Chapter 365 - 176: Planning

Chapter 365: Chapter 176: Planning

After watching He Jintang leave, Jiang Miao returned to his office.

He opened his personal laptop, reviewing information as he quietly contemplated his plans.

Various data on the Kerchin Desert scrolled past on the screen. Before he knew it, he had already filled over ten pages of his notebook with key points.

The sandy land, saline-alkali soil, and semi-desertified grasslands allocated to Hailufeng Company totaled 20,000 square kilometers, or approximately 30 million mu.

The core area was in Zhelimu City, with a smaller portion in Zhao Wuda City.

The average annual heat here was moderate, with a frost-free period of about 140 to 160 days. The average annual precipitation was 300 to 450 millimeters, with 70–80% of it concentrated between July and September.

This showed that, aside from the slightly insufficient heat, the other conditions in the Kerchin Desert were relatively favorable. This was precisely why Jiang Miao had chosen it.

Of course, if the Kerchin Desert were completely greened, it would inevitably affect the local microclimate. One significant change would be a more humid climate. Additionally, the temperature difference between day and night would shrink, and the annual frost-free period would increase by about 5 to 10 days.

Jiang Miao was considering how to plan the development of this vast tract of land.

’Planting soybeans is just a short-term plan.’

’And with 30 million mu, even if the development is spread over five years, that’s still 6 million mu annually. Given the size of the Monan Branch’s desert reclamation teams, their absolute maximum is 100,000 mu per month, or 1.2 million mu per year. That leaves a shortfall of 4.8 million mu.’

’Considering that some areas are degraded grasslands without large, mobile sand dunes and are relatively flat, those parts won’t require much work.’

After reviewing the relevant data, Jiang Miao estimated that approximately 19 million mu consisted of flat land that could be used directly or with minor modifications. Another 8 million mu or so were relatively easy to reclaim. The remaining 3 million mu were either mobile sand dunes, heavily undulating semi-degraded grasslands, or stony gravel flats.

’So the engineering teams won’t need to be expanded by much.’

’The real challenge lies in places like the Wulanbuhe, Tengger, and Badan Jiling Deserts—regions with vast mobile sand dunes.’

’But those regions have little to do with Hailufeng Company.’

Now, Jiang Miao had to start thinking about how to utilize this land.

’First, for the initial year, planting Immortal Soybeans is the only option. That’s a given.’

’But whether to continue planting Immortal Soybeans after the first year is a question worth considering.’

’After all, the goal for the domestic production increase in the short term is 50 to 60 million tons of soybeans. Once that’s distributed among the various companies and some independent farmers, each major player will only need to plant a little over ten million mu.’

’Therefore, the remaining ten-million-plus mu of land must be used for other agricultural products.’

Jiang Miao wasn’t very interested in grain crops like corn, wheat, or sorghum, because the country would soon be adjusting its regional crop-planting policies.

The farmland previously used for soybeans would certainly be freed up for other grain and cash crops. This was especially true for the Northeast and Northwest Regions; large areas there that couldn’t support winter wheat would most likely stop planting soybeans altogether.

The North China Plain, on the other hand, would likely introduce Immortal Soybeans. The reason was very simple: on the North China Plain, they could plant a crop of soybeans or corn after the winter wheat harvest.

Since grain crops were out, Jiang Miao turned his thoughts to cash crops, considering many options.

’First, I can rule out sugar beets. The soybean fields freed up in the Northeast will most likely be converted to grow them, making that category a textbook red ocean.’

’Cotton is also a no-go. The Northwest is certain to expand its cotton production, creating another red ocean.’

’That leaves only peanuts. Peanuts can be intercropped with Immortal Soybeans. Alternatively, after two years of growing soybeans, root rot fungus can be used to break down the soybean root systems and nodules, rapidly converting them into organic nutrients for the soil, which can then be used to plant peanuts.’

In his notebook, using a shorthand only he could understand, he wrote: *Projected: 5 million mu for peanuts.*

For the next category, he set his sights on the Hevea Plant.

The so-called Hevea Plant is actually several species of plants from the dandelion genus (Taraxacum) in the family Asteraceae, native to the Tianshan River Valley in the Western Regions. The Russians were the first to research Hevea Plant cultivation and rubber extraction techniques. Research within the country has been sporadic, with only a few experimental plots currently in the Western Regions.

With currently improved varieties, the Hevea Plant can be harvested in about three years. The yield per mu is around 250 kilograms of rubber-containing root tubers, from which 50 kilograms of rubber can be extracted.

’Obviously, that yield is too low, and the growth cycle is a bit on the long side.’

’But that’s no problem. I can improve the variety, shorten its growth cycle to about two years, and then intercrop it with Immortal Soybeans.’

Immortal Soybeans generally grow to a height of 90 to 100 centimeters, while the main leaves of the Hevea Plant are typically below 10 centimeters. Only when it flowers does its scape reach a height of 24 centimeters.

This characteristic allows the two to grow together without interfering with each other. This is especially true for fodder-grade Immortal Soybeans, which are harvested about four times a year. As long as the harvester’s cutting height is set to about 10 centimeters above the ground, it will clear the Hevea Plants.

Therefore, Jiang Miao planned to intercrop 5 million mu with fodder soybeans and Hevea Plants.

So the current plan was: 10 million mu of pure soybeans, 5 million mu of peanuts, 5 million mu of intercropped soybeans and Hevea Plants, and 5 million mu of mixed pasture.

That still left 5 million mu. As for what to plant there, Jiang Miao fell into deep thought.