Whether farming pays off depends on how you do it
"The cost of farming keeps rising, and higher yields don't mean higher income." "Working hard at home for a whole year is not as good as working away from home for a month." As a result, "the post-70s generation is unwilling to farm, the post-80s generation doesn't know how to farm, and the post-90s generation doesn't even mention farming..." Does farming actually pay off? Ultimately, it depends on the physical output and value output per unit of land. Rural Science and Technology Backyards in Henan connect practical technology to farmers' plots, letting farmers taste the sweetness brought by technical services.
Staple grain cultivation - costs come down, harvests go up
Rural Science and Technology Backyards in Henan are welcomed by large grain growers. "In the past, the land here yielded 900 jin of wheat per mu and 1,200 jin of corn per mu. Calculating it out, one mu of land could sell for 2,000 yuan across two seasons. After deducting about 700 yuan for seeds, fertilizer and watering, plus land transfer fees and labor costs, it was very hard to make money. Who would dare to contract land to grow grain?" In recent years, Li Wentao, who partnered with villagers to transfer more than 500 mu of cultivated land, had been on edge the whole time. In Kangcheng Village, Yuzhou, Henan, where per capita land is less than 3 fen, villager Li Wentao could be counted as one of the notable large grain growers for miles around.
I still remember how Li Wentao looked when I saw him in early May this year. At that time, 56-year-old farmer Li Wentao was squatting at the edge of the field, looking at the wheat field heading up before him, his face full of smiles: "This year I'll definitely make money. Looking at this wheat, one mu can produce 1,200 jin. The grain purchasing company already placed orders long ago, one mao higher than the market price." Li Wentao said, "I also have to thank the Science and Technology Backyard in our village."
"Now how to fertilize, how to water, how to kill pests... there is guidance from the Science and Technology Backyard. Farming costs have come down and harvests have gone up. Otherwise, who would dare to contract so much land?"
The Science and Technology Backyard Li Wentao mentioned is an agricultural science and technology service organization led by Henan Agricultural University and jointly established with local agricultural departments. It permanently stations experts and professors there, accepts consultations from growers 24 hours a day, and solves the last-kilometer problem of science and technology serving agriculture. It is understood that the Science and Technology Backyard is located in the courtyard of the local village committee, has an office, and is equipped with professional testing tools and experimental instruments. Up to now, Henan has established three bases, providing personalized services for contract farming, large-grower management, cash crops and more according to different regional characteristics, generally serving villages within a ten-kilometer radius.
"The basic situation of rural areas in Yuzhou, Henan, is a microcosm of China's rural cultivated land: little per capita cultivated land and poor irrigation conditions. To save costs and increase efficiency, it is necessary to use scientific and technological means to work on quality and high yield," said Dr. Ye Youliang, a member of the soil testing and formulated fertilization expert group of the Ministry of Agriculture and a professor at Henan Agricultural University.
When wheat was harvested in June, Li Wentao's more than 500 mu of wheat averaged 1,140 jin per mu, which made Li Wentao grin from ear to ear. "For large growers with more than 500 mu, this yield is rarely seen in the Xuchang area, and not commonly seen in Henan either," Ye Youliang said.
The Science and Technology Backyard in Yuzhou, Henan, was established in 2012, with a "Crops 110 telephone" hanging at the door. Villager Song Guocan of Kangcheng Village said that within about ten kilometers around, everyone knows our village has a Science and Technology Backyard that can treat crops' illnesses. The villagers feel that the experts, professors and students are all people from their own village, so close to them!
Cash crops - the land is improved, and quality and yield go up
"After growing garlic for so many years, this is the first time I've heard of seed dressing and applying less chemical fertilizer while increasing organic fertilizer. I used to think that only with more fertilizer would it grow well. Now with less chemical fertilizer and pesticide used, the garlic still grows well and doesn't get many pests," said Meng Zhongxing, a garlic farmer in Chenlou Village, Peicundian Township, Qi County, Henan.
With 60 mu of garlic and a profit of more than 10,000 yuan per mu, plus the garlic he purchased, he earned more than 1 million. In Peicundian Township, garlic farmers all know that Chenlou Village produced a "Meng Million." The "Meng Million" before us has dark skin and speaks in a rough manner. Because growing garlic brought a good harvest, Meng Zhongxing bought a car worth more than 200,000 yuan.
"Affected by this year's weather, garlic yields generally decreased, but the garlic I grew did not have a low yield," Meng Zhongxing said. "With technical guidance from experts from the provincial Agricultural University and the county Agricultural Bureau, I followed what they said. Otherwise, how would I have become Meng Million?" Since the Science and Technology Backyard came to Qi County in 2013, Meng Zhongxing has always been a "hardcore fan" of the Science and Technology Backyard.
