Let crops "drink water" accurately and cultivate "smart fields" here
Henan is known as the "granary of the Central Plains". When the Central Plains are ripe, the rest of the country is well-fed, and grain production is of great importance. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, Henan has insisted on storing grain in the land and in technology, and its total grain output has reached 120 billion jin and 130 billion jin respectively. Henan has made breakthroughs by stabilizing the grain production area and increasing the grain yield per unit area, and has comprehensively consolidated the foundation of a major grain-producing province, shouldering the heavy responsibility of food security. At present, a project to increase the yield per unit area of autumn grain is being carried out in various parts of Henan. How did Henan do this and what is it doing now?
CCTV reporter Wang Tao: I am now in a high-standard farmland in Wen County, Jiaozuo, Henan Province. The autumn corn here has just been planted for half a month. Look at its size, it is only about 20 cm at present, and it is in the seedling stage, which is also a crucial stage in the growth of corn. It is necessary to make adequate preparations for the upcoming jointing growth.
Since the beginning of summer this year, Henan has had less precipitation. Since it is in northern Henan, Wen County, where I live, has only had a light rain since summer planting. Let's take a look at the soil. When we hold it with our hands, we can see that the soil is not sticky but loose. The soil is still relatively lacking in water. Therefore, during this period, we can see the scene of watering to fight drought in all the farmlands in Wen County.
I found an interesting phenomenon at the scene. You can see that the biggest difference between this piece of land and the previous farmland is that it has no ridges. We know that for thousands of years, the reason why it was called ridges was because ridges could ensure that water was supplied to the crops in the field. Now, without ridges, how can this farmland be irrigated?
Let's take a look through an aerial camera. In this farmland, the black strips are drip irrigation belts, which are neatly arranged, like "capillaries" crisscrossing the land. Through these capillaries, the roots of corn can be directly connected, replacing and upgrading the role of ridges in traditional farmland, and continuously delivering the water and fertilizer needed by plants. Different from the previous watering mode, this is also a new planting mode with drip irrigation that Henan is currently promoting.
We can take a look at the pictures taken half a month ago when corn was sown. We can see that in the pictures, the black drip tape can be laid in the field at the same time as corn is sown. The drip irrigation technology used in the past for the planting of high-value-added economic crops has been applied to the planting of grain crops because the cost of drip irrigation equipment has been greatly reduced due to large-scale production. The government now subsidizes the use of this drip irrigation, about 150 yuan per mu. This also brings two benefits. First, when watering and fertilizing, as long as the drip irrigation facility switch is turned on, drip irrigation will be automatic, saving time and labor; second, in the late stage of corn, it is especially necessary to increase water and fertilizer. In the late stage, the corn in the field grows densely and people cannot enter. At this time, it is very convenient to use this drip tube for watering and fertilizing. Finally, it is calculated that one mu of land can increase production by 200 to 300 kilograms.
The new planting model vigorously promoted by Henan this year is related to a reform, namely the "Action Plan for Increasing Large-Scale Yields of Major Grain and Oil Crops in Henan Province". This document is mainly a plan formulated by Henan in combination with Henan's actual situation to implement the spirit of the Central Government's No. 1 Document in 2024, focusing on stabilizing the sown area of grain and oil crops and increasing the yield of grain and oil crops.
The key word here is "dense planting". Simply put, it means that now we need to plant 300 to 500 more corn plants than before. We can measure it. In previous years, the spacing between corn plants was about 25 cm. Now we measure the spacing, which is about 18 cm. That is to say, the spacing has become smaller and the density has increased.
Of course, it does not mean that the yield will be high if corn is planted densely. It requires a series of supporting systems, such as farmland management, water and fertilizer to keep up.
Last year, Henan Province carried out demonstration and promotion of the technology with the core of corn dense planting drip irrigation precision control technology in 70 counties across the province, covering an area of more than 700,000 mu, achieving significant results in increasing production and income. This year, the scope has been further expanded to 3 million mu, helping to increase autumn grain production, which is also what Henan is doing.
New farmers: providing full-chain agricultural services and cultivating the Central Plains
Through the continuous improvement of good fields, good seeds, good methods, good machines and good systems, we can effectively increase grain production. In this context, some new farmers have also emerged. Unlike their parents, they are more professional and more professional in farming. Next, we will meet two new farmers.
Wang Jiangtao, person in charge of Henan Zhumadian Nongji Service Co., Ltd.: All the machines operating on this piece of land are ours, and they are relatively advanced equipment, which can help farmers increase their corn yields.
Nowadays, farming is no longer just the job of a single farmer. Farmers also have agricultural service companies that provide a full range of services from tilling to harvesting. Wang Jiangtao is such a new farmer who provides agricultural services to farmers.
Wang Jiangtao, head of Henan Zhumadian Nongji Service Co., Ltd.: Through advanced sowing technology, we can achieve the goal of increasing grain production and farmers' income.
In 2023, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs will launch a large-scale yield increase campaign for major crops such as grain and oil, and come up with a comprehensive solution of good fields, good seeds, good methods, good machines, and good systems in all areas and links of farming, management, harvesting, planting, fertilizer and pesticides, and promote it in 100 soybean and 200 corn key counties. The new production concept requires the establishment of a new production relationship, which also brings new breakthroughs in productivity.
For the same acre of land, farmers in Henan have bid farewell to the traditional farming methods of the past, hired agricultural service personnel, and used a large number of new technologies. Many farm plots have achieved full mechanization. New farmers like Wang Jiangtao are cultivating the land in a different way from their parents.
Lv Gengzhen is the head of a family farm in Xinxiang, Henan Province. He has leased more than 400 mu of land in the village, all of which he grows grain. His many years of experience as an agricultural machinery operator has also enabled his family farm to provide agricultural machinery services.
Lv Gengzhen, head of Yongye Family Farm in Zhaogang Town, Fengqiu County, Xinxiang, Henan Province: "Looking back now, I couldn't even imagine what it was like 20 years ago. When I got off work at night, my shoulders were so tired that they were out of shape. Now, I can easily sow 100 to 200 mu of land by myself in the cab. Sowing, ridge formation, furrowing, and other operations, including field plant protection operations, are all under control."
This year, in Lu Gengzhen's family farm, the night sowing machine has brought convenience to farmers in rushing to plant crops.
Lv Gengzhen, head of Yongye Family Farm in Zhaogang Town, Fengqiu County, Xinxiang, Henan Province: My hands are now free. I no longer need to hold the steering wheel and worry about the twists and turns in the sowing process. The right side is where the seeds have been sown, and the left side is where the seeds are waiting to be sown. These two routes will be automatically generated indefinitely, making the land utilization more accurate.
It costs more than 10,000 yuan to install a Beidou navigation system on a seed drill, which is not cheap. However, Lv Gengzhen saw the opportunity and invested more than 200,000 yuan to install Beidou navigation on every seed drill. Sure enough, during the summer planting period this year, due to the hot weather, the fields had to be watered during the day to resist drought. Farmers who wanted to seize the farming time to plant the second crop ordered night planting services from him.
Hou Lanfeng, head of Lvyuan Family Farm in Fengqiu County, Xinxiang, Henan Province: In previous years, I used the traditional method, which took about seven or eight days to sow. This year, I adopted this advanced navigation, and it only took three days to sow.
Lv Gengzhen, head of Yongye Family Farm in Zhaogang Town, Fengqiu County, Xinxiang, Henan Province: "Look at my new friend. He can not only do my work, but also sow seeds easily every day. I think that in the near future, with the continuous innovation of our agricultural technology and high technology, our farmers' work will become easier and easier, our yield will increase, and the quality will be better and better."
