It’s wheat harvesting season in Jiangsu from its southern to northern areas, with 99% of wheat to be harvested by machines this year.  

Harvesting scene in Ledong Village of Suqian city. Photo/Zhang Xiao

By May 24, harvesters reaped 520,000 mu (34,667 hectares) of wheat in the coastal province, and more than 30.97 million mu of wheat had also confirmed mechanized harvesting too, achieving a mechanization rate at 87%. 

On May 25, Sun Xiang, a farmer in Shezhu Town of Liyang City, used three harvesters for his 1200 mu of wheat. Sun said he expects an increase of both wheat yield, around 350 kg per mu, and price this year.  

Many regions in Jiangsu have introduced measures to support wheat harvesting. In Zhenjiang, the Bureau of Agriculture and Rural Affairs worked with branches of Sinopec and PetroChina to ensure the supply of oil for farm machinery at all gas stations. In Zhangjiagang, efforts have been made to provide online and on-site support for the right use of harvesters and reduce wheat losses. 

Nearly 120,000 combine harvesters, 145,000 large and medium-sized tractors, and 32,000 dryers will be used for wheat harvesting operations across the province, a mechanization rate at 99%, said Zhang Yaochun, director of the Agricultural Machinery Office in the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Affairs. 

Meanwhile, Qidong plans to grow 100,000 mu of rice this year, reaching a historical high, said Lu Jian, director the city’s Agriculture and Rural Affairs Bureau. In recent years, Qidong has accelerated the construction of high-standard farmland and vigorously promoted mechanized farming. The city managed to get 40,000 tonnes of rice harvested from 86,000 mu of land in 2021.  

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