How much do water spinach seeds cost? Plus growing methods

Water spinach, also known as tongcai weng, wengcai, tengtengcai and so on, is an annual herbaceous plant of the genus Ipomoea in the Convolvulaceae family. It is commonly cultivated in the central and southern provinces of China. Besides being eaten as a vegetable, it can also be used medicinally: taken internally it relieves food poisoning, and applied externally it treats fractures, ascites and unnamed swellings and sores. It is also a fairly good feed. Let us take a look together at water spinach seed prices and growing methods below!

How much do water spinach seeds cost?

The price of water spinach seeds is about 20-30 yuan per jin, but prices vary greatly depending on variety, place of origin and quality. Water spinach is an amphibious plant that can live both on dry land and in paddy fields, but it still grows most vigorously when there is plenty of water. It is best suited to being planted in fertile paddy fields or in fields near livestock sheds where manure water is regularly discharged; fairly fertile dry land can also be used, and planting on dry land can promote greater seed production, so when saving seed it can be cultivated on dry land.

Cultivated varieties of water spinach

1. Thai water spinach: Thai water spinach is heat-tolerant and waterlogging-tolerant, growing vigorously in the high temperatures and high humidity of summer. It is not cold-tolerant and is suitable for high-density cultivation. In the north it is suitable for open-field cultivation in spring and summer. The tender shoots can be harvested successively for 2-3 months. It is crisp in texture with a strong flavor and excellent quality, yielding 3000 kg per mu.

2. White-stem water spinach: White-stem water spinach has thick, yellow-white stems, grows vigorously with fewer branches, has excellent quality and high yield, and is fertilizer-tolerant. It is suitable for cultivation in manured paddy fields; when cultivated on dry land it needs frequent watering. From sowing to first harvest takes 60-70 days, with a yield of 5000 kg per mu.

3. Ji'an wengcai: Ji'an wengcai is a local variety from Jiangxi. The plant is semi-upright with luxuriant stems and leaves and a relatively long growing period. From sowing to first harvest takes 50 days, and harvesting can continue for 70 days, with a yield of 3000-3500 kg per mu.

4. Green-stem wengcai: Green-stem wengcai is a local variety from Hunan Province. The plant is semi-upright and early-maturing, ready to harvest 50 days after sowing, with a growing period of 210 days and a yield of 2500-3000 kg per mu.

5. Fine-leaf wengcai: Fine-leaf wengcai is a short plant with strong stress resistance, tolerant of cold, heat and wind and rain. It is crisp in texture with a strong flavor and very good quality, but its yield is somewhat low. From sowing to first harvest takes 60-70 days, and continued harvesting can last more than 180 days, with a yield of about 2500 kg per mu.

Sowing methods for water spinach

1. Seedbed preparation: For the water spinach seedling bed, apply 20 kg of sieved, decomposed farmyard manure and 50 g of diammonium phosphate per square meter, spread evenly, then shallow-plow, rake level and water thoroughly to moisten the base.

2. Sowing time: In North China, the sowing period for the early spring crop in a solar greenhouse is mid-February, the open-field direct sowing period is late March, the autumn greenhouse sowing period is late May to early June, and the sowing period in high-efficiency energy-saving solar greenhouses is generally early to mid-September.

3. Seed soaking and sprouting: Soak the seeds in warm water at about 30°C for 12 hours, remove and drain off excess water, treat the seeds with 35% metalaxyl wettable powder, then place them at 30°C to sprout. Rinse the seeds once a day with warm water at 25-30°C. They sprout in 2 days and sprout uniformly in 3 days.

4. Sowing method: For direct sowing of water spinach, sow 3-5 seeds per hole, using 2.5-3.0 kg of seed per mu. For seedling raising and transplanting, use the method of broadcasting in the seedling bed and thinning the seedlings. After sowing, cover the seeds with 1 cm of soil. Each mu of planting field requires 50-60 sq m of seedling bed area and about 2.0 kg of seed.

5. Management after sowing: When the water spinach seedlings are 3 cm tall, strengthen fertilizer and water management, and avoid drought. When the seedlings have 2 true leaves and 1 heart leaf, thin them to a spacing of about 6 cm. During the growing period, spray with a 20 mg/L gibberellin solution once every 10 days for 2 consecutive sprays. Transplant the seedlings to the planting field when they have 4-5 leaves.

Growing methods for water spinach

1. Fertilizing and land preparation: Water spinach has strong adaptability to soil; it is both fertilizer-tolerant and waterlogging-tolerant, and also somewhat tolerant of poor soil. Apply about 3-4 tons of decomposed organic fertilizer and 50 kg of diammonium phosphate per mu, then plow, harrow fine and make beds with a bed width of 1.0-1.2 m.

2. Planting method: About 30 days after sowing, when the seedlings are 17-20 cm tall, plant them at a row spacing of 30x35 cm with 3-4 plants per hole, or at a plant-row spacing of 18x35 cm with 2 plants per hole. Before planting, water the seedling bed first, then transplant with a soil ball to help the seedlings recover.

3. Fertilizer and water management: After planting water spinach, strengthen fertilizer and water management, applying about 10 kg of quick-acting nitrogen fertilizer per mu. The amount of topdressing should not be large, and keep the soil moist during the plant's growing period. Apply topdressing after every harvest, at a standard of 10-15 kg of urea per mu.

4. Cultivation and weeding: When growing water spinach, to prevent the bed surface from crusting and weeds from growing thickly, which would affect plant growth, shallow hoe when the bed surface turns pale, prompting root development and creating a favorable environment for robust plant growth.

5. Temperature management: When growing water spinach, maintain as high a temperature as possible. Do not ventilate when the temperature does not exceed 35°C, and keep the nighttime minimum temperature above 15°C. To promote water spinach growth during low-temperature periods, add small arch sheds inside the solar greenhouse to raise the temperature.

6. Pest and disease control: The main pests and diseases of water spinach include white rust, ring spot, aphids, diamondback moth and leaf roller, among others. In production, strictly follow the principle of "prevention first", and pesticide application is also prohibited during the harvest period.

7. Timely harvesting: When the water spinach plants are over 30 cm tall, leave the lower 9-12 cm and harvest the tender shoots above. Afterward, when the new shoots growing from the leaf axils reach 15 cm, begin the second harvest, but leave 2-3 leaves at the base. From the third harvest onward, leave only 1-2 leaves below each harvested new shoot.