Ginger has been cultivated in Rucheng County for many years. In the past, a problem that plagued ginger farmers was that small yellow ginger could not be continuously cropped. If it is planted continuously, ginger seedlings will suffer from pests and diseases, affecting its growth. Therefore, after each season of ginger harvest, rice, rape or others will be rotated in the field before continuing to grow yellow ginger after three to five years.

 

At the end of 2020, after learning about this trouble, the officials of the village helped connect with the agricultural department, and contacted experts from the Hunan Academy of Agricultural Sciences. Experts came here for field investigation. They measured soil composition, carried out scientific and technological research, and found a good solution to the problem. That is to sterilize the soil and then cover it with a film for a month after harvesting the ginger.

 

Ginger can be continuously planted and there is no need to worry about its sale. Thus, farmers are more passionate and confident. At present, under the leadership of Zhang Youfa, many farmers in the village have begun to grow ginger. The ginger has really become an item that can help farmers become rich.

 

Since 2020, the Shazhou Agricultural Tourism Demonstration Base has mainly promoted technologies, such as continuous ginger planting, soil testing formula, standardized production, so the quality and production efficiency of agricultural products have been greatly improved.

 

Agricultural products are mainly sold through e-commerce platforms, driving the sales of agricultural products in the county through e-commerce platforms to more than 120 million yuan every year. The Shazhou Agricultural Tourism Demonstration Base has also developed from 260 mu (17.33 hectares) in 2020 to 560 mu (37.33 hectares), with characteristic  fruits and vegetables planted.

 

A number of cultural and tourism facilities have also been built. An agricultural tourism demonstration base integrating production, science popularization, sightseeing, picking and experience has initially taken shape. Modern agriculture depends on science and technology, scale, and able people who can lead others to get rich.

 

Shazhou Agricultural Tourism Demonstration Base is an example. In recent years, Rucheng County has promoted the appropriate scale of agricultural operation, strengthened scientific and technological services for farmers, promoted modern agricultural science and technology, enhanced the quality of agricultural products, and improved the ability to participate in market competition and cope with disasters.

 

Science and technology can promote industrial quality and efficiency. Therefore, Rucheng County cooperates with scientific research teams in the province to establish production, learning and research platforms, carry out technical research, and solve a number of technical bottlenecks that have long restricted industrial development.

 

In 2021, the tissue culture detoxification and seedling center of yellow ginger was established, which further improved the yield and quality of yellow ginger. In 2022, 2 high-yield and high-quality Rucheng Chaotian pepper varieties were successfully cultivated, which can increase the yield by more than 500 kg per mu, and greatly improve the quality.

 

 

This year, Rucheng County has developed five kinds of selenium-rich agricultural products, including rice, pepper, ginger, tea and fruit, and the price of the products has increased by more than 20%.

 

Since 2020, the county has promoted new technologies such as soil testing formula fertilization, organic fertilizer instead of chemical fertilizer, green pest prevention and control technology, and facility agricultural cultivation every year, and the number of technicians sent to the countryside has increased from 1,428 in 2020 to 1,569 in 2021.

 

The scale of the industry continues to expand. Rucheng County has adhered to the development idea of promoting large-scale and standardized bases, paid close attention to the construction of agricultural product bases. A large number of large-scale industrial bases stood out. The number of 1,000 mu (about 66.67 hectares) pepper production demonstration bases increased to 4, and the pepper area developed to 130,000 mu (about 8666.67 hectares).

 

The number of 1,000 mu (about 66.67 hectares) ginger production demonstration bases increased to 2, and the ginger area developed to 50,000 mu (about 3333.33 hectares). The fruit planting area reached 97,000 mu (about 6,466.67 hectares).

 

Rucheng County has established and improved the industrialized development and operation model of “leading enterprises + cooperatives + bases + farmers”. Leading enterprises, cooperatives and farmers have established a close benefit coupling mechanism to share the dividends of industrial development.

 

 

The county has improved market competition and disaster response capabilities. Since 2020, Rucheng County has added 12,000 mu (800 hectares) of greenhouse production, drip irrigation and other facilities for agriculture, and the ability of agricultural production in the county to resist natural disaster risks has been greatly improved. In addition, the county has built 40,000 cubic meters of cold storage, which helped extend the sales period, and increase the price of agricultural products.

 

This year, the county’s financial subsidies for agricultural insurance amounted to 25.9 million yuan and the insured area was 280,000 mu (about 18,666 hectares), effectively improving the ability of agricultural production in the county to resist natural disaster risks.

 

By accelerating the development of modern agriculture, the per capita disposable income of farmers in Rucheng County increased from 10,950 yuan in 2019 to 13,079 yuan in 2021. Since 2020, Rucheng County has been awarded a national typical county for rural entrepreneurship and innovation, an advanced county in the province in implementing the rural revitalization strategy, an advanced county with obvious results in “building a 100-billion-yuan industry with advantages and characteristics” in the province, and a national agricultural green development pilot zone.