Zhang Lei, a "garlic fanatic" from Jiawa Village, Wulihe Town, Qi County, had never thought that science and technology could make "soil produce gold." In 2014, Zhang Lei planted 90 mu of garlic. At that time, when the Science and Technology Backyard suggested planting measures, Zhang Lei disapproved, feeling that he had grown garlic for so many years and did not need others to teach him. As a result, due to improper management and the occurrence of pests and diseases, the 40 mu of early-maturing garlic he planted that year suffered serious yield reduction. Seeing that other people's plots that received guidance had good garlic harvests, Zhang Lei regretted not listening to the Science and Technology Backyard.
In 2015, Zhang Lei, whose garlic had always been "ugly and hard to sell," accepted guidance from the Science and Technology Backyard and planted 140 mu of garlic in one go. After fertilization, irrigation and field management kept pace, he threw off the "hat" of not knowing how to grow garlic that he had worn for many years. "I finally staged a comeback." Zhang Lei's garlic field averaged 1,600 kg of wet garlic, and because of its excellent quality and outstanding taste and color, it was snapped up by purchasing companies.
Shi Xiuliang, a staff member of the Qi County Agricultural Bureau, said, "The county has nearly 1 million mu of cash crops, of which garlic planting area is nearly 450,000 mu, making up the bulk of cash crops." After calculation, with follow-up technical guidance, each mu of garlic can increase production by nearly 500 jin, directly increasing economic benefits by about 2,000 yuan.
Unlike Yuzhou, the Qi County Science and Technology Backyard focuses its science and technology services on cash crop cultivation, providing customized free technical services to growers.
Science and Technology Backyard - point-to-point support, face-to-face service
"Guiding farmers to use fertilizer and pesticides scientifically, improving crop quality, exploring contract farming between farmers and enterprises, forming a full-industry-chain cycle of agricultural input selection - planting management - purchasing - processing - trade, closely combining scientific planting with targeted sales, reducing fertilizer and pesticide use to ensure the safety of agricultural products, and also solving demand difficulties for enterprises." This is the service direction that Henan Science and Technology Backyards have explored in the course of development.
Shi Hongsong, chairman of Henan Shijia Noodle Industry, introduced that the enterprise needs more than 1,000 tons of wheat every day. Without a source of wheat, it can only stop production. The Science and Technology Backyard built a bridge of information services between enterprises and farmers, which is of great help to stable production.
"Among our partners, Henan Science and Technology Backyards are the best built, laying an important foundation for the nationwide promotion of Science and Technology Backyards," said Li Xiaolin, a professor at China Agricultural University and one of the founders of the Science and Technology Backyard. In mid-August, at the national Science and Technology Backyard exchange meeting held in Kunming, the experience of Henan Science and Technology Backyards attracted the attention of agricultural experts from across the country.
Serving farmers face to face. In 2009, China Agricultural University advocated the creation of the Science and Technology Backyard, with the aim of getting students to take root on the front line and carry out talent cultivation, scientific research and social service work. Ye Youliang believes that provincial agricultural universities have a natural geographical advantage in carrying out agricultural technology services. "We are also crossing the river by feeling the stones. Farmers welcome it, and the results are good."
Serving the transformation of agricultural production methods. Reducing fertilizer and pesticide use on farmland in China is an urgent task. It is necessary to implement the action of zero growth in chemical fertilizer and pesticide use, actively promote efficient ecological circular agriculture models, explore pilot programs for farmland rotation and fallow systems, and strengthen agricultural ecological protection and restoration. Zeng Yande, director of the Planting Industry Department of the Ministry of Agriculture, said, "In the next 5 years, China will strive to keep the annual growth rate of chemical fertilizer and pesticide use within 1 percentage point, strive to reduce the annual growth rate by 0.2 to 0.3 percentage points, and by 2020 finally achieve zero growth in chemical fertilizer and pesticide use."
Serving the supply of green and safe agricultural products. Ye Youliang stated that science and technology are the primary productive forces in agriculture. Through the promotion of a series of practical technologies such as soil testing and fertilizer formulation, while avoiding farmland pollution, it effectively improves the quality of agricultural products, increases the supply of green and safe agricultural products, and opens a channel for increasing farmers' income and improving agricultural efficiency.
Li Xiaolin said, does farming pay off? Ultimately, it still depends on how you do it. The extension of services by Henan Rural Science and Technology Backyards is winning the affection of more and more farmers. In addition, at the Science and Technology Backyards, experts and students are "deeply immersed in their roles," providing an endless supply of talent support for carrying out sustainable agricultural technology services.