Detailed Explanation of the Soft-shelled Turtle-Rice Rotation Ecological Farming Model

Generally, after 2 to 3 years of raising soft-shelled turtles, one season of rice is planted. In mid-May, juvenile soft-shelled turtles are stocked, with a size of about 180 g body weight and a stocking density of 500 to 1000 turtles per mu. They are fed soft-shelled turtle compound feed together with live fish, and are caught before the end of July the following year. After catching the turtles, late rice is planted from late July to early August. During the rearing process, aside from using quicklime and other drugs to clear and disinfect the pond, no antibiotics, chlorine preparations, or other chemical drugs are used. For disease prevention, Chinese herbal medicines such as Banlangen (Isatis root) are mostly used. Regarding rice cultivation techniques, because the soil of the turtle pond is fertile, high-quality semi-dwarf lodging-resistant varieties should be selected, such as Yongyou No. 1, 98-110, and others. Second, cultivation techniques should focus on "lodging prevention," adopting the "two controls and one prevention" technique, namely: first, control fertilizer - no fertilizer is applied throughout the entire growth period; second, control water - the method is to drain the field early to control tillering, and when the number of productive tillers reaches 80% of the target panicle number at the late tillering stage, drain heavily so that the rice roots penetrate deeply; in the later stage, irrigate alternately wet and dry to prevent lodging. Only pest control is carried out, with no disease prevention, and the rice planted can reach the standard for pollution-free rice.