How to Grow Pistachios

Pistachios are a dried fruit of the nut family, and their nutritional importance is due to their concentrated amount of nutrients in such a small fruit. What tourist in Tuscany has not been delighted by the irresistible taste of pistachio ice cream?, of the best in the world. Its secret is simple, the unparalleled freshness, flavor and nutrition of the pistachio, that dried fruit that captivates palates due to its unique mix.

Pistachio crops are world famous for their nutritionally rich makeup and malleable flavor that fits into a wide variety of foods, from the famous Tuscan ice creams to homemade salad dressing.

Benefits of pistachios

Among the nutritional benefits of these delicious nuts are:

• They provide a large amount of energy.
• They contain protein, vitamin B complex, good fats, potassium and iron.
• It is a source of fiber and prevents increases in blood sugar.
• Pistachios help keep heart pressure stable.
• Helps the body naturally absorb vitamins A, D and E.
• Reduces the risk of cerebrovascular diseases.
• Helps in the prevention of anemia.
• Also, it is a fabulous companion for desserts and other meals, as a nutritional complement.

Instructions for growing pistachios

The pistachio tree is resistant to extreme climates. It needs to be pollinated by a male species to bear fruit and its development period takes between five and seven years.

Due to its strong tree characteristics, pistachio cultivation requires a stationary climate that provides cold and warm environments in its different periods of maturation, flowering and pollination.

Here is a simple guide so you can grow your own pistachio tree.

1. The main thing is to prepare the ground: you must plow the earth and mark the ground with a moldboard pass to smooth hardness of the ground.
2. Mark the areas where you plan to plant the pistachio plants with stakes or sticks.
3. At the time of planting, you just have to remove the sticks and plant the plant in the hole.
4. The depth of the hole should be equivalent to that of the plant.
5. The pistachio tree does not need to be fertilized until the tree is about seven years old.
6. The care of the plant in its growth process must be meticulous, so that it reaches the ideal measures to be grafted.
7. During the summer, water the tree every ten days with enough water but without flooding it.
8. When your trees are a certain height, point out those male and female varieties, for the subsequent pollination process.

Make grafts

1. With a stem of about eight millimeters you can make the graft to pollinate the plant.
2. Attach the stem as high as possible from the plant and perform the same procedure every twenty days as many times as you want.
3. For the process of setting, you can take the stem and make a cut to both the bark of it and the graft, and join both until they are set. This is known as bud grafting.
4. After grafting, make a trellis of strong material that supports the tree so that it does not bend.
5. Hold the bud tightly to the frame, but be careful not to stick them.
6. Continuous rubbing of any material with the plant could kill it.
7. If the tree is male, you can prune it when it reaches two meters.
8. Remember to be careful not to cut the suckers that are about 40 centimeters from the ground.
9. If the tree is female, be careful to leave the shoots that are between 1.20 m. at 1.70m. Tall.
10. When pruning, you should leave only three suckers, so that they form three branches far enough apart from each other.
11. You will know the right moment to harvest the pistachio fruit, when it shows an opaque coloration and the shell separates slightly from the skin, not before or after this.

What do you need to grow pistachios?

• Adequate space for planting.
• Fertilizer.
• Water for irrigation and planting.
• Sunlight.
• Rootstock.

Tips for growing pistachios

Pistachio cultivation can be a bit slow, but here we present a series of tips regarding what you need so that your crop is in the best conditions:

• The pistachio has many varieties, choose the one that best suits the type of soil and climate, so that you obtain productive pollination. A technique with more production possibilities is that you choose different types of pistachios to plant.
• The ideal areas for pistachio cultivation are those that go through the different seasons.
• Each period of tree growth requires a specific climate.
• The plant must be on a rootstock that gives it a rustic and strong formation at the time of being pollinated.
• To avoid the spread of weeds that harm the plant, always try to keep the soil moist but without flooding the soil.
• The more times you repeat the grafting process, the more chances you have of an abundant production.

Recognizing the pistachio fruit is quite simple; among the characteristics of this delicious fruit are the following:

• Pistachio fruits are drupes that reproduce just like bunches of grapes.
• They have yellowish skin, but it turns red if they are exposed to the sun a lot.
• The shell protects the inner fruit, it is hard and cream or beige in color, but it opens easily.
• The fruit is greenish in color, with a smooth texture and sweet flavor.
• The shape of these fruits is oval, like an egg, with a slight opening that crosses their ends.
• Its shell is easily opened in half to extract its edible heart.