New techniques boost crop yields in the desert

Agriculture is a fundamental industry for the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, and one in which it is a highly competitive player. The XPCC continues to build large-scale modern farms, which in 2013 grew a total of 1.47 million metric tons of cotton, accounting for 23.3 percent of the national total.

A water-management company operated by the Corps has been experimenting with using drip-irrigation techniques to plant rice on dry farmland, which has resulted in higher yields than traditional planting methods. The new technology is due to be widely used across Xingjiang in 2015.

The per-mu output of the 600 mu (40 hectares) of land used for the experiments has reached nearly 840 kilograms, much higher than the average 500 kilograms achieved by using traditional planting techniques, according to Chen Lin, deputy general manager of the Xinjiang Tianye Water-Saving Irrigation Co.