Visiting the fields to sum up high-yield experience has many benefits

In the golden autumn season, before the various crops are about to be harvested, Yilong Town in Yi'an County, Heilongjiang Province, organized heads of agricultural professional cooperatives, family farm heads and large grain growers to step into the fields, to see with their own eyes and hear for themselves the high-yield experience of those farmers who have made a name for themselves in farming, to exchange views with one another, learn from each other's strengths to make up for their weaknesses, which opened their eyes wide and showed them the way for what to plant and how to plant next year.

Since ancient times, farmers have all known how to farm, but good farming and poor farming differ greatly. Today, when fewer and fewer people farm the land, and farmers have become increasingly professionalized, using new technology to farm scientifically, constantly setting new grain yield records, and letting the land release its maximum economic benefit have become the conscious action and new farming philosophy of farmers. Although today's farmers are all pursuing high yield and high efficiency, and all repeat the "song of the four seasons," the same crops on the same area of land still show differences in harvest results from one year to the next. The reason, in the final analysis, still lies in problems at certain stages of the production process, leading to low yields and poor returns.

Some people think farming requires no learning, but in fact farming involves a great deal of knowledge. Like other industries, if you are not careful, a problem at any stage may lead to reduced yield. Therefore, no matter how skilled a farmer is, there are times of carelessness, and learning others' good practices will surely mean that "stones from other hills may serve to polish the jade of this one." Through field observation and comparison with high-yield households, the cooperative heads, family farm heads and large grain growers of Yilong Town saw their shortcomings and benefited greatly. Take corn planting as an example. Some low yields are due to the variety planted. Currently, corn seeds sold on the market are of every kind and dazzling to the eye. Choosing a variety suited to the local accumulated temperature, with strong stress resistance, and with stable yields proven through trial demonstrations is the best choice. One should not blindly pursue new varieties, and even less should one lightly believe the sales talk of seed dealers. Some low yields are due to fertilization: some apply too little fertilizer, and some have an unreasonable ratio of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and micronutrients, which cannot meet the needs of corn growth. Some low yields are due to the number of seedlings retained per unit area falling short of the standard. If planted too sparsely, no matter how big the corn ears are, the yield still cannot rise. Some low yields are due to inconsistent sowing depth: if sown too shallow, the seed sprouts dry out at the slightest drought and seedlings do not emerge evenly; if sown too deep, once soil moisture is high, the seeds rot and decay and seedlings do not emerge fully. Some low yields are due to untimely weed control and cultivation: weeds run rampant, and the soil is not cultivated when it should be. Some low yields are due to inadequate land preparation: deep loosening and shallow plowing are not done, and some even sow directly without preparing the land, so in drought the soil is hard as a board, and in waterlogging it does not drain. There are also various factors such as failure to promptly prevent and control pests and diseases, and failure to withstand drought, waterlogging and so on, all of which are stages that lead to reduced crop yields.

It is another autumn harvest time. At this moment, one season governs two years; it is the best season to sum up high-yield experience. Rural officials should all, like Yilong Town, consciously organize farmers to walk through and look at high-yield plots, which not only produces the effect of mutual learning and reference, but also lays a solid foundation for achieving a bumper agricultural harvest next year.