How to cultivate Salvia miltiorrhiza for high yield? Detailed explanation of root segment propagation technique
AbstractSoil preparation and fertilization: It is advisable to choose land with good drainage and irrigation, a pH value close to neutral, slightly acidic or slightly alkaline, and apply 15,000-20,000 kg of barnyard manure or farmyard manure per mu. Propagation: There are propagation methods such as seeds, cuttings, division, and root segments, and the root segment method gives higher yield. Field management: Mainly do well the work of seedling hardening, drainage and irrigation, fertilization, and bud removal. Harvest and processing: Generally harvest between Frost's Descent and the Start of Winter, or before spring sprouting. After digging out the roots, remove the soil and sun-dry them.
Everyone is relatively familiar with Salvia miltiorrhiza. Many people should have eaten it in daily life. Salvia miltiorrhiza belongs to a kind of traditional Chinese medicine and has very good conditioning effects on many human diseases. Salvia miltiorrhiza has many effects and functions, and many medicines contain components of Salvia miltiorrhiza. Therefore, its market demand is very large, and many growers have also begun to enter the Salvia miltiorrhiza planting industry. Mastering the cultivation techniques of Salvia miltiorrhiza is the key to ensuring high yield and high returns later. Below let us look at the high-yield cultivation techniques of Salvia miltiorrhiza.
High-yield cultivation techniques of Salvia miltiorrhiza
1. Soil preparation and fertilization
Try to choose land with good drainage and irrigation, a pH value close to neutral, slightly acidic or slightly alkaline for planting. Apply 15,000-20,000 kg of barnyard manure or farmyard manure per mu. Crush the fertilizer finely and spread it in the field, deep plough 30-40 cm, harrow finely and level it, and make flat beds 90 cm wide, with a bed ridge width of about 24 cm. If the soil is relatively dry at sowing time, first water and irrigate the bed, and start planting after the water seeps down.
2. Propagation methods
Common propagation methods include seeds, cuttings, division, and root segments. Generally, root segment propagation gives higher yield, while production mainly relies on root segment seedling raising and transplanting and division propagation.
Seed seedling raising: After the seeds mature from July to August each year, harvest the seeds in stages and batches and sow them in time. In the prepared bed, open shallow furrows about 1.5 cm deep at a row spacing of 12-15 cm, then mix the seeds with sand and evenly scatter them in the furrows, finally cover with soil and rake level, and press lightly. If the soil is warm and moist, seedlings can generally emerge 10-15 days after sowing. Generally use 1-1.5 kg of seed per mu. When the seedlings grow to 9-12 cm high, transplant them to the field. When lifting seedlings, lift every other row, and the remaining seedlings are then thinned to a plant spacing of 9-12 cm. In the transplanting field, at a row spacing of 24-30 cm and plant spacing of 9-12 cm, dig holes about 9 cm deep, and plant 2-3 plants per hole. After planting, water again, and after the water seeps down, cultivate soil and press firmly. This can improve the survival rate. Direct sowing can also be adopted from July to August each year, opening furrows at a row spacing of 24-30 cm, and the method is basically the same as seed seedling raising. Use about 1-1.5 kg of seed per mu. If sown in the same year, as long as management measures such as watering and fertilization are timely and the whole growth process is good, generally harvest by digging at the end of the second year, and the yield per mu can reach about 250 kg.
Division: In early spring or late autumn each year when harvesting Salvia miltiorrhiza, cut off its roots for medicinal use. According to natural growth conditions, large root crowns can be divided into 3-4 plants, and small ones into 1-2 plants or not divided. Generally leave about 3-6 cm on the upper part of the root (for those harvested in autumn, the stems must be cut off). Finally, plant the divided root crowns in the prepared bed at a row spacing of 24 cm and plant spacing of 21 cm, digging holes and planting at the same depth as in the original field. After planting, water immediately, and after the water seeps down, cultivate soil and press firmly. For those planted in late autumn, new buds cannot sprout before the end of the year, so cover each clump with soil 6-9 cm thick, which can both prevent drought and preserve soil moisture, and also avoid damage to young buds by people and livestock. After division planting in early spring, also cultivate soil and press firmly, and water in time, and they can survive.
