Photo taken on March 27, 2024 shows precision seeders equipped with navigation and autonomous driving systems sow cotton seeds in the spring fields in the core demonstration zone of high-standard farmland in Awat County, Aksu Prefecture, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. (Photo by Ding Lei)

As summer approaches, the cotton sowing in Xinjiang is nearing completion. In the vast cotton fields, the autonomous precision seeders equipped with the Beidou Satellite Navigation System move straightly, performing tasks such as laying mulch film, installing drip irrigation tubes, and sowing.

Inside the cabin of the seeder, the steering wheel automatically aligns the forward route, and the display screen provides real-time annotations of the working route and progress. Two farmers follow behind the seeder, checking on the trenching, seeding, and laying of plastic film. Agricultural technicians check and adjust the smart electric valves along the drip irrigation tubes, ensuring the normal operation of the integrated water and fertilizer intelligent irrigation system.

In recent years, the cotton industry in Xinjiang has seen an increasing application of mechanization, digitalization, and intelligent technology. From autonomous driving for sowing to drone field monitoring, and from intelligent irrigation to early warning systems for pests and diseases, a series of new technologies have empowered cotton production. This has given rise to an agricultural production method that is efficient, green, and sustainable. New quality productive forces in agricultural sector are helping to ensure the steady increase in both the quantity and quality of Xinjiang's cotton.

Agricultural machinery operation is convenient and labor-saving

Gedaquan Village of Baiquan Town, Wusu City, Tacheng Prefecture, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, one of the important cotton-producing areas in the region, modern machinery roars back and forth across thousands of hectares of cotton fields, replacing the labor-intensive work that used to require a large workforce.

"In the past, sowing and watering required the constant attention of farmers, which was labor-intensive. Now, with intelligent machinery, it's both worry-free and labor-saving," said Yan Suwei, the director of the village committee in Gedaquan Village of Baiquan Town.

In recent years, Xinjiang has fully promoted the use of autonomous driving precision seeders equipped with the Beidou Satellite Navigation System. Machines can complete laying mulch film, installing drip irrigation tubes, sowing, and soil covering in one go, with a straight-line error of no more than two centimeters per kilometer, achieving a 100 percent mechanization rate in cotton planting.

When it comes to the harvest season, cotton is also collected using mechanized methods. In 2023, Xinjiang deployed nearly 7,000 cotton harvesters for mechanized harvesting operations. The mechanization rate of cotton harvesting has increased from 35 percent in 2014 to over 85 percent in 2023, steadily enhancing the comprehensive benefits of cotton production.

In the process of advancing the full-process mechanization of cotton production in Xinjiang, domestic machinery is playing an increasingly important role. As a leading enterprise in the production of domestic cotton harvesters, Xinjiang Boshiran Intelligent Agricultural Machinery Co., Ltd. has established four major production bases in Wusu City, Urumqi City, Shaya County, and Alar City, with products mainly sold to regions in China such as Xinjiang, Gansu, and Inner Mongolia.

"March is the peak season for production, and the three-row baling machines and six-row baling machines are especially popular in the domestic market," said Huang Xincheng, a person in charge of Xinjiang Boshiran Intelligent Agricultural Machinery Co., Ltd.

Empowering "Super Cotton Fields"

Under the scorching sun, in a cotton field of over 100 hectares in Shuwozi Village, Dafeng Town, Hutubi County, Changji Hui Autonomous Prefecture, drip irrigation tubes laid beneath the plants act as "veins," delivering water and nutrients accurately and efficiently to the roots of each cotton plant.

"Before the popularization of digital management, farm management mainly relied on the personal experience of cotton farmers. The lack of precise management and control led to unstable crop quality. Now, with digital management, field management is more accurate and efficient," said Yuan Hualing, the owner of the cotton field.

In the past, one person could manage no more than 6.67 hectares, but now, about 10 people can complete the entire process from planting to harvesting on more than 100 hectares.

In recent years, as smart agriculture has been promoted across Xinjiang, farms have been equipped with a "smart brain," which has significantly improved the level of crop production and overall benefits.

