How much do Trichosanthes seeds cost? Detailed planting methods
Trichosanthes is also known as Gualou, Lougua, Lougua and so on. It is a perennial climbing herbaceous plant of the genus Trichosanthes in the Cucurbitaceae family. Its fruit, fruit rind, kernel (seed), and rootstock are all excellent traditional Chinese medicinal materials, with effects of clearing heat and dissolving phlegm, soothing the chest and dispersing nodules, and moistening dryness and lubricating the intestines. It is distributed in Liaoning, Shaanxi, Gansu, Sichuan, Guizhou, Yunnan and other places in China. Now let us take a look at Trichosanthes seed prices and planting methods!
How much does a jin of Trichosanthes seeds cost?
The price of Trichosanthes seeds is about 25 to 35 yuan per jin, but prices vary depending on seed quality, variety, place of origin, and market conditions. Trichosanthes can be cultivated between spring and summer. In production, seed propagation or root propagation is mostly used, with 6 jin of seeds or 40 to 50 jin of seed roots per mu. Before planting, the seed roots are cut into small sections 9 to 10 cm long, then mixed with plant ash to heal the wounds. The fruit is harvested in late autumn after it turns yellow, with an average yield of about 500 jin per mu.
Propagation methods of Trichosanthes
1. Direct seeding: Usually in September to October, select mature fruits with short stalks that are orange-yellow. The following spring, between March and April, soak the seeds in warm water at 40 to 50°C for 1 day and night, take them out to dry, and use moist sand to promote germination. Sow at a hole spacing of 2 m, cover with 3 to 4 cm of soil, and seedlings emerge 15 to 20 days after sowing.
2. Root division propagation: In the north from March to April, and in the south from October to December, dig out all the tuberous roots and reed heads, select fresh ones free of pests and diseases for use as seed, divide them into small sections 7 to 10 cm long, match female and male plants, dig holes and sow at a row spacing and plant spacing of 2×0.3 m, and seedlings can emerge in about 1 month.
3. Layering propagation: Trichosanthes layering propagation is generally carried out in summer and autumn. Pull vigorous vines to the ground, cover the base of the leaves with soil, wait for roots to grow, cut the stem, and new stems grow to become new plants, which can be transplanted the following year.
Planting methods of Trichosanthes
1. Deep plowing of the land: Trichosanthes roots can go 1 to 1.5 m deep into the ground, so the planting site needs deep plowing. Usually before the ground freezes, dig 1 trench every 1.7 m that is 0.5 m deep and 30 cm wide, so that the soil is fully weathered and loosened over a winter and pests and diseases are eliminated.
2. Land preparation and fertilization: Before "Qingming" of the second year, apply 0.5 wan kg of farmyard manure per mu at the Trichosanthes planting site, mix it evenly with soil, and fill the trenches level. Then release water along the trenches to irrigate thoroughly. After 2 to 3 days, level the trenches again and hoe once to loosen the soil. Once the moisture is suitable, planting can begin.
3. Timely loosening of the soil: About half a month after planting Trichosanthes, uncover the soil mound to inspect. If the seed roots have sprouted and the soil is not dry, level the soil mound to help seedlings emerge. If heavy rain falls before emergence and the soil surface is slightly dry after the rain, loosen the soil gently, but not too deep.
4. Drainage and irrigation: After planting Trichosanthes, if the soil is dry, open a furrow on one side 9 to 12 cm away from the seed roots and water. After each fertilization, make a ridge 30 cm away from the plants and release water for irrigation. Pay attention to irrigation throughout the entire growth period.
5. Removing vines and building trellises: When Trichosanthes stems are about 30 cm long, remove excess stems and vines, leaving only 2 to 3 thick vines per plant. Generally, one trellis is built between every 2 to 3 rows. When building the trellis, use poles 1.5 m long. Bury 1 pole every 2 to 2.4 [m], burying 3 rows in total, thus forming 1 row of Trichosanthes and 1 row of poles.
6. Guiding seedlings onto the trellis: When Trichosanthes stems are about 30 cm long, insert 1 sorghum stalk beside each plant to guide the vines to climb onto the trellis. Select 2 to 3 vigorous stems per plant to extend toward the middle, and promptly remove excessive branches and axillary buds on top of the trellis.
