1994: Vegetable farmers strike back

Chapter 174 Appreciation
Chinese cabbage prefers to grow in cool, dry climates.

Before the 80s, bok choy was a rare sight during the long summer days.

There's a saying in Guangdong: "If you don't eat green vegetables for three days, your eyes will go green." People in Lingnan are known for their love of bok choy, and you can't do without it in the summer.

Peng Qian, a senior breeder, worked hard for more than ten years to breed a summer-growing variety of Chinese cabbage. In the late 70s, he bred the Sijiu Chinese Cabbage No. 19, which became the first Chinese cabbage variety in the country to pass provincial approval in 1978.

Chen Jiazhi only had a slight understanding of this period of history, but he was very familiar with No. 19, 49 Heart.

In his previous life, he used this variety of bok choy for more than twenty consecutive summers, only the seeds were produced and sold by Changhe Company.

Until 2025, Sijiuxin No. 19 will remain one of the most widely planted early-maturing varieties of Chinese cabbage.

One variety has been a bestseller for over forty years.

This is so rare.

Therefore, his flattery of Peng Qian, besides being an attempt to build a relationship, also genuinely stemmed from respect.

Peng Qian was very pleased with his flattery; '49-19' was his proudest achievement.

This is of epoch-making significance in ensuring the year-round supply of Chinese cabbage in the Lingnan region, allowing ordinary families in the Lingnan region to enjoy Chinese cabbage even in the summer.

In the tea room, Chen Jiazhi kept asking about the breeding details of the No. 19 Sijiu Caixin.

Peng Qian was happy to discuss this topic.

"At that time, the Vegetable Research Institute had only been established for a few years and the conditions were poor. We could only collect various heat-resistant germplasm resources from the local area and use the natural high-temperature identification method to screen them in the fields year after year. We stayed in the vegetable fields throughout the high-temperature season."

However, the weather is often unstable, but the higher the temperature, the more excited I get.

Because after each extreme heat wave, we can often find outstanding individual plants, collect their seeds for the next generation, and verify the genetic stability of their traits.

Through repeated experiments year after year, they finally cultivated the No. 49-19 Chinese cabbage.

Peng Qian took a sip of tea and smiled, "Actually, there's nothing special about it. It's just about perseverance. The method may be clumsy, but the varieties selected this way are more adaptable to real climate fluctuations and are more reliable."

Xu Wenxiang remarked with emotion, "This kind of perseverance is rare; ordinary people can't do it."

Peng Qian smiled, then looked at Chen Jiazhi and asked, "Little Chen, you said you failed to preserve your seed. What kind of seed did you preserve?"

Chen Jiazhi: "Yongcai, with its ridged loofah and bitter melon, is not a complete failure, but it has few seeds and its characteristics have not yet been verified."

"Oh? Tell me about it?"

Chen Jiazhi then gave a detailed account of the process, including his thoughts on overcoming adversity, which he shared without reservation.

"You have a great idea!"

Peng Qian first praised it, then said, "In fact, natural high-temperature identification is also a kind of adversity acclimatization."

However, your germplasm resources are too limited, with only a single variety, resulting in a lower success rate and a longer time required.

Moreover, this traditional method is somewhat outdated and inefficient.

Chen Jiazhi: "At first, I just wanted to purify and rejuvenate the seeds for my own use. All I could buy on the market were degenerated old seeds."

Peng Qian: "It's a bit of a losing proposition."

“Old Peng, I think his idea is quite good,” Zhang Hua, who had been mostly silent, finally spoke up.

“Now seed companies are sticking to old ways and have no innovation. They don’t need to look at what others do when it comes to farming. They just do the same things over and over again, using the same varieties. They are complacent and have no ambition.”

However, it also lacks decisiveness. What's the point of purification and rejuvenation? Blindly using degenerated varieties will only lead to further degeneration. Wouldn't it be better to just use new varieties directly?

"..."

It seems this person is a market reformist. In fact, Chen Jiazhi doesn't know much about the seed industry; he just feels that seeds are not convenient to use.

"Yes, you're right," Chen Jiazhi said with a smile. "Teacher Zhang, do you have any new varieties of bok choy to recommend?"

Uh……

Zhang Hua was speechless. He had only been involved in the breeding of Chinese cabbage for two years and had not achieved much, let alone developed his own varieties of Chinese cabbage.

Recommending someone else would be a betrayal of what I just said.

Peng Qian smiled and stepped in to smooth things over.

"Now it's your generation's stage. You can communicate more often. Xiao Chen, what kind of seeds do you need? You can mention them. The needs from the grassroots can also provide Xiao Zhang with breeding inspiration and direction."

Zhang Hua is currently the head of the Chinese cabbage team at the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences. He studied under Academician Lu, the president of South China Agricultural University, and has a deep understanding of breeding theory. He is currently organizing the whole genome sequencing of Chinese cabbage!

Chen Jiazhi was slightly surprised. He didn't quite understand what gene sequencing was, but he understood the background: university president, academician. It sounded very prestigious.

He pondered for a moment and said, "I really do have two needs. Summer cabbage doesn't taste very good, so it would be perfect if there was a variety with a better taste."

In addition, most vegetable markets now grow round-leafed Chinese cabbage, which has a high yield but is not of very good quality.

The pointed-leaf and willow-leaf varieties of Chinese cabbage have better quality and taste, but lower yields, so fewer people are willing to grow them.

However, market demand is changing, and high-quality bok choy is becoming more sought after.

Therefore, farmers' markets prefer a variety of bok choy that is both high-yielding and of high quality.

After Chen Jiazhi finished speaking, Peng Qian and Zhang Hua exchanged a glance, both looking surprised.

Surprisingly, he actually came up with a request, and it sounded quite reasonable.

