Abstract
Lonicerae japonicaeFlos (LJF) is widely used in traditional Chinese medicines for the treatment of various diseases, which is now in great demand every year and has a broad development prospect. However, the flowering phase of common LJF varieties is so short, which seriously restricts the development of LJF industry. As a new cultivated kind of Lonicerae japonicae Flos, “Hua Jin 6” has characteristics in long flowering phase and conveniently picking, which makes it have a broad development prospect. The aim of this study is to provide scientific guidance for its suitable harvest period by measuring yield and quality of “Hua Jin 6” from different harvest time. Studies show that flower size had a slowly rising trend from the first day to the seventh day, and then slowly declined or kept stable. There were no significant differences of total phenolic acid contents in different samples from different days, but contents of total flavonoids were on the rise and up to maximum in the ninth day. The contents of total iridoids had an increasing tendency from the first day to the fifth day and then kept relatively stable in other days. We demonstrated that the quality of “Hua Jin 6” is relatively stable and suitable for harvesting in all flower buds white stage in term of HPLC fingerprints. Our findings can make it possible to select the suitable time for different harvest purpose.
Highlights
We demonstrated that the quality of “Hua Jin 6” is relatively stable and suitable for harvesting in all flower buds white stage in term of high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) fingerprints
Research has shown that the white bud stage is the most appropriate harvest time of Lonicerae japonicae Flos (LJF) according to the maximum yield and superior quality [7]
For every Chinese herbs, there is a different optimal stage of harvesting in order to have maximum amount of bioactive compounds or yield; the results indicated that the harvest time from the first day to the eleventh day had significant impact on the amount of the active components and yield, which can make it possible to select the suitable time for different harvest purposes
Summary
Lonicerae japonicae Flos (LJF), the dried flower buds of Lonicera japonica. The flowering stage of LJF has been divided into three stages: the green bud stage (Bud size 1.0 - 3.5 cm, green), the white bud stage (Bud size 3.0 - 4.5 cm, white), the flowering stage (Blooms) [6]. Research has shown that the white bud stage is the most appropriate harvest time of LJF according to the maximum yield and superior quality [7]. The lasting time from the white bud stage to the flowering stage is so short (2 - 3 days) and the opening buds are not up to official standards. A lot of manpower are needed to pick flower buds in the period of flower phase and numerous wealth are consumed. Many farmers have abandoned cultivating or collecting LJF and a great deal of economic losses [8] [9]
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