How to Grow Red Peony Root? The Latest Planting Techniques and Method Tutorial

Red peony root (Radix Paeoniae Rubra) is a commonly used traditional Chinese medicinal herb with a long history of use. It has the effects of clearing heat and cooling blood, and dissipating blood stasis, and is highly favoured by physicians in medicine. Wild red peony root mostly grows in mountainous areas and grasslands at an altitude of 500-1500 m in the north, and has the characteristics of being light-loving, drought-resistant and cold-tolerant. Let us take a look at its planting techniques below.

1. Site selection and land preparation

Red peony root has no strict requirements for soil. Loam and sandy loam are the most suitable, sandy soil is second best, and clay soil is relatively poor and not recommended for planting. After choosing the plot, plough it after the autumn harvest and expose it to the sun to remove pests and diseases. After the beginning of spring, apply base fertiliser, then harrow finely and level the soil, and make beds. The size and length of the beds depend on the terrain: if the terrain is relatively high, high beds can be made; if the terrain is flat, low beds can be made.

2. Sowing

After the autumn harvest each year, the seed roots can be harvested. The seed roots must have bud scales, and be complete, healthy perennial roots. Before planting, dig holes on the bed surface, controlling the plant and row spacing at 40×50cm. Then plant the seed roots in the holes, with the young buds must facing upward, planting one plant per hole, generally about 3000 plants per mu. After planting, in the first two years, crops such as corn and soybean can be planted at the edge of the beds, but in the third year no other crops can be planted. Red peony root is averse to continuous cropping, and it is best to plant other crops on the plot after planting.

3. Field management

After planting, weeding and fertilisation should be done well. The fertiliser is generally farmyard manure and soybean cake, which can be applied at planting time by placing it at the bottom of the hole to provide nutrients for the seed roots to emerge. The first top dressing is at the beginning of spring when the seedlings emerge; dig holes at the plant tips and apply, then cover with soil. After that, apply once or twice each in spring and autumn every year. When fertilising, also pay attention to weeds so as to prevent them from competing with the plants for nutrients. When red peony root forms buds and blooms each year, in order to ensure sufficient nutrients for its root system, the flower buds should be removed to reduce nutrient consumption.

4. Pests and diseases

The main diseases of red peony root are grey mould and rust. The pathogen of grey mould infects the leaves, stems, flowers and other parts of the plant, generally breaking out during the flowering period, and is most severe in the rainy season. Once the disease is found, promptly remove the affected branches and leaves and burn or bury them deeply, then spray Bordeaux mixture for control. Rust mainly harms the leaves, and is generally severe in July-August. At harvest, collect the residual branches and fallen leaves in the field and burn them centrally to reduce the source of the fungus, then spray sodium dimethyldithiocarbamate solution for control. The main insect pests are white grubs, cutworms, mole crickets, etc. They mainly harm the roots. Zinc phoxim can be mixed with soil to make poisonous soil, and sprinkled into the soil combined with land preparation to kill them by poison, but attention must be paid to the dosage to avoid affecting the plants.

The above are the planting techniques for red peony root. We hope they can help you. If you want to learn more about planting knowledge, please stay tuned to us.