Traveling through the mountains and farming

Recently, I keep hearing the old men and women in the caves complaining that this year's weather is much colder than in previous years.

Lin Wan was worried that it would snow if the cold continued, so she decided to harvest the potatoes and sweet potatoes in the field today.

The potatoes were planted at the right time, so she is not too worried about their maturity.

It's just that the sweet potatoes were planted a little late, and although she had tried her best to let them grow in the field for a few more days, she was still not sure whether she could have a good harvest.

After breakfast, Lin Wan brought the two siblings to the vegetable field carrying hoes and shovels.

They first slowly removed the hay covering the potatoes and sweet potatoes. The potato seedlings turned yellow and drooped.

"We have to pull out the potato seedlings first, so that the fruits will be brought out, and then use a shovel to dig out the potatoes left in the soil." Lin Wanxian explained to the two siblings.

Li Chongle squatted down and started pulling potatoes. This time, he pulled out several round potatoes.

Lin Wan hurried over to take a look and found that the potato had produced four or five duck egg-sized fruits.

"Xiao Le, dig in the soil again and see if there is anything else?" Lin Wan suggested.

Because the soil was relatively soft, Li Chongle did not use a shovel, but directly dug in the soil with his hands, and there were actually two potatoes hidden deep inside.

He shouted excitedly: "Sister-in-law, there really is more!"

The neighbors who were busy working in the vegetable garden were attracted by his shout and came over to watch them dig up new fruits.

They have always been curious about the novel crops that Lin Wan grows. They have seen and eaten tomatoes, but they have never seen what the fruit of potatoes looks like. There is also the sweet potato.

Li saw that a potato had so many fruits, and he also wanted to experience the joy of harvest, so he picked a potato nearby, pulled it out with force, and shouted in surprise: "I have quite a few too!"

There were indeed quite a few, with five or six potatoes of different sizes hanging on it.

The people watching nearby were amazed. It was the first time they had seen potatoes, and they felt that this crop had a high yield. If they planted potatoes in large quantities, would it mean that they would have more food?

Uncle Li immediately asked, "Lin Wan, your potato yield is very high. If you plant it on a large scale, how much can one acre of land produce?"

"I don't know either. This is my first time planting potatoes. I only planted eight potatoes here. If I estimate based on what I see now, I can harvest about 70 fruits of varying sizes."

She knew that the potato yield was not low, but she had no idea how much this unimproved potato could yield per acre in this alien world. She would have to figure it out later.

In less than two quarters of an hour, the two siblings had pulled out all eight potatoes. Just as Lin Wan had expected, there were more than seventy potatoes in total. The largest was the size of a fist, and the smallest was only the size of a bird's egg.

Looking at a basket of potatoes of various shapes, Lin Wan knew that these potatoes should be ordinary varieties. According to current estimates, the yield per mu is about 1,000 kilograms, unlike modern improved varieties, which have a yield of 5,000 to 10,000 kilograms per mu.

Farmers can tell at first glance that this crop is a treasure.

Uncle Li had just been calculating in his mind, but he couldn't figure out how much one acre of land could produce, so he asked anxiously:

"Lin Wan, how much can this acre of land produce? Please help my great uncle calculate it."

Lin Wan told everyone that if the crops were carefully planted and managed, the yield per mu could be around 1,000 kilograms.

The people around were stunned. With fertile soil and good weather, their rice yield of more than 240 kilograms per mu was already higher than many places.

Now Lin Wan told them that this little thing could produce up to 1,000 kilograms per mu. They couldn't believe it. They confirmed with Lin Wan again and again whether she had made a mistake. After getting Lin Wan's affirmative reply again.

They were so excited that they shouted excitedly:

"This little lump grows so fast? Why is the yield so high?"

"If we all grow this thing called potatoes, will we never have to worry about going hungry again?"

"Lin Wan, can you give me a few? I want to plant them next year. When I have enough, I won't have to worry about not having enough to eat anymore."

Lin Wan looked at everyone's eager eyes and said, "Don't worry, I only bought a dozen potatoes at that time. Harvest these now, and I will give six to each of you. Everyone can plant a round next spring and keep them. By then, we should be able to plant more potatoes in the summer."

Everyone was very happy to hear Lin Wan's words, but they didn't expect that Lin Wan would give them another surprise.

"Lin Wan, if you divide all these potatoes, you won't have enough for yourself." Uncle Li tried to dissuade her.

After all, these were the seeds that Lin Wan bought and grew with great effort, and they will also be Lin Wan’s food.

"Granduncle, don't worry. I still have sweet potatoes. If they are grown well, the yield will be higher than that of potatoes."

For a moment, everyone was once again shocked by Lin Wan's words.

"What? You said the sweet potatoes you grow are more productive than these potatoes?" Aunt Luo widened her eyes in surprise.

"Yeah, the yield of my sweet potatoes this time is probably not high. I planted them too late. If I take good care of them, the yield per acre should be higher than that of potatoes."

"Oh my God, Lin Wan, what you said is so scary. I dare not even think about it." Grandma Zheng said, covering her chest.

Li Changyi rubbed his hands excitedly: "Come on, let's help you dig sweet potatoes. I want to see this magical dish."

"Yes, we will help you dig. I have never seen crops with such a high yield in my life." Grandpa Luo waved the hoe in his hand excitedly.

So everyone started to help Lin Wan dig sweet potatoes.

In less than half an hour, all the rows of sweet potatoes in Lin Wan's family were dug out.

Although the yield was reduced because the crops were planted late, we still harvested a large basket of crops.

If grown normally and carefully, the yield of sweet potatoes per acre can reach up to 1,500 kilograms.

Lin Wan distributed six potatoes and ten sweet potatoes to each household on the spot, and told them the planting season and precautions, especially that sweet potatoes can be propagated by cuttings. This made everyone look forward to the spring of next year and want to experience the joy of a good harvest.

Everyone helped to collect the sweet potato vines and dry them in the sun. Lin Wan planned to use them to feed the three sheep through the winter. Together with the grass that had been dried previously, there was now more than enough grass for the three sheep to survive the winter.

Lin Wan thought of the potatoes and sweet potatoes she planted in her backyard in the village, and mentioned them to Uncle Li.

Unexpectedly, Uncle Li said that he would send a few people to harvest the crops, saying that it would be a shame to let such a high-yield crop rot in the fields. No matter how much, harvesting the crops might help others.

And they will also take the opportunity to find out about the latest situation in the county.

"Great uncle, have you heard any new news recently?" Lin Wan asked puzzledly.

Since she judged that the King of Chu was unlikely to go into the mountains to search for people and that the civil war might not last too long, she has not paid much attention to news from the outside world recently.

"No, but there were rumors before that the King of Chu might send people into the mountains to search for people, so I wanted to find out the truth." Uncle Li replied solemnly.

If it was just for a little bit of sweet potatoes and potatoes, Lin Wan might have dissuaded them, but when she heard that they wanted to inquire about the news outside, she also wanted to know how the situation outside was developing.

After all, they are completely cut off from information in this deep mountain. Only by knowing more about the situation can they better cope with possible changes.

Lin Wan thought for a moment and said, "Granduncle, the people sent into the village must be very careful. I wonder if the soldiers will patrol the village regularly."

Uncle Li nodded and said, "Don't worry, I will tell them."