The Latest Water Bamboo (Wild Rice Stem) Planting Techniques and Methods Tutorial
Water bamboo (wild rice stem) has two types: the autumn-producing single-crop water bamboo and the autumn-summer double-crop water bamboo, both propagated by division. In the Yangtze River Basin, single-crop water bamboo is planted by dividing the clumps from Qingming to Guyu, while autumn-summer double-crop water bamboo can be planted in two seasons, spring and autumn: spring planting around Guyu, autumn planting around Liqiu. Let us take a look together below at the planting techniques for water bamboo!
Selection of Seed Plants for Water Bamboo
Because gray water bamboo and male water bamboo naturally appear in normal water bamboo fields every year, seed selection must be carried out annually. In some places where water bamboo has been newly introduced, the first year of production is often relatively good, but in the second year gray water bamboo and male water bamboo begin to appear, and by the third year the planting clumps cannot be used as seed, with large numbers of gray water bamboo and male water bamboo appearing and yields dropping sharply. If planting clumps or divisions of gray water bamboo or male water bamboo are used as seed, they will still be gray water bamboo and male water bamboo the following year and will never become normal water bamboo.
Before harvesting the autumn water bamboo, select excellent individual plants that bear shoots early, have thick, white, tender flesh, have main shoots and tiller shoots with a consistent harvest period, are free of gray water bamboo, free of pests and diseases, and have no male water bamboo around them, and insert bamboo poles as markers. If gray water bamboo or male water bamboo is found, the leaves should be tied into a knot as a mark. When dividing the clumps in spring the following year, first dig out the gray water bamboo and male water bamboo together with their roots. Each mu of field requires 200-300 planting clumps. After the selected excellent planting plants are harvested, dig up the seed water bamboo clumps together with their roots from mid-December to mid-January of the following year.
For water bamboo planting plants, the effective tillers are the buds sprouting from the underground stems 1-2 nodes below the soil surface, so the topmost and bottommost nodes of the planting plant should be cut off, leaving the middle section for cuttings and temporary planting. The row spacing for temporary planting is 50 cm and the plant spacing is 15 cm, with an 80 cm walkway left every 5-6 rows. The depth of temporary planting should be level with the mud of the water bamboo clump, and a shallow water layer of 1-2 cm should be maintained. To encourage the temporarily planted seedlings to root and sprout early and to prevent freezing, the seedling field can be covered with plastic film, which can make water bamboo grow and develop earlier, thereby maturing earlier and increasing yield.
After the temporarily planted seedlings survive, 3-4 kg of ammonium bicarbonate can be applied per mu of seedling field to promote seedling growth. In spring, for water bamboo clumps with dense rhizomes and crowded tillers, when the seedlings are about 10 cm tall, the thin and weak tillers should be removed, and at the same time a lump of mud should be pressed toward the root zone so that the tiller buds spread out in all directions, improving the nutritional status and ventilation and light transmission between plants. One week before transplanting and field planting, remove seedlings that are growing too vigorously and tending toward "male transformation" to reduce the occurrence of male water bamboo. The "floating water bamboo" sprouting from stolons cannot be used as seed water bamboo.
Planting Methods for Water Bamboo
1. Selection of water bamboo field: The water bamboo field should be chosen as a field with good light, level land, deep soil, a water source, and strong water and fertilizer retention capacity. A paddy field through which cool water flows, or a plot near a reservoir that can use deep reservoir water for irrigation, is best.
2. Plowing and fertilizing: Plow the water bamboo field and apply 3000 kg of decomposed farmyard manure or 2500 kg of concentrated human excrement and urine per mu. If the previous crop was a rice field, the amount of base fertilizer should also be increased, then harrow level, and then irrigate 2-3 cm, so that the field is level, the mud is soft, and the fertilizer is sufficient.
3. Timely field planting: From April to early May, when the water bamboo seedlings are about 20 cm tall and the paddy field soil temperature is above 10°C, the seedlings can be transplanted and field planted. If old water bamboo clumps are used for raising seedlings, at this time dig up the old water bamboo clumps together with their roots, and with a sharp knife along the direction in which the tillers grow, split the clumps vertically according to 3-5 healthy tillers per clump. The divided clumps are required to carry old stems, and when splitting, damage to tillers and new roots should be minimized as much as possible, and digging, dividing, and planting should be done as you go. If the water bamboo seedlings are too tall, the leaf tips can be cut off so that the seedling height remains at 25-30em, to prevent lodging after planting. The field planting density is generally 70-80em row spacing and 65 cm clump spacing, with large and small rows, the large rows serving as walkways. About 1200 clumps are planted per mu, ensuring 6000 basic tiller seedlings. The field planting depth should be such that the old stem shoot tubes carried are covered with soil, and planting on a sunny afternoon is best.
Planting Management for Water Bamboo
1. Water level management: Water level management for water bamboo follows the principle of "shallow-deep-shallow". In the early growth period after field planting (before tillering), maintain a shallow water level of 3-5 cm, which helps raise soil temperature and promote rooting and tillering. By the late tillering stage in June, deepen the water level to 12-15 cm to inhibit the occurrence of ineffective tillers. Because temperatures are high in July-August, the deep water level also has a cooling effect, but the water should be changed regularly to prevent root rot caused by soil oxygen deficiency. Entering the shoot-bearing stage, the water level should be deepened to 15-18 cm, but must not exceed the position of the "water bamboo white eye" (the highest water level should not exceed 2/3 of the pseudostem), to prevent elongation of the shoot tubes. In the late shoot-bearing stage, the water level should be lowered to 3-5 cm to facilitate harvesting. After harvesting, the water bamboo field should maintain a shallow water layer or a moist state through the winter and must not be dry. Each time topdressing is applied, wait until the fertilizer has been absorbed into the soil before irrigating. In case of heavy rain, attention should be paid to timely drainage to prevent elongation of the shoot tubes caused by an excessively high water level.
