Gastrodia elata box planting tutorial, teaching you step by step how to grow Gastrodia elata

Gastrodia elata can be grown in open fields, under tree shade, indoors, in basements, in cellar caves, in brick pools and in wooden boxes; as long as you master its growth characteristics, you can achieve a high yield. Based on my planting experience last year, I now introduce the method of asexual Gastrodia elata cultivation in boxes, which is suitable for beginners because temperature and humidity are easy to control.

To grow Gastrodia elata, you must first cultivate Armillaria fungus wood; after the fungus wood is well cultivated, plant the Gastrodia elata alongside it. As long as you can buy fresh, high-quality Gastrodia seed and pure Armillaria, cultivation will definitely succeed.

1. Prepare the box: specifications 66×40×40 cm, several pieces of fresh broadleaf hardwood, half sand and half soil, branches with a diameter of 4-10 cm, lengths of 60 cm and 35 cm, and 250-400 g of white Gastrodia seed. One piece of 126×152 cm plastic film per box.

2. Use an axe to cut fish-scale notches into the cut fresh branches. One notch every 10 cm, with a depth equal to two layers of the bark. Stagger them on the left and right sides. Place fungus pieces the size of red dates into the notches, clamp them firmly, and set aside for later use.

3. Lay the plastic film flat inside the wooden box, preferably with the edges exposed around the sides, and use a cigarette butt to burn about 25 holes in the bottom for watering and to prevent Gastrodia elata from rotting.

4. First fill the box with 2-4 cm of coarse sand, then place the first layer of fungus sticks and new sticks along the box, keeping old and new separated, with a spacing of 2-3 cm; place fungus pieces on both cut ends of the new ones and press them tightly against the cut ends. Then place the Gastrodia seed, putting one piece every 10 cm in each gap. After placing the Gastrodia seed, fill with sandy soil until the surface of the wood is level, then place the second layer of short sticks crosswise, and place the third layer of long sticks lengthwise, planting the same as the first layer. Finally cover with 10 cm of sandy soil, and on top cover a layer of wheat straw or dry grass, for the purpose of moisture retention.

5. After planting, water thoroughly once, and observe frequently; do not let the surface dry and crack. If there are miscellaneous insects, pesticide methamidophos diluted with water can be sprayed. If indoors, pay attention to humidity. Often spray some water on the walls. If growing in a basement with relatively high humidity, almost no watering is needed for a year. In short, in winter it must not be below 0°C, and in summer the ground temperature must not be above 26°C; one year is one cycle.