After He Zhiyuan explained cucumber pollination, he went to several other greenhouses to see it again. Overall, it is not bad, these old farmers have basically mastered the temperature regulation, ventilation and other management skills of the greenhouse.

The vegetables and fruits grown in each greenhouse are different, including cucumbers, eggplants, spinach, celery, watermelons, melons and so on. In short, all the vegetables and fruits that can be planted in summer have been tried in these greenhouses.

Since these lands are close to the Shu River, the groundwater is abundant, and water can be produced without digging deep wells, so it is very convenient to water. Because of this, these vegetables and fruits are growing well, basically there are no major problems, and most of the vegetables can be picked and marketed before the Spring Festival.

Unconsciously, He Zhiyuan and Yan Jihai had spent two hours in these greenhouses, and it was already past lunch time. These simple old farmers insisted on leaving them home for dinner, but they were all politely declined by He Zhiyuan one by one.

In the carriage on the return trip, Yan Jihai has been thinking about a question in his mind, that is, the master seems to attach great importance to this experimental field. In the days he spent in the workshop, he had never heard his colleagues mention this place, let alone come here to take a look, and Lord Liang had never been here. But why does the master attach so much importance to here, and he has also invested heavily in building a glass greenhouse to try to grow vegetables and fruits.

In the end, he couldn't help asking: "Master, you have invested so much money in this experimental field, I'm afraid that you won't be able to recover the principal after ten years of income, but why did you do this?" ”

He Zhiyuan looked at the way he was thinking all the way, and knew that he was touched by this inspection here. So Zhengse replied: "Because the people take food as the sky, and having enough to eat is the most important thing for the people." There have been two food crises in our state in one year, and each time it almost went haywire. Without food, all workshops and shops cannot function normally, and food is the basis of all this. ”

Yan Jihai listened to He Zhiyuan's words, nodded and said: "What the master said is true, does the master want to use this experimental field to find a way to increase grain production?" ”

He Zhiyuan replied, "Yes." Not only that, but I also plan to breed new varieties that are frost-resistant, low-temperature tolerant, and require a short frost-free period. ”

"Why does the master want to breed such a new species?" Yan Jihai asked suspiciously.

He Zhiyuan replied worriedly: "Because it will be colder and colder every year in the future, and the winter will be longer and longer every year." These years have just begun, and in a few decades, the winters will be even colder, and it will snow even in the southern winters thousands of miles away. At that time, the grain production will be greatly reduced, there will be a food shortage throughout the country, and a large number of people will starve to death, so the division must prepare now. ”

"The master is right, it has indeed been getting colder and colder in recent years. How will the master know what will happen later? Can the master predict the future? ”

He Zhiyuan replied with a smile: "You can understand it this way, these can be inferred from scientific knowledge. Then he asked, "Xiao Yan, how much land do you have in your house?" Do you know how many harvests there are in an acre of land in a year? ”

Yan Jihai replied with a trace of sorrow on his face: "My family has more than 50 acres of land, and when one acre of land is good, there are two stones and more grains

The income from food is not good in the year, and there is not even a stone of harvest. A family of five lives very tightly. ”

He Zhiyuan said: "Yes, it seems that you are not stupid to read. This harvest is normal in the north, even in the large grain-producing provinces of Jiangnan and Huguang, it is only an acre of land that harvests more than three stones of grain. If one day the harvest of one acre of land reaches five stones, or even eight stones, do you think it can be realized? ”

Yan Jihai thought for a while, nodded, and then immediately shook his head again, and said: "Impossible, the winters have been getting colder and colder over the years, and the summers are not very hot, and the summers are getting shorter and shorter, and some crops have frosted before they are ripe." I heard from my father that the harvest is not as good as it is a year. It's good to be able to maintain the original harvest in such a year, where is it possible to improve? ”

He Zhiyuan saw what he did just now, so he asked, "Why did you nod your head just now and then shake your head?" ”

Yan Jihai hesitated for a long time, and finally said with He Zhiyuan's encouragement: "Just now I thought of the test field, and I felt that through the test, with the master's knowledge and guidance, I would definitely be able to achieve the goal of five stones, but after thinking about it carefully, I felt that it was impossible. Because these old peasants are illiterate, the master can only teach them by hand, but the master has a lot of things to do every day, and it is impossible to teach them every day, so I think it is impossible. ”

He Zhiyuan was secretly surprised, he didn't expect this little apprentice to have such a strong insight into the problem, and he saw the key to the problem at a glance.

