Latest Prices of Gorgon Nut Seeds and a Detailed Guide to Growing Them

Gorgon nut is also known as chicken-head rice, chicken-head fruit, wild goose-beak fruit, and so on. It is the dried, mature seed kernel of Euryale ferox, a plant of the genus Euryale in the water lily family. It is produced throughout northern and southern China. It is rich in starch and is used as food, for brewing wine, and for making secondary food products. Medicinally, it is used for its effects of tonifying the kidney and securing essence, strengthening the spleen and stopping diarrhea, and eliminating dampness and stopping vaginal discharge. Now let us take a look together at the price of gorgon nut seeds and how to grow them!

How much is a jin of gorgon nut seeds?

The price of gorgon nut seeds is about 20 to 30 yuan per jin, but prices vary considerably depending on seed quality, variety, place of origin, and market. Gorgon nut grows wild in lakes, ponds, and swamps throughout northern and southern China, and is cultivated in the Jiangsu-Zhejiang area. By place of origin, it is divided into southern gorgon nut and northern gorgon nut. Southern gorgon nut is produced in the Taihu Lake area of Jiangsu, has good quality, but is less adaptable than northern gorgon nut. Northern gorgon nut is produced in the Hongze Lake area and is in a wild or semi-wild state; its quality is poor, but its adaptability is strong.

How to grow gorgon nut

1. Seed soaking to promote germination: In the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, in early April, rinse the seeds clean and then soak them in clear water, with the water depth just enough to submerge the seeds. Change the water frequently, expose them to the sun by day and cover them at night, keeping the temperature at 20 to 25°C during the day and above 16°C at night. After 7 to 10 days, most will have germinated and can be sown.

2. Sowing and raising seedlings: 5 to 7 days before sowing, dig a seedling bed 2 m square and 20 cm deep, remove harmful organisms such as filamentous algae, duckweed, and weeds, level the bottom mud, fill with about 10 cm of water, and after the muddy water clears, evenly broadcast the germinated seeds near the water surface.

3. Transplanting seedlings to a nursery bed: About 1 month after sowing, when the gorgon nut seedlings have 2 to 3 young leaves, they can be transplanted to a nursery bed. 1 kg of seeds requires 40 to 50 sq m of seedling field. Thoroughly remove weeds and harmful organisms from the seedling field, fill with about 15 cm of water, level the soil, avoid over-fertilizing, and do not transplant too deeply.

4. Timely final planting: In mid-to-late June, when the round shield-shaped later leaves of the gorgon nut seedlings have reached 25 to 30 cm in diameter, they can be finally planted. Before planting, open holes at about 125 to 166 plants per mu. When opening the holes, remove weeds from the holes and apply an appropriate amount of base fertilizer. After 1 to 2 days, once the muddy water in the holes has cleared, they can be planted.

Gorgon nut growing management

1. Checking and replacing seedlings: Gorgon nut seedlings generally turn green again 7 to 10 days after final planting. After they survive, at least 1 to 2 checks should be made to fill gaps and ensure a full stand. When checking, if poorly growing seedlings are seen, check whether their central leaves have accumulated mud, and if so, it should be removed.

2. Water level management: When gorgon nut seedlings are planted, the water layer should not be shallower than 30 to 40 cm. After they survive, it can gradually be increased to 50 to 80 cm, and should not exceed 1.2 to 1.5 m at the deepest. For gorgon nut grown in shallow rice fields, a water depth of 30 to 50 cm is suitable.

3. Weeding and mounding soil around the roots: Before the gorgon nut leaves close the rows, weed the field 3 to 5 times according to weed growth. Weeding can be combined with mounding soil around the roots, that is, when weeding, gradually push the soil at the edge of the holes into the holes to mound the roots. Do not damage the plants during the operation. Topdressing can be combined with weeding and mounding soil around the roots.

4. Reasonable topdressing: Gorgon nut seedlings generally use deep application of fertilizer balls (before the rows close) or foliar spraying (after the rows close). Fertilizer balls are made by composting soil and fertilizer. For every 100 kg of fine soil, add 50 kg of decomposed manure, 20 kg of urea, 20 kg of superphosphate, and 10 kg of potassium chloride.

5. Splashing water to lower temperature: When growing gorgon nut, in July and August, go into the field frequently in the early morning and splash cool water onto the leaf surfaces by hand to lower leaf surface temperature and promote flowering and fruiting. When splashing water, clear water must be used; do not splash muddy water onto gorgon nut leaves, as this affects photosynthesis and can cause leaf rot.

6. Harvesting and processing: Gorgon nut can be harvested in the same year. It can be harvested in September to October when the fruit skin turns reddish brown. If the planting area is small and there is enough manpower, it can be harvested as it ripens. Hammer the harvested fruits with a wooden stick or similar object to break the spiny fruit skin, take out the seeds, and dry them in the sun.

Gorgon nut pest and disease control

1. Leaf spot disease

[Symptoms] In the early stage of the disease, there are many round lesions on the leaf margins. They are initially dark green, later turning dark brown, sometimes with concentric rings, and are very prone to rotting and perforation. In severe cases, the lesions can merge into patches, causing the entire gorgon nut leaf to rot.

[Control] For gorgon nut leaf spot disease, in addition to crop rotation and avoiding excessive nitrogen fertilizer, carbendazim (50% wettable powder) can also be sprayed on the leaves at 400 to 500 times dilution.

2. Leaf tumor disease

[Symptoms] The pathogen is a fungus, and it occurs more frequently in July and August. At the initial stage, light green yellow spots appear on the leaf surface, which then bulge and swell into tumors, with a diameter of 4 to 40 cm and a height of 2 to 8 cm.

[Control] For gorgon nut leaf tumor disease, in addition to crop rotation, during the disease season thiophanate-methyl can be sprayed on the leaves at 800 to 1000 times dilution along with 0.2% potassium dihydrogen phosphate.

3. Anthracnose

[Symptoms] Anthracnose mainly occurs on plant leaves, often damaging leaf margins and leaf tips, and in severe cases causes more than half of the leaf to wither, blacken, and die.

[Control] Remove diseased plants and diseased leaves, use 50% Shibaogong wettable powder at 1000 to 1500 times dilution, spray or pour broadly, once every 7 days, for 2 to 3 consecutive times.