Root segment propagation: When harvesting Salvia miltiorrhiza in early spring, that is, around the Awakening of Insects solar term, choose a sunny and wind-sheltered place and dig a seedling-raising pool with an east-west bed orientation, 30 cm deep, 130 cm wide, and of indefinite length. Spread a layer of mule and horse manure or wheat straw as heating material at the bottom of the pool, about 6-7 cm thick, then spread a layer of sand or stove ash, and seedling soil mixed well with farmyard manure or barnyard manure and soil, 10-15 cm thick. Around the seedling-raising pool, build low walls with adobe or bricks, higher on the north and lower on the south. Around the Awakening of Insects solar term, choose robust, brightly red new roots 0.5-1 cm thick and disease-free. The upper and middle segments of the root are better as seed roots. Trim them into fertilizer and then cut them into root segments 6-7 cm long. In areas with conditions, the lower end of the root can be soaked in a 50 ppm ABT rooting agent solution for 2 hours, then inserted vertically or slightly obliquely into the seedling-raising pool at a plant spacing of 1.5-2.5 cm. The upper and lower ends of the root must not be reversed. After choosing root segment propagation, the remaining old mother roots can be planted in the field according to the field division transplanting method.
After cutting, cover with soil about 1 cm thick and gently pat level. Then spray the pool surface with warm water at 30-40 degrees, water thoroughly in one go, and cover tightly with plastic film. On the pool walls, sorghum stalks or bamboo poles can be set up to prevent the plastic cloth from sagging. To prevent low temperature at night or cold waves, straw curtains can be covered, uncovering in the morning and covering at night. The seedling-raising pool should keep the soil warm and moist. When watering, try to choose warm and sunny noon, preferably with warm water, and cover and seal the plastic film in time after watering. Keep the temperature of the seedling-raising pool at 20-25 degrees. After about 20 days, the seedlings can sprout and emerge, and after 30 days they will show new leaves. If the temperature in the pool exceeds 30°C, ventilate and cool in time (generally just uncover the film on both sides). When the seedlings are 2-3 cm high, choose warm and sunny noon again, uncover the film to sun the seedlings. In cold northern regions, plastic film still needs to be covered at night, while southern regions do not need plastic film covering. When the seedlings are 6-9 cm high, they can be transplanted. Transplanting time is often around the Grain Rain solar term, and the whole seedling raising period is generally 40-50 days.
Direct field sowing of root segments: Choose roots 0.5-1 cm thick and brightly red, and sow directly when the field has good soil moisture. Ensure the upper end of the root faces upward, which can promote earlier sprouting and increase yield. Generally plant spacing and row spacing are 20*25 cm, and use 35-50 kg of fresh roots per mu. When planting, break and plant by hand on the spot; knives must not be used.
3. Field management
Seedling hardening: After the Salvia miltiorrhiza seedlings turn green, they need frequent loosening of soil and shallow hoeing. Generally do not water, so as to facilitate deep downward rooting of the roots, make new roots grow downward, and produce fewer fine lateral roots and fibrous roots, which helps improve the quality of Salvia miltiorrhiza.
Drainage and irrigation: After transplanting Salvia miltiorrhiza and before seedling recovery, the bed soil should be kept moist to ensure the survival rate. After survival, generally do not water. For plots propagated by division and root segments, if harvesting in spring, water the freezing water well. In the rainy season, drain in time to prevent root rot, and water appropriately after topdressing.
Fertilization: Generally before budding begins and before the rainy season closes the rows, combine with intertillage and apply 30 kg of urea and 15 kg of compound fertilizer per mu, or 20 kg of diammonium phosphate. For root segment propagation of Salvia miltiorrhiza, heavy application of base fertilizer should be used to promote high yield and good harvest later.
Bud removal: From June to July each year, except for those kept for seed, remove flower buds in time.
4. Harvest and processing
Seed propagation generally requires 2-3 years before harvest, while division generally can be harvested after 1 to 2 years. As long as the whole planting process is managed properly, it can be harvested in 1 year. Root segment seedling raising and transplanting can be harvested in one year, generally between Frost's Descent and the Start of Winter, or before spring sprouting. Dig deeply along the rows at one end of the bed to prevent breaking the roots. After digging out the roots, wash off the soil and then sun-dry them (prevent rain or washing with water), remove all fibrous roots and attached soil, and they can be used for medicinal purposes. About 3 kg of fresh Salvia miltiorrhiza roots can be processed into 1 kg of dried goods. Generally, those with thick strips, purple-red color, no fibrous roots, and few impurities are considered best. The dry yield per mu of Salvia miltiorrhiza is generally 400-500 kg.
Mastering the scientific high-yield cultivation techniques of Salvia miltiorrhiza can not only effectively improve work efficiency, but is also crucial for increasing the planting yield of Salvia miltiorrhiza later and obtaining greater returns.