In the middle of summer, walking into Xiaolei Farm, Zhonghe Village, Renhe Town, Shidian County, rows of soilless cultivation troughs are neatly arranged, and round, green watermelons are hung on the branches, which are staggered against the backdrop of emerald green melon leaves, which makes people look novel and can't put it down.
Duan Guanglei, the farmer, is pruning the branches, "leaving one melon for each vine and cutting off the excess melons to ensure the maximum supply of nutrients." I tried to plant six acres of soilless watermelons, compared with watermelons planted with soil, watermelons planted without soil have a sweeter taste and thinner skin, which not only solves the problem of land salinity, but also avoids a variety of pests and diseases caused by the contact between crop roots and soil. With fewer pests and diseases, the amount of pesticides will decrease, and the watermelons produced will be more assured to eat. Duan Guanglei said with confidence.
Concentrate on being a "returning goose", and don't do a good job of high eagles. In 2012, after graduating from Yunnan Agricultural University, based on his love for agriculture and understanding of the geography and climate of his hometown, Duan Guanglei decisively gave up the opportunity to work in the provincial capital and resolutely chose to return to his hometown to start his own business. This is an important choice that determines the path and direction of his life, is it right or wrong to make such a choice? He doesn't know. In the first year after returning home, he plunged headlong into his family's three acres of land and started his entrepreneurial dream.
How hard it is to start a business all the way, regroup and set sail again. In 2013, Duan Guanglei built a new 3-acre greenhouse to plant strawberries, but the weather was not beautiful, and a gust of wind blew all the greenhouses down. In 2015, Duan Guanglei rented another 200 acres of land to grow peppers, potatoes, gluten-free beans and other vegetables. Through practice, he learned that although the input cost of open-air vegetable cultivation is relatively small, the ability to resist natural risks is also relatively low, and due to the insufficient estimation of the local climate, the vegetable cultivation finally ended in failure. In 2019, he summed up the failed experience of several years and decided to give up planting 200 acres of vegetables, and re-calm down and start modern facility agriculture cultivation in a down-to-earth manner.
The land can grow both crops and dreams. Duan Guanglei carried out a "strong foundation" on the original greenhouse, built more than 30 acres of greenhouses, and began to plant strawberries, mulberries, figs, grapes, peppers and other vegetables and fruits. "In the past, strawberries have always been cultivated in traditional soil, and after a long time, soil compaction and salinization will occur, resulting in a decline in strawberry quality and yield. In the second half of 2019, I returned to the Kunming Academy of Agricultural Sciences, and decided to switch to a modern greenhouse to cultivate strawberries without soil by studying with my teacher, and after four years of practice and exploration, in 2023, the quality and yield of strawberries finally achieved the desired effect. Duan Guanglei said. The strawberries planted with modern soilless cultivation technology are of excellent quality, beautiful and clean, attracting many tourists and foreign businesses, and "Xiaolei Farm" also has a certain brand effect in the local area.
The market is choosing products, and products are adapting to the market. As a "new farmer" in the new era, Duan Guanglei knows this very well. In 2024, he will start to try to grow watermelons without soil again, opening up a new "track" again. "Watermelon soilless cultivation should be the first planting in Shidian at present, and after the successful attempt, it will play a role in promoting fruit planting or modern agricultural development in Renhe Town and even Shidian County. Because conventional planting is easy to cause soil salinization, at present, in many places have begun to control or prohibit the soil planting greenhouse watermelon, as a new era of 'new farmers', we must continue to learn the country's guidelines and policies, so that our road will be wider and wider, I only did soilless cultivation this year. Judging from the current situation, soilless watermelons have been successfully planted. Watching the watermelons on the vines grow bigger day by day, just like my own child slowly growing, my heart is full of anticipation. Duan Guanglei said.
In July, Xiaolei Farm's soilless watermelons will be available for sale. When asked what he thinks, Duan Guanglei said with emotion: "It's really hard and difficult to do agriculture!" Although there are many difficulties, as long as you persist, dare to think, dare to do, and think diligently, you will slowly find a way out. Duan Guanglei, the "homing goose", has now become a "trendsetter" of rural revitalization, and everyone is looking forward to seeing the dream of this "homing goose" continue to blossom and bear fruit, and read his more and more wonderful "agricultural articles".