2. Topdressing in stages
① Seedling-promoting fertilizer: After the water bamboo seedlings survive 7-10 days after field planting, apply 500 kg of human excrement and urine or 15-20 kg of ammonium bicarbonate per mu to promote seedlings. If the base fertilizer in the water bamboo field is sufficient, the amount of fertilizer can be reduced.
② Tillering fertilizer: In the early tillering stage (about 10 days after the first fertilization), apply 1000 kg of human excrement and urine or 20-30 kg of ammonium bicarbonate per mu to promote effective tillering and plant growth. If no seedling-promoting fertilizer was applied, the tillering fertilizer should be applied appropriately earlier.
③ Regulating fertilizer: During the peak tillering stage in June-July, topdressing should be carried out according to the growth of the plants, generally applying 10-15 kg of ammonium bicarbonate per mu. If the plants are growing robustly, it may not be applied.
④ Shoot-promoting fertilizer: When 10%-20% of the tiller seedlings of the new water bamboo have pseudostems that have become flattened (beginning to bear shoots), heavy shoot-promoting fertilizer should be applied to promote expansion of the fleshy stems and increase yield, generally applying 2500-3000 kg of decomposed human excrement and urine per mu, or 30-40 kg of ammonium bicarbonate. The shoot-promoting fertilizer must be applied at the right time. If applied too early, the plants have not yet begun to bear shoots and are prone to excessive vegetative growth, thereby delaying shoot bearing. If applied too late, it cannot catch up with the fertilizer demand during the shoot-bearing period, thus affecting yield.
3. Intertillage and field weeding, removal of yellow leaves: After the water bamboo survives field planting, the field should be weeded and cultivated in time. To protect the tiller seedlings, when weeding and cultivating the field, work from near to far to prevent damaging the tiller seedlings. The best condition for field cultivation is no weeds, soil that is not too compacted, and level field soil. In late June, during the late tillering stage of water bamboo, the plant clumps become crowded, and old leaves and yellow leaves at the base of the plants should be removed in time to promote ventilation and light transmission and promote shoot bearing. Remove yellow leaves once every 7-10 days, for a total of 2-3 times. The stripped yellow leaves can be stepped into the field mud at any time and used as fertilizer.
4. Pest control: The main pests of water bamboo include the long green planthopper, the giant borer, the striped stem borer, thrips, and aphids. The long green planthopper gathers on leaves and causes damage, making leaves yellow and withered and reducing yield. The giant borer and striped stem borer damage the water bamboo flesh as larvae during the shoot-bearing period. Thrips and aphids gather and damage young leaves, causing leaf tips to turn yellow and curl. Control measures: After field planting and survival until 7-10 days before harvest, spray pesticide once every 12 days for prevention. For the long green planthopper and thrips, use 40% dimethoate 1000-fold solution, 25% buprofezin 2000-fold solution, or 2.5% Uranus emulsifiable concentrate 1000-1500-fold solution. For the giant borer and striped stem borer, use 5% fipronil 1000-fold solution, Bt series wettable powder 800-fold solution, 5% chlorfluazuron emulsifiable concentrate 2500-fold solution, 80% dichlorvos emulsifiable concentrate 1000-fold solution, or 18% bisultap 800-fold solution. Also use 20% triazophos 800-1000-fold solution, 25% phosmet 600-800-fold solution, or 20% fenvalerate 1000-fold solution, sprayed alternately.
5. Disease control: The main diseases of water bamboo include water bamboo rust, brown spot, and sheath blight, which damage leaves and fleshy stems, causing leaves and fleshy stems to turn yellow and dry up and die, especially with severe incidence in high-temperature seasons, affecting yield. Control measures: For water bamboo rust in the early stage of incidence, spray with 20% triadimefon 1500-fold solution, 97% sodium dimethyldithiocarbamate 500-fold solution, 70% mancozeb 700-fold solution, or 40% flusilazole 8000-fold solution, spraying once every 7-10 days for a total of 2-3 times. Various agents should be used alternately. For brown spot, use 50% iprodione 1000-fold solution or 50% carbendazim 500-fold solution for control. For sheath blight, use 5% validamycin 300-fold solution for control. After water bamboo enters the shoot-bearing stage, the use of fungicides is prohibited to avoid killing the smut fungus and causing water bamboo to fail to bear shoots. Therefore, disease prevention must be carried out in the early growth stage of the plants (before tillering).
6. Timely harvest: Water bamboo in mountainous areas generally begins to bear shoots in early July and is harvested from mid-August to early September, 20-30 days earlier than autumn water bamboo in plain areas. Different climatic conditions, especially high or low temperatures, affect the shoot-bearing time and harvest period of water bamboo. When harvesting, cut off the shoot tubes, cut off the leaves, and leave the leaf sheaths at 40em. Water bamboo with leaf sheaths immersed in clean water can be stored for 3-5 days (if stored in a cold storage, it can be kept fresh for 60-70 days). Generally, it takes about 14-18 days from the beginning of shoot bearing to harvest. If harvested too early, the fleshy stems have not yet fully expanded and the yield is low. If harvested too late, the water bamboo flesh turns green, quality declines, and gray water bamboo is easily formed. After entering the harvest period, harvest once every 3-4 days. The general yield is about 1600 kg of unsheathed water bamboo per mu.