Latest Prices for Millettia speciosa Seeds and a Detailed Guide to Growing Them

Millettia speciosa, also known as pig's trotter vine, golden bell root, mountain lotus root and so on, is a climbing plant of the genus Millettia in the Fabaceae family. It is distributed in China's Fujian, Hunan, Guangdong, Hainan, Guangxi, Guizhou, Yunnan and other places, growing in shrubland, open woodland and open country. Its root is used as medicine and has the effects of tonifying deficiency and moistening the lungs, and strengthening the sinews and activating the collaterals. Now let's take a look at the price of Millettia speciosa seeds and how to grow them!

How much does a jin of Millettia speciosa seeds cost?

The price of Millettia speciosa seeds is about 150 to 180 yuan per jin, but prices vary greatly depending on seed quality, variety, place of origin and the market. At present, Millettia speciosa has not yet been industrialized in China, and many growers mistakenly believe that once planted it will successfully yield a bumper harvest. Little do they know that Millettia speciosa has many different germplasm sources, and different sources differ to some extent in morphological characteristics and yield. Only by choosing high-quality, high-yield varieties can a successful harvest be achieved; otherwise, failure is possible. It can be said that the seed source determines the success or failure of cultivation.

Sowing methods for Millettia speciosa

1. Seed collection: Millettia speciosa seeds mature around mid-October each year. When the pods have all turned yellow but have not yet split open, pick them, then sun-dry them, remove the pods and discard the bad seeds.

2. Germination treatment: Place Millettia speciosa seeds in warm water at 55°C for 10 to 15 minutes, remove them and soak for about 7 hours. After the seeds have fully absorbed water, add an appropriate amount of fine sand and stir evenly. After mixing, sprinkle another layer of fine sand. Once the seeds show white sprouts, they can be sown.

3. Weeding and pest control: Before sowing Millettia speciosa, spread a mixture of 500 ml of 1.8% abamectin emulsifiable concentrate, 80 ml of glyphosate and 25 kg of fine sand per mu to kill weeds and pests. After 3 days, apply base fertilizer, then plow the land and divide it into beds.

4. Sowing method: When sowing Millettia speciosa, use a row spacing of 25 cm. The trench should not be too deep. After sowing the seeds, cover them with a thin layer of sifted soil. The sowing rate is about 0.6 kg per mu, with a density of 40,000 to 60,000 plants.

5. Post-sowing management: After sowing Millettia speciosa, water and fertilize promptly. Especially just after sowing, keep the seeds well supplied with moisture. When fertilizing, the fertilizer concentration should not be too high, to prevent burning the seeds. Seedlings emerge about 13 days after sowing.

Growing methods for Millettia speciosa

1. Transplanting management: The planting density for Millettia speciosa is about 300 to 500 plants per mu. The best time to plant is in the afternoon when the sunlight is weaker. It is best to plant with a soil ball into the hole. The planting depth should be 1 cm above the soil ball surface or level with it. After planting, water thoroughly.

2. Timely weeding: Millettia speciosa grows slowly in the early stage of cultivation, so weeds between the ridges can be removed by hand or by spraying herbicide. When spraying herbicide, be careful to spray when there is no wind, to prevent the herbicide from drifting onto the Millettia speciosa plants.

3. Fertilizer and water management: Millettia speciosa is drought-tolerant but not waterlogging-tolerant. About 1 month after planting, once branches have emerged, topdressing can begin. Take 2 jin of compound fertilizer per mu and dilute it in 400 jin of water for single-plant watering. About 3 months after planting, the total topdressing amount is 40 jin per mu. After that, fertilize once around October each year.

4. Pruning and training: For plants not used for propagation, thin out and prune the strong vigorous branches. For plants kept for propagation, take one bottle of Yuhualing No. 2 and dilute it in 30 kg of water for foliar spraying. After spraying 2 to 3 times in succession, plants set out in March to April can enter the flowering stage in June to September.

5. Thinning flowers to promote fruit: Before Millettia speciosa flowers, spray Yuhualing No. 2 once to promote flowering and pod setting, so that a large amount of nutrients is concentrated to supply the growth of the underground rhizome. After the Start of Autumn, spray Yuhualing No. 5 to promote rapid rooting and continuous enlargement of Millettia speciosa.

6. Disease and pest control: For Millettia speciosa leaf spot disease, spray a 600-fold solution of 50% carbendazim wettable powder plus 80% mancozeb for control. For lepidopteran pests, use 1,000-fold solutions such as 5% abamectin emulsifiable concentrate, 5% abamectin-chlorpyrifos granules or 2.5% abamectin-hexaflumuron emulsifiable concentrate for control.

7. Harvesting and processing: Millettia speciosa is best harvested in autumn and winter when the soil is dry. A tillage machine can be used to deep-plow once between the rows first, followed by manual harvesting. Where conditions do not allow, the tubers can be dug by hand. After harvesting, store in a cold room at 0 to 5°C for half a month, or slice and dry, or vacuum-pack fresh slices, etc.