A Tale of Two Cities Supporting Xinjiang

Standardized Cultivation Technical Regulations for "Shihezi Red" Apples

Organic Fertilizer Use Guidelines

Green Control Manual for Pests and Diseases

Harvesting and Grading Standards

Each book is richly illustrated and easy to understand.

Wearing his reading glasses, old man Abudu flipped through the pages: "This is good... The timing and amount of fertilizer are written clearly. There are even diagrams showing how to dig the fertilizer trenches, how deep and wide they should be."

"It's not just about books, it's also about training."

Li Chao said, "Starting next month, the laboratory building will hold two training courses every month, which will be taught for free."

Each cooperative must send at least three people to learn, and after they finish learning, they must go back and teach others.

"What if someone doesn't follow the standards?" someone asked.

"Then we can't use the 'Shihezi Red' brand."

Li Chao's attitude was firm: "Our brand has achieved what it has today because of its quality."

One bad apple spoils the whole bunch.

Whoever damages the brand is jeopardizing everyone's livelihood.

More than sixty people attended the first training course.

The lecturer was Guli.

After a year of training, this girl is now capable of handling things on her own.

"Fellow villagers, today we're going to talk about pruning."

Guli stood in the experimental orchard, holding pruning shears in her hand. "Why do some trees from the same batch bear more fruit than others? The key is in pruning."

She pointed to a tree: "Look, everyone, these branches that grow inwards are called vigorous shoots."

It only grows leaves and doesn't bear fruit; it even competes with fruiting branches for nutrients, so it must be pruned.

With a snap, the branch fell to the ground.

"These old and weak branches have poor fruit-bearing capacity, so they should also be pruned."

"These overly dense branches are affecting ventilation and light penetration, so they need to be pruned."

He explained as he cut, his movements clean and efficient.

People in the audience craned their necks to watch, and some even recorded videos with their phones.

A middle-aged farmer raised his hand, "Teacher Guli, aren't you afraid of damaging the trees by pruning so much?"

"Trees, like people, need to have their branches thinned to allow light and ventilation."

Guli explained in plain language: "If the branches are too dense, the sun can't shine through, and the fruit won't grow well."

Proper pruning allows the tree to concentrate its nutrients on the good branches, resulting in better fruit production.

After discussing pruning, let's talk about fertilization.

"The soil in our Gobi Desert is alkaline and has a low organic matter content."

Guli grabbed a handful of soil. "Therefore, fertilization should mainly use organic fertilizer, supplemented by chemical fertilizer."

This is the special organic fertilizer provided for the laboratory building. The manual explains how much to use per acre and when to apply it...

After the lesson was finished, many people surrounded him and asked questions.

What should I do if the leaves of my fruit tree are turning yellow?

What should I do if the fruit has wormholes?

Is it better to water the plants in the morning or at night?

Guli patiently answered the questions, and wrote down the ones she couldn't answer: "I've noted this down. I'll ask the experts when I get back, and we'll cover it in the next class."

After class, Li Chao asked Guli how she felt.

"Tired, but worth it."

Guli wiped her sweat. "Many people don't lack the desire to learn; they just don't have anyone to teach them."

Now that we have a laboratory building and training courses, they are studying very diligently.

In the third month of standardization, Li Chao had a new idea.

That day, he was walking around the orchard when he saw that the spaces between the rows were overgrown with weeds. The workers were busy weeding, sweating profusely.

"These weeds are a pity."

Li Chao squatted down and took a look. "If we could grow something useful, wouldn't that be killing two birds with one stone?"

He thought of the herdsmen in the Gobi Desert.

Every winter, herders worry about finding fodder.

If we could plant pasture between the rows of orchards, it would not only conserve water and soil, but also sell feed, wouldn't that be the best of both worlds?

"That's a great idea!"

Researcher Lü was very supportive, saying, "This is called a forest-grassland integrated system."

Fruit trees above and pasture below make full use of the space.

Pasture grasses fix nitrogen, improving soil quality; they also act as mulch, reducing water evaporation; and they can be harvested and sold for money.

"What kind of grass is suitable to plant?" Li Chao asked.

Alfalfa.

Professor Zhang suggested, "It's cold- and drought-resistant, high in protein, and cattle and sheep love to eat it. Moreover, it's a legume, which can fix nitrogen and fertilize the soil."

Just do it.

Li Chao selected a 20-mu orchard for his experiment. Alfalfa was planted between the rows of fruit trees.

Planted in April, it grew to knee height by June. A lush green expanse, it rippled like waves in the wind.

The first harvest yielded one and a half tons of fresh grass per acre.

Li Chao invited Aili, who is now a major sheep farmer in the village, raising more than 300 sheep.

"Aili, what do you think of this grass?"

Eric grabbed a handful, smelled it, and then plucked a few leaves, putting them in his mouth and chewing. "Good grass! Much better than weeds. How much?"

"The first batch is free."

Li Chao laughed, "Take it back and feed it to the sheep. If it works well, we can talk about cooperation again."

Eric loaded a truckload and drove back. Two weeks later, he came to visit him.

"Officer Li, the sheep especially love your grass."

Eric said very honestly, "It'll make you gain weight quickly and give you a shiny coat. So, I'll buy all the grass from now on, at market price, three hundred a ton, how about that?"

Twenty acres of alfalfa can be harvested three times a year, totaling ninety tons of grass.

In total, selling grass alone could bring in 27,000 yuan—and this was practically free money, since the land was just sitting empty anyway.

More importantly, the soil in the orchards where grass was planted was significantly improved.

"Mr. Li, the test report is out." Guli held up the data. "In the alfalfa experimental area, the soil organic matter content increased by 0.5%, and the pH value decreased by 0.3. Moreover, there were fewer weeds and less pests and diseases."

Looking at the report, Li Chao knew that he had chosen the right path.

As the "Shihezi Red" series of products sold better and better, troubles followed.

First, counterfeit products appeared on the market.

Aini brought back a box of apples from Urumqi. The packaging was almost identical to "Shihezi Red," except the label was changed to "Shihezi Red"—it was impossible to tell the difference without careful observation.

"Where did it come from?" Li Chao asked.

"At the wholesale market, it's ten yuan per kilogram."

Old Yang was furious. "I tasted it, and it's just a regular apple, with a sugar content of at most 18."

But they dare to sell under our brand.

Then came the price war.

Some small farmers who did not join the alliance saw that "Shihezi Red" apples were selling well and followed suit by planting apples.

However, they did not follow the standards, resulting in inconsistent quality of the fruit they grew. In order to sell it, they had no choice but to dump it at low prices.

"Yesterday a buyer came and said there were apples in the next village, priced at eight yuan per kilogram, and asked if we wanted to lower the price," Xiao Zhang reported. "I said no, so he went to find someone else."

Although standards have been set, there are always people who want to take the easy way out.

Some people secretly use chemical fertilizers, some fail to prune branches that should be pruned, and some harvest fruit prematurely—these fruits are mixed into the purchasing system, lowering the overall quality.

"Officer Li, this can't go on."

Aini was worried, "Building a brand is difficult, but investing in it can happen very quickly."

Li Chao also knew the problem was serious.

He locked himself in his room and thought for a whole day, then called a meeting with everyone.

"We need to establish an industry association."

Li Chao said, "We should take charge of all the apple growers."

The idea of ​​establishing an association received support from the county.

"This is a good thing."

At the meeting, the county head said, "If our county's apple industry is to grow bigger and stronger, it must be developed in a standardized manner."

The county will provide policy support for the association's establishment, but you will decide the specifics of how to run it.