Why interplanting dry Pinellia ternata in fruit orchards is highly profitable

Dry Pinellia ternata is best suited for interplanting in fruit orchards, because it prefers shaded environments. During hot seasons with direct sunlight, the plants are prone to lodging (seedlings turn yellow, wither and shrink), causing tuber growth to stop. In the hot summer, the lush foliage of fruit orchards serves as a natural protective umbrella that provides shade during the vigorous growth period of dry Pinellia ternata, offering favorable conditions for normal tuber growth. Interplanting dry Pinellia ternata in each mu of fruit orchard can yield about 120 kg of dried product, and its cultivation benefit increases by 3-5 times compared with interplanting conventional crops.

1. Sowing. Sowing can be done from March to May in spring. In combination with plowing, apply 3000 kg of decomposed organic fertilizer per mu of fruit orchard planting land as base fertilizer. Open shallow furrows on the ground parallel to the tree rows, with a furrow spacing of 15-18 cm and a furrow width of 6-8 cm. Then arrange tubers in each furrow at a plant spacing of about 10 cm, with the tuber buds pointing upward. After planting, cover with soil, preferably just enough to hide the tubers.

2. Weeding. Within one or two days after planting the dry Pinellia ternata tubers, spray 50% acetochlor emulsifiable concentrate in a timely manner, which can inhibit the growth of annual grass weeds. During the plant growth period, if there are many weeds, use Shuishate or 8% haloxyfop-R-methyl herbicide for control.

3. Fertilizing. Because dry Pinellia ternata has relatively dense row spacing, it is inconvenient to apply additional fertilizer after sowing, so sufficient base fertilizer should be applied. When the seedlings are 20 cm tall, mix 10 kg of urea with 1000 kg of water per mu and splash it onto the soil surface to promote plant growth, accelerate tuber enlargement, and help increase yield.

4. Disease prevention. Newly planted dry Pinellia ternata plots have fewer pests and diseases. Sometimes leaf spot disease and viral disease may occur, which can be controlled with 1:1:120 Bordeaux mixture and 65% zineb 500-fold solution respectively.

5. Harvesting. Dry Pinellia ternata tubers sown in spring can be dug in autumn or winter of the same year. When the stems and leaves wither and turn yellow, choose a sunny day and carefully dig up the tubers. Separate the fresh tubers by size. Those with a diameter below 1 cm can be kept as seed and stored mixed with moist fine sand; tubers with a diameter above 1 cm can be peeled and sun-dried to become commercial products.