Bitter bamboo shoots are the tender shoots of bitter bamboo and are a type of Chinese medicine. Fresh bitter bamboo shoots can also be consumed as a delicious dish, with a slightly bitter and sweet taste and a fragrant aroma. The bamboo shoot harvesting season is generally from April to July, with a flowering period of only four months. In order to harvest and process bitter bamboo shoots within such a short period of time and increase the yield, it is necessary to implement appropriate bamboo shoot harvesting management measures.
【Bamboo Shoot Harvesting Management Measures】
1. Protect seed shoots and remove rotten shoots
From April to June is the harvesting stage of bitter bamboo shoots. When harvesting fresh shoots, do not forget to leave some seed bamboo shoots. Leave the first batch of large and healthy shoots, usually keeping one shoot per 1-1.5 square meters as the mother bamboo shoot. The last batch of shoots are prone to diseases and pests, and young shoots stop growing and rot shortly after emerging. Therefore, after harvesting the tender shoots, it is necessary to clear the bamboo forest, removing dry and rotten shoots and digging out rotten shoot heads with young pests inside, and then pile them up and burn them. Protect the mother bamboo shoots and eliminate pests such as the nine-spotted moth, bamboo moth, and bamboo night moth that may harm them.
2. Cut down old and diseased bamboo to reduce nutrient consumption
Summer and autumn are the periods when new mother bamboo shoots and underground bamboo rhizomes grow and proliferate. In order to reduce nutrient consumption and promote vigorous growth of new shoots, it is necessary to timely cut down some aging, diseased, and small-diameter bamboo shoots, so that the density of new and strong mother bamboo shoots remains at 3-5 shoots per square meter.
3. Loosen the soil and remove debris to prevent nutrient loss
Year after year, the accumulated dry bamboo stubble and old bamboo rhizomes in the bamboo forest cause the soil to become compacted and hinder the supply of water and nutrients, seriously affecting the growth of new shoots and the sprouting of bamboo buds, resulting in a significant decrease in the shoot emergence rate the following year. Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen soil loosening in winter, remove the dry bamboo stubble, and clear away the aging bamboo rhizomes, weeds, and shrubs. When loosening the soil and removing the old bamboo stubble, be careful not to damage the mother bamboo shoots, healthy bamboo rhizomes, and newly sprouted shoot buds.
4. Fertilize and cover with grass to increase soil fertility
Adequate winter fertilization leads to a bountiful shoot emergence in spring. After loosening the soil, apply sufficient base fertilizer by mixing livestock and poultry manure with an appropriate amount of phosphorus and potassium fertilizers. This can be done by furrow application or pit application, with a dosage of 0.5 kg of fertilizer per mother bamboo shoot. After fertilization, cover with fine soil. Then, cover the bamboo forest floor with a layer of weeds or straw, with a thickness of 5-10 cm. The grass cover helps retain moisture and nutrients, loosen the soil, increase soil fertility, promote the growth of thick and high-quality shoots, and improve the yield of bitter bamboo shoots.
Bitter bamboo shoots have the effects of clearing heat, relieving irritability, removing dampness, and promoting diuresis. They are commonly used to treat conditions such as fever with thirst, damp-heat jaundice, and difficulty urinating.
Bitter bamboo shoots are mostly grown on sunny slopes or plains and are mostly cultivated. As a food ingredient, bitter bamboo shoots are mainly cooked in soup or boiled. They can help relieve heat and quench thirst, improve vision, and detoxify. However, it is worth noting that since bitter bamboo shoots are mostly grown through cultivation, it is necessary to loosen the soil and remove weeds at the appropriate time to increase the yield of bitter bamboo shoots.
