And the reason why a small part of the potatoes is left in the spring is not for anything else, but for testing storage. This problem is inevitable at the beginning, the potatoes that have just been planted cannot be eaten, and almost all of them must be used to keep the seeds, so the storage technology is very important.

When Huo Gang was a child, he dug cellars in the yard, which was warm in winter and cool in summer, and potatoes were generally stored at a low temperature of about 5 degrees Celsius. It can't be too low or too high, too high it will sprout and rot, and too low it will freeze easily.

These are all things that need to be tested.

And the new potatoes are also stored for a few months, because the new potatoes have just been dug out and there is a dormant period, and the new potatoes are different according to the variety, generally 1-4 months dormant period, and the new potatoes will not germinate during the dormant period.

In later generations, potatoes with a shorter dormancy period are often potatoes used to make potato flour in pursuit of high yields.

The climate of Yumenguan itself is very suitable for growing potatoes, and the Hexi Corridor is also the largest potato producing area in the whole country.

Anyway, when planting in the spring, there were not many reserves, and this time it is estimated that only a dozen plants will be planted.

"By the way, let's go to the potato fields." Huo Gang stood up directly and said, Wu Ping naturally didn't have time, Huo Gang turned over and rushed to the potato field directly, because there were not many seeds, only 23 acres were planted in total, and he dismounted next to the potato field, Huo Gang could see that the leaves at the bottom of the seedlings on these potato fields were already yellow, and the leaves on them were also a little wilted.

After all, it's the hottest time, and potatoes even stop growing when it's hot.

"Give me a shovel." Huo Gang directly asked Wang Shan for a shovel, and then entered the potato field, and dug directly at the edge of the plant, Wu Ping and they naturally would not stop it, but they all gathered around curiously, they didn't forget, the leader said, the yield per mu of this potato is simply beyond their imagination!

When Huo Gang turned over a shovel of soil, five or six huge potatoes were also turned out by Huo Gang directly from the ground, and when they saw these potatoes, Wu Ping next to them was directly stunned, and then Wu Ping's whole body couldn't help but tremble.

"Wang Shan, come here, be careful, dig out all the potatoes around this plant, be careful." Huo Gang said.

"Yes!" Wang Shan's voice trembled a little when he answered, and Huo Zheng, who was standing beside Huo Gang, immediately came over to help, and all the potatoes were quickly shaved out. Looking at the appearance of these potatoes, Huo Gang nodded, and sure enough, these potatoes were ripe!

Of course, they can continue to grow for a month, but there is no need for it, because the temperature is very high this month, and these potatoes will not grow too much.

The current potatoes, according to the standards of later generations, are basically the same size as the ones Huo Gang bought in the market.

"It's gone." Wang Shan and the others quickly dug all the surrounding land of this plant, and a total of 7 potatoes were dug out.

"Wang Shan, quick, go get the scales." Wu Ping's tone was a little trembling and he spoke.

"Yes!" Wang Shan turned over directly and ran away, while Wu Ping walked into the field tremblingly, stretched out his hand and picked up a potato in the field that was bigger than an adult's fist, and turned it up, Wu Ping knew the weight of this potato in his heart.

It's just that the more he knows it, the more excited Wu Ping's body trembles.

"Relax, relax, don't get excited, don't get excited." Huo Gang couldn't help but stretch out his hand and patted Wu Ping's back to help him calm down, because Huo Gang was afraid that he would faint directly, although Wu Ping was only in his sixties, but in ancient times, this year of the sixtieth year was already considered a high life, and now Wu Ping is in charge of a mess, but he can't have three long and two short.

"Yes, yes...... Chieftain...... I...... I am...... Just happy. Wu Ping really couldn't hold back, cloudy tears flowed out of his eyes, and he couldn't help wiping a handful of tears.

Because last winter, they had two old men of his age who had not survived that winter and were starving to death. And this year, they won't starve to death anyone! Next year, there will be more such grains!

They never have to worry about going hungry again!

Wang Shan soon came back with the scales, and Wu Ping put all the 7 potatoes in the field into a basket and weighed them, "Leader, a total of 4 catties and 2 taels!" When this weight was weighed out, Wu Ping already knew it, but he was still excited.

Don't talk about Wu Ping, everyone around is almost the same feeling!

Even Huo Gang was a little excited, what is the concept of 4 catties and 2 taels? When planting, the potatoes on this acre of land were planted for the first time, so the plants were relatively loose, and about 3,000 potatoes were planted in total of 500 square meters per acre.

