Chapter 93 Seedlings
Alfalfa is a representative of northern forage grasses, and its yield is at an upper-middle level among forage grasses.

Zou Qing squatted down and took two bites of Alfalfa No. 1.

The difference in plant height alone is huge; the number of branches and leaf density also far exceed that of ordinary alfalfa.

With just a cursory glance, Zou Qing could deduce that the yield per mu of Alfalfa No. 1 hay far exceeded 1 ton, and he even suspected that it might have reached tons.

This is close to or even exceeds the national yield record!
He has been in the regiment for so many years. It is normal for farmers to produce 300 to 400 kilograms of alfalfa hay, and 700 to 800 kilograms is considered very high.

There are very few that weigh more than one ton.

Zou Qing and several farmers were a little dazed for a moment. Alfalfa No. 1 really scared them.

Even if we take a lower value, based on a yield of 1 ton of hay per mu, local sales can still bring good benefits.

Coupled with alfalfa processing technology and sales to other provinces, profits immediately increased.

If the yield can be stabilized to the level of alfalfa seed fields, the profit from growing alfalfa will far exceed that from growing cotton!

The profit from forage grass is higher than that from cotton. Who would believe it if I told them this?
Zou Qing's eyes flickered as he thought in his mind.

In the past two years, clothing companies have had a huge demand for cotton, and national policies have also strongly supported cotton planting, so the benefits of growing cotton are very good.

As a result, local farmers and investors from other places are flocking to Xinjiang to grow cotton.

Seeing others making money, the employees who were still growing alfalfa in the farm immediately became jealous.

They all started to try to switch to growing cotton.

But Alfalfa's pressurization technology and the vigorous posture of Alfalfa No. 1 made Zou Qing and others hesitate.

Tang Yong from the Animal Husbandry Department also had a bright smile on his face.

"Mr. Guo, can you sell us some of the Alfalfa No. 1 seeds this year?"

Zou Qing and several staff members of the Corps also looked at Guo Yang expectantly.

Guo Yang shook his head and said, "Director Tang, this year's yield of Alfalfa No. 1 is only about kilograms, which is not enough for Alfalfa to use itself."

"Then I guess the Corps will switch to growing cotton next year, so they won't be able to provide much alfalfa raw material."

"The first crop is alfalfa, and the second crop is cotton. The cotton yield will definitely increase a lot, and the employees can get better economic benefits. Why not do it?"

"In this case, maybe the Corps' dairy farms will have to buy feed from outside..."

"It's just one year, and crop rotation is the reasonable planting model, which not only protects the land but also has economic benefits."

The next period of time.

Square bales of alfalfa are exported to coastal areas in a steady stream, and the return of green manure to the fields is also progressing rapidly.

In the end, 50,000 acres of alfalfa were returned to the fields.

1.2 tons of square straw bales were also sold, with total sales of approximately 1200 million yuan.

The employees of Muhe were a little excited. After investing hundreds of millions of dollars, they finally had some income!

Guo Yang was quite calm, everything had just begun.

The yield potential of Alfalfa No. 1 is definitely more than 1 to 2 tons, and only a few people know the content of its crude protein and other nutrients.

Sales manager Yu Xiaochuan had served in the army for two years. He walked with big and fast steps and walked into the office building very quickly in a formal suit.

"Boss, this time I went out and basically got a clear picture of the domestic alfalfa import and export situation."

"How about it?"

"In recent years, there has been a lack of large-scale alfalfa products in China, and large and medium-sized coastal cities have been importing them from the United States, Canada, and Spain."

After a pause, Yu Xiaochuan continued: "The international market price of standard hay bales is 120 to 240 US dollars per ton, which is cheaper than in China."

Guo Yang was not surprised.

"The United States, Canada, and Spain all have large companies and large farms that produce intensively, while China is dominated by small farmers. There are gaps in cost, seeds, and technology."

"We also export a small amount to Japan, South Korea, Southeast Asia and other regions."

"Have you ever had contact with foreign businessmen?" Guo Yang asked.

“I have been in contact with them, but the quality of our bales is too low. The export pricing is determined by the standard crude protein content. For every 1% increase in protein content, the price of alfalfa per ton will increase by US$10 to 15.” Protein content?

The corners of Guo Yang's mouth curled up unconsciously.

……

Let’s go back to May, Tianhe hot pepper seedling base.

In early May, Lanzhou City occasionally experiences strong winds, cooling temperatures, sandstorms, and frost in the early morning.

But some bold growers or those who have confidence in their technology have begun to transplant and plant pepper seedlings in the open air.

As we enter mid-May, the late frost period has passed, the ground temperature has stabilized, and various vegetable seedlings such as hot peppers are gradually in short supply.

At the market, more and more vegetable farmers are selling vegetable seedlings.

Most of Tianhe's seedling base is now empty, but most of the seedlings have been transported to the demonstration planting base.

Only a handful of them were actually sold.

In Tianhe’s greenhouse, there are still more than 600 million green seedlings growing quietly.

At daybreak, an old man wearing only a single layer of clothing, smoking a pipe and riding a shabby tricycle came out of the nursery base.

Before I even reached my own fields, I met the boss I had worked for before. He was a short, middle-aged man on the thin side.

The middle-aged man is called Zhao Mingzhi. His family has been renting land in the surrounding towns and villages to grow vegetables all year round.

"Uncle Chen, what kind of seedlings are you pulling?"

Uncle Chen was smoking his pipe and riding his bike slowly, pretending to be deaf and didn't hear anything.

Zhao Mingzhi's family contracted more than 100 acres of land. The family was definitely too busy to handle it, and often had to hire people nearby to do the work.

Uncle Chen had worked in Zhao Mingzhi's house for a while before, but he felt that this family was not honest.

She disliked that he worked slowly, but she didn't say it earlier. She only said she would deduct money from him when he was paid after he finished the work.

He was so angry that he wanted to argue.

But Zhao Mingzhi's wife was too evil, a typical rural shrew. Afterwards, she went around saying that he was lazy and not working hard enough.

After that, he gave up the idea of ​​working.

He cultivated two or three acres of land. When there was market, he would sell vegetables in the morning, play cards in the afternoon, and drink in the evening. When there was no market, he would cultivate the land in the morning, play cards in the afternoon, and drink in the evening.

Isn’t this day great?

Zhao Mingzhi followed the tricycle and looked at the seedlings carefully.

"The pepper seedlings are from Tianhe Company?"

Uncle Chen glanced at him and decided not to play deaf and dumb any longer, so he nodded.

"You really want to buy it? It's said that Tianhe is a useless plant that only grows seedlings but doesn't bear fruit."

Zhao Mingzhi looked at Old Man Chen with pity and persuaded him.

"I also planted peppers this year. I bought seeds from the seed station and raised the seedlings myself. I have a lot left, so I can share some with you."

Before Old Man Chen could refuse, a fierce voice came from the house next door.

"What's the point of dividing it? It's 5 cents a plant, not a bit less."

A fat woman came out of the house. She was wearing a floral dress, with two bulging lumps of fat on her chest and a hoe on her shoulder for loosening the soil.

Old man Chen didn't even look at the person who came, and walked straight to his house, his heart full of contempt.

The man looks big and strong, but the seedlings he raises are not very good.

How dare you sell it for 5 cents a plant?

Tianhe’s seedlings are tall and strong, and the price is only this high!
As for the claim that Tianhe’s pepper seedlings were grown by eunuchs, Old Man Chen didn’t believe it.

(End of this chapter)