High-position grafting in Yongfeng, Jiangxi brings in new vegetable varieties

To address the common problem of difficulty in calculating input costs when introducing new varieties and new technologies, in recent years the Yongfeng County Vegetable Research Institute has innovatively promoted the “high-position grafting” method, combining the introduction and trial work of scientifically screened new varieties and new technologies with voluntary participation by farmers in entrepreneurship, pushing trials “one step forward.” This not only allows effective calculation of costs and further improves trial results, but also serves and trains farmers, playing a positive role in widely promoting new varieties and new technologies for vegetable production and advancing the upgrading and renewal of the Yongfeng vegetable industry.

“In early November the first batch picked more than 3,600 jin, the second batch picked more than 3,000 jin, and we can keep picking until July next year. According to inspection, the yield per mu can exceed 20,000 jin.” Under the careful guidance and help of technicians from the county Vegetable Research Institute, farmer Liu Renxing, who returned from Guangdong to start a business, planted 70 percent of his more than 5 mu of vegetable greenhouses with the new pepper variety “Liangjian Mingchi,” which not only successfully avoided the local pepper peak marketing period, but also greatly increased yield, with benefits naturally much higher than ordinary varieties. Hearing that his peppers were growing well, seven or eight nearby family farm owners rushed over to learn from his experience.

Closely integrating with agricultural technical service work, the Yongfeng County Vegetable Research Institute, on the basis of fully carrying out preliminary investigation, analysis, comparison and research for introduced new varieties, actively brings in voluntarily participating entrepreneurial farmers to jointly conduct trial planting of fine new varieties such as vegetables and melons and fruits. By combining trial planting of new vegetable varieties with farmers' development of vegetable cultivation, it can both accurately control and calculate input costs for labor, fertilizer and facility materials in line with actual conditions, and also effectively train farmers, guide and help them take the path of modern agricultural industry development, laying a solid foundation for the promotion of fine new varieties and truly achieving “1+1>2” between technical researchers and farmers.

Combining training with service, and unifying technical display with demonstration and promotion. On the one hand, the institute meets the entrepreneurial needs of the broad masses of farmers, using the modern agriculture demonstration park as a platform to “build a nest to attract phoenixes,” guiding voluntarily participating farmers to devote themselves to agricultural industry development through various means such as leasing greenhouses and building their own greenhouses, seamlessly connecting with the introduction of new vegetable varieties, and supporting farmers to gradually develop and grow through technical services and policy support. On the other hand, responding to the development trend of new modern agricultural business organizations such as family farms, it actively guides farmers during full-process follow-up technical services to promptly update fine new varieties and improve industry benefits. Through their personal participation, they demonstrate and drive more farmers to accept and introduce new varieties. Farmer Zhong Guangping, for example, after mastering new technologies at the institute, began independently developing greenhouse cultivation and has now become a well-known family farm owner near and far.

Over the years, the institute has won 4 provincial and municipal science and technology achievement awards, promoted more than 100 new vegetable varieties and more than 20 new technologies, introduced more than 60 new, novel and special foreign vegetable varieties and new technologies each year, and received more than 1,000 visits per year from vegetable production and technical personnel for visits and exchanges.