What are the cultivation methods and key technical points for Salvia miltiorrhiza?
What are the methods for growing Salvia miltiorrhiza? Please give an introduction. Salvia miltiorrhiza, also known as purple salvia, red salvia, blood salvia, and red-rooted salvia, is the dried root of the plant Salvia miltiorrhiza in the Lamiaceae family. It has the functions of removing blood stasis and relieving pain, promoting blood circulation and regulating menstruation, and nourishing the heart and relieving restlessness. It is suitable for irregular menstruation, amenorrhea, ectopic pregnancy, hepatosplenomegaly, angina pectoris, restlessness and insomnia...
What are the methods for growing Salvia miltiorrhiza? Please give an introduction
Salvia miltiorrhiza, also known as purple salvia, red salvia, blood salvia, and red-rooted salvia, is the dried root of the plant Salvia miltiorrhiza in the Lamiaceae family. It has the functions of removing blood stasis and relieving pain, promoting blood circulation and regulating menstruation, and nourishing the heart and relieving restlessness. It is suitable for irregular menstruation, amenorrhea, ectopic pregnancy, hepatosplenomegaly, angina pectoris, restlessness and insomnia, sores and swellings, and other symptoms. It is a commonly used Chinese medicinal material, with an annual national demand of about 4.1 million kg. This product is mainly produced in Anhui, Shanxi, Hebei, Sichuan, Jiangsu, Liaoning, Henan, Shaanxi, Shandong, Zhejiang, and Fujian provinces. Its cultivation and processing methods are as follows:
I. Site selection and land preparation
Salvia miltiorrhiza is a deep-rooted plant, and its roots can extend more than 0.3 m into the soil. To facilitate root growth and development, it is advisable to choose fertile, loose, deep soil with a slightly elevated position and good drainage for planting. For mountain cultivation, sunny low hillsides should be selected. Salvia miltiorrhiza has no strict requirements for soil, and yellow sandy soil, black sandy soil, and alluvial soil can all be used for planting.
Salvia miltiorrhiza is a root-type medicinal material with a long growth period. During land preparation, apply base fertilizer to the land first, and apply as much slow-release farmyard manure and phosphate fertilizer as possible as base fertilizer. It is best to apply 2500-4000 kg of decomposed barnyard manure per mu, and turn it into the soil as base fertilizer. Before planting, plow and harrow again, break up the soil, level it, and make beds. Generally, the bed width including the ditch is 2.5-3 m, and the bed height is 15-25 cm. When cultivating in plain areas with a high groundwater table, deeper bed ditches need to be dug to prevent root rot; for overly long beds, a cross ditch should be dug every 20 m to maintain smooth drainage.
II. Propagation methods
Seed propagation: Broadcast sowing is generally used, and sowing from Grain in Ear to Summer Solstice and from End of Heat to White Dew in the same year the seeds are collected is best. The seedbed should be land with a slightly elevated position, loose and fertile soil, and convenient watering. For raising seedlings in mountainous areas, it is best to choose sloping land at the foot of a mountain facing east or southeast as the seedbed to reduce sun exposure and help seedling emergence. First plow the seedbed, and use decomposed human feces and urine as base fertilizer. The soil should be broken up finely, and high beds should be made, with a bed width of 1.3-1.66 m. Then evenly sow the seeds shallowly on the bed surface. After sowing, tread lightly once to make the seeds adhere closely to the surface soil (there is no need to cover with soil), cover with a thin layer of wheat straw, and sprinkle water frequently to keep it moist. When the seedlings have 3-5 true leaves, thin them if they are found to be too dense. The thinned seedlings can be temporarily transplanted and cultivated separately. During this period, pay attention to watering and promptly apply 1-2 topdressings of dilute human feces and urine to promote seedling growth. The suitable time for transplanting is from late October to early November of the same year. Before transplanting, open holes on the prepared bed surface at a spacing of 25 cm x 25 cm, with the hole depth depending on the length of the seedling roots. Plant 1-2 plants per hole, and the planting depth should be such that the heart bud is slightly exposed; do not plant too deep, and do not let the root crown be exposed above the soil. After planting, cover with soil until the holes are level, press lightly, and water promptly to stabilize the roots. Salvia miltiorrhiza transplanted early takes root early, and by the time the cold winter comes it has already survived, and it will turn green early the next year. Do not delay transplanting until the severe cold season if possible.
