Hanggin Banner's desert land sees bumper harvest

A harvester reaps sorghum in a field in Hanggin Banner. [Photo/Hanggin Banner]

A village in Hanggin Banner of Ordos city in North China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region, once occupied by vast deserts, has welcomed a bumper harvest this year.

Vibrant red sorghum is neatly gathered by the harvesters, each grain full and ripe. The furrows of the field are generously littered with plump, fresh potatoes, swiftly picked by the farmers and stowed into woven bags.

In 2022, the government of Hangjin Banner joined Chongqing Jiaotong University and Chongqing Chensha Ecological Technology Co in signing a framework agreement to cooperate on developing a project focusing on the ecological treatment and use of desertified land in Hanggin Banner.

Hanggin Banner sees a bumper harvest of potatoes. [Photo/Hanggin Banner]

The first phase was implemented last year. A total of 2,300 mu (153.33 hectares) of agricultural crops were planted on an experimental basis, including economic crops such as potatoes, sorghum, and sunflowers, as well as 17 high-quality pastures such as alfalfa, foxtail, and flower sticks.

The desert was transformed into sound farmland, breaking through the technical difficulties of desert planting, and realizing the dream of turning the desert green.

From 2023 to 2024, the second phase is being carried out, with plans to transform 30,000 mu of land.

This year alone, 13,000 mu of crops such as sorghum and potatoes were planted. Under the careful management of experts, a new breakthrough in yield-per-mu has been achieved.