A Detailed Guide to the Latest Planting Methods and Planting Times for Polygonatum
Polygonatum, also known as claw ginseng, is a medicinal plant that mainly tonifies the spleen, moistens the lungs, and promotes fluid production. It is mainly distributed in China, Korea, Mongolia, Siberia, Korea, and other countries and regions. It is a common medicinal material in traditional Chinese medicine, and demand for it is considerable. So many people also grow Polygonatum on a large scale, but problems can arise during the growing process, and some people do not know how to grow Polygonatum well, so today's article is meant to help everyone learn about it.
1. Planting time
Planting is mainly done from mid-March to early April in spring or from September to October in autumn. It is best to plant in spring, when growth revives, sprouting and growth are strong, cultivation is easy, and growth is fast. Polygonatum can only be harvested after 2 to 3 years of cultivation, so autumn planting requires caring for it through an extra winter, growth is affected in winter, and maintenance is also very difficult. Therefore, it is best to plant in spring.
2. Site selection and fertilization
Choose land that is sunny, fertile, well structured, and does not accumulate water. Polygonatum likes sunlight, and during the seedling stage it needs appropriate shading. In the first month after planting, shade netting needs to be prepared and set up to reduce sunlight and protect the seedlings. Plow the soil to a depth of about 30 cm. Apply about 2000 jin of fertilizer per mu. Then plow once more to mix in the fertilizer. Make fine raised beds with a width of 1.2 m; the length depends on the terrain. The row spacing should be about enough for one person to pass through, about 15 cm.
3. Start sowing
Dig holes on the bed surface for planting, with a plant spacing of 15 cm and a row spacing of 10 cm, and a digging depth of about 5 cm. Sow several seeds per hole, cover with soil level with the bed surface, gently firm all the soil, and then water. Use a fine watering can to spray water; the bed surface just needs to be completely soaked through. Do not use a hose to wash it directly, as this will wash away the seeds, and the surface will easily accumulate water while the inside will not be thoroughly wet.
4. Management and maintenance
After the seedlings emerge, thin them out, removing a small number of weak seedlings, pest- or disease-affected seedlings, and overly crowded seedlings that are not growing well; these can be moved to gaps to continue being cultivated, and they may grow strong again. For fertilization, during the seedling stage, do not fertilize in the early period, and apply dilute fertilizer water in the later period. After planting, fertilize once in June, applying 1000 jin of farmyard manure per mu; fertilize once in August, applying 100 jin of compost and 100 jin of superphosphate per mu. In winter, fertilize once in November, applying 800 jin of compost per mu.
The planting times for Polygonatum are spring and autumn, and it can only be harvested after several years of cultivation. There are also some methods and details to pay attention to when planting. I hope the above content can help everyone. You can understand these issues well.