Hi
Safed musli can be propagated by seeds.
By seeds:
The seeds are black in colour and with angular edges. It take 12-16 days to sprout. The seeds should be sown in a very well prepared seed bed which is heavily manured by using FYM or leaf litter in the first or second week of June and adequate moisture should be continuously maintained during absence of rain in early part of the season. The seedlings can be transplanted in the field during the next Kharif season only at 30x15 cm spacing because the development of plants as well as roots by means of seeds in the first year is not vigorous enough as compared the vegetatively propagated plants.
MANURE AND FERTILISER
The use of 10-15 ton of FYM/ha provide good nutrient status to the substratum for supporting healthy plant growth.
IRRIGATION
The crop may be sown after receipt of rains. If there is no rains after sowing of fleshy root propagules and its transplanting then one irrigation be provided immediately. Later, when soil moisture get reduced in the fields, irrigation may be done after 10 to 15 days interval.
WEEDING
One to two weeding-cum-hoeings are needed to keep the soil porous and free of weedy growth.
HARVESTING/POST-HARVESTING
The crop matures in about 90 days under cultivation. At maturity the leaves start yellowing and ultimately dry up from the collar part and fall down. The crop could thus be harvested when leaves have dried which occurs in the months of September/October. During digging of plants, fleshy root bunches should be lifted form the soil.
The harvested fleshy roots are cleaned and skin is removed. The white musalitubers obtained are dried spread in the shade for about 4-7 days to dry-out its moisture.
YIELD & PRICE
About ten quintals of fleshy root (wet) per hectare, is collected. This, after processing and drying is reduced to 200 kg (about 20% of wet root wt). In the domestic market, the rates ranges between Rs 800 to Rs 1800 per kg depending on the quality of the product.(depends on the place not the exact value)
Regards
Ashwini
