What is the meaning of Gastrodia elata trait degeneration?
What is Gastrodia elata trait degeneration? Trait degeneration in Gastrodia elata typically manifests as a decline in the yield of arrow tubers, which become smaller and slender; a substantial reduction in the yield of rice tubers and white tubers, which turn ginger-yellow or light brown, with poor stress resistance, so that the original yield and traits cannot be fully expressed. The causes are generally as follows: 1. Multiple generations of asexual propagation...
What is Gastrodia elata trait degeneration?
Trait degeneration in Gastrodia elata typically manifests as a decline in the yield of arrow tubers, which become smaller and slender; a substantial reduction in the yield of rice tubers and white tubers, which turn ginger-yellow or light brown, with poor stress resistance, so that the original yield and traits cannot be fully expressed. The causes are generally as follows:
1. Multiple generations of asexual propagation. Degeneration generally begins to appear after 5 to 6 generations of asexual propagation, but the rate of degeneration differs depending on the soil type used for cultivation. Degeneration is slower when cultivated in granite soil, followed by yellow-brown earth sandy soil parent material, and acidic soil formed by the weathering of shale or limestone.
2. Continuous cropping. Under normal circumstances, the yield is high in the first year and low in the second year, and after 3 to 4 years the yield declines rapidly.
3. Armillaria mellea degeneration. It first manifests as reduced adaptability and stress resistance, with slow growth of rhizomorphs; subsequently the rhizomorphs become inelastic, fragile, and even turn into empty shells. As the number of subculturing generations continues to increase, Armillaria mellea forms thick, long, numerous and branched dark brown rhizomorph networks on the fungal wood.
4. Dense deep-layer cultivation. This method causes a lack of oxygen during the growth of Gastrodia elata, leading to a decline in vitality.
5. Diseases. Old seed tubers, old fungal wood and old pits are most susceptible to disease; in mild cases growth is poor, and in severe cases there is a total loss of harvest.
6. High temperature. It induces and accelerates disease onset, causing poor growth of Gastrodia elata; the most obvious sign is that the head of the arrow tuber takes on a "bottleneck" shape, with an increase in rice tubers and small white tubers, and an increase in rotten tubers.
Prevention and control methods: ① Use wild species and introduce species from other locations, especially introducing from higher terrain to lower terrain. ② Screen and cultivate high-quality Armillaria mellea strains, purify and expand them, compare lines, rejuvenate and propagate, cultivate high-quality fungal wood, and use high-quality loose culture material as filler and cover. ③ Change the cultivation site, choose acidic sandy loam, and avoid continuous cropping. ④ Adopt sexual propagation techniques. Alternate sexual and asexual propagation; corms from sexual propagation are planted for only 4 to 5 generations. ⑤ Use hybrid varieties. ⑥ Strictly prevent and control diseases.
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