220 Chapter 220 Promoting White Sweet Potato
“Yes, that’s it. It grows underground like a yam, and the yield is quite high. If we plant it, we won’t have to worry about not having food to eat.” Gu Chengrui stood up and said.
“Wait a moment; I’ll go get one for you to see,” he said.
Afterward, he went to the kitchen and asked Zhou Ying for a white potato. After washing it, he took a knife back to the central room and said, “It’s this. You guys can try it.”
When the village chief saw the white lump in his hand, he exclaimed in surprise, “This is really big. How many can one plant bear?”
“Three to eight or nine, all of different sizes.”
“So many? How high is the yield?” The patriarch was shocked. According to what he said, that plant would probably bear two to ten pounds of white sweet potatoes.
“It’s quite a lot. When we planted it last spring, the yield per acre was just under 10,000 pounds. When we planted it again in summer, the water supply couldn’t keep up, so the yield was less than 2,000 pounds.”
“That’s not a small amount. One acre of land can only produce 100 pounds of wheat. If this is successful, it will be much more meritorious than the waterwheel.” The village chief was overjoyed.
“How many seeds do you have?” he asked.
“I know how valuable it is, so I didn’t dare waste a single one except for tasting. All in all, we have about 220,000 pounds.
“However, I can’t give them all out. I still have to plant some in the manor.
“This plant is robust and tenacious. After the leaves grew out, they could grow roots by themselves. So, after planting it for about a month, you could cut the leaves and replant them again.
“But it could also be because of this that the yield of the second replant will be lower.”
“That’s still pretty good.” After the village chief finished speaking, he quickly put it on the table and said, “Quick, cut it open, and let us taste it.”
Gu Chengrui nodded and cut it open with a knife, letting them each eat a piece.
“To be honest, it’s a bit bland, but there’s no weird taste. It’s better than yam,” the village chief said after he finished eating.
“Indeed, but will there be any problems with eating this?” The patriarch nodded in agreement.
“I tested it last year. Eating it on its own for long periods of time will cause symptoms such as bloating and acid reflux, but it is never poisonous. As long as we eat it with a reasonable amount of grain, it will become the main staple.”
“Good, good. That’s good enough. As for what you said, it’s not worth mentioning compared to filling your stomach.” The village chief said.
“Indeed, we’ll have acid reflux if we starve anyway. As for bloating, to be honest, it’s nothing to us farmers. We just need to run two more laps in the fields.”
“Then it’s decided. This year, we’ll plant one or two acres of these white potatoes for each family. No matter what, we won’t let the villagers starve to death. As for what to plant for the rest, let them arrange it themselves.” The village chief nodded.
“Okay, I’ll arrange for the seedlings to be grown in the next two days. Double the size of the chilies. If anyone else wants to grow them, they can come to us to get their seeds, just like last year.”
“Yes, yes. We can also plant some vegetables that grow quickly. With that income, we can buy some food to last for a while.”
After that, the three of them happily drank some alcohol and then left.
In the interspace, Zhou Ying prepared the seeds of rapeseed, spinach, chrysanthemum, cucumber, and cumin.
Of course, cumin was the most abundant. This way, she wouldn’t have to buy them at a high price in the future.
The next day, after Zhou Ying handed the seeds to the patriarch, she went to the manor after she finished her work in the restaurant.
In addition to growing seedlings, she planned to plant sweet potatoes in the manor and the grassland. This way, the people and the livestock could eat their fill.