Where is Cistanche grown? A detailed guide to harvest time and yield per mu
Cistanche, also known as Jiangyun, Cunyun, or Congrong, is a tall herbaceous plant, 40-160 cm tall, mostly growing underground, flowering from May to June, fruiting from June to August. It has long been known as the “desert ginseng” and has extremely high medicinal value. It is a traditional precious Chinese medicinal herb. So, where is Cistanche grown? When is it harvested? How many jin can be harvested per mu?
1. Where is Cistanche grown?
Cistanche is produced in Inner Mongolia, Ningxia (Azuo Banner), Gansu (Changma), and Hotan, Xinjiang. It prefers slightly salinized soft sandy land and generally grows on sandy ground or semi-fixed sand dunes, dried old riverbeds, low lake basin land, and other places with very poor habitat conditions. The climate in suitable growing areas is arid, with low rainfall, high evaporation, long sunshine hours, and large day-night temperature differences. The soil is mainly gray-brown desert soil and brown desert soil. The host plant, Haloxylon ammodendron, is a strongly xerophytic plant. Cistanche is mostly parasitic on its lateral roots at a depth of 30-100 cm. It grows in deserts at an altitude of 225-1150 m, parasitizing the roots of plants in the Chenopodiaceae family such as Haloxylon ammodendron and Haloxylon persicum.
2. When is Cistanche harvested?
Every year from April to June, when Cistanche emerges from the soil, it should be dug up promptly, and during digging, try to keep the Cistanche intact. To reduce damage to the host plant, when digging, choose the outer side where the Cistanche connects to the host, dig a pit down to the bottom of the Cistanche, and without breaking the connection point between the Cistanche and the host, cut off the upper part 5-8 cm above the connection point, then backfill the soil and tamp it down lightly. This ensures that after one inoculation of Cistanche, the stable production period can reach 5-7 years.
3. How many jin of Cistanche can be harvested per mu?
According to Mr. Wang, a Cistanche grower, one mu can generally yield 400 kg, with a purchase price of 16 yuan per kg. Larger specimens of Dayun fetch a higher price, and the overall benefit is quite good.