Family farmer Su Xiaowei: Intercropping melons and fruits for complementary advantages

“Planting watermelon under walnut trees can both prevent weeds from growing under the walnut trees and increase income, killing two birds with one stone.” Recently, just after a soaking rain, in a walnut grove in Suzhuang Village, Bandian Township, Runan County, Henan Province, several melon growers were busy pressing vines and pruning the watermelons intercropped under the trees. Su Xiaowei, owner of Su Hefeng Family Farm, handed tea to the hardworking “melon growers” and said excitedly: “There will be rain in the past two days, so it is not suitable for harvesting or plowing. We must hurry and tidy up the melon vines while we have the time; once the weather clears, we will not have the chance.”

Su Xiaowei, 42 this year, is a large-scale land transfer operator in Suzhuang Village, and his title of “field scholar” is well known near and far. Because Suzhuang Village is close to the Bandian Township market, in recent years many people in the village have been busy doing business and are unwilling to spend time on the land. But the quick-witted Su Xiaowei did the opposite, renting the farmland of neighboring households for 700 yuan per mu. His planting area grew from the initial several dozen mu to nearly 300 mu now.

Su Xiaowei grows wheat, corn, peanuts, sweet potatoes and watermelon, and has explored a “multiple wins from one plot” farming model and various new scientific farming models suited to local agricultural production. Through intensive cultivation and scientific management, he effectively uses land and space, improves land utilization, and increases the multiple cropping index. For many years, the average net profit per mu has exceeded 2,500 yuan. “At present, of the 300 mu of land, more than 50 mu is spring corn intercropped with sweet potatoes, with an estimated income of more than 4,000 yuan per mu; more than 200 mu planted with wheat has a yield of no less than 800 jin per mu, with an income of nearly 1,000 yuan per mu, of which more than 20 mu is wheat intercropped with watermelon; after the wheat is harvested, corn is intercropped between the watermelon rows; after the watermelon season ends, late cowpeas are planted, achieving four plantings and four harvests in one year, with an estimated income of more than 2,500 yuan per mu; the rest is 100 mu of peanut after wheat and 100 mu of sweet potato after wheat, with an income of no less than 2,000 yuan per mu.” Su Xiaowei said in his introduction.

In 2014, Su Xiaowei found that the walnut market was selling well, with prices staying high year after year. In early 2015, he bought more than 2,000 new-variety walnut saplings at one time from the Fruit Tree Research Institute of the Henan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, selected a plot with flat terrain and convenient irrigation and drainage, fenced off more than 30 mu with wire mesh, and planted all of it with walnut saplings. The walnuts are now growing well.

Because walnuts do not produce benefits until three years after planting, in order not to leave the land idle during these years, Su Xiaowei chose some short-stemmed crops, such as peanuts, sweet potatoes, watermelon and vegetables, to intercrop under the trees. The two coexist with little mutual effect and can also make up for the gap when walnuts bring no income in the early stage. Su Xiaowei said that the walnuts he planted are a new ultra-thin-shell variety introduced and bred by the Henan Academy of Agricultural Sciences. The walnuts are of high quality and high price and sell well on the market. After three years they enter the full fruit period, and after five years the yield per mu can reach 1,000 jin. Calculated at 10 yuan per jin, the income per mu is 10,000 yuan. In the years before the walnut trees form a grove, he will make full use of the land under the walnut grove and intercrop other crops to obtain the maximum harvest.

“We large-scale growers have a WeChat group. In the group, we not only exchange planting experience with each other, but also introduce to each other the selling prices and sales channels for melons, fruits and vegetables. We work together to venture into the market. What can be sold locally is sold locally; when local sales are difficult, we promote online. We have sales points all over the country.” When asked about sales channels, Su Xiaowei said with full confidence.

Feng Hongwei, staff reporter Zhang Peiqi