"Why not fertilize?" Shen Bing answered without thinking.
It is common sense to fertilize when the fertility is insufficient.
However, Shen Bing immediately realized that it was not that simple.
This was partly because Xu Ying and others had no reaction, while Zhang Ge had a slightly proud look on his face.
On the other hand, Shen Bing thought that if fertilization could solve the problem, then the farmers would not wait until now.
Sure enough, Xu Ying replied:
"Master Engineer, although fertilizing is good, the fertilizer is far less than the amount of cultivated land!"
Shen Bing was stunned for a moment, and after thinking about it, he understood the problem.
It’s not that the people of Qin didn’t know how to fertilize with excrement, and it’s not that they didn’t have toilets, but they often did it in the wild.
Men go out early and come back late to work in the fields. They can't come all the way back to use the toilet in the meantime.
This is especially true for the army. They will just build a simple toilet here when they march, and another one when they march... As a result, there will naturally not be enough farmyard manure when they are working in the fields.
But this is not a problem for Shen Bing.
"You can make retting fertilizer!" Shen Bing said.
Retting is a simple fertilizer accumulation and fertilization method commonly used in ancient my country. However, agricultural production was backward in the Qin Dynasty, and the retting technology obviously did not exist.
Xu Yingqi asked: "What is retting?"
Shen Bing replied:
"It collects mixed accumulations of human feces, rotten leaves, animal feces and weeds."
"Then seal it with mud and let it rot, and it will become fertilizer in ten days."
Xu Ying looked at Shen Bing dubiously:
"Is this... really going to make me fat?"
Zhang Ge smiled and said:
"Could it be that the engineer was talking nonsense out of desperation?"
“No one knows whether fertilizing in this way can increase income.”
"If we use this method to farm the fields and find that the harvest is small two years later, who will we find to argue with?"
Xu Ying glared at Zhang Ge angrily and said:
"Zhang Ge, don't be rude!"
Zhang Ge pretended to be fair and replied:
"Sir, this matter involves thousands of acres of fertile land in the three counties. It is a big deal."
"If this retting fertilizer not only fails to have a fertilizing effect but also poisons the crops, then there will be no harvest in the three counties..."
Everyone in the audience nodded in agreement.
Although these words of Zhang Ge are aggressive, it is impossible to refute them.
The land cultivated by farmers is not their own one-third of an acre.
If you only have a few acres of farmland, it won't matter if you have no harvest next year.
There are many children from rich families among the farmers. For example, Xu Ying has an official position and does not need to rely on farming to make a living.
The problem is that the farming methods of farmers are to be spread across three counties or even the whole country. If something goes wrong, many people will starve to death or even the country will be destroyed.
Therefore, farmers must be careful when introducing methods for cultivating the land. Unless they are tested and proven by themselves, they will not be easily promoted.
However, Xu is still very interested in how to deal with Shen Bing.
"We have to deal with it carefully."
"Although the engineer's method cannot solve the immediate problem, we can open up a few fields for experiments."
"If this fertilizer is applied, the growth will be better. It will not be too late to promote it at that time."
Everyone nodded and said that was the way it should be, and Shen Bing also said that there was no problem.
Zhang Ge was proud of this. He held his head high as if he had won a battle and said:
"So, we won't know whether this retting is feasible until next year at the latest."
"And the farmland is right in front of you."
"If the retting fertilizer is not available and all the fields are harvested next year, it will be a problem..."
Shen Bing touched his nose and said:
"If retting doesn't work, how about using the Shirota method?"
Xu Ying was surprised again and asked:
"What is Shiroda Law?"
Shen Bing looked around and saw a roll of bamboo slips placed in front of Xu Ying's case, so he raised his hand and asked:
"I wonder if I could borrow a bamboo slip of internal history?"
Xu Ying hurriedly handed over the bamboo slips and said:
"certainly."
Shen Bing spread out the bamboo slips, pointed at the protrusions and joints of the bamboo slips and said:
"The fields we farm are as interspersed with ridges and furrows as these bamboo slips."
"When sowing, plant the seeds in the furrow or on the ridge..."
As he spoke, Shen Bing paused for a moment to look at the reactions around him.
Seeing that no one was surprised, Shen Bing knew that he had guessed correctly.
He happened to know ancient farming methods in modern times.
During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, the relatively backward ridge farming method was used, and by the Han Dynasty, the more advanced field farming method was used.
At this time, Shen Bing was talking about the ridge farming method being used.
Zhang Ge couldn't wait any longer. He chuckled:
"If we make furrows in the high fields and ridges in the low fields, why do we need to tell the engineer?"
The so-called "high fields as ditches" means that high fields that are short of water are sown in ditches, so that the seeds can absorb as much water as possible, and the seedlings will be less exposed to sunlight in low ditches to facilitate their growth.
"Low fields as ridges" is the opposite. Low fields that are not short of water will naturally sow seeds on higher ridges, which is conducive to drainage and allows plants to receive more light and grow better.
No wonder Zhang Ge would laugh at him.
In the Qin Dynasty, this ridge practice had already been enacted into law and implemented nationwide, and even a three-year-old child was familiar with it.
But of course, that's not all what Shen Bing wanted to say.
He smiled, pointed at the bamboo slips and continued:
"Nai Shi, now that there are waterwheels and overturned trucks, even Takata no longer needs to worry about water shortage."
"Why don't we sow all the seeds in the ditch?"
"In this way, the ridges and furrows can be turned into ridges next year."
"Such a replacement, isn't it the same as alternating the fields?"
The fielding method is actually very simple. It uses the plants themselves and requires a certain row spacing. The fields between these row spacings are actually fallow fields. When planting again next year, you only need to move the wrong row.
Xu Ying pondered for a while, and then took a breath:
"A good ridge makes a furrow make a ridge."
“Why have I never thought of such a simple farming method for hundreds of years?”
"In this way... just a little longer row spacing, all cultivated land will not need to be left fallow."
"These methods are great, and the engineers are great!"
"Wonderful, wonderful!"
Everyone in the audience nodded in praise after hearing this.
But only Zhang Ge remained stubborn:
"Sir, this field law should not be enforced lightly. If it affects next year's harvest..."
Before he could finish speaking, he was interrupted by Xu Ying.
"Hey, General Wang Jian has strictly ordered us to seize all the land in the three counties."
"That being the case, what's the harm in trying this Shirota method?"
Xu Ying is right. Since the fact is that all the fields must be cultivated, there is not much difference between using the ridge farming method or the substitute field method.
The Shiroda method is just to space out some rest fields, but everything else is the same.
What could go wrong?
Harvest less food?
If this method is feasible, all cultivated land will no longer need to be laid aside, and we don’t know how much food production can be increased.
Thinking of these things, I had nothing to say, and my face turned green and red in embarrassment.
Xu Ying bowed his hands towards Shen Bing with great admiration:
"I only think that the craftsmen are superb at woodworking, but I don't think farming is as good as that."
"With your talents as an engineer, wouldn't it be a waste of resources if you don't join my farm?"
"I don't know what the engineer is..."
Shen Bing immediately frowned, why are you here again?!