In mid-June, as summer heat intensifies, rows of corn seedlings stretch across the vast fields of Yongdeng County, vibrant and green, entering the critical phase where vegetative and reproductive growth advance together. The lush fields brim with the promise of a bountiful harvest. On June 16, the expert team from Gansu Province's Modern Cold-Arid Characteristic Agriculture Corn Industry Technology System visited the fields. Focusing on key farming periods, they conducted on-site inspections of corn growth, evaluated trial results, assessed production trends, and meticulously advanced the implementation of key technical tasks for the 2026 corn industry.
The experts from the Gansu Corn Industry Technology System examined the corn's progress directly in the fields.
At the high-yield, high-efficiency core demonstration zone in Tumenchuan Village, Longquansi Town, neatly arranged experimental plots showcased different corn varieties. The sturdy, green stalks stood tall with broad, thick leaves swaying gently in the breeze, presenting a thriving scene. As the central hub for corn variety selection and technology demonstration in Yongdeng County, the Yongdeng Experimental Station conducted evaluations of 126 corn hybrid combinations, multi-point adaptability tests for 34 new varieties, and a concentrated display of 12 high-quality new varieties. From field layout and sowing to meticulous seedling management, the station employed standardized, regulated planting and management practices, strictly adhering to high-quality cultivation protocols for cold-arid regions. All experimental materials exhibited stable growth and excellent traits, laying a solid foundation for the subsequent selection of new corn varieties well-suited to Gansu's cold-arid climate, offering high yield, superior quality, and strong stress resistance, earning unanimous approval from the expert team.
During the critical growth period of crops, pest and disease control is paramount for stabilizing yields and securing harvests. Currently, corn in Yongdeng County is in a vigorous growth stage, where the warm, humid field conditions create an environment conducive to pest and disease outbreaks. The technical team moved through the rows, carefully inspecting leaf conditions and identifying potential pest threats. Based on recent climate patterns and field observations, they precisely assessed the risk trends for prevalent pests like corn borers, armyworms, and spider mites, identifying a significant risk of severe infestation. The team provided on-site, targeted guidance, emphasizing the need to strengthen routine field monitoring and early warning systems, establish a dense pest control monitoring network, refine scientific prevention plans in advance, and deeply integrate green control, ecological management, and professional unified prevention and control for precise, scientific intervention.
In the specialized planting trial area of the demonstration zone, an ecological intercropping model combining corn with peas and broad beans emerged as a highlight, exploring a new pathway for improving land quality and efficiency in cold-arid regions. Within the tiered field layout, the tall corn plants provided effective shade for the shorter legume crops, reducing field temperature and soil moisture evaporation, which suits Yongdeng's dry, low-rainfall climate. The legume ground cover not only suppressed weeds but also, with their nitrogen-fixing root nodules, continuously improved soil quality and fertility. This effectively reduced the frequency and quantity of chemical fertilizer application, addressing the drawback of traditional monoculture that "uses the land without nurturing it." This achieves an organic integration of land use and conservation, enhancing both ecological and economic benefits. On-site, the expert team conducted detailed discussions and precise analyses regarding the model's field adaptability, yield and income improvement effects, compatibility with supporting agricultural machinery, and feasibility for large-scale promotion across the county, accumulating technical evidence for optimizing and scaling up the model.
The expert team conducted a field visit to explore new models of integrated crop-livestock circular agriculture at the county level.
At the Yongdeng Changyuan Planting and Breeding Farmers' Professional Cooperative, the expert team visited a new model of integrated crop-livestock circular agriculture. Utilizing over 6,700 mu of transferred high-quality farmland, the cooperative has established a large-scale, standardized planting and breeding system, equipped with two large corn grain drying towers and 38 sets of modern agricultural machinery, achieving full mechanization from planting and management to harvesting and drying.
A complete industrial chain forms a green closed loop of "corn planting - straw recycling for feed - beef cattle breeding - manure returning to fields." This transforms field straw from waste into a resource and enables the resource utilization of livestock manure, completely breaking down the barriers between planting and breeding industries. It creates a new pattern of modern agricultural development characterized by ecological recycling, cost reduction, and efficiency gains. The expert team meticulously inspected the operation of the grain drying workshop and the silage feed processing production line, understood the cooperative's effectiveness in linking and benefiting farmers, its annual operating income, and plans for industrial expansion. They affirmed the demonstrative and leading role of this replicable, promotable integrated crop-livestock circular model in empowering county-level rural industrial development.
Experts examined the corn's growth progress.
"Corn is one of the leading grain and oil industries in our province's cold-arid characteristic agriculture and a core crop for ensuring food security and increasing farmer income," explained Chang Hong, Chief Scientist of the Gansu Modern Cold-Arid Characteristic Agriculture Corn Industry Technology System. Building on Gansu's endowments for cold-arid agriculture, the system will continue to focus on four core areas: improved variety breeding, green cultivation, ecological planting, and circular agriculture. It will closely monitor key growth cycles throughout the year, regularly engage at the grassroots level to track trial results, optimize cultivation techniques, and solve production challenges. Efforts will persist in accelerating the application, demonstration, and promotion of high-quality new varieties, efficient new models, and green new technologies. The system will continuously improve the high-quality, efficient corn planting systems suitable for different regions across the province, using technological innovation to empower increased grain production capacity, agricultural quality and efficiency improvements, and steady growth in farmer income. This will comprehensively strengthen the foundation for high-quality development of the corn industry in Gansu, injecting sustained technological momentum into bolstering the province's food security and promoting rural industrial revitalization.