Balloon flower planting benefits and conditions: Balloon flower planting methods
Balloon flower (Platycodon grandiflorus) is a plant that combines ornamental and medicinal value. Its medicinal part is the root, which has the effects of moistening the lungs, resolving phlegm and discharging pus. It is currently a plant with very good sales on the market, so many people want to grow it. So can growing balloon flower really bring good economic benefits?
Planting benefits of balloon flower
Growing balloon flower is the same as growing other crops; its advantage is that it does not take up the farming season. It is sown during the slack farming season (from the 11th month of the lunar calendar to March of the following year) and harvested during the slack farming season, with most of the growth period lasting one year. Each mu requires an input of 10,000 jin of barnyard manure or 100 jin of compound fertilizer, valued at 100 yuan, 2 kg of seed, priced at 160 yuan, and about 300 yuan for labor, totaling 560 yuan. The average annual yield is more than 1,000 kg, with high yields reaching 1,500 kg. Calculated at an export-grade rate of 70%, that is 700 kg, and at the current purchase price of 4 yuan/kg, the income per mu is 2,800 yuan. In addition, 300 kg of substandard product, processed into medicinal material (with a dry conversion ratio of 3:1), becomes 100 kg, and at the current purchase price of 10 yuan/kg, that is 1,000 yuan. There is also seed income: each mu produces 20 kg of seed in the same year, and at 40 yuan/kg that is another 800 yuan. The total income per mu is 4,600 yuan. After deducting costs, the income per mu is more than 3,800 yuan.
Planting conditions for balloon flower
Balloon flower prefers a warm and humid climate. It is cold-resistant, able to endure low temperatures of -40°C, and can also endure high temperatures of 40 degrees. It is drought-tolerant and afraid of waterlogging. It is suitable for growing in an environment with sufficient sunlight and abundant rainfall. As for soil requirements, deep soil layers and sandy loam or loam rich in organic matter are best. Seeds germinate in 15 days at 10-15°C; seeds kept until the next year have a lower germination rate and are not suitable for use as seed. The suitable growth temperature is 18-33°C. Two-year-old plants are prone to lodging in wind and rain.
Planting methods for balloon flower
1. Land preparation and fertilization: Choose a field of sandy loam with high terrain, good drainage, deep soil layers, loose and fertile soil, and rich in organic matter, and plow deeply and cultivate finely, with a plowing depth of more than 30 cm. Combined with land preparation, apply sufficient base fertilizer: per mu apply 5,000 kg of farmyard manure (or 100 kg of cake fertilizer), 25 kg of urea, 30 kg of diammonium phosphate, and 20 kg of potassium sulfate. Level the plot and harrow it fine, open drainage ditches around it, and wait for sowing.
2. Sowing: Balloon flower is propagated by seed. Sowing periods include spring sowing, summer sowing, autumn sowing and winter sowing, but winter sowing and spring sowing produce better and more uniform seedlings. When sowing, mix the balloon flower seeds with yellow sand at a ratio of 1:10, then evenly scatter them on the prepared bed surface, and rake over it twice in reverse to level it, so that the soil just covers the seeds. The sowing rate per mu is 2-3 kg.
Field management of balloon flower
1. Thinning and filling in seedlings: When the seedlings are 2 cm high, thin them appropriately; when the seedlings are 3—4 cm high, set the final spacing, preferably keeping 1 strong seedling at a spacing of 10-13 cm. Filling in seedlings is done at the same time as thinning, and transplanted seedlings should be moved with soil:
2. Cultivation and weeding: Carry out the first cultivation and weeding together with seedling thinning. After rain or watering, loosen the soil and weed once the soil is slightly dry. Usually, weeds should be removed whenever they appear, keeping the field free of weeds. After the plants grow large and close the rows, cultivation and weeding should no longer be carried out.
3. Fertilization: Combined with seedling thinning, final spacing and irrigation, apply dilute human urine and manure to promote seedling growth; when the seedlings are 67 cm high, apply 10 kg of urea and 20 kg of superphosphate per mu.
4. Topping: When the seedlings are 10 cm high, top the plants retained for seed production, in order to increase the number of seeds per fruit and the plumpness of the seeds, and improve seed quality.
5. Hilling: After topping, combined with fertilization, weed and hill up the soil to prevent the plants from being blown over and broken by wind.
6. Bud removal: Removing buds and picking flowers is an effective measure for increasing balloon flower yield. Spray 1,000 ml/L ethephon once at full bloom, which can basically achieve the purpose of flower removal, and the yield increases by 45% compared with no spraying.
7. Pest and disease control: The insect pests of balloon flower are mainly underground pests, such as cutworms, grubs, wireworms, etc. If cutworms occur, 40 ml/mu of decis can be used for control; grubs can be removed manually when plowing, and in the later stage after emergence, phoxim diluted 2,000 times can be poured for control. The diseases of balloon flower mainly include rot, that is, rot occurs at the junction between the root and the outside, causing the whole plant to die. For control, kangkuiling combined with streptomycin can be sprayed. For each vial of kangkuiling, add one vial of streptomycin, add 20 kg of water, and spray 0.5 mu of land.
The economic benefits of balloon flower are still quite good, but not everyone who grows it can make money. To get good benefits from balloon flower, you need to master its high-yield techniques. When growing balloon flower, you need to understand its growth habits, plant it at the right time, and strengthen field management later. Only by doing these well will the balloon flower grow well and have high yield.