As September arrives, the planting base of Qinghai Nuofeng Agricultural Technology Development Co., Ltd. in Liangjia Village, Tianjiazai Town, Huangzhong District, Xining City, sees its 200 acres of fresh-eating fruit corn gradually reach maturity, entering the peak harvest period. Farmers move through the corn rows, busy picking, loading baskets, and transporting the produce, with the fields filled with an atmosphere of abundant harvest everywhere.
On September 5th, walking into the fresh fruit corn planting base, rows of corn plants grow vigorously, with green leaves swaying gently in the breeze and plump, tightly-packed corn ears dotting the fields. The farmers skillfully pick the corn and quickly load it into baskets, immediately carrying it to the refrigerated transport vehicles parked at the field's edge. The seamless connection of harvesting, transport, and sales allows agricultural products to travel directly from the field to the market at high speed, maximizing the sweet, fresh taste and quality of the fruit corn.
"This year, the base has connected with 5 buyers from Guangzhou, Shanghai, Lanzhou, and other cities. We expect total sales to reach 400,000 kilograms, generating economic benefits of 600,000 yuan," said Liang Shengxian, the head of Qinghai Nuofeng Agricultural Technology Development Co., Ltd. Liang Shengxian explained that this premium fresh fruit corn variety was introduced by the company from Yunnan in 2018 and has been cultivated under a high-standard planting and management model throughout the process. Since 2024, with precise technical support from the Xining Science and Technology Bureau and the Huangzhong District Agriculture and Rural Affairs Bureau, the enterprise has independently carried out seedling cultivation and improved variety screening, continuously optimizing varietal adaptability and planting techniques.
The base's fresh fruit corn is sold directly to external markets after harvest, while the remaining straw is uniformly collected and processed into silage feed. This allows one piece of land to achieve dual outputs and dual income streams, greatly improving land use efficiency and industrial added value. Liang Shengxian calculated the income increase for the reporter: each mu of land can produce 2,000 to 3,000 kilograms of fresh fruit corn, with this year's output value per mu reaching around 5,000 yuan. After harvest, the corn straw can be processed into 2,000 to 3,000 kilograms of silage feed, which sells at 450 yuan per 1,000 kilograms, making the comprehensive economic benefits quite considerable.
The scaled and standardized cultivation of specialty crops has also built a quality platform for nearby residents to find convenient employment and steadily increase their income. During peak labor periods such as planting, field management, and concentrated harvesting, the base can absorb 35 farming households from 5 surrounding villages for nearby work, effectively activating rural labor resources. The working farmers see their average annual income increase by 30,000 to 50,000 yuan per person.
Over the years, the enterprise has continuously carried out introduction and trial planting of new varieties, bringing in more than 300 agricultural product varieties in total. It has successfully screened and cultivated 16 quality varieties suitable for local soil, water, and climate conditions—including fresh fruit corn, Baby pumpkins, and purple jade peppers—and has demonstrated and promoted them within the region for scaled cultivation.
In recent years, Huangzhong District has fully leveraged its highland cold-climate resource advantages, continuously optimizing the agricultural industrial structure, cultivating distinctive superior categories, promoting efficient planting models, and strengthening agricultural technology empowerment. The district is focused on building premium agricultural products, developing distinctive agricultural brands, expanding the modern agricultural industry, and constructing a complete highland-characteristic modern agricultural industrial system with excellent varieties, superior quality, and outstanding benefits. Through the quality and efficiency improvement of specialty agriculture, the district continues to support agricultural efficiency gains and farmers' income growth.