The strawberries seen in the photo were produced by Shi Xudong, a post-90s family farmer in Rudong county, using soilless cultivation. [Photo/WeChat account: JSRDTV2015]

Shi Xudong is a post-90s family farmer keen on delving new technologies in Hekou town, Rudong county, Nantong. After several years of exploration and trial, Shi has gained mature experience in growing strawberries in greenhouses.

This year, Shi researched a new method of strawberry soilless plantation. A flexible pipe is connected to a soilless culture substrate culture strip to precisely water and fertilize the strawberries by drip irrigation.

