Dafang Round Pearl Pinellia

Dafang Round Pearl Pinellia

Dafang Round Pearl Pinellia is a protected geographical indication product.

　　　Round Pearl Pinellia is an important medicinal herb in China’s rich traditional medicine treasury. It functions to dry dampness, resolve phlegm, harmonize the stomach, and relieve vomiting, mainly treating conditions such as phlegm-dampness fluid retention, vomiting, coughing, and wheezing. The original producing areas include provinces such as Anhui and Guizhou in China, with another major production region being Dafang in Guizhou. Dafang Round Pearl Pinellia is renowned both domestically and internationally for its superior quality and efficacy. It has been honored with titles such as “Top Ten Famous Medicines of Guizhou” and “Authentic Medicinal Materials of Guizhou,” and enjoys “inspection-free” status in its major export country, Japan. Currently, the planting area of Dafang Round Pearl Pinellia reaches 16,000 mu, with an annual output of 2,000 tons of high-quality Round Pearl Pinellia, generating an output value of 240 million yuan. There are over 4,000 farming households involved in its cultivation, and more than 10 enterprises engaged in the trading of local Round Pearl Pinellia medicinal materials.

　　The production area of Dafang Round Pearl Pinellia covers the entire administrative region of Dafang County, Guizhou Province.

　　I. Source of Seeds

　　Pinellia (botanical name: Pinellia ternata (Thunb.) Breit., family Araceae).

　　II. Growing Conditions

　　The production area is located at altitudes between 760 meters and 2,000 meters, featuring mountainous deciduous broad-leaved forests, mixed coniferous and broad-leaved forests, bamboo and broad-leaved mixed forests, and shrublands, with shade density ranging from 50% to 75%. The soil types are mountain yellow-brown soil and yellow sandy loam, with sandy loam texture. The pH value ranges from 4.5 to 6.5, and the organic matter content of the soil is 21 mg/kg to 35 mg/kg.

　　III. Planting Management

　　1. Seed Source Management: The seed source must come from wild Round Pearl Pinellia native to Dafang or tubers or bulbils cultivated from local strains, and the use of non-local seeds is not allowed.

　　2. Propagation:

　　(1) Rhizome Propagation: Select tubers of local wild or locally cultivated Pinellia with a diameter of 0.7 cm to 1 cm as propagation rhizomes.

　　(2) Bulbil Propagation: Use bulbils with a diameter of 0.3 cm to 1 cm for planting.

　　3. Planting:

　　(1) Planting Time: Early to mid-March each year.

　　(2) Planting Density: Use row sowing, with plant spacing of 2 cm to 5 cm. Approximately 75 kg to 100 kg of seeds are used per 667 m² (mu), planting about 50,000 plants.

　　(3) Apply organic fertilizers such as well-rotted farmyard manure before planting.

　　(4) Management:

　　① Weed Control: Weeds should be removed promptly after seedlings emerge uniformly.

　　② Topdressing: Conduct 3 to 4 rounds of topdressing. The first application is in mid-April after the Pinellia seedlings emerge, applying 10 kg of nitrogen fertilizer per 667 m² (mu); the second is in late May, applying 1.2 kg of potassium dihydrogen phosphate per 667 m² (mu); the third is after the plants die back in August, using a 1:10 human and animal manure solution every 15 days until the second sprouting; the fourth is in early September, applying 20 kg of calcium superphosphate and 10 kg of urea per 667 m² (mu).

　　③ Flower Bud Removal: Flower buds that emerge during the growing period of Pinellia should be removed as they appear.

　　④ Soil Mounding: Perform soil mounding once in early June and once in July, to a thickness of approximately 1.5 cm to 2 cm, covering the bulbils and seeds.

　　⑤ Irrigation and Drainage: Pinellia prefers moisture and fears drought.

　　4. Environmental and Safety Requirements: The use of pesticides, fertilizers, and other inputs must comply with national regulations and must not cause environmental pollution.

　　IV. Harvesting and Processing

　　1. Harvesting: Harvest from late August to September when the soil is dry; select those with a diameter of more than 1 cm for processing as medicinal materials.

　　2. Processing: Grading → Cleaning → Peeling → Rinsing → Drying, with drying temperature ≤ 60°C.

　　V. Quality Characteristics

　　1. Sensory characteristics: Round grains, large size, white color, prominent brown eyes, firm texture, rich in starchiness, spicy taste, numbing tongue and throat.

　　2. Physicochemical indicators: Diameter ≥1.2 cm, total acid content calculated as succinic acid (C4H6O4) not less than 0.40%; moisture ≤14.0%.

　　3. Safety and other quality and technical requirements: Product safety and other quality and technical requirements must comply with relevant national regulations.