How to grow Glehnia littoralis for high yield? A detailed guide to cultivation techniques

Glehnia littoralis, also known as coral vegetable, Laiyang sand ginseng, Liaoning sand ginseng, etc. Its underground root is used medicinally and has the effects of moistening the lungs and stopping cough, nourishing the stomach and promoting fluid production. It mainly treats dryness of the lungs with dry thirst, damage to body fluids from febrile disease, bronchitis and other conditions. It is mainly produced in Shandong, Liaoning, Hebei, Inner Mongolia, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, Taiwan, China, Guangdong and the coastal provinces.

Morphological characteristics: It is a perennial herbaceous plant of the Apiaceae family, 5-20 cm tall, with grayish-brown fuzz all over the plant. The main root is slender and cylindrical, 30 cm long and 0.5-1.5 cm in diameter, rarely branched. The stem is upright and unbranched. The basal leaves have petioles about 10 cm long, with sheath-like bases and membranous margins; the leaf blades are ovate or triangular-ovate, ternately pinnate or 2 to 3 times pinnately parted. The compound umbel is terminal; the general peduncle is 4-10 cm long; each small umbel has 15-20 flowers, with 5 petals that are folded inward at the tip, white; 5 calyx teeth, narrowly triangular-lanceolate; 5 stamens, alternating with the petals; the ovary is inferior, the style base is flatly conical, and the stigma is 2-lobed. The schizocarp is spherical or elliptical, with 5 fruit ribs, corky wings, and covered with brown coarse hairs; the fruit is yellowish-brown when mature.

Anguo, Hebei is a traditional old production area for Glehnia littoralis. Before the reform and opening up, when land had not yet been contracted to households, Anguo medicinal farmers already had the habit of planting Glehnia littoralis in their private plots. As a traditional cash crop, it has continued to develop to the present day. The characteristics of Anguo sand ginseng are: short and thick, shaped like a pen, with a relatively rough outer skin, but its yield is large and its price is low. It is mainly sold domestically, used for decoction piece processing and as raw material for pharmaceutical factories, with only a small portion used for export. Anguo sand ginseng accounts for 40% of the country's total output and is currently the largest main production area in the country.

Laiyang, Shandong: It is also a traditional old production area. Laiyang sand ginseng is commonly known as "one stick of incense", with slender strips, yellow-white skin, fine and tender texture, and a slight fragrance, but its yield is relatively low and its price is high. It is mainly sold to Shanghai, Guangzhou and exported to various countries in Southeast Asia. In recent years, because other cash crops in Shandong have developed rapidly, the planting of Glehnia littoralis has shown shrinkage.

Chifeng, Inner Mongolia: Niuyingzi Town in Chifeng is a new production area that has been tempered over many years. Due to its special sandy loam soil and light conditions, it is suitable for the growth of Glehnia littoralis. In addition, with careful management by medicinal farmers, its characteristics of long roots without branching, white skin and tenderness make its quality superior to the Glehnia littoralis of Anguo. Its market price is relatively high, and it is mainly sold to Guangzhou, Shanghai and for export. Because Niuyingzi Town in Chifeng is far from specialized markets for Chinese medicinal materials and medicinal farmers have a weak awareness of the market economy, its production fluctuates greatly under the influence of price, making it an unstable production area.

I. Growth habits: Glehnia littoralis prefers sunny, warm and humid environments. It is cold-resistant, drought-resistant and salt-alkali-resistant, fears high temperatures, and avoids continuous cropping. Soil requirements: deep soil layers, loose and fertile sandy loam rich in organic matter are best. Low-lying land is not suitable for planting.

II. Land preparation and fertilization: Choose fields with high terrain and good drainage, and cultivate carefully. In combination with land preparation, apply sufficient base fertilizer: 5000 kg of farmyard manure, 20 kg of urea, and 50 kg of phosphorus-potassium fertilizer per mu. Then make beds and wait for sowing.

III. Sowing: Glehnia littoralis is propagated by seed. The sowing periods include autumn sowing and spring sowing. Autumn sowing is around the Beginning of Winter, and spring sowing is around Qingming. Autumn sowing is better. Before sowing, the seeds must be treated, that is, the freshly collected seeds are mixed evenly with wet sand at a ratio of 1:3, then buried in a pit, maintaining moist and low-temperature conditions. When sowing, first open shallow furrows on the prepared bed surface, then evenly scatter the Glehnia littoralis seeds into the furrows and cover with soil just enough to cover the seeds. The furrow spacing is 20 cm. The sowing rate is 8 kg per mu.

IV. Field management: After the Glehnia littoralis seedlings emerge completely, attention should be paid to intertillage and weeding. If planting on a large scale, soil treatment should be carried out before seedling emergence using herbicides for medicinal fields, which can effectively prevent and control various weeds. Thin the seedlings when there are 3 true leaves, with a plant spacing of 3 cm. Pay attention to drainage during rainy weather and water in time during dry weather. Around the Beginning of Autumn, when the underground rhizomes enter a period of rapid expansion, topdress once: apply 10 kg of urea and 10 kg of potassium dihydrogen phosphate per mu. This promotes the growth of underground rhizomes. After Glehnia littoralis buds, except for plants kept for seed, promptly cut off the flower buds to prevent nutrient consumption.

V. Pest and disease control: The main diseases of Glehnia littoralis are: rust disease, which can be controlled at the early stage of onset with 97% ferbam sodium at 300 times dilution or 25% triadimefon at 1500 times dilution. Root rot can be controlled by comprehensive measures: 1. Soil disinfection, apply 3 kg of 50% carbendazim powder evenly into the soil during land preparation. 2. Seed treatment, soak the Glehnia littoralis seeds in 50% carbendazim 500 times dilution for 24—48 hours before sowing. 3. Spray 1:1:120 Bordeaux mixture before onset for prevention, or at the early stage of onset, irrigate diseased plants with 50% thiophanate-methyl 1000 times dilution. The main pest is the stem borer, which bores into stems, roots and flower buds and causes damage. It can be controlled at the early stage of onset with fenvalerate. Aphids can be sprayed and killed with pirimicarb. Underground pests can be controlled with phoxim.

VI. Harvest and processing: Glehnia littoralis is dug up around the Descent of Frost after one year of growth, after the aboveground stems and leaves wither. First cut off the aboveground stems and leaves, then dig out the underground rhizomes, clean off the soil, put them into boiling water and blanch for 10 seconds. When the skin can be removed, take them out, immediately put them into cold water to cool, remove the skin while wet, then dry in the sun or dry by heat in time, and they can be sold as medicine. The yield per mu is 250--350 kg.