In May and June, the wind blows the wheat waves, and the winter wheat harvest season.
Topics such as wheat harvest and food security have repeatedly dominated the hot search list.
Although human technology has entered the era of AI, and although many world-class companies are developing synthetic food, cereals, fruits, vegetables and vegetables grown from the land are still the source of energy for human survival.
The history of mankind is a history of hunger.
"There is food in the hand, and there is no panic in the heart".
The Chinese know better than anyone that with only 7 percent of the earth's land and 6 percent of the earth's water resources, to feed 1.4 billion people, accounting for about one-fifth of the world's population, all they can do is to guard the red line of 1.8 billion mu of cultivated land, stabilize the area, and increase yields, that is, "store grain in the ground and store grain in technology."
"China's bowl should be filled with Chinese grain", and the increase in grain production has been raised to the level of national policy.
The Neolithic Revolution, or Agricultural Revolution, marked the transition from gathering and hunting to sedentary farming. Yuval Harari defined it this way in his book A Brief History of Mankind. In the book "The Third Agricultural Revolution" written by the French scholar Sylvie Brunel, it is pointed out that in 30 years, the total number of human beings will increase by one-third, and food production will need to increase by 70%. If the problem of increasing food production cannot be solved within these 30 years, wars, famines, and plagues will occur one after another.
When only 3% of the world's land is cultivated, there is no room for error.
Whether it is neolithic or bronze, iron, or today's mechanical intelligence, every agricultural revolution is accompanied by the birth of advanced tools.
"Revolution" means change, and "life" is the mandate of heaven. Marx described it: "Revolution is the locomotive of history. ”
Science and technology are the primary productive forces, and since the founding of the People's Republic of China, it has experienced three major technological revolutions in increasing agricultural production:
First, the application of chemical fertilizers has improved the soil and promoted grain production; The second time: the application of improved seeds, improve the genes of seeds, and increase yields; The third time: the application of yield increasing drugs to reduce the dependence of plant growth on the weather and ensure the increase in yield.
Application of fertilizer: Crops and flowers depend on fertilizer
In order to increase grain production, the land must first be fertile and vigorous.
As the saying goes, "a crop is a flower, and it all depends on fertilizer".
In ancient times, China, which was founded on agriculture, used animal manure and burned plant straw to improve land fertility during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. Later, it was developed into farmhouse fertilizer.
The revolution of modern fertilizers began during the Industrial Revolution in Europe. It was after the Industrial Revolution that people really synthesized chemical fertilizers.
According to public sources, in 1838, L.B. Ross of England used sulfuric acid to treat phosphate rock to make phosphate fertilizer, which became the world's first chemical fertilizer;
In 1850, J.Von Liebig (1803~1873) of Germany invented potash fertilizer; Around 1850, Rouse invented the first nitrogen fertilizer.
After 1901, chemical fertilizers gradually entered China, and were initially used on sugarcane in Taiwan, and the effect of increasing production was significant. Before 1950, the mainland was still in the verification stage of chemical fertilizers, and it was found that the output of staple grains increased significantly.
Since 1950, the mainland has entered the stage of combined application of organic fertilizer and nitrogen fertilizer. Farmers began to consciously apply nitrogen fertilizer to achieve high agricultural yields. After 1970, more attention was paid to the combined application of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium fertilizers with organic fertilizers.
Nitrogen fertilizer, which can strengthen plants and promote nutrition; Phosphate fertilizer, which can strengthen the grain and improve the fruit; Potassium fertilizer, which can promote photosynthesis and disease resistance; Compound fertilizer, improve fertility and promote high yield.
Fertilizers are the grain of grain. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), fertilizers account for about 40 to 60 percent of the total increase in crop yields.
Between 1949 and 2018, although total food production increased by as much as five times, fertilizer application also increased by 18.16 times. From 1949 to 2018, fertilizer application increased by 53.58 million tonnes, with an average increase of 9.74 million tonnes for every 100 million tonnes of fertilizer used.
In 1994, the American economist Brown once asked the question of the century: "Who will feed the Chinese?" In his view, relying only on 1.8 billion mu of arable land will not be able to feed the Chinese. But nearly 30 years later, the Chinese have not only fed themselves, but also become one of the most stable food prices in the world in 2022 when the world faces food security threats. ”
According to the National Bureau of Statistics, in 1949, the total grain output of the mainland was 113.18 million tons, but by 2021, it has reached 682.85 million tons, an increase of 503.33%. Grain yields increased by 386.6 percent, and the three main crops of rice, wheat, and maize accounted for 87 percent of the total grain output. Wheat yields increased by 752 percent, corn by 469 percent, rice by 234 percent, and soybeans by 145 percent.
The scientific and rational use of chemical fertilizers has made the land barren and the people poor and hungry everywhere become fertile and rich.
Application of seeds: If you don't choose seeds, you will be tired and empty
With good soil, there must also be good seeds.
If the seeds are good, the genes of the grain are good.
In April 2024, the State Council issued the "New Round of Action Plan for Improving Grain Production Capacity of 100 Billion Jin (2024-2030)", which clearly stated that a new round of 100 billion jin of grain production capacity improvement action will be implemented, and the focus of grain production increase will be placed on increasing yield in a large area, and the two key points of cultivated land and seeds will be grasped.
"The spring is scorching, and the autumn is separated."
Since ancient times, the mainland has attached great importance to breeding.
In the "Book of Songs", "the yellow and thick of the seed, the real square and the real bud", which means that when sowing, we must choose the seeds with bright and beautiful colors to produce good seedlings. In the Han Dynasty, there was a spike selection method of "planting it in time, then reaping the usual times". In the Northern Wei Dynasty, people planted the selected pure color seeds in special seed fields; Store separately at harvest. In the Ming Dynasty, there was a "Breeding Chapter" in the "Guomai Mintian", which specifically discussed the technology of high-quality breeding.