Root division propagation: Carry out from Start of Spring to Awakening of Insects. Select healthy new roots about 1 cm in diameter for planting. Before planting, cut the roots into 5-7 cm long root segments. The planting density is 27 cm between rows and 20 cm between plants. Open furrows on the bed surface, place the root segments vertically in the furrows, taking care not to place the upper and lower ends upside down, and cover with soil level after planting. Seedlings generally emerge after Grain Rain. With root division propagation, flowering is later, and it is difficult to harvest seeds in the same year, but the roots grow faster.
Division propagation: From Start of Winter to Awakening of Insects the following year, when harvesting cultivated Salvia miltiorrhiza (generally between Winter Solstice and Start of Spring), select healthy plants free of disease, cut off the thick roots for medicinal use, and use the roots thinner than a cigarette together with the rhizome and heart leaves as planting material for planting. Wild Salvia miltiorrhiza can also be dug up and transplanted together with roots and seedlings. Large seedlings can be divided into 2-4 plants according to the natural growth status of the buds and roots, and then planted.
Cuttage method: Around Qingming, select thick and strong stems, cut them into sections with 2-3 nodes each, cut off some leaves, and insert them into the prepared bed, burying 6-10 cm in the soil so that the buds are slightly exposed above the soil surface, press the soil firmly, and water immediately. After that, spray water with a sprayer in the morning and evening to keep the bed surface moist.
III. Field management
Fertilization: After Salvia miltiorrhiza turns green in early spring, it must go through a 9-month growth period before harvest. During the growth process, it needs several topdressings. The first is applying seedling-promoting fertilizer when it turns green, using 750-800 kg of decomposed human feces and urine per mu diluted with water and poured on. The second is applied from mid-April to late May. For plots not intended for seed production, after cutting the inflorescences, apply 1000 kg of decomposed human feces and urine and 50 kg of cake fertilizer per mu; the third is applied in June and July after cutting the old stems, applying root-growing fertilizer, and it should be applied heavily. Apply 1500 kg of concentrated feces and urine, 20 kg of superphosphate, and 10 kg of potassium chloride per mu. The second and third topdressings are best applied in furrows or holes, and after application cover with soil to bury the fertilizer.
Loosening soil and weeding: Salvia miltiorrhiza grows relatively slowly in the early stage, so soil should be loosened and weeds removed in time. Generally, from transplanting until the rows close, soil should be loosened and weeds removed 2-3 times. Loosen the soil shallowly rather than deeply to prevent damage to the roots.
Do a good job of drainage and irrigation: Throughout the entire growth period of Salvia miltiorrhiza plants, attention must be paid to clearing the ditches, maintaining smooth drainage, and preventing Salvia miltiorrhiza from being waterlogged during rainy seasons. Digging and clearing ditches can be done together with fertilization, covering the ditch mud on top of the fertilizer. During the dog days and during continuous autumn drought, furrow irrigation or watering can be carried out to combat drought. Furrow irrigation should be done in the morning and evening, and should be irrigated and drained quickly.
Removing inflorescences: For Salvia miltiorrhiza not intended for seed harvesting, starting in mid-April, the inflorescences that have just emerged to 2 cm should be pinched off one after another to ensure that nutrients are concentrated in the roots. Inflorescences should be removed early and frequently, preferably once every 10 days by pinching or cutting, continued several times.
