Optimal shading for the production of blanched Chinese chive in the central region of Thailand.

摘要

Chinese chive (Allium tuberosum Rottler ex Sprengel), a bulbous herbaceous perennial plant, has long been cultivated for culinary and medicinal uses. The plant is rhizomatous and produces thin, flat leaves which grow to a height of 30-40 cm and can be cut several times during the life cycle. Three principal horticultural products are derived from A. tuberosum: green leaves, blanched leaves, and immature flower buds. Blanching, the result of growing Chinese chive under shade, produces a higher-value product with soft, yellow leaves and a more subtle, garlic-like flavor. There are various alternate shading practices, including covering by clay or plastic pots with or without sun shade net. This study compared four shading practices for the production of blanched Chinese chive. The experiment was conducted from May 2009 to December 2010 in the central region of Thailand, and was laid out in a completely randomized design consisting of four shading treatments: covering by clay pot, plastic pot, clay pot with sun shade net, and plastic pot with sun shade net. Six harvests of green leaf and blanched leaf were obtained from each treatment with green leaf and blanched leaf production alternating in sequence. Treatment yields ranged from 49.03-49.54 t ha-1 y-1 of green leaf and 13.37-16.04 t ha-1 y-1 of blanched leaf. The treatment consisting of covering by clay pot with sun shade net resulted in the maximum yield of blanched Chinese chive leaves (16.04 t ha-1 y-1).