"If you don't choose seeds for planting, you will die of exhaustion" and "you won't eat seeds and grains when you starve to death" all show how much people attach importance to seeds.
One seed can change the world.
Crop varieties on the mainland change one generation about every five years, with an average yield increase of 8%-10% for each change. Starting from 2021, the mainland's total grain output has reached 600 million tons, and the improved seed rate has stabilized at more than 97%.
In the sixties of the last century, Yuan Longping, who was hailed as a "food hero" by the United Nations, began to study hybrid rice. In 1973, the world's first practical high-yield hybrid rice variety "Nanyou 2" was successfully bred. In 1976, it was widely promoted, which greatly increased the yield and total yield of rice. Today, hybrid rice has been planted on the mainland to more than 17 million hectares, which can increase the yield by 20% compared with conventional rice and feed 70 million more Chinese every year.
In the past 40 years, more than 200 new rice varieties have been cultivated by Yuan Longping's team, and more than 600 million mu have been promoted, with an increase of more than 20 billion kilograms and an increase of more than 30 billion yuan.
As the main wheat producing area in the country, Henan Province ranks first in the country in terms of wheat planting area, mu yield and total output - more than 85 million mu of total planting area, annual output accounts for 25% of the country's total output, and the yield has also increased from 150 kg in 1978 to 441 kg in 2020. Behind it, a good seed is indispensable.
As of 2021, there are more than 150 units and individuals engaged in wheat breeding in Henan Province, ranking first in the country, and a total of 102 new wheat varieties at the national level have been launched in the past ten years, accounting for almost 1/3 of the national total. Data show that since 2007, just a new variety series in the Huanghuai wheat area has reached a cumulative planting area of 150 million mu, high-quality wheat production increased by more than 4.5 billion kilograms, creating social and economic benefits of 7 billion yuan.
On March 1, 2020, the newly revised Seed Law came into effect.
"China's grain is mainly used in China." Up to now, the self-sufficiency rate of rice and wheat has reached 100 percent, and the contribution rate of improved varieties to agricultural production has exceeded 45 percent.
With good soil and good seeds, will you be able to achieve high yields? Not necessarily! What should I do if I encounter drought and flood disasters, pests and diseases? It is necessary to use fungicides that can cure diseases and increase production, and the common people like to call them production enhancement drugs.
The use and promotion of production-enhancing drugs: insects take away food to ensure and increase production
Agricultural fungicides are a class of pesticides used to prevent and control plant diseases caused by various pathogenic microorganisms, generally referring to fungicides. Internationally, it is usually used as a general term for the prevention and treatment of various pathogenic microorganisms.
Early fungicides, which were inorganic compounds, such as Bordeaux liquid (sulfur powder and copper preparations), are still used today. In 1914, I. Reem of Germany used organic mercury compounds to control wheat smut, and organic fungicides were born. In 1934, W.H. Tisdale et al. in the United States discovered the bactericidal properties of dimethyldithiocarbamate, and since then, organic fungicides have begun to develop rapidly. In 1965, Japan developed the organophosphate fungicide rice blast, in 1966 the United States developed Rust Chloride, in 1967 the United States developed Benomefen, in 1969 Japan developed thiophanate, in 1974 the Federal Republic of Germany developed azole, in 1975 the United States developed tricyclazole, in 1977 Switzerland developed methafen, in 1978 France developed aluminum triacetate.
Systemic agents represented by the above have become the mainstream of fungicide development since the 70s. Organic mercury, organoarsenic and some organochlorine fungicides are gradually phased out due to toxicity or environmental pollution concerns. The new generation of systemic agents has further expanded the market for fungicides due to the improved control effect. By the 80s of the last century, there were more than 200 varieties of fungicides.
Since the 50s of the last century, China has mainly developed protective fungicides. Since the 70s, the development of systemic fungicides and agricultural antibiotics has begun, and the use of organic mercury agents has been stopped. Fungicides are good at promoting plant health by regulating photosynthesis, and their protective effect on agricultural yield increase has been increasingly recognized by the majority of farmers.
According to the textbook "Phytochemical Protection" (China Agriculture Press), edited by Xu Hanhong, "arsenic, mercury, copper preparations and seed treatment with benzene fungicides have enabled humans to effectively control the serious harm of cereal smut, and in some pest and disease areas, grain production has increased by more than 30%." "Triazoles and methoxyacrylate fungicides are used in the early growth of wheat and rice, which can improve the cold resistance, cold resistance and drought resistance of crops, promote the healthy growth of plants, and the use of 1000-grain weight in the later stage of crop growth can greatly increase the 1000-grain weight and improve crop yield."
Qin Cungen, a large farmer in Wangzhuang, Hebiqi County, Henan Province, sprayed a small blue cap yield enhancement drug combination program on his own 400 wheat, and the actual yield per mu was measured to be 1834.32 catties, exceeding the local average yield per mu by more than 400 catties;
A large planter in Diaodi Village, Jitan Town, Dengzhou, Nanyang, Henan Province, sprayed a small blue cap yield enhancement drug combination program on his wheat, with a yield of 1,476 kg per mu, which exceeded the local average yield of 564 kg per mu due to the outbreak of local scab;
Feng Xiaolin, a large planter in Dingmiao Village, Zhaxia Town, Shuyang County, Jiangsu Province, received an extra 247.5 catties per mu after spraying a small blue hat yield increase drug combination plan on his wheat.
At present, there are more than 2,000 designated enterprises for pesticide production in China, including more than 800 enterprises above designated size, which are transforming to high-efficiency, low-toxicity and low-pollution manufacturing and application.