How much investment is needed to plant one mu of Bletilla striata?
Bletilla striata is a commonly used astringent hemostatic medicine, and at present most of it still relies on wild sources, but wild resources are limited. Years of reckless harvesting and digging, together with the impact of natural disasters, have caused wild Bletilla striata production to drop sharply, and the contradiction between supply and demand is growing day by day. The best way to solve the resource shortage is artificial cultivation. Let us take a look below at how much it costs to invest in one mu of Bletilla striata!
How much does it cost to invest in one mu of Bletilla striata?
1. Seedlings: tuber planting costs about 30,000 yuan per mu, domesticated seedlings about 15,000 yuan, and bottle seedlings about 8,000 yuan.
2. Fertilizer: it is estimated that 200 yuan of fertilizer is needed per mu per year, and planting for 3 years requires an investment of 200*3=600 yuan.
3. Others: other costs such as daily management are about 1,000 yuan per year, and over 3 years about 3,000 yuan per mu is needed.
The planting risks of Bletilla striata
1. Market risk: apart from the traditional production areas of Yunnan, Guizhou and Sichuan, artificial cultivation of Bletilla striata has now begun from Shaanxi and Henan in the north, to Fujian and Guangxi in the south, to Jiangsu and Zhejiang in the east, and to Gansu in the west, so overheated production is bound to create a certain risk for Bletilla striata planting.
2. Investment risk: compared with other planting projects, Bletilla striata planting requires a much larger investment cost, and the growth period is 2 to 3 years. Such investment cost and production cycle are simply beyond the capacity of ordinary farmers, and at the same time they increase the investment risk.
3. Seed source risk: the confusion of Bletilla striata seed sources is notorious among Chinese medicinal materials. At present, what circulates in the chemical industry is the purple-flowered three-fork large Bletilla striata, while what is mainly used medicinally in the pharmacopoeia is the purple-flowered three-fork small Bletilla striata. Other yellow-flowered and white-flowered Bletilla striata and the like are customary substitutes and adulterants.
4. Technical risk: Bletilla striata seedlings usually must go through introducing seed sources, tissue culture, hardening off, and developing a well-developed root system before transplanting. However, because the growth of the rhizome requires an environment with symbiotic fungi and transplanting and management are very meticulous, the dead seedling rate can usually reach 50% or even higher.
The planting methods of Bletilla striata
1. Soil selection: Bletilla striata is suitable for well-drained sandy loam and humus loam rich in humus. It likes a warm, slightly shady and damp environment and is not cold-tolerant. When planting on well-drained mountain land, a shady slope of virgin wasteland should be chosen.
2. Land preparation and bed making: plow the Bletilla striata planting land to a depth of more than 20 cm, apply 1,000 kg of farmyard manure per mu, then plow again to mix the soil and fertilizer evenly. Before planting, break up the soil finely and rake it level, and make high beds 130 to 150 cm wide.
3. Cultivation and weeding: after the Bletilla striata seedlings emerge completely, they grow very vigorously in May and June, and weeds also grow very fast, so weeding must be carried out. Weeding should be combined with loosening the bed surface, and when weeding, hoe shallowly to avoid damaging the roots.
4. Timely topdressing: Bletilla striata is a fertilizer-loving plant, and usually potassium dihydrogen phosphate or dilute human and livestock manure and urine is sprayed once a month. From July to August it stops growing and enters dormancy, but weeds must be prevented from growing thickly.
5. Irrigation and drainage: Bletilla striata likes a shady and damp environment, so it should often be kept moist, and watered during drought. From July to September, water once in the morning and once in the evening, but Bletilla striata also fears waterlogging, so drain promptly during heavy rain to avoid damaging the roots.
6. Pest and disease control: for Bletilla striata black spot disease, spray with a 1,000-fold dilution of 70% thiophanate-methyl wettable powder; for root-knot nematode disease, drench with 3% carbofuran granules; for cutworms, manual capture and trapping, or poison soil mixing, can be used for control.