What Chinese Herbal Medicines Have High Economic Benefits
Article Summary: Introduction to the green plants and flowers with high economic benefits of planting certain Chinese herbal medicines, which will be discussed by the editor for netizens.
What Chinese Herbal Medicines Have High Economic Benefits
When choosing to plant Chinese herbal medicines, one can opt for commonly found herbs in the market. These include甘草 (licorice), 防风 (saposhnikovia), 桔梗 (platycodon), 板蓝根 (isatis root), 半夏 (pinellia), 金银花 (honeysuckle), 虎杖 ( Polygonum cuspidatum), 金荞麦 (fagic acid buckwheat), 七叶一枝花 (Paris polyphylla), 白芨 (bletilla), 黄精 (solomon's seal), 通草 (rhubarb), 石菖蒲 (acorus) and others. These Chinese herbal medicines have a high market demand, and the planting area is also increasing to meet market needs.
In some mountainous areas, wild resources of Chinese herbal medicines are extremely rich, and collecting herbs was once an important source of income for some farmers.
In recent years, due to overexploitation and resource depletion of some rare wild Chinese herbal medicines, prices have been continuously rising, leading many local farmers to explore the "wild to domestic" cultivation techniques for these herbs.
Currently, successful cultivation has been achieved with 虎杖 (Polygonum cuspidatum), 金荞麦 (fagic acid buckwheat), 七叶一枝花 (Paris polyphylla), 白芨 (bletilla), 黄精 (solomon's seal), 通草 (rhubarb), 石菖蒲 (acorus), and others.
Polygonum Cuspidatum
Polygonum cuspidatum, commonly known as "sour stick" in rural areas, is widely distributed and mainly grows in loose, moist soil by rivers and streams in medium and low mountains. Its roots are used as medicine, and its young stems can be eaten as vegetables.
Modern research has found that Polygonum cuspidatum is rich in resveratrol. It can be used to extract resveratrol, which is the main ingredient in "resveratrol capsules" produced for health supplements.
It has become a popular lipid-lowering health product in recent years, also offering antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, and cardiovascular protection effects, thus gaining attention.
Its yield is relatively high, with two-year-old plants producing over 10,000 jin per mu in loose and fertile land. Although the product price is low, it is relatively stable. The problem is that the roots go deep into the soil, making harvesting difficult and labor-intensive, so mechanical harvesting is recommended.
Fagic Acid Buckwheat
Fagic acid buckwheat, also known as bitter buckwheat, buckwheat angelica, notoginseng, golden lock silver open, thief's bone, iron fist, earth茯苓, wild south buckwheat, etc., is a class two protected plant in China.
However, it used to be quite common and abundant in Zhuxian County, mainly distributed in fertile, loose, and moist valleys and streams in medium and low mountains. Its rhizome is used as medicine and has the effects of clearing heat, detoxifying, promoting blood circulation, and dispelling wind and dampness.
In recent years, the market demand for fagic acid buckwheat has明显 increased, but the wild resources have been declining due to rising prices and excessive harvesting. Currently, some farmers in townships have started exploring "wild to domestic" planting, with an area of about 1,000 mu.
From the trial planting, it seems that fagic acid buckwheat can be propagated using the underground rhizomes or basal stem nodes of wild plants, and the planting technique is simple.
Generally, as long as the land is chosen properly, the plants grow vigorously, have strong competitiveness with weeds, have few diseases and pests, and are easy to manage. The underground rhizomes are relatively shallow, making excavation less labor-intensive, with stable yield and profit, and a promising market prospect in recent years.
Rhubarb
Rhubarb is the stem pith of the Aralia elata plant. This plant is widely distributed and abundant in the eastern and southern mountainous areas of Zhuxian County.
It mainly grows on warm, sunny slopes, preferring deep, loose, fertile, and moist soil. The dried stem pith of rhubarb is used as medicine and has the effect of promoting diuresis and resolving dampness.
Currently, there is more planting in some mountainous areas. Its advantages are abundant wild resources and easy cultivation management. Generally, dense-growing wild Aralia elata is scattered for planting, or seeds can be collected for seedling raising, with low planting costs.
The disadvantage is that removing the stem pith from Aralia elata is labor-intensive, but the labor intensity is not high, making it suitable for rural women and the elderly with limited physical strength.
In recent years, the continuous development of new drugs using rhubarb has greatly stimulated market demand, thus keeping the product price high, consistently around 200 yuan per kilogram, with a promising market prospect.
Bletilla
Bletilla was once a commonly found wild Chinese herbal medicine in Zhuxian County, preferring warm and humid environments, not tolerate high temperatures and strong light, and mainly distributed in the loose, organic-rich soil under the forest in high and sub-high mountains.
Bletilla uses underground corms as medicine and has the effects of astringing blood, stopping bleeding, reducing swelling, and generating muscle. In the past, bletilla was only used as a traditional medicine with a small amount of usage and was not noticed. In recent years, its uses have been greatly expanded.
With the expansion of uses, bletilla has become very popular, and market demand has started to soar, driving prices to rise continuously. In just a few years, the price per kilogram has soared from less than 20 yuan to several thousand yuan.
Wild resources were quickly harvested, and many farmers began to dig up wild bletilla for "wild to domestic" artificial cultivation. Since the seed propagation of bletilla is difficult and the underground corm propagation is slow, the early area was small.
Solomon's Seal
It is commonly known as "old ginger" or "native ginger" in Zhuxian County because its underground rhizome looks similar to ginger.
It is mainly distributed in high and sub-high mountain areas above 600 meters, commonly seen in forests, shrubs, or shady slopes, preferring loose, fertile soil with high humus content.
In the past, solomon's seal was mainly used as medicine, with a small market demand and long-term low purchase prices, and abundant wild resources.
In recent years, with the increasing health awareness of people, most of the solomon's seal has been used for producing health foods or as ingredients for泡酒 (soaked wine) and medicinal diets. The market demand for solomon's seal as a food has been increasing and now accounts for 70% of the total market demand.
Due to increased market demand, a large amount of wild resources in Zhuxian County have been harvested in recent years, leading to continuously rising market prices. Some farmers have begun to explore "wild to domestic" cultivation.
Solomon's seal can be propagated using underground rhizomes or above-ground seeds. Although the market prospect is promising, it requires specific environmental conditions. Additionally, the growth rate is slow, and it takes about three years to harvest the rhizomes from planting, or even longer for seed propagation. Currently, the planting area is still small, and the price is relatively stable.
Have you understood the detailed introduction of what Chinese herbal medicines have high economic benefits provided above?