Betel nut cultivation techniques explained: planting methods and management essentials

Betel nut, also known as Guangzi, Dabai, Langyu, Binglangzi, and Geyu. It is the betel nut (Areca catechu), a plant of the genus Areca in the palm family, with the seed used as medicine and its fruit rind (areca peel) also used as medicine. Betel nut seed has the effects of expelling parasites, breaking stagnant qi in the chest, eliminating phlegm, and reducing edema and accumulations. It can treat parasitic accumulations (expelling tapeworms, roundworms, and fasciolopsis buski), food stagnation, abdominal distension and diarrhea, edema, phlegm accumulation, and other conditions. Areca peel (the outer fruit rind of betel nut) has the effects of directing qi downward, promoting water movement, and inducing urination. In China it is cultivated in Fujian, southern Taiwan, China, Guangxi, Guangdong, Hainan Island, and southern Yunnan.

Plant characteristics

Evergreen tree, without a main root, trunk single and upright, 10-20 m tall. Leaves 6-10 in a cluster at the top of the stem, pinnately compound leaves up to 4 m long, leaf sheaths clasping the stem. On the stem below the leaf crown grows a spadix, much branched, flowers unisexual, monoecious, male flowers small and numerous, attached to the upper part of the inflorescence branches, female flowers fewer, borne at the base of the inflorescence axis branches. Nut ovate, red when ripe, fruit rind fibrous, seed half-ovate in shape. Flowering period April to August, winter flowers do not set fruit, fruiting period November to April of the following year.

I. Growth habits

It grows in tropical areas below 700 m elevation. It is not cold-tolerant, and grows better at a temperature of about 25°C. Although short-term light frost does not freeze it to death, the leaves will turn yellow and fall. Prolonged drought and strong winds are unfavorable for growth. The soil should be relatively thick and moist; lateritic red soil and red soil are both suitable. It is often planted near villages with ample sunlight, in front of and behind houses, as well as in forest gaps, along riverbanks, in valleys, and on hillsides. During the early growth stage it needs protection from heat, so banana can first be planted in the betel nut plantation for shade. Betel nut can be intercropped with pepper and used as a live support for pepper.

II. Sowing

Grow seedlings from seed and transplant, or direct sowing is also possible, but the survival rate is low, so it is mostly not adopted. The seedling site should be chosen as fertile sandy loam with sufficient water, convenient irrigation, and forest shade. After plowing and turning, spread soil compost and barnyard manure, and harrow level and fine so that the fertilizer and soil are evenly mixed, open holes according to the seedling spacing, then apply basal fertilizer in the holes to concentrate the fertilizer.

Seed selection: Select 15-25 year old mother trees with short trunk nodes, little difference in thickness between the stem base and stem trunk, tall and robust, with dark green leaves and many concentrated fruits. When the fruits are fully mature, pick them, then select those with large fruit, golden yellow color, and no spots as seed. To prevent the fruits from being bruised when falling from the tree and thus rotting and affecting germination, it is best to stretch a net under the tree when picking the fruit; the harvested fruits should immediately undergo germination treatment.

Pit storage for germination: Choose a shaded spot and dig a pit 30 cm deep, with length and width depending on the terrain and the amount of seed; after sprinkling water at the bottom of the pit, spread a layer of sand, then spread a layer of fruit (fruit stalk facing upward, to facilitate germination), add a layer of covering (about 9 cm thick), and after stacking 1-2 layers, cover with a layer of rice straw, frequently water to maintain moisture; after half a month white sprouting points the size of rice grains can appear, at which point take them out for seedling raising; otherwise, if the sprouts grow too large, they are easily damaged when sown and easily killed by sun after sowing.

Seedling raising and seedbed management: Open holes at a spacing of 30 cm between plants and rows, place 1-2 fruits horizontally in each hole, and cover with soil until the fruit is no longer visible. Within 10 days after sowing, water once a day; when the seedlings emerge and the small leaves unfold, apply fertilizer once, scratching the soil aside along the roots and applying it in, then cover with soil again. According to the shading conditions, build a shade shed appropriately to avoid direct sunlight; weed and fertilize 2-3 times each year, and pay attention to irrigation and earthing up. After 1-2 years of seedling age, when they are 30-60 cm tall and the stem base is slightly thickened, they can be lifted with soil for planting.

Planting: Planting in the rainy season is best and makes survival easier. Two months before planting, on the selected land, first open holes at a spacing of 240 cm × 300 cm (for intercropping with pepper, 4.5 m × 6 m), 60 cm wide and 45 cm deep, and let the soil weather. When planting, choose a cloudy day, fill the surface fertile soil into the pit, apply sufficient basal fertilizer, and plant the strong seedlings dug up that day with soil straight into the pit, about 15 cm above the ground, then cover with soil and firm it. After planting, cut off half of the already unfolded leaves, and according to sunlight intensity insert small branches around for shade as appropriate; water appropriately every day, and only after they survive and grow new leaves can the watering frequency be reduced.

III. Plantation management

After the plants survive, cultivate, weed, and fertilize 2-3 times each year, pay attention to drainage and irrigation, and keep the soil around the plants loose, free of weeds, with sufficient nutrients and appropriate moisture, so as to facilitate normal growth and earlier fruiting. Fertilization should be done from April to September, by digging ring-shaped holes 15-20 cm from the tree roots and applying fertilizer, then covering with soil. For mature trees, apply human waste or nitrogen fertilizer once before flower buds appear; apply phosphorus and potassium fertilizer once during the vigorous fruiting period, such as superphosphate, plant ash, or compost, applied mixed.

Betel nut has a tall trunk with few leaves, and while young trees prefer shade, mature trees prefer sunlight, and the ground gaps are large; therefore, some low-growing and relatively shade-tolerant crops can be planted between the plants and rows, such as beans, pepper, vegetables, or other fruit and medicinal plants. As long as management is strengthened, fertilizer application increased, and the land fully used, combining long-term and short-term crops can both increase income and cover the ground, preventing soil loss caused by rainwater erosion, maintaining soil moisture, and favoring betel nut growth.

IV. Harvesting and processing

It begins to fruit 7-8 years after transplanting. Every year from April to May, when the fruits turn yellow and ripe, they can be harvested. Then use a knife to score the fruit rind, peel it open, and dry the seeds and the rind separately. The seeds are betel nut (langyu), and the fruit rind is areca peel; they are packed separately for sale and for medicinal use.