After finishing with the peanuts, the soybeans were next to mature. It was imperative to harvest them quickly, as delaying would cause the pods to burst, leading to wasted beans and reduced yields.
Chen Lan decided to use the multi-purpose combine harvester for the soybeans, collaborating with Lin Mai as they had developed a good working rhythm.
The day before, they adjusted the combine's header, setting the cutting height to about five centimeters to avoid missing any soybean stalks and consequently lowering the yield.
After breakfast, they headed to the soybean fields as the sun rose and the dew dried. Chen Lan sat in the multi-purpose tractor, watching Lin Mai operate the combine harvester. Row after row of soybeans were harvested in no time, the machine efficiently completing cutting, conveying, threshing, and cleaning in a single pass.
It took less than two and a half hours to harvest over ten mu of soybeans. The yield was relatively low; the ten-plus mu only filled one truck, which Chen Lan estimated to be around three to four thousand catties.
Like other crops, the harvested soybeans needed to be spread out to dry or machine-dried. They also required cleaning to remove impurities. The multi-purpose grain screening machine made this seemingly arduous task much simpler. Sudian Novel Network.
The most challenging aspect was storing the soybeans. Due to their strong hygroscopicity, soybeans were prone to mildew. Their thin seed coat and large germination pores made them absorb moisture much more readily than wheat and corn. When damp and then re-dried, the soybeans would swell and easily mildew.
Therefore, before storage, soybeans had to be thoroughly dried and cooled. Warehouses also needed to be well-ventilated to dissipate heat and moisture. Newly stored soybeans often had uneven moisture content, and their tendency for post-harvest maturation could lead to heat accumulation and spoilage when piled together.
Timely ventilation to dissipate heat and moisture was thus crucial.
While Chen Lan and the others were engrossed in the autumn harvest, her mother-in-law and the elder women were busy in the vegetable gardens, harvesting and planting fall vegetables.
Chen Lan had been wondering why she hadn't seen her mother-in-law at the drying grounds recently. It wasn't until her mother-in-law came to ask for winter vegetable seeds that Chen Lan realized they too were busy with the autumn harvest.
Chen Lan ordered suitable seeds from the system: cold-resistant, strong green onions for the northeastern region, cherry radishes with a short growth period, and fast-growing leafy greens like lettuce and bok choy, which offered flexible harvesting times. Cherry radishes, if planted now, would be ready for harvest in about forty days.
She also gave her mother-in-law some cucumber and chili seeds, thinking that if the weather turned cold early, they could be transplanted into the greenhouses.
Thinking of the greenhouses, it was time to till and prepare the soil. With an additional one to two hundred people in the valley this year, a single greenhouse would not be enough for growing vegetables and raising seedlings. It seemed at least one larger greenhouse would need to be built.
Chen Lan found Uncle De, who was helping at the construction site, and discussed the plans for preparing the existing greenhouse and building a new one.
Uncle De chuckled, "Xiao Lan, you and I are thinking alike. Li-daye and the others have already prepared all the greenhouses and planted them. We have many people in the valley this year, so we've planted a lot of tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, cucumbers, and beans. But it's still not enough. I reckon we'll need another greenhouse, and an even bigger one would be even better!"
Chen Lan readily agreed and immediately asked, "Uncle De, have you chosen a spot? Where are you planning to build it?"
Uncle De smiled, " I chose a spot long ago, by the mountainside opposite us, not far from the sheep and pig pens. We can build a larger greenhouse there, maybe even double the size. That way, no one will lack vegetables in the winter! Xiao Lan, what do you think?"
Chen Lan considered it. The area opposite was indeed the most suitable due to its size. Furthermore, with the sheep and pig pens nearby, it would be much more convenient to use fertilizer in the greenhouse.
Chen Lan was delighted to have someone else take care of these matters and immediately said to Uncle De, "Uncle De, I'll arrange for people to lay the foundation, but we don't know how to do the construction above. You'll need to find Xiao Xigua or Xiao Shuan and the others to help. Do you think that's okay?"
Uncle De readily agreed, happily saying, "Xiao Lan, you just focus on laying the foundation. We'll handle the rest. You go busy with your autumn harvest. The autumn harvest still has a big item – I saw the rice paddies. The rice should be ready for harvest in a couple of days."
Chen Lan then bid farewell to Uncle De and immediately set off to organize her people. For laying the foundation, it was more reliable to find experienced individuals like Hu Yuzhen and Cui Qiao. Others would be responsible for transporting cement, mortar, and red bricks.
It was three days later when the foundation for the greenhouse was laid. The work of harvesting the rice was becoming urgent.
That evening, after dinner, Chen Lan addressed the "Women's Army." She announced loudly, "Sisters-in-law, younger sisters, young ladies, all my fellow female comrades, starting tomorrow, we will have a lot of hard work ahead of us. Tomorrow is the day of our valley's first rice harvest, a day of great abundance. Whether we can eat our own rice every day in the coming year depends on tomorrow. Everyone, let's work together tomorrow and ensure every grain of rice is brought back to the granary. Can everyone do it?"
Qian Yingzi led the cheers, shouting, "Yes, we guarantee to complete the task!"
Chen Lan, along with Lin Mai, Chun Cao, Xiao Xue, and Ru Yi, stayed up late inspecting every component of the combine harvester and checking the performance indicators of each multi-purpose tractor. All machines were refueled. Everything was ready for the final battle of the autumn harvest.
The next morning, everyone finished breakfast early, fully prepared. Chen Lan said little more. With a wave of her hand, everyone took their positions according to the pre-assigned tasks. Lin Mai and Chun Cao operated the combine harvester, taking turns due to the demanding nature of the work.
Qian Yingzi managed to grab a tractor and insisted on driving it. Zhang Dani, Liu Man'er, Wang Yuling, Zhang Xiaohe, and Sister-in-law Chen from E Province, seeing how it was done, rushed to the garage and each claimed a tractor, driving them directly to the fields. Those who couldn't get a tractor dutifully went to the drying grounds.
The rice harvest, the culmination of this year's autumn harvest, had officially begun.