According to 4 catties and 2 taels, this is equivalent to a yield of 12,000 catties per mu! Of course, it is impossible for every potato plant to have this weight, this plant is also more because it is on the edge, but the yield per mu is at least about 7000-8000 catties! This is almost close to the high-yield potatoes of later generations, because one mu in later generations is 666 square meters, and if the yield per mu is more than 10,000, the yield per square meter is about the same!

But for Wu Ping, they have never seen such grain at all!

The yield per mu is 8,000 catties, which is 66 stone of grain! You must know that the average yield per mu of the entire Datang is only more than one stone! One acre is equivalent to 66 acres of Datang! How many people can be fed if tens of thousands of acres are planted?!

If the whole world is like this, don't talk about them, even Datang will not be short of food.

"Mr. Wu." Huo Gang thought for a while and said.

"Chief." Wu Pingqiang held back his excitement and said.

"These potatoes let Huo Zheng's people and the people of the Tiger Ben Army take advantage of the holiday to come and harvest, don't announce the output to the public, you all keep it strictly secret, if such food is announced, it is easy for others to covet us." Huo Gang said very simply.

To be honest, if Li Er knew the yield of potatoes, Huo Gang felt that Li Er would be forced to go back even if he forcibly started a war, and if it was Huo Gang, Huo Gang would dare to do so. So it's better to keep this thing a secret.

"Yes!" Wu Ping immediately said with a serious face.

"Chief, when are we going to harvest these potatoes?" Wu Ping asked.

"It is estimated that it will take a month or two to harvest these plants on the ground after they are almost dry, by the way, these things are poisonous and cannot be fed to cattle and sheep, and when they die, they are directly burned and fattened in the ground." Huo Gang said.

"Yes!"

"From the potato point of view, our wheat is also a good year, and all of this wheat has been left for planting this year." Huo Gang said seriously, anyway, they now have enough food to eat for a year, even if Xue Yantuo's department comes over, after all, Xue Yantuo's department itself also has some food.

These optimized wheat should naturally be preferentially retained, but Huo Gang did not forget that Lingquan water has the effect of optimizing plants.

If all this year's wheat is retained, their wheat planting area will be at least ten times larger next year. This means that after next year's harvest, there will be absolutely no shortage of food for them.

"By the way, what about the chickens and ducks that were recovered from the Li family in Longxi before?" Huo Gang thought of one more thing and asked.

"It has been distributed to some herders, in the same way as cattle and sheep, but after two years, we will need to return double the number of chickens and ducks." Wu Ping immediately spoke.

"Well, tell them not to eat as much as possible, let the number of chickens and ducks multiply as quickly as possible, at least next year, try to make sure that every household has chickens and ducks, if it is not enough, they will buy it from the Li family in Longxi."

"Yes, Chief...... Although these chickens and ducks can eat alfalfa worms and the like, they hardly need to be fed, but in winter, they also need to be fed. Wu Ping hesitated and asked.

"A plague of locusts." Huo Gang paused, but still spoke directly.

"Locust plague?!" Wu Ping's whole face changed, what the locust plague meant, of course Wu Ping knew.

"There has been a drought and famine in many places in Datang this year, and once the weather is dry, it is easy for locust plagues to occur in the event of famine, and raising chickens and ducks can also solve part of the locust plague, in addition, if it really appears, I will let all the herdsmen start to catch these locusts, these locusts are dried, people can be edible, it is a good Chinese medicinal material, and secondly, dried, chickens and ducks can be fed in winter." Huo Gang spoke.

Chickens and ducks to solve the locust plague is actually very unreliable, especially on the grassland, there is really a locust plague, it is absolutely not an inch of grass, and chickens and ducks cannot eat so much, unless you have tens of millions of chickens and ducks, otherwise, it is useless.

History records that although the locust plague in the second year of Zhenguan was the most serious, in fact, there were locust plagues in the first three years of Zhenguan, but the locust plague in the first year and the third year of Zhenguan was only small-scale and did not spread.

Huo Gang is also just in case, who knows if the locust plague will affect him at that time.

Although it is true that the spirit of the Jade Gate can make his territory smooth out, this locust can migrate.

Even if there is no locust plague, in fact, it is very convenient to raise chickens on the grassland, locusts are the most important thing on the grassland in summer, and there are other insects and the like, anyway, there is basically no need to feed these chickens and ducks.

"However, if there is no locust plague, this decree does not need to be published." Huo Gang added.

"Yes!"

"In fact, raising more chickens and ducks also has another benefit, that is, so that our people can supplement meat and enrich their diet." Huo Gang said with a smile.

Wu Ping was a little speechless, this is what you dare to say, you go and ask the emperors and leaders of all countries in the world, who dares to say that they want their people to supplement the meat structure? But this is also the reason why tribes like Xue Yantuo are willing to submit to the leader, isn't it?