Free Web NovelChapter 2162: Chapter 1842: Who Are You?
Professor Song was genuinely interested this time.
He had seen plenty of rural planning, but using corn, sorghum, and forage as landscape design was indeed rare.
Just for that, he was willing to have a serious discussion with people.
"Forage is great, but it has to consider the specific breeding needs of the village, right?"
Compared to vegetables and other staple crops, the buyers for this are much more limited.
"You shouldn’t just look at the village alone."
Vice President Chen spoke at length, wanting to further inform the simple old man who had a taste for learning:
"The village’s space and demand are limited, but we’re not an isolated ancient country. If we are going to do something, we should connect with the ten miles and eight villages around us!"
"I’ve noticed that President Song’s farm is doing well, and after carefully inquiring about the data, I’ve found that more people have stayed in the village this year than in previous years."
"Farming in rural areas is about following trends: if your family plants something, my family will want to plant it too. If your family makes money from it, my family will also want to try."
With this trend, perhaps other villages also have people who want to piggyback on this trend to do some farming and breeding at home?
For village people, they generally don’t take big steps, but choosing a remote barren hill, setting up a few grass huts, and free-ranging some chickens should be manageable, right?
If someone wants to feed local chickens, they feed plump chickens; if they want to raise laying hens, they adjust the feed accordingly.
If someone has a little courage and raises a hundred or so, even if there is some risk, given this scale, is it sustainable if it’s sustainable?
If this family raises chickens, that family can also raise a couple of pigs in a remote place, right?
Well, there are many rules in the village now, and raising pigs is quite restricted due to sanitation and quarantine concerns.
But he has also checked the surrounding map; Yunqiao Village is very remote!
Currently, the prosperity of this area is entirely brought about by big entrepreneurs, new roads, and the rural environment. The farmers in the village, including the doctors at the clinic, are all to be credited.
Taking a side road to the back mountains, you would reach Shitou Slope, and further in, there are actually no roads!
The villagers here don’t have any other sources of income either.
If livestock farming is also strictly regulated, it is purely a way to block people’s paths to livelihood.
He proudly said: "It rained, and I didn’t go far in the morning, so I looked around along the way. I’ve also inquired about the Shitou Slope inside; the land there is extremely barren! Large sloping lands are still leased to Boss Song — such a barren place, yet it’s still a village."
"Old man, what do you think, is it suitable to do small-scale livestock farming in such a place?"
Old folks can’t go far, and rural men in their fifties and sixties who still have strength aren’t allowed to enter construction sites.
Then how do they make a living?
Raising some chickens and pigs at home... isn’t that quite fine?
Later, get Director Zhu to communicate with the neighboring village, and won’t this create demand?
"Additionally, when it comes to farming, you need to create differentiation."
Vice President Chen became increasingly passionate and confident, while Professor Song asked, "How did you go in the morning? Did you drive? How about we both go over there to take a look? Conduct some field research?"
Vice President Chen suddenly went speechless.
After a while, he awkwardly said:
"After all, I was invited and provided with a car..."
Provided with a car?
Professor Song was even more delighted: "Isn’t that perfect!"
Just then, Security Team leader Chen Yuan came over and handed over a key:
"Mr. Chen, the electric scooter that slid in the morning might have a punctured tire, and we’ve just repaired it for you. Want to give it a try now?"
Professor Song’s gaze followed over, and he saw a wet, freshly-washed electric scooter, tilted at the entrance of the workshop.
Vice President Chen: ...
Is it my fault?!
After struggling for decades, he suspected the car provided for him might be a second-hand Polo — after all, this village looked quite poor, even the car driven by the director was of a low-cost model.
But he didn’t expect that he hadn’t reached the limits of his imagination yet.
But now that things have come to this —
He desperately tried to pull the topic back:
"Well, I see the sky is darkening again, it might rain heavily soon, so let’s not go now and talk first — old man, do you understand what I’m saying?"
After all, he didn’t explain anything profound, right?
