What plant is Jiubingliang? A full analysis of its nutritional value and growing and care methods

Jiubingliang.This name comes from a story: legend says that long ago a troop of soldiers and horses was trapped on a mountain, and after their cooking fires and food ran out, they survived the disaster by eating this fruit, so they called this fruit Jiubingliang.

The scientific name of Jiubingliang is firethorn (Pyracantha), of the rose family (Rosaceae), an evergreen shrub; the fruit can also be used to make wine or ground into powder for eating. It is a multipurpose flowering and fruiting plant that can be used as medicine, food and ornament; the fruit, roots and leaves are used as medicine, neutral in nature, sweet and sour in taste; the leaves can clear heat and remove toxins, and when applied externally they treat sores and swelling caused by toxin, making it an excellent plant for viewing flowers in spring and fruit in winter.

Nutritional value

Firethorn fruit contains abundant organic acids, protein, amino acids, vitamins and various mineral elements; it can be eaten fresh or processed into various drinks. Its fruit ripens in autumn, resembles a torch, and can be planted as a street tree or in courtyards. Its root bark, stem bark and fruit are rich in tannins and can be used to extract tanning material. Firethorn root can be used as medicine; its nature and taste are bitter and astringent, and it has effects such as stopping diarrhea, dispersing blood stasis and aiding digestion; the fruit, leaves and stem bark also have similar medicinal effects. Firethorn leaves can be made into tea, which has the effects of clearing heat and removing toxins, promoting fluid production and quenching thirst, and astringing to stop diarrhea.

Cultivation methods

Seed propagation

Firethorn fruit ripens in October and can remain on the tree until February of the following year. The best time to collect seeds is from October to December. After collection, remove the flesh promptly, rinse the seeds clean, and dry them in the sun for later use. In early March of the following year, evenly scatter the seeds together with fine sand on a seedbed prepared before winter, cover with fine soil, with the thickness such that the seeds are not visible; because the seeds are relatively small, the covering soil must not be too thick, and cover the seedbed with rice straw and water thoroughly. Seedlings begin to emerge after about 10 days; at this point remove the rice straw and manage moisture according to the humidity of the seedbed. The seedling emergence rate from sowing is 80.6%. Treatment with 0.2‰ gibberellin can increase the germination rate of firethorn seeds.

Firethorn is suitable for sowing in the second spring; if seeds are stored too long, the germination rate drops noticeably, and firethorn is not suitable for sowing in an environment below 20°C. Autumn sowing is better for firethorn; before sowing, seeds can be treated with gibberellin at a concentration of 2 in 10,000, and on a prepared seedbed open long furrows 5 cm deep at a row spacing of 20~30 cm, scatter the seeds in the furrows, and cover with 3 cm of soil.

During the 3 months of the seedling stage, check the temperature and humidity every day. If it is below 20°C or above 30°C, measures to raise or lower the temperature should be taken; the main measures include controlling shade and spraying mist. If there are no abnormal conditions, watering once a week is sufficient. In the rainy season, pay attention to waterproofing and drainage.

Cuttage propagation

Spring cuttings are generally taken from late February to early March; select healthy, plump one- or two-year-old branches and cut them into 15~20 cm cuttings for propagation. Summer cuttings are generally taken from mid-June to early July; select one-year-old semi-lignified tender branches with leaves and cut them into 12 to 15 cm cuttings for propagation, with the lower end shaped like a horse's ear, and treat them with ABT rooting powder; on a prepared cutting bed, open small furrows 10 cm deep, place the cuttings at a 30-degree slant along the edge of the furrow, with a spacing of 10 cm between cuttings, with 2~5 cm of the upper part exposed above the bed surface, cover with soil and firm it, and pay attention to strengthening water management; the survival rate can generally reach more than 90%, and they can be transplanted in the following spring.

Layering propagation

This can be done from spring to summer. When layering, select one- to two-year-old branches close to the ground, first cut the part of the branch to be buried in the soil until reaching the cambium or peel off half a ring of bark, so that organic nutrients accumulate there to facilitate rooting, then bury the cut part of the branch down to the cambium in the soil at a depth of about 10~15 cm; in 1~2 years a new plant can form, then cut it off and separate it from the mother plant, and plant it in the field in the second spring.