The first month of the lunar calendar is the most leisurely time of the year for farmers.
Shanshui Village is located in the south. Although it is not like the north where it is too cold to cultivate in winter, the soil has limited fertility. Cultivating more than one crop a year is not only tiring for the people, but also results in poor harvests due to lack of fertility.
Two seasons of hard work yield only slightly more grain than one season, but the amount of farm work doubles.
Of course, there are also hardworking families who diligently compost, fertilize, and cultivate the land, and can harvest two crops a year.
However, whether it's one season or two seasons, the first month of the lunar calendar is considered a slack season for farming.
In Shanshui Village, early rice is planted in March or April and harvested in July or August. Diligent families also plant an additional season of wheat.
Shuiqing didn't plant wheat after separating from the family, and she's now glad she didn't!
"Does the book say that potatoes can be planted in January or February?" Fan Jin asked softly to Shui Qing, who was sitting in a round-backed chair reading and studying, by the window in the room.
The book is a planting book, which Shuiqing bought online. He can barely recognize some of the words in it, but not many overall.
However, Shui Qing must have been chosen and possessed the shop, so she could understand all the items she bought from it.
Shui Qing nodded solemnly, while also feeling extremely fortunate: "Luckily, I bought the book, otherwise I wouldn't have known I needed to plant potatoes!"
They were too idle during the first month of the lunar calendar. They didn't need to visit relatives and friends, and no relatives or friends came to their house. Their days were leisurely and carefree.
Since she had nothing else to do, she decided to read a book.
She had originally planned to buy a novel to read, but then she remembered that spring was approaching and she needed to understand what was needed for spring plowing so she could prepare in advance.
After all, food is extremely important to farmers!
Crops are the foundation of our livelihood, and land must never be wasted.
So I bought books on agricultural planting instead, and only after reading them did I realize that the planting time for potatoes is quite different in the north and south!
She summarized what she read in the book and told Fan Jin: "The book says that potatoes in the south are planted in January or February and can be harvested in early summer!"
Potatoes can be planted in fields or paddy fields, but they need loose, well-drained soil. If planting them in fields, be sure to till the soil several times to ensure it's loose and aerated.
Fan Jin listened attentively and breathed a slight sigh of relief: "The rainy season is mostly in summer, so it would be best to harvest at the beginning of summer. Moreover, potatoes are not like rice and wheat; if they are dug up early, they will only be a little smaller."
Rice and wheat were harvested early, but the rice and wheat ears were not fully filled with grains, and most of them were just husks.
Moreover, the rice in the village is planted in March and April, and summer is the critical period for grain filling. If there is a severe flood, it will likely greatly affect the harvest.
Shuiqing then pointed to another book on sugarcane cultivation and continued, “In our area, sugarcane is planted in August or September and harvested around mid-December.”
I figured the floods would be over by August or September, which would be a good time to plant sugarcane.
Fan Jin obediently hummed in agreement.
They decided to plant sugarcane after checking the price of brown sugar in the prefectural city last time.
They don't have many fields, but they have a lot of land. They grow corn, soybeans, mung beans, red beans, millet, etc., which they can't eat all of, and the surplus can't be sold at a good price.
Five or six coins a pound, that's really not worth it.
Sugarcane, on the other hand, can be grown in fields and doesn't take up the time of other crops, and brown sugar is expensive!
The money earned from one mu of sugarcane can be exchanged for several mu or even more than ten mu of rice or wheat. This means that planting ten mu of sugarcane is equivalent to planting dozens or even hundreds of mu of rice or wheat fields.
“If the reduction of the power of the feudal lords really leads to a rebellion by the feudal lords, the prices of grains and other commodities will inevitably rise. Whether it’s potatoes or brown sugar, the prices will all rise accordingly,” Shui Qing pondered.
Potatoes are a staple food. She hadn't experienced the hardships of war firsthand, but she knew about them.
Back then, having food to eat and being able to buy food was considered very lucky.
Sugar has always been a strategic reserve material, precious and important.
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