Cutting off old stems: After the seeds of seed-producing Salvia miltiorrhiza are cut and harvested, the stems and leaves of the plant gradually age or wither, which is unfavorable to root growth. Cutting them off allows the leaf clusters at the stem base to grow again and promotes continued root growth. Therefore, from Summer Solstice to Minor Heat, all stems should be cut off level with the ground.
IV. Pest and disease control
Root rot: Occurs from May to November, with severe damage in June and July. Initially, individual root strips or part of the underground stem of the root system are damaged, then it spreads to the entire lower part. The damaged part becomes wet and rotten, and the outer skin turns black; in the aboveground part, individual stems and branches die first at the beginning, and in severe cases the entire plant dies. Control methods: implement paddy-upland rotation, or drench the roots with a 200-fold dilution of the biological pesticide Kang 120; or spray with an 800-fold dilution of 50% thiophanate-methyl, both of which have good effects.
Sclerotinia disease: Begins to occur in early May, and is especially severe in June and July. The pathogen first attacks the stem base, buds, and rhizome, causing these parts to gradually rot and turn brown; gray-black mouse-dropping-like sclerotia and white mycelium often appear on the surface of the diseased part, on the nearby soil surface, and inside the base of the stems. At the same time, the stems and leaves in the upper part of the diseased plant gradually turn yellow, and finally the plant dies. Control methods: spray with a mixture of jinggangmycin and carbendazim in the early stage of the disease; a 1000-fold dilution of 50% Rizolex can also be sprayed or poured.
Leaf spot: This is a bacterial leaf disease. It begins to occur in early May and can continue until late autumn. The lesions on the leaves of diseased plants are dark brown, 1-8 mm in diameter, nearly circular or irregular, and in severe cases the lesions are densely distributed and merge, causing the leaves to wither and die. Control methods: 1. Pay attention to opening ditches for drainage to reduce field humidity; 2. Remove old diseased leaves on the stems to improve ventilation and reduce sources of infection; 3. Spray 1:1:150 Bordeaux mixture before and after the disease occurs.
Black cutworm: Damages seedlings in spring. 100 g of 90% trichlorfon can be mixed with 5 kg of roasted tea seed cake as poisonous bait and scattered in the field to trap and kill them.
Silver-marked moth: Damages from May to October, especially severely from May to June. This insect bites the leaves of Salvia miltiorrhiza into holes or notches, and in severe cases the leaves are eaten completely bare. It is the main insect pest of Salvia miltiorrhiza. A 1000-fold dilution of 90% crystalline trichlorfon, or a 250-fold dilution of 25% DDT emulsion, or a 300-350-fold dilution of 25% chlordimeform aqueous solution can be sprayed.
Tiger moth: Occurs in late September, and the larvae feed on Salvia miltiorrhiza leaves. A 1000-fold dilution of 90% crystalline trichlorfon can be sprayed.
V. Seed retention
Salvia miltiorrhiza blooms and sets seed in alternate years. In the second year after planting, seeds begin to mature successively from the end of May or June. On the inflorescence, the order of flowering and seed setting is from bottom to top, and the lower seeds mature first. Seeds must be harvested in time, otherwise they will naturally scatter on the ground. When harvesting, if the area for seed retention is very small, they can be harvested in stages, that is, first strip off several lower nodes of fruit calyces together with mature seeds in the field, and leave the upper immature nodes for later harvest; if the retention area is relatively large, when two-thirds of the fruit calyces on the inflorescence have already faded from green to yellow but are not yet completely withered, cut off the entire inflorescence, then discard the young tender top part and keep the mature seeds from the middle and lower parts. After the inflorescence is cut off, it must be sun-dried immediately, the seeds threshed out, and winnowed clean. Seeds dried for three sunny days have a higher germination rate after sowing and emerge more uniformly. After the seeds are sun-dried, put them in cloth bags and hang them in a cool, dry indoor place for storage.
Click to get more Salvia miltiorrhiza cultivation techniques
Click to get more medicinal material cultivation techniques