In a region where a local farmer once despaired that "nothing we plant will grow here," a new wave of researchers is determined to change that reality.

An elderly farmer in Dongying City's Guangrao County gestured towards the stark, whitish saline-alkali soil, expressing a common frustration to visiting Shandong Agricultural University graduate student Bi Xiuwen during a research trip.

This sentiment, echoed by nearly a hundred households, defines the challenge faced by the students and faculty of the Shandong Agricultural University Saline-Alkali Land Comprehensive Utilization Postgraduate Innovation Institute, who have made this seemingly infertile land their base of operations.

Over the past year, hundreds of postgraduate students and professors have traveled from Tai'an to take root in this challenging environment.

Commitment Measured in Days

Yu Shaowei, a lecturer from the university's College of Life Sciences, was among the first to arrive at the institute in April last year.

He reflects on the commitment, noting that out of 365 days, he spends over 280 in Dongying, with trips back to Tai'an feeling more like business trips.

His research focuses on screening new corn germplasm for salt and alkali tolerance.

Starting with over 1,900 samples last year on a 20-mu plot, his experimental field has now expanded to nearly 100 mu this year for further validation.

He recalls the harsh conditions of the previous year's drought, where evaporation left the ground coated in a white crust of salt.

A more persistent problem was the reeds, native to the saline soil, which competed fiercely with the corn for nutrients and water.

The only solution was manual removal, a grueling task that left students with blistered hands despite wearing gloves.

These are the quintessential difficulties of saline-alkali land—areas long considered agricultural "no-go zones" due to high salinity, low productivity, and fragile ecosystems.

Transforming this land to unlock its potential is a critical issue for both food security and sustainable development.

Before coming to Dongying, Yu conducted molecular biology research in controlled lab settings.

The transition to field work introduced variables like unpredictable rain and wind, requiring him to discern whether poor growth in a corn plant was due to salt stress or waterlogging.

The path from screening a tolerant germplasm to developing a commercially viable new corn variety is long, typically requiring over a decade of persistent effort.

Yu acknowledges that his current work is just the first step, focusing this year on validating about 300 promising lines from the initial screening.

A Multidisciplinary Effort Takes Root

In Yu's fields, groups of young postgraduates are a common sight, meticulously recording data.

These students hail from over 30 different majors across 14 colleges within the university.

They bring diverse expertise to a unified mission: agronomy students work on breeding, environmental science students analyze soil, biology students study microbes, and management students evaluate policies.

Wang Yuhang, a horticulture postgraduate born in 2003, initially imagined his postgraduate life on the main campus.

When told he would be stationed in Dongying, he saw it as a personal challenge.

Arriving in late May 2025, his first task was to visit the saline land, a sight he was witnessing for the first time—a vast expanse turned white, especially after rain.

His project involves screening salt-tolerant microorganisms from the roots of halophytes and applying them to tomatoes.

After a year of work screening dozens of microbial strains, only a few showed promising growth-promoting effects in pot experiments, with trends noted but no significant differences yet.

"These things can't be rushed," he states pragmatically.

Bi Xiuwen, an agricultural economics and management postgraduate researching water-use efficiency, has conducted surveys with nearly a hundred households.

She notes that while her social science background doesn't allow her to directly improve soil or breed seeds, it enables her to identify systemic problems and propose policy recommendations.

Her research revealed that many local farmers, due to low yields, have abandoned their fields to seek other livelihoods.

An elderly resident shared that eating fresh corn was a rarity in their childhood.

"We hope the saline-alkali land can become normal, arable farmland so locals can make a living from it," Bi said.

"We hope that with our arrival, the land will become different."

Building on Seven Decades of Legacy

The establishment of this young research hub was swift.

Following an agreement signed in late December 2024 between Shandong Agricultural University and the Yellow River Delta Agricultural High-tech Industrial Demonstration Zone, the Postgraduate Innovation Institute was formed in just 44 days from initial discussion to final signing.

The first batch of 37 postgraduates arrived in April 2025, followed by subsequent groups in May.

To date, hundreds of faculty and students are based there, with plans to expand to 600 by 2027.

This rapid deployment is built upon a 70-year foundation.

The university's connection to saline-alkali soil remediation dates back to the 1950s, when professors and students began research in regions like Binzhou, Weifang, and Dongying.

Generations of researchers have left their mark: Professor Cao Banghua bred four highly salt-tolerant black locust varieties now cultivated across thousands of mu in the Yellow River Delta; agronomy professors developed salt-tolerant miscanthus grass that has taken root as forage.

Countless other experts have done foundational work in the fields.

"There's a tradition at our university, where the old, the middle-aged, and the young pass the torch and carry on the work," said Yu Shaowei, who has been with the university since his undergraduate studies in 2009 and now continues the corn breeding research pioneered by his predecessors.

Building on this mature postgraduate training system, the university is extending the talent pipeline further.

In April 2026, it officially received approval for the "Saline-Alkali Land Science and Engineering" undergraduate major—reportedly the world's first in this field—set to begin enrollment in the autumn of 2026.

This marks a step towards the systematic, large-scale cultivation of professionals dedicated to saline-alkali land management.

"All the teams that come here are here to take root," said Li Hua, the institute's Party construction lead, emphasizing the long-term commitment driving this endeavor.