Planting technique of Ephedra

Ephedra (Kangmei Mall), also known as grass hemp, deciduous shrubs, high 20~40cm, very short woody stem, often lying on the ground. Branchlets round, straight or slightly curved, opposite or whorled, internodes long 3~4cm, diameter ca. 2mm. Leaves membranous sheathlike, 2 opposite at nodes. Dioecious. The male cones are composed of many dense male flowers and the bracts are 4 pairs long. When the seed matures, the bracts are fleshy red, rectangular-ovate or broadly ovate, black-red or gray-brown, long 5~6mm, 2.5~3.5mm in diameter, often with fine wrinkles on the surface, and the navel is semicircular. The flowering period is from April to May and the fruiting period is from June to July.

Ephedra is light-loving, drought-tolerant, saline-alkali resistant and adaptable, and is often born in dry grasslands and sandy wastelands. It has a strong ability to grow.

Key points of raising seedlings

The berrylike false fruit picked by sowing and raising seedlings should be kneaded in time in water, filtered out the fleshy bracts, leaving pure seeds, and placed in a ventilated, dry and cool place when the moisture content of the seeds is less than 8% after drying. The 1000-seed weight is 7.1-10g, and the seed germination rate is 34%-82%. The seeds were sown in Inner Mongolia in mid-April and seedlings can emerge in late April. Sowing rate 5~10kg/667m2, row spacing 20~25cm, soil thickness 1~2cm, film fruit ephedra can not exceed 1cm. Cover with plastic film after sowing. 1-year-old seedling height 15~25cm. The amount of seedling emergence is 250000 ~ 400000 plants / 667m2. The row spacing of transplanted plants is 15~20cm × 30~40cm, and the density is 10 ~ 15000 plants / 667m2.

It can also raise seedlings by cutting and tillering.

Afforestation method

The row spacing of planting seedlings is 1m × 2m. It can also be afforested separately.

Harvesting method

The artificially planted ephedra can be harvested at the age of 3 years, and the best harvest time is from August to September. The main way to harvest ephedra is to cut the aboveground branches and avoid digging the underground parts, which can not only ensure the purity of raw materials, but also promote the tillering and increase the biomass of ephedra. After the first harvest, it is generally necessary to carry out the second harvest after growing for two years, otherwise the branches are young, the accumulation of effective components is less, and the medical effect is affected. However, as an industrial raw material, it can be picked and cut once a year.