Saline land turns fertile in Inner Mongolia

HOHHOT－Chang Yingchun and his wife, Liu Huanmei, beamed with joy as they gazed at their harvest while they dried corn kernels in their yard.

The couple from the Horqin Left Wing Middle Banner in Tongliao city, Inner Mongolia autonomous region, harvested 55,000 kilograms of corn from about 4 hectares of farmland this year, with an average yield per hectare of roughly 13,500 kg.

The region where they live once had some 126,666 hectares of saline land, which resulted in low fertility, hindered crop growth and decreased yields.

Average corn yields were less than 6,000 kg per hectare, and some plots suffering from severe salinization had been abandoned for a long time, resulting in low local incomes.

Since 2020, the banner has been working with sci-tech institutes to transform 1,333 hectares of saline land into high-yield farmland. Subsequently, about 447 hectares have been remediated and now produce an average yield of 13,050 kg of corn per hectare.

Agricultural experts used desulfurized gypsum, super-phosphate, microbial agents, organic fertilizer and fermented cow manure to adjust the soil's pH value, increase its organic content and improve permeability.

Farmers no longer have to worry about mastering saline land improvement techniques, as experts frequently visit to address any technical issues that arise and offer training.

As of this year, 14 sessions have been held, during which experts shared their knowledge and experience with the farmers, according to Wang Wei, representative of the farmland improvement pilot demonstration project of the Horqin Left Wing Middle Banner.

Traditional irrigation methods previously used were water-intensive and ineffective at enhancing soil quality, Chang said, adding that the innovative method of shallow drip irrigation helps conserve water resources and reduces the deposit of salts and alkalis.

The Horqin Left Wing Middle Banner is a major national grain production center, mainly engaged in farming corn. The region's grain output is expected to reach 3.2 billion kg this year, up 80 million kg from 2021.

China has about 23 billion hectares of saline land, and experts believe that as much as one-third can be transformed into arable land through sci-tech methods.

To counter salinization, suitable saline land will be transformed into arable land in an appropriate manner, according to the government's "No 1 central document" released earlier this year.

Xinhua