Recently, the "Super Cotton Field" in Xinjiang successfully started its fourth consecutive year of sowing operations. Three years ago, two post-1990s youths, Ai Haipeng and Ling Lei, launched the "Super Cotton Field" innovation project in Yuli County, Bayingolin Mongolian Autonomous Prefecture.

Relying on the Beidou Navigation Satellite System, they built a digital agriculture platform, installing soil sensors, agricultural recorders, and other equipment in the cotton field to explore a less labor-intensive, unmanned management model for 200 hectares of high-standard farmland.

Since the first year management of the "Super Cotton Field," the two post-1990s youths have used the Internet of Things, robots, and artificial intelligence to implement precise management of the cotton field, greatly reducing the reliance on personal experience and achieving increased production and income. The average yield of seed cotton per mu has grown from 254 kilograms in 2021 to 420.9 kilograms in 2023.

Leveraging information technologies such as big data and cloud computing, the cotton industry in Xinjiang has established an information management system that covers the entire process from planting to sales. Cotton farmers can not only remotely monitor field conditions through mobile applications but also promptly access market information to optimize their production decisions.

Data from the National Bureau of Statistics of China shows that the total output of cotton in Xinjiang has been steadily above five million tons for five consecutive years. The proportion of the national total output has increased from 87.3 percent in 2020 to 91 percent in 2023. The area, yield per unit, total production, and the goods transferred out have been leading the country for 29 consecutive years.

Cultivating high-quality varieties

Seeds are the semiconductor chips of agriculture and are the key to breakthroughs in the new quality of productive forces in Xinjiang's cotton industry. With continuous advancements in seed industry technology innovation, the quality of Xinjiang's cotton has been further enhanced.

Jiushenghe Seed Industry Co., Ltd. in Changji Hui Autonomous Prefecture is a national high-tech enterprise. In recent years, the company has overcome a series of challenges in key technologies such as the selection and breeding of high-yield, high-quality, and stress-resistant new varieties, and the standardization, rapid propagation, and precision processing of seeds. This has provided a leapfrog technical support for large-scale, high-yield, high-quality, and efficient cotton production.

"We have established three core breeding experimental stations, one Nanfan breeding station, eight core test stations, and 24 ecological test points in the main cotton planting areas across the country, and have cooperated with research institutions such as the Institute of Microbiology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences to continuously improve the technological level of seeds," said Wang Jianfu, a person in charge of Jiushenghe Seed Industry Co., Ltd. At present, the company's annual processing capacity has reached over 5,000 tons, and the cotton seeds it produced have been promoted and covered an area of about 120,000 hectares in Xinjiang.

Nowadays, more and more seed companies are strengthening cooperation with research institutions, using modern biotechnology, gene editing, and other technologies to accelerate the exploration and utilization of excellent genes. They have successfully selected a series of new cotton varieties that are high-yielding, high-quality, and have strong adaptability.

"In recent years, we have planted breakthrough cotton varieties such as Yuanmian No. 11 and Yuanmian No. 8, which are characterized by high quality and high yield, and can fully meet the requirements of high-end production enterprises for high-quality cotton," said He Hongtao, the person in charge of the Shuangquan Agricultural Professional Cooperative in Shawan City, Tacheng Prefecture.

To further support cotton breeding, Xinjiang has increased financial support for scientific research in this field. It plans to invest 15 million yuan (about 2.07 million U.S. dollars) to build a cotton stress-resistant breeding platform, enhancing the stress resistance of major cotton varieties in Xinjiang, and encourages research institutions and universities to conduct cutting-edge research in cotton genetic improvement and stress-resistant molecular breeding. At present, over 90 percent of the main cultivated varieties of cotton in Xinjiang are self-bred.

The excellent cotton seeds have not only significantly increased the yield but also helped to further improve the quality of Xinjiang's cotton. According to the data released by the China National Fibre Quality Supervision and Inspection Centre, from April 2023 to February 2024, the spinnability of Xinjiang's cotton has clearly improved, and the quality has continued to rise, reaching the best level in the past five years.

(Reporters Hao Yu, Guo Yan and Zhang Xiaocheng from Outlook Weekly)