Control Methods for the Main Pest of Polygonatum: White Grubs
Polygonatum, also known as tiger ginger and chicken-head ginseng. It is the dried rhizome of Polygonatum kingianum, Polygonatum sibiricum, or Polygonatum cyrtonema of the Liliaceae family. According to differences in the original plant and the characteristics of the medicinal material, Polygonatum can be divided into three types: ginger-shaped Polygonatum, chicken-head Polygonatum, and large Polygonatum. The original plant of ginger-shaped Polygonatum is Polygonatum cyrtonema, the original plant of chicken-head Polygonatum is Polygonatum sibiricum, and the original plant of large Polygonatum (also known as dish-shaped Polygonatum) is Polygonatum kingianum. Among the three, ginger-shaped Polygonatum has the best quality.
Other names for Polygonatum
Sweet Polygonatum, ginger-shaped Polygonatum, white Polygonatum.
The original plants of Polygonatum
Polygonatum cyrtonema, also known as saccate Polygonatum and long-leaf Polygonatum. It is a perennial herb; the rhizome is thick and fleshy, often nodular and forming blocks, 1-2 cm in diameter; the aerial stem is cylindrical, hollow, 50-100 cm tall, unbranched. Leaves are alternate, elliptical, ovate-lanceolate to oblong-lanceolate, 10-18 cm long, 2-7 cm wide, with 5-7 veins, smooth and hairless on both sides, without petioles. It flowers from May to June; flowers are axillary, 2-7 arranged in umbels or solitary; the peduncle droops, about 2 cm long, and the pedicels are about 1 cm long; the perianth is yellow-green, tubular, 1.8-2.5 cm long, with 6 lobes, 3-4 mm long; there are 6 stamens, with filaments 3-4 mm long; slightly flattened, with small papillae or fine pubescence, the upper end slightly enlarged into a saccate protrusion, anthers 3.5-4 mm long; the ovary is superior, 3-locular, and the style is 12-15 mm long. The berry is spherical, about 1 cm in diameter, blue-black when mature, with 3-9 seeds. It grows under forest on mountain slopes, in grasslands, and in shrub forests. It is distributed in our province as well as Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui, Shandong, Jiangxi, Fujian, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Guangxi, Sichuan, Guizhou, Shaanxi, and other provinces and regions. Wild or cultivated.
White grubs are the main pest of Polygonatum. Below we will get to know white grubs and how to control them.
What are white grubs?
White grubs are the larvae of scarab beetles, also known as white soil silkworms and walnut worms. Adults are commonly called scarab beetles or June beetles. They harm many plants and vegetables. According to their feeding habits, they can be divided into three categories: phytophagous, coprophagous, and saprophagous. Among them, phytophagous white grubs have a wide diet and harm many crops, economic crops, and ornamental seedlings. They like to eat newly sown seeds, roots, tubers, and seedlings, and are a worldwide underground pest with great harm. In addition, certain types of white grubs can be used as medicine and are beneficial to humans.
The harm of white grubs to Polygonatum: White grubs damage with their larvae, harming the roots, biting off seedlings or gnawing on seedling roots, causing broken seedlings or cavities in the roots, with severe harm.
Control methods for white grubs: You can use 75% phoxim emulsifiable concentrate to dress seeds at 0.1% of the seed amount; or during the field occurrence period, drench with 90% trichlorfon at 1000 times dilution.