How much does a salvia miltiorrhiza seedling cost? A detailed guide to artificial cultivation methods
Salvia miltiorrhiza, also known as red root, Dahongpao, and blood ginseng root, is a relatively common perennial herbaceous plant in China. Because it has effects such as promoting blood circulation and removing blood stasis, clearing the heart and relieving restlessness, it is widely used as medicine. It is currently cultivated in many regions, so how much does a salvia miltiorrhiza seedling cost? Can it be artificially cultivated? How is it planted?
Latest price of salvia miltiorrhiza seedlings:
Salvia miltiorrhiza seedlings cost about 0.07 yuan each, but prices differ by region, so the price should be consulted locally!
Cultivation techniques:
1. Site selection and land preparation
For the seedling nursery, choose a plot with relatively high terrain, loose soil, and convenient irrigation. Plow before sowing, apply decomposed barnyard manure or compost as base fertilizer, break up the soil finely and level it, then make high beds for sowing. For the planting site, choose a plot with deep, loose, fertile soil, relatively high terrain, and good drainage. For mountainous land, choose a sunny low hillside, and the slope should not be too steep. Salvia miltiorrhiza has deep roots, penetrating about 33 cm or more into the soil. Therefore, after the previous crop is harvested, plow the soil more than 35 cm deep. While preparing the land, apply 2500-3000 kg of decomposed barnyard manure or compost per mu, plus 50 kg of superphosphate, and turn it into the soil as base fertilizer. Before planting, plow once more, break up the soil finely and level it, make high beds 1.3 m wide, and open deep drainage ditches around them to facilitate drainage.
2. Transplanting
After spring sowing, seedlings can be transplanted after about 75 days of cultivation. They can be planted in spring or autumn. Spring planting is done in mid-May, and autumn planting in late October. It is better to do it early than late; early transplanting leads to early rooting and early greening the following year. When planting, dig holes on the bed surface at a row spacing of 33×23 cm. The hole depth depends on root length. Apply an appropriate amount of manure as base fertilizer at the bottom of the hole, mix it evenly with the soil in the hole, then plant 1-2 seedlings propagated from seed per hole. The planting depth should be based on the original natural growth depth of the seedling, with the heart bud slightly exposed. After planting, water thoroughly to settle the roots. For cuttings, plant 1 per hole using the same method and planting density.
3. Field management
Replanting should be done early rather than late so that the new plants catch up with the surviving seedlings as soon as possible and grow uniformly. Cultivation and weeding should be carried out 3-4 times each year. Weeding can be done by manual hoeing or hand pulling, or by mechanical weeding, but chemical weeding must not be used. The flowering period of salvia miltiorrhiza is from May to June. If seeds are not being collected, remove the flower spikes early. Salvia miltiorrhiza is a plant that likes potassium and organic fertilizer. In cultivation, in addition to applying sufficient base fertilizer, apply cake fertilizer or high-quality decomposed farmyard manure once after sprouting in spring (late April) of the second and third years. In addition, carry out foliar topdressing in early March and July each year, spraying foliar nutrient solution and humic acid on the leaves. The application rate is 150 g per mu. For foliar topdressing, spraying should be done before 10 a.m. or after 4 p.m., and the spray should be uniform, covering both the front and back of the leaves.
4. Pest and disease control
(1) Diseases
Root rot: It is prone to occur in hot and rainy seasons. The roots of affected plants turn black, and the aboveground parts wither. Control methods: avoid continuous cropping in severely affected areas; choose dry, well-drained plots for planting; pay attention to drainage during the rainy season; during the disease period, drench with 70% carbendazim 1000-fold solution.
(2) Insect pests
Aphids: Adults and nymphs suck sap from stems and leaves, and in severe cases cause the stems and leaves to turn yellow. Control methods: clean the field in winter, and deeply bury or burn dead plants and fallen leaves; during the outbreak period, spray 50% monocrotophos 1000-2000-fold solution or 40% dimethoate emulsifiable concentrate 1000-2000-fold solution, once every 7-10 days, for several consecutive treatments.
Silver Y moth: Larvae bite and eat leaves, occurring in summer and autumn. Control methods: in the young larval stage, spray 90% trichlorfon technical powder 800-fold solution or 50% phosphamidon emulsifiable concentrate 1500-fold solution, once every 7 days.
Cotton bollworm: Larvae damage buds, flowers, and fruits, affecting seed yield. Control methods: starting at the bud stage, spray 50% phosphamidon emulsifiable concentrate 1500-fold or 25% chlordimeform water agent 500-fold solution for control.
White grubs: Larvae cause damage by biting off seedlings or gnawing roots, causing missing seedlings or hollow roots, and the damage is severe. Control methods: manure must be fully decomposed, preferably high-temperature compost; use light traps to kill adults; use 75% phoxim emulsifiable concentrate to dress seeds at 0.1% of seed weight; during field occurrence, drench with 90% trichlorfon 1000-fold or 75% phoxim emulsifiable concentrate 700-fold solution; use 25 g of chlordane emulsifiable concentrate mixed with 5 kg of roasted fragrant wheat bran and an appropriate amount of water to make poisoned bait, and scatter it in the field in the evening to trap and kill them.
Harvesting and processing
Salvia miltiorrhiza can be harvested for medicinal material in the second year of growth. The harvest time is mid-December when the aboveground parts wither, or before sprouting in the following spring. First remove the aboveground stems and leaves, then open a deep ditch at one end of the bed to expose the roots. Dig out complete root strips forward along the bed, preventing breakage. After digging out, cut off the remaining stems. If strip salvia miltiorrhiza is desired, cut roots with a diameter of more than 0.8 cm at the mother root, arrange them neatly along the strips, sun-dry them, turning them from time to time, and when they are 70-80% dry, tie them into small bundles, then sun-dry until fully dry and pack them into boxes to make “strip salvia miltiorrhiza”. If not sorted by thickness, after sun-drying and removing impurities, pack them into hemp bags, which is called general salvia miltiorrhiza.