What are the profits and precautions of growing Sedum aizoon ?

The Chinese Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences has established a demonstration base for wild vegetable varieties, among which Sedum aizoon cultivation has performed the best among dozens of wild vegetable varieties, and has now been listed by the Chinese Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences as a national key promotion project. Sedum aizoon is a perennial succulent plant of the Crassulaceae family, with the scientific name Sedum aizoon, and its tender stems and leaves are eaten. Whether stir-fried, used in hot pot, cooked in soup or dried, it is delicious. After harvesting, it is tied into bunches and sent directly to hotels, restaurants or supermarkets, where it is very popular and is praised as “hotel wild vegetable”.

1. Characteristics and features

(1) Rich in nutrients: every 100 grams of the edible portion contains 2.1 grams of protein, 0.7 grams of fat, 1.5 grams of crude fiber, 2.8 milligrams of carotene, 0.31 milligrams of vitamin B2, 0.05 milligrams of vitamin B1, 95 milligrams of vitamin C, 315 milligrams of calcium, 39 milligrams of phosphorus, and 3.2 milligrams of iron. Its nutrition is unmatched by ordinary vegetables.

(2) Health value: Sedum aizoon has the effects of nourishing the heart, calming the liver, lowering blood pressure, and lowering blood lipids. It prevents or delays vascular hardening and other effects. Long-term consumption has a relatively good therapeutic effect on heart disease, high blood pressure, high blood lipids, hepatitis, and so on, so Sedum aizoon is an ideal health vegetable.

(3) Green and harmless: Sedum aizoon is a very cold-tolerant wild vegetable (it can safely overwinter at -30°C), is extremely drought-tolerant (it can still survive after being out of the soil for half a month), and is especially shade-tolerant (it can grow well under fruit trees). It has very few pests and diseases, basically requires no spraying, and has no pesticide contamination. It is an ideal green, pollution-free health wild vegetable.

(4) Strong reproductive capacity: Sedum aizoon plants are 25-30 cm tall and have particularly strong tillering ability. Planting one plant can produce over a hundred fresh tender stems and leaves. It grows vigorously and covers the entire ground, so even weeds find it difficult to grow, and management saves labor.

2. Cultivation profits

Sedum aizoon is simple to cultivate and convenient to manage. It can be planted in both north and south, has a high survival rate, and can be planted throughout the year (Sedum aizoon has high yield: 16,000 plants {holes} per mu, generally 10,000 jin per mu, and high-yield fields can reach 16,000 jin. At 2 yuan per jin, the income per mu is more than 20,000 yuan, and one planting brings profits for decades).

3. Cultivation methods

Cultivation methods include seed propagation and seedling propagation, but because the seeds are tiny and the technical requirements are relatively high, seedling propagation is mostly used. Apply 10,000 jin of farmyard manure and 50 kg of compound fertilizer per mu as base fertilizer and plow deeply. Make beds 1-2 m wide, with a plant spacing and row spacing of 30×30 cm, or 50×50 cm, with two plants per hole. After planting, water, and once the soil can support foot traffic, cover the rows tightly with rice straw or wheat straw to prevent weeds from growing. When the seedlings are 15-20 cm tall, they can be harvested. After each harvest, apply a thin fertilizer with water. In the north, it can be harvested 5-8 times a year. Pay attention to drainage during the rainy season.

4. Propagation methods

(1) Sowing and raising seedlings: When sowing and raising seedlings, prepare a seedbed 100 cm wide, with the length depending on the amount of seed. After deeply plowing, leveling, and firming the seedbed, lightly rake it once more, water it thoroughly, and sow while the soil is still moist after the water seeps in. Because the seeds are tiny, first mix 1 part seed with 10 parts fine sandy soil evenly, then spread it evenly over the bed surface. Then cover with 0.1 cm of fine sandy soil and cover with plastic film. Open-field seedling raising can begin in mid-April, and seedlings can be raised in both spring and autumn. After emergence, remove the plastic film, and when the seedlings are 3 cm tall, they can be transplanted into nutrient pots or the field. Note that transplanting to the field must wait until after the last frost.

(2) Cutting propagation: When propagating by cuttings, take cuttings directly from healthy mother plants and insert them as they are cut. Each cutting should have 2-3 nodes. When inserting, make a hole with a small stick first and then insert the seedling. After the seedbed is filled, water lightly once, and set up a shed to preserve shade and moisture. On hot days, spray water once in the morning and once in the evening, and roots will form after 10 days. If nutrient pots are available, they can be inserted into nutrient pots to avoid the soil ball loosening or roots being damaged when planting, which would delay recovery. Generally, they can be transplanted 20 days after cutting.