He Zhiyuan nodded approvingly, and then asked him, "Then how do you think this problem should be solved?" ”

He Zhiyuan just asked this question and regretted it a little, this question was too difficult for a young man in ancient times. He didn't even figure it out himself, and when he asked his apprentice, he definitely didn't have an answer.

Sure enough, Yan Jihai thought for a long time, touched the back of his head, and replied, "I don't understand this question." In short, I think it takes literate people to lead these old farmers to have some results. Just like just now, if the master didn't tell them that the cucumbers still had to be pollinated, these old farmers would never know, and in that case, the cucumbers in this greenhouse would almost be lost. The same is true for farming, not only to know how to fertilize, water, and weed, but also to understand other traits of crops in order to achieve high yields. ”

He Zhiyuan nodded approvingly, it seems that this child still has some experience in growing crops, and while reading, he has helped the family with farm work, otherwise it is impossible to say these truths. Yes, he praised: "You are right, it seems that you have gained something from accompanying the master out this time." Planting crops, fertilizing, watering, and weeding are all justified and exquisite. For example, fertilization, the average old farmer only knows how to apply manure, so that crops can grow well. In fact, crops need chemical fertilizers to grow, the most important of which are nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. ”

Yan Jihai was a little confused when he heard this, and then said honestly: "Master, I didn't understand what you just said, what is a chemical fertilizer?" What are the three major elements of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium? ”

"You only have to read my chemistry book to understand this knowledge. Now I can't explain it clearly to you

。 He Zhiyuan continued: "The implementation of fertilizer is not the most important way to increase grain production. The most important method is breeding, as long as the cultivation of high-yield grain varieties is the key to increasing production. Breeding, on the other hand, requires a scientific approach to understand the various habits of crops. This knowledge needs to be read to acquire, and the old farmers who are illiterate cannot complete breeding. ”

Yan Jihai listened carefully to He Zhiyuan's explanation, and then asked: "Master, is the breeding you just said like pollinating cucumbers just now?" Can crops grow well, the grains will be full, and the yield will be increased by cross-pollination between different plants? ”

In fact, He Zhiyuan can be said to know nothing about breeding, all he knows is Yuan Longping, the old man of later generations, who made hybrid rice, so that the yield of rice reached more than 1,000 kilograms. At present, the yield of rice is only three stones at most, which is equivalent to more than 270 kilograms. Compared with later generations, there is a gap of almost five times, so He Zhiyuan is confident that he can say that he can make the grain output reach the level of five stones.

But as for how to breed, he couldn't give the apprentice in front of him a specific method, so he could only say vaguely: "It's similar to what you said, but rice and wheat are monoecious, so cross-pollination is not so easy." As long as two crops with good growth are selected and pollinated by different plants, as long as they can be successfully pollinated, it is possible to obtain good seeds. After several generations of cultivation, when the habit is fixed, a good seed is formed, and the yield can be increased. I don't know much about this method, but I just guess it. ”

Yan Jihai nodded, seemed to understand the truth, thought for a moment, and said to He Zhiyuan: "Master, the student wants to breed, and so on to cultivate rice or wheat varieties, and solve the food problem for the people and the court." ”

What the? I have only been with the master for half a day, and I want to leave the master and fly solo by myself! Is there such an apprentice? I want to keep you by my side as a child for a few years, He Zhiyuan was depressed for a while.

But after thinking about it, if he really has this interest and determination, maybe in a few years he can really cultivate crop varieties, which is much more than being a child by my side, and if he can become Yuan Longping of the Ming Dynasty, his contribution to this world is no less than that of a general who opened up territory and pacified wars. In comparison, it is much easier to find a child.

However, although he is enthusiastic now, he lacks basic scientific knowledge and does not have any knowledge of modern botany, so it is also difficult to carry out breeding under such circumstances. Although He Zhiyuan's own knowledge in this area is quite lacking, he always knows more than people in this era.

So he said, "You have this kind of thought, and I am very happy for the teacher. As the saying goes, sharpening the knife is not wrong to chop firewood, you now have too little basic knowledge, and you need to continue to learn other knowledge of this school to breed, otherwise it will only get half the result. I am going to write a book on plants for the teacher, and you will organize my manuscript. By the time you finish reading this book, you will understand the habits of many plants, which are of great benefit to crop management and breeding. Would you like to? ”

"Master, I do!" Yan Jihai said excitedly.

(End of chapter)

The little people of the Ming Dynasty

The little people of the Ming Dynasty

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