How to Grow Yellow Chives? A Detailed Guide to Sowing Methods and Fertilizer and Water Management Techniques
Yellow chives are also known as "chive sprouts," "yellow chive sprouts," and "yellow chives," commonly called "chive white," and are the product of chives that have been blanched and turned yellow through softening cultivation. When chives are cut off from light and grown entirely in darkness, they cannot carry out photosynthesis or synthesize chlorophyll due to the lack of sunlight, and so they turn yellow, which is called "yellow chives." Because they never see sunlight, they take on a yellow-white color, and their nutritional value is inferior to that of regular chives. They belong to the Liliaceae family, a perennial herbaceous plant, and the seeds and leaves are used in medicine. They have effects such as strengthening the stomach, refreshing the mind, stopping sweating and astringing, tonifying the kidney and supporting yang, and securing essence.
Yellow chives are rich in protein, sugar, the minerals calcium, iron, and phosphorus, provitamin A, vitamin B2, vitamin C, and nicotinic acid, as well as glycosides and bitter substances. They have the effect of dispelling cold and dissipating blood stasis, enhancing physical strength, and can also improve appetite, as well as strengthen bones and tendons and treat injuries. However, people with yin deficiency and internal heat, or with eye conditions, should avoid eating them.
The "Compendium of Materia Medica" records that "yellow chives" have the effect of securing the kidneys and reducing urination.
Chive roots are pungent in taste and warm in nature; they enter the liver, stomach, and kidney meridians. They have the effects of warming the middle and opening the appetite, moving qi and invigorating blood, tonifying the kidney and supporting yang, and dissipating blood stasis. Chive leaves are sweet, pungent, and salty in taste, warm in nature, and enter the liver, stomach, and kidney meridians. They warm the middle and move qi, dissipate blood stasis, and resolve toxins. Chive seeds are pungent and salty in taste and warm in nature, and enter the liver and kidney meridians. They tonify the liver and kidneys, warm the lower back and knees, and strengthen yang and secure essence. The whole chive can tonify the kidneys and benefit the stomach, fill the lung qi, dissipate blood stasis and move stagnation, calm the five viscera, move qi and blood, stop sweating and astringe, and stop hiccups. In dietary therapy, it can also treat conditions such as impotence, premature ejaculation, spermatorrhea, frequent urination, cold pain in the abdomen, deficient heat in the stomach, diarrhea, white turbidity, amenorrhea, abnormal vaginal discharge, dull pain in the lower back and knees, and postpartum hemorrhage.
Sowing of Yellow Chives
1) Seed preparation
Generally, only new seeds produced in the previous year are used. For sowing, dry seeds can be sown, or the seeds can be soaked to promote germination. In early spring, when temperatures are relatively low, dry seeds should be sown; in early summer, when temperatures rise, the seeds are generally soaked to promote germination. That is, 5 to 6 days before sowing, soak the seeds in warm water at 30°C to 40°C and stir, remove the shriveled seeds, change to warm water and soak for another 24 hours, then rinse with clean water, dry slightly, wrap in damp gauze, and place at 15°C to 20°C to promote germination. During germination, rinse once a day with clean water, and after 3 to 4 days, once the radicle emerges, they can be sown.
2) Sowing time and sowing rate
For producing yellow chives, sowing can be done in spring and autumn, with spring sowing being preferable. As long as the monthly average temperature steadily passes 5°C, the sown chive seedlings can grow robustly. In Hunan Province, sowing is generally done from mid-March to mid-April, and at the latest cannot be postponed to the start of summer. Otherwise, with high temperatures, management is difficult and growth is poor. In short, seizing the opportunity and sowing early at the right time is an effective measure to extend the production period of chive seedlings and ensure a full stand of seedlings.
For the sowing rate, direct seeding requires 1.8 to 2 kg of seed per 666.7 sq m, while seedling raising and transplanting requires 1.3 to 1.5 kg; direct seeding is mostly used.
3) Sowing method
Before sowing, open east-west sowing furrows with a flat bottom on the seedbed at a row spacing of 73 to 80 cm. The furrow has a bottom width of 13 cm, a mouth width of 20 cm, and a depth of 17 cm.
When sowing, first apply a mixed fertilizer of phosphate fertilizer, compound fertilizer, and potassium fertilizer into the sowing furrow, at a rate of 50 to 100 kg per 666.7 sq m. After fertilizing, use a hoe to loosen the bottom slightly, break it up, and mix the fertilizer into the soil, then level the bottom and spread a thin layer of fine sand. In order to sow evenly, with seeds entering the soil at a uniform depth and emerging neatly, a special pressing board must also be made (a wooden board 100 cm long and 10 cm wide, with one end raised and a rope tied to it).
Place it in the center of the sowing furrow, with one person gently pressing down on the board and another person slowly pulling and dragging it forward, so that a groove mark appears in the furrow, and sow the seeds evenly into the groove mark. Cover with a 1 cm layer of fine mud and sand, then apply human and animal manure as a seed-covering fertilizer, with the concentration and amount depending on the weather. On sunny days, apply 800 kg per 666.7 sq m, with 50% water added; on rainy days, more can be applied, at 1000 kg, with no water added. To prevent rain washing and maintain moisture, add another layer of chopped straw or whole grass as mulch on top.
Fertilizer and Water Management of Yellow Chives
Vegetable farmers who grow yellow chives have a saying: "three sunny days means light drought, five sunny days means severe drought," and "the chive soil must not crack." This shows that supplying sufficient water and fertilizer and keeping the soil in a constantly moist state is very important for the growth of yellow chives. It is beneficial for tillering and leaf growth, increases the yield of the current year, and also increases the yield of the following year and delays plant aging. It can also make the leaf tissue tender, achieving the goal of improving quality. Spring-sown chive seedlings must be watered after sowing according to weather conditions; in dry weather, water once in the morning and once in the evening each day to keep them moist, so that the seeds germinate quickly and emerge early. Generally, after sowing dry seeds, they can germinate and emerge in 6 to 10 days; at this time, the whole-grass mulch should be removed promptly, and a 10% concentration of decomposed dilute human and animal manure should be applied once.
When the chive seedlings grow to 6 to 10 cm tall, apply a topdressing of 20% human and animal manure once. After 20 days, as the temperature rises, gradually reduce the fertilizer concentration, but increase the number of fertilizations and the total amount. On the 7th day, apply a 10% human and animal manure once. When the seedlings are 30 to 40 cm tall, increase the fertilizer concentration, generally to 30% human and animal manure, and for every 50 kg, 0.2 to 0.3 kg of urea can also be added, to promote rapid growth of the chive seedlings, thick and strong pseudostems, and wide, thick leaves. If drought occurs, then furrow irrigation with running water must be used, and after the water recedes, apply 50% human and animal manure.