7. Timely topdressing: In the first year after planting Trichosanthes, if the base fertilizer is insufficient, apply fertilizer once in June. From the second year onward, apply fertilizer twice each year. The first time is when the seedlings are about 34 cm tall, and the second time is in mid-June (between flowering), mainly with organic fertilizer.
8. Artificial pollination: Plant some male Trichosanthes appropriately between rows or beside the trellis. During the flowering period, at 8 to 9 in the morning, use a new writing brush or cotton to dip up pollen grains from male flowers, then touch them to the stigmas of female flowers. One male flower can pollinate 10 to 15 female flowers.
9. Timely harvesting: Trichosanthes begins to bear fruit 2 to 3 years after planting. From "Autumn Equinox" to "Frost's Descent", when the fruit is still green, the seeds have already filled out, and the fruit can be picked in batches. If there is not enough time to pick them, the Trichosanthes vines can be cut off from the root, so that the Trichosanthes hang on the trellis for a period.
Pest and disease control of Trichosanthes
1. Anthracnose
[Damage] It generally occurs at the seedling stage and adult plant stage, mainly damaging leaves and fruits. When the disease is severe, the entire fruit shrivels and rots, seriously affecting Trichosanthes yield.
[Control] Spray with 86.2% Copper Master 1000 to 1400 times liquid, or carbendazim wettable powder 800 times liquid, or 25% chlorothalonil 600 times liquid, or 10% Score dispersible agent 6000 to 7000 times liquid. Spray once every other week, rotate drug varieties, and spray 2 to 3 times continuously.
2. Gummy stem blight
[Damage] Aboveground parts such as stems, leaves, fruits, and tendrils are damaged, but the roots are not harmed. The stem is mostly infected at the stem base and nodes. Initially, oil-soaked oval lesions appear on the diseased part, then turn white, ooze gum, and are densely covered with small black spots.
[Control] Focus on control at the seedling emergence stage. Spray the stem base with 40% DuPont Fusilade emulsifiable concentrate 800 times liquid, or irrigate the roots or spray the whole field with 5% Junduqing 300 to 500 times liquid. Apply control again after 4 to 5 days, and thereafter depending on the condition of the disease.
3. Melon fruit fly
[Damage] June to September is the peak damage period. It lays eggs inside the young fruit rind, hatches, and bores into and feeds on the fruit, damaging the fruit rind tissue, affecting embryo development, causing seeds not to fill out, increasing shriveled seeds, and reducing seed yield.
[Control] After fruit set is stable in late June and early July, control can be carried out with 48% Lebaycid emulsifiable concentrate 2000 times liquid, or spray with 2.5% Dikesi emulsifiable concentrate 2000 times liquid, or control with 80% dichlorvos emulsifiable concentrate 1000 times liquid.
4. Melon silk borer
[Damage] Young larvae feed on the leaf mesophyll on the underside of cucurbit leaves. After the 3rd instar, they spin silk to bind leaves or tender shoots together and hide inside to feed, causing leaves to be perforated or notched. In severe cases, only leaf veins remain, and they even bore into fruits and stems to cause damage, seriously affecting fruit yield and quality.
[Control] The best control time is in the evening after the sun goes down. Spray evenly with 20% Lujiada 1000 to 1500 times liquid, or 5% Meichu 1500 times liquid, or Lorsban 2000 times liquid. Rotate different pesticides to improve control efficacy.
5. Yellow squash beetle
[Damage] It resembles a firefly, also called yellow firefly. It begins laying eggs in early May, mainly damaging leaves.
[Control] It can be captured and killed by manually shaking it off. Before flowering, spray with 80% dichlorvos emulsifiable concentrate, or 40% dimethoate 1000 times liquid, or 50% phoxim emulsifiable concentrate 500 times liquid.
6. Aphids
[Damage] Adults pierce and suck sap on leaves, tender buds, and tender stems, which can cause leaves to curl, deform, and shrivel, and cause viral diseases.
[Control] Spray with 2.5% fenvalerate 3000 times liquid or 40% dimethoate 1000 times liquid.
7. Clearwing moth
[Damage] Larvae feed on stems and vines, entering the interior from the epidermis. The stem is stimulated and swells into a gall. In severe cases, the entire plant dies.
[Control] It can be controlled with 80% dichlorvos emulsifiable concentrate 1000 times liquid.