1983 Small Island, Starting From a Large Farmer

Chapter 15 Kelp Seedlings

 On the sea.

Li Duoyu and Chen Dongqing drove a sampan boat and shuttled through the kelp seedling breeding base.

 For coastal farmers, this small sampan is just like a land bicycle, very convenient and easy to use.

Even in 2020, offshore farmers on Dandan Island are still accustomed to using this small sampan for offshore farming operations.

However, there are many shortcomings. Most sampans do not have roofs to facilitate operation.

 When the sun is shining brightly or when there is a sudden heavy rain, it will make farmers very uncomfortable, but as a native of the island, these are not a problem.

The small sampan drove along the kelp rope, and Li Duoyu would lean down from time to time, pull up the kelp seedlings from the sea, and look around.

At this time, the varieties cultivated by the Fisheries Research Institute were not particularly good. The kelp seedlings looked thin and long, with some curls on the sides.

  There is no way to compare with later high-quality varieties such as Golden No. 1 and Golden No. 2, but considering the reality, Li Duoyu is already very satisfied.

  This was the 1980s after all.

Back in the days of the planned economy, the country planted kelp for the purpose of treating diseases. It didn’t care about the yield and variety, as long as it could be grown.

At that time, the diet in some parts of our country was long-term iodine deficient, causing many people to suffer from goiter, a disease in which iodine deficiency leads to goiter.

In addition to big neck disease, iodine deficiency can also cause various physical problems. Children with iodine deficiency may lead to mental retardation, and pregnant women with iodine deficiency may also be at risk of miscarriage.

Of course, in addition to the iodine deficiency in the human body, the development of science and technology also requires the use of a large amount of iodine. For example, the catalysts of rockets and artillery shells require a large amount of iodine, and the medical field also requires a large amount of iodine.

 At that time, due to special circumstances, many countries were unwilling to export iodine to us.

In order to lift the iodine blockade and take the initiative to produce iodine, kelp happens to contain a lot of iodine, so the country has to study how to extract iodine from kelp.

 This led to a craze for kelp farming in the north during a long period of time under the planned economy.

 But things were not so smooth in the south.

 kelp likes cold but cannot tolerate heat. It is not easy to raise it well in the south.

 These summer seedlings studied by the Fisheries Research Institute are based on the climate characteristics of the south.

Although these kelp seedlings are not very good now, they are already considered very good with the current science and technology.

Chen Dongqing on the side looked at Li Duoyu curiously. He looked at the seedlings very carefully. The two of them stood here as if he was a scientific researcher.

 “Do you still know how to see seedlings?”

“Looking at kelp seedlings, isn’t it just like looking at piglets? Of course, the bigger they are, the fatter they are, and they can grab milk. The good-looking ones are the best.”

 At this time, Li Duoyu had not yet come into contact with kelp farming, and he did not want to stand out and scare his uncle.

Chen Dongqing was stunned for a moment. Although Li Duoyu's words were rough, they were not unreasonable. He was really right. That's what good kelp seedlings are like.

 In the past two days, his nephew had frightened him so much that he was somewhat immune now.

Even if Li Duoyu said that he jumped out of the stone, Chen Dongqing might still hesitate.

Looking at the kelp seedlings in front of him, Chen Dongqing continued:

“The best time for the kelp summer seedlings we have is to go to the sea in November. There is only a little more than a month left. Can you make it in time?”

Li Duoyu frowned slightly:

 “There should be no problem.”

 When he said this, Li Duoyu was really confused because so far, he seemed to have only solved the problem of kelp seedlings.

Cultivating kelp is not a simple matter. It does not mean that you can just throw the kelp into the sea and let it grow freely.

  Some farming equipment is required, such as brown ropes specially used to hang kelp, and floats to float the brown ropes, but he does not have any of these.

In addition to farming equipment, kelp farming generally uses farming rafts, which requires lowering pegs, that is, piles, to the seabed to fix the kelp farming rafts. In this era, lowering a piling on the seabed was not a simple matter, unlike the piling boats of later generations.

 Thump dong dong a few times and it’s done.

Now if you want to drive dozens of piles in the sea, it won't be possible to do it in less than ten days and a half.

Even if you complete the farming raft frame, you still need fishermen to help clip the seedlings and train them in seedling clipping techniques in advance. Finally, you must build two small sampans for daily maintenance of kelp farming.

 In short, there are a lot of things to do. If he had not had previous breeding experience, Li Duoyu would definitely be destroyed on the spot when faced with so many problems.

 But in this era, apart from taking shortcuts, it is really not easy to make money. Even going out to sea to fish requires taking great risks, and seafood is very cheap.

Otherwise, Li Duoyu really doesn’t want to engage in farming, but he has no intention of turning back.

Li Duoyu glanced at his uncle and asked:

“Is there any way to provide me with some benefits and ask the institute to sponsor me some kelp ropes and floats?”

 Chen Dongqing frowned instantly:

“According to the current policy, during the trial period, we will provide farmers with free kelp seedlings, which is already the greatest benefit.”

“Can’t you really be accommodating and report to the leader for instructions?”

"If we could be accommodating, there are so many people in our institute and many of our relatives are fishermen. They have already gone to work, so how can it be your turn."

“That’s right, how about you try harder?”

“Li Duoyu, why are you so stubborn? You even say it’s impossible and you keep asking.”

Li Duoyu whispered:

 “If I don’t mess around, I can catch Xiaoying.”

 “You are really a person.”

Seeing that he could not get more benefits from the Fisheries Research Institute, Li Duoyu finally said:

“Since there are no other benefits, it’s okay to set up a sign for me.”

 Chen Dongqing's face was very dark, but there was nothing he could do about his nephew. Depressed, he took out a cigarette from his pocket, lit it, and said slowly:

 “What kind of sign should we set up?”

“It’s the brand name of the kelp breeding base. Otherwise, if I get into trouble, the people in the village might get pinkeye, and there will definitely be many people who come to trouble me. I must have a backer.”

 Chen Dongqing took a puff of cigarette:

“We haven’t even started raising it yet. You already know how to do it. On Dandan Island, it’s fine if you don’t cause trouble for others. How can others dare to cause trouble for you?”

 “I became a good person and parted ways with that group of fair-weather friends.”

 Chen Dongqing was stunned for a while and said:

“Putting up a sign is a simple matter. I’ll tell the leader of the institute and there will be no problem. I’ll take care of it for you later.”

“Comrade Dongqing, thank you for the hard work. I’ll treat you to dinner later.”

 “Call me uncle.”

 “If you’re not used to it, don’t think about it.”

After seeing the kelp seedlings, the two of them drove a small sampan back to the shore. Li Duoyu planned to visit Shangfeng Town before returning to Dandan Island.

The breeding base happened to be only a few miles away from Shangfeng Station, so Chen Dongqing asked the tractor master to take it to him.

On the way to Shangfeng Town, we saw a spectacular sight. The small dirt road was crowded with Jiefang and Dongfeng trucks.

Because their walking tractor was traveling too slowly, it was constantly being honked by the trucks behind it, and there were many better-qualified truck drivers.

　　He directly talked about the quintessence of China.

 (End of this chapter)