Planting the Chinese medicinal herb Anemarrhena asphodeloides: field management is key

Anemarrhena asphodeloides is a perennial herbaceous plant of the Liliaceae family. Its medicinal part is the rhizome, which has the effects of clearing heat and purging fire, relieving cough and removing phlegm, moistening dryness and relaxing the bowels, and calming the fetus. It is in large demand on the market and is a bulk medicinal herb variety. As wild Anemarrhena asphodeloides becomes increasingly scarce, artificial cultivation has become a major trend. The author now offers years of cultivation experience to growers, hoping it will help improve the production quality of Anemarrhena asphodeloides.

Land selection and land preparation

A loam or sandy loam that is loose, fertile and has irrigation and drainage conditions should be chosen for planting. Apply 4000 kg of farmyard manure per mu, together with 20 kg of compound fertilizer, plow 20 cm deep, work the soil fine and rake it level, and make flat beds 1.2 m wide.

Propagation methods

There are two types: seed propagation and division propagation. 1. Seed propagation. Sowing can be done in spring or autumn. Before sowing, germination can be accelerated. The method is to soak the seeds in warm water at 60°C for 8-12 hours, take them out and dry the outer skin, then mix them evenly with 2 times their volume of wet sand, dig a shallow pit in a sunny, warm place, pile the seeds in the pit, cover the surroundings with agricultural film, and after about a week, when the embryos of most seeds have just broken through the seed coat, they can be sown. Generally, the drill sowing method is used, that is, open shallow furrows at a row spacing of 20 cm and sow the seeds evenly, cover with soil 1-2 cm, press lightly and water. Autumn sowing emerges in spring and is relatively uniform; for spring sowing with germination acceleration, seedlings emerge 7-10 days after sowing. The seeding rate is about 3 kg per mu. 2. Division propagation. Combined with harvesting, cut off the end of the rhizome that has buds, cut it into small sections 3-6 cm long, each section with 1-2 buds. Open furrows at a row spacing of 25-30 cm, plant at a plant spacing of 9-12 cm, cover with soil 3-4 cm, and water.

Field management

1. Thinning and final thinning. After seedlings from seed propagation emerge, thin them in time; when the seedlings are 10 cm tall, thin to a plant spacing of 7-10 cm.

2. Loosening soil and banking soil. When the seedlings have emerged and have 3 true leaves, shallow hoe to loosen the soil; afterward, generally weed and loosen the soil 2-3 times each year. Because the rhizome mostly grows in the surface soil layer, attention should be paid to banking soil after rain.

3. Topdressing. Apply 4000 kg of farmyard manure and 20 kg of compound fertilizer per mu in split applications, crush and mix them well, scatter them beside the roots, and cover the fertilizer with soil while hoeing. After topdressing, sprinkle-irrigate 1-2 times. In addition, during the period of vigorous growth of Anemarrhena asphodeloides, at around 4 pm, spray a 0.3% potassium dihydrogen phosphate solution 2 times in succession at 10-15 day intervals, which can improve the plant's disease resistance and promote the growth and enlargement of the rhizome.

4. Irrigation and drainage. After sowing, keep the bed surface moist frequently. Before overwintering, water the overwintering water at the right time according to the weather and soil moisture. After sprouting the following spring, water at the right time if drought occurs. Pay attention to drainage during the rainy season.

5. Mulching with brushwood and straw. To improve the soil and keep it moist, after loosening the soil at the seedling stage, cover each mu along the furrows with 800-1000 kg of wheat bran, wheat straw, rice straw, etc., once a year, for 2-3 consecutive years, without turning it during that period.

Harvesting and processing

Anemarrhena asphodeloides is generally dug in spring and autumn, harvested once every 2-3 years, with a yield of 400-700 kg per mu. Remove dead leaves and fibrous roots completely, and sun-dry or oven-dry to obtain "mao zhimu" (hairy Anemarrhena); peel off the outer skin of the rhizome while fresh, and sun-dry or oven-dry to obtain "guang zhimu" (smooth Anemarrhena).