method is as follows:

Fertilization before pruning

One or two months before pruning, apply an appropriate amount of compound fertilizer, generally 0.5 ~ 1.5 kg per plant. If there is no compound fertilizer, other fertilizers can be used in proportion. Fertilization before pruning can prevent the old branches from aging due to insufficient nutrition after pruning, promote the rapid germination and growth of the old branches and rejuvenate them as soon as possible.

Timely pruning

The pruning time of the old branches of Illicium verum should be chosen in autumn and winter, not in summer. Because summer is the flourishing period of Illicium verum, when pruning, the branches are damaged, the leaves are reduced, the knife edge is * * *, and the nutrients absorbed by the old branches from the leaves are reduced. Because the knife edge on the branch is exposed to the sun, it will "sweat" and lose water, which will easily lead to nutritional imbalance and failure and death of the old branch after cutting. Therefore, pruning should choose cool and rainy autumn and winter seasons.

Graded pruning

In order to reduce the dead branches and leaves of octagonal after pruning, it is best to prune it twice. Because there are few twigs with leaves on the old branches, if you only cut them once, the part left by the branches is too short. If you cut off the leafy branches at the tip, the left part will become a leafless polished rod, which is the easiest to die. The cut-off part is too short and the remaining branches are too long. Although some leafy branches are reserved to avoid dead branches, the new buds from these branches are thin and weak, which can not achieve the purpose of rejuvenation. So it's best to trim it twice. That is, when cutting for the first time, leave the tip longer, so that there are one or two buds and branches on the left side to prevent it from dying. When the remaining buds grow many small buds, trim them again and cut off the top part again. In this way, the rest will grow more and stronger new buds. According to experts, it only takes 3 to 5 years to prune the branches and leaves in this way, and the old trees will be "youthful, with tender branches and luxuriant leaves, and the output will rise again."