The lotus root planting area is to be expanded to 100 mu next year

“The trial planting of lotus roots with plastic film in 20 mu of shallow ponds has succeeded, and I plan to expand the planting area to 100 mu next year.” Feng Dashu, who was harvesting fresh lotus roots, told this writer a few days ago.

Feng Dashu is a villager of Lianghe Neighborhood Committee, Apengjiang Town, Qianjiang District. In recent years, Feng Dashu and his wife Shen Fengping have worked at the modern agricultural park at their doorstep. Feng Dashu is responsible for plowing and cultivating the land, while Shen Fengping is the leader of the park's labor service team. The honest and hardworking couple have won deep trust from the person in charge of the park.

Last year, by chance, the couple saw on a TV program that someone in Shandong was promoting the cultivation technique of growing lotus roots with plastic film in shallow ponds, and they were deeply tempted.

After careful consideration, the two decided to “take a gamble” and quit their jobs to try growing lotus roots with plastic film in shallow ponds.

The couple told the person in charge of the park about their idea of quitting their jobs to start a business, and received strong support. After negotiation, Feng Dashu rented 20 mu of greenhouses from the park as production land at a price of 2000 yuan per mu per year.

Rent, seeds, labor and so on required an investment of more than 100,000 yuan. What if it failed?

Feng Dashu hired Pu Guangyu, a member of the district agricultural society and an engineer in the vegetable section of the district agriculture committee, as a technical consultant.

Plowing, making beds, leveling, laying film, filling soil, digging trenches, planting lotus roots, fertilizing, managing…… every detail required careful operation. Under the careful guidance of the technical consultant, Feng Dashu led several workers in solidly carrying out the work of every production step in accordance with standardized technical operating procedures.

A few days ago, when Feng Dashu and the workers dug out long and tender fresh lotus roots from the 20 cm thick shallow mud layer, smiles of relief appeared on their faces.

According to estimates, the yield per mu reached more than 5000 kg, an increase of more than 3000 kg over conventional cultivation methods, with an output value per mu of 25,000 yuan and a net income of 12,000 yuan.

It is reported that growing lotus roots with plastic film in shallow ponds not only saves water, saves fertilizer and controls disease, but also allows earlier marketing, increases per-unit yield, saves harvesting labor, and produces pollution-free products, with broad development prospects.

Feng Dashu, who succeeded in the trial planting, is full of confidence. He plans to expand the planting area of lotus roots with plastic film in shallow ponds to 100 mu next year, and to encourage a group of fellow villagers to grow them, creating a high-yield park for lotus roots with plastic film in shallow ponds.