The latter, in particular, has already been established as a mature breeding research direction and can be directly approved for project implementation.

The breeding unit, the propagation unit, and the vegetable market form a new system for the breeding and production of Chinese cabbage that has been developed in recent years. The three complement each other.

It is common for large vegetable markets to collaborate with research institutes.

Peng Qian and Zhang Hua had also been in contact with many large vegetable markets, but they never expected to hear such insights from a small vegetable farmer.

Zhang Hua nodded slightly, "It's a very good breeding direction, I will give it a try."

The three of them talked happily.

Xu Wenxiang felt a little awkward. Although they were talking about bok choy, a common dish on the dining table, she couldn't quite join in the conversation!
Even the type of bok choy she usually ate, whether it was pointed-leaf or round-leaf, was a bit uncertain. While the three of them stopped to drink tea, Xu Wenxiang said, "Old Peng, Director Zhang, Boss Chen, I've arranged a simple meal for you. Let's eat and chat."

It's really getting late.

Chen Jiazhi said, "I won't go. I have a lot of things to do in the vegetable field. I'll visit Old Peng and Director Zhang another day."

Peng Qian and Zhang Hua both nodded slightly.

Xu Wenxiang tried to persuade Chen Jiazhi to stay a few more times, but Chen Jiazhi remained resolute, so she didn't press him further and simply said they could have tea together another day.

Chen Jiazhi also felt that his trip had not been in vain.

At least next time I visit the Academy of Agricultural Sciences, I won't be turned away; I've established a network of contacts.

Moreover, during the conversation, he also learned that the seed industry is undergoing changes, with research institutions gradually getting involved in seed production and sales.

To put it simply, research institutions can now sell seeds.

Furthermore, Peng Qian and Zhang Hua went to the north specifically to explore breeding work.

The reason is that there is a lot of rain in the south, resulting in low yield and poor quality of Chinese cabbage seed production.

The seeds produced in the north are better, and Chen Jiazhi also learned a new term: "southern seeds propagated in the north".

I also deeply feel that I am far behind in breeding, and it can be said that I have not even entered the field.

But with this connection, perhaps we can have an advantage in the future.

As for not staying for dinner, he felt that Xu Wenxiang and the other two had something to talk about, and it might be inconvenient for him to be there.

Boom boom boom~
The light truck sped away.

Xu Wenxiang turned around and asked, "What do you think of Boss Chen, Elder Peng and Director Zhang?"

Peng Qian glanced at Zhang Hua, "Xiao Zhang, what do you think?"

Zhang Hua thought for a moment and said, "Very good. It's rare to see someone with such a strong desire for new varieties and technologies."

Among the seed demands, the quality of summer-grown Chinese cabbage is mainly affected by the climate, making it difficult to improve.

However, the possibility of developing the pointed-leaf and round-leaf varieties of Chinese cabbage is very high; I will study them when I get back.

"That's not what Mr. Xu wants to hear."

"That's your problem, Mr. Peng."

Peng Qian smiled and said to Xu Wenxiang, "I don't know about his management skills, but technically speaking, he is an excellent candidate."

Just because of the seeds?

"Because of the seed!"

Peng Qian said, "Xiao Chen is a vegetable farmer himself. You all said that he grows vegetables well, and he is willing to put in the effort to understand the characteristics of seeds and pursue the yield potential and economic benefits of new varieties. Such a person cannot be bad at technology."

Besides, he's very young, only 21 years old, he has a lot of potential!

Xu Wenxiang was slightly shocked; she had thought the two of them would look down on the small vegetable farmer.

I didn't expect him to be praised so highly.

Perhaps we should think of another way.

...

The sun was blazing, and sweat poured down like rain.

Chen Jiazhi felt like he was suffering from heatstroke, as if he were being slowly cooked in an oven, and he was feeling a little anxious and restless.

Fortunately, we arrived at the market.

As soon as he got out of the car, someone offered him a handkerchief and some cool boiled water.

Taking the enamel mug from Li Xiu, Chen Jiazhi gulped down the water, quickly feeling a refreshing coolness throughout his body.

"Drink slowly~"

"It's so hot in this car, I finished a bottle of water in no time." Chen Jiazhi handed back the enamel mug, then took the towel Li Xiu had given him to wipe his sweat and started wiping himself.

"Then I'll buy you an extra-large water bottle next time. I saw it for sale in the store last time."

"It won't look good if it's too big."

"As long as it's practical, that's enough."

"I'm a boss, after all."

“That’s true, a boss has to have style.” Li Xiu thought for a moment and said, “Then I’ll buy you two, and also a stainless steel thermos. You can take this with you when you go out to talk business, and keep the larger one in the car.”

“Sure,” Chen Jiazhi laughed. “You’ve got the air of a boss lady now, buying two water cups at a time.”

"You're so good with words." Li Xiu glared, but couldn't help laughing. "Give me the towel. I left some food in the pot for you. Go and eat."

Chen Jiazhi laughed twice, went to the kitchen, and lifted the pot lid.

There was a serving of rice, a serving of green mustard green and egg soup, and a serving of taro and chicken stew with a bright red color left in the pot.

It looks very appetizing.

Chen Jiazhi brought the food back inside, and with the fan blowing, he ate the meat heartily.

Taro and chicken stew is a common Sichuan home-style dish, and when paired with seasonal taro from Guangdong, it becomes incredibly delicious.

A little while later, Li Xiu returned after washing the towel, took a palm-leaf fan, and sat down to chat.

Upon hearing that he had met with experts from the Academy of Agricultural Sciences and students of the president of the Agricultural University that morning, his expression lit up with excitement.

I couldn't wait to buy him a thermos, a suit, leather shoes, and a tie.

(End of this chapter)