In any case, Vice President Chen earnestly said:
"Yunqiao Village’s soil and water are top-notch, otherwise, how could it attract people to buy tofu and vegetables, for various recreational purposes, despite having no real planning?"
"Since that’s the case, grass grown here might be more flavorful or nutritious, right?"
The villagers find it challenging to grow on a large scale, so for small-scale, naturally, the better the taste, the better the price one can command.
Say what you will, but if the meat is a little more tender, raising the price by a few pieces per pound isn’t unprofitable at the end of the year.
And the lowest-cost way to improve quality is to feed them better and more scientifically.
Like, Yunqiao Village’s forage.
Being a businessman by background, Professor Song also nodded along: "You explained it very thoroughly, I understand everything."
The other party might not have mentioned money, but every plan revolves around what people care about most: [profits]. Listening to it, there doesn’t seem to be any problem!
However, just talking about these grand plans is of no use, as the livestock farming has not even begun yet.
Talking about that area, sorghum, corn, and forage, one has to settle on one first, right?
Vice President Chen sighed, "Why can’t forage flowers be both beautiful and nutritious?"
"Why not?" Professor Song instinctively wanted to refute: giant reed flowers open bloom after bloom of yellow flowers, at a glance, they resemble small sunflowers, and the stalks are exceptionally tall and impressive from afar.
But he quickly remembered: the highest nutritional value of this forage is when the buds haven’t bloomed yet.
Once it flowers, not only does its strong fragrance affect the animals’ appetite, but the fibers also get coarser, making it unsuitable in terms of taste and nutrition.
He thought for a moment and mentioned a type of grass: "This can grow up to 3 meters without needing any care."
So, as long as the elderly slowly finish tilling this piece of land and plant the grass roots, for many years to come, they would only need to take care of watering, fertilizing, and harvesting.
This is, in a way, also a form of basic low-maintenance farming, isn’t it?
Of course, a businessman always has a Plan B.
Vice President Chen then said, "I just had Director Zhu give a rough age range of the villagers and made a basic plan.
"In reality, many rural 60-somethings still have some strength, and because their children may need support, they have substantial economic pressure and an increasing desire for economic benefits."
The people in the group deal with village folks with similar issues every year.
In this way, it can’t just be about low maintenance; earning income must also be considered.
Then we need to change direction.
Initially, they wanted to mimic the serenity of a bamboo forest, the elegant flying eaves having a particular ambiance.
But if there is willingness to work hard and endure hardships, why not level this entire area into an open space?"
An open area can cultivate a lot.
There’s one basic and popular option at many research study bases: a ten square meters plot, leased or managed, would tourists interested in buying vegetables during their visit be interested?
If this doesn’t work —
"Then," President Chen thought after pondering: "Then enclose it, and hold a wild vegetable picking open day every weekend."
Sow lots of grass seeds, and don’t manage anything else.
In spring, dig for shepherd’s purse, pick bracken, and artemisia annua.
In summer, there will be purslane, wild amaranth, and wild garlic.
In autumn, you could plant perilla and have a barbecue festival!
You can also set aside spaces for various family activities, like making sun-dried persimmons, building a small clay stove to play with mud...
By winter, there will still be shepherd’s purse appearing in defiance of the cold, and because it’s more tender and rarer, you could jack up the price...
This small plot shown on the map, even when zoomed in, doesn’t cover much area.
Yet because it’s at the village entrance, a transportation hub of the village, Chen Vice President planned the primary layout thoroughly.
Listening now, Professor Song’s eyes and eyebrows revealed a smile.
"Excellent!"
He patted Vice President Chen on the shoulder: "Young man, keep it up, you young people when serious, have genuinely impressive ideas!"
"By the way, can you handle it all alone? Need some free assistants? I have three who can help you."
Vice President Chen was instantly bewildered: "..."
Who are you? Patting my shoulder like an old boss.
What free assistants — oh, that could actually be useful.
Riding an electric scooter in the morning, wanting to section off a road segment to inquire a situation, with no one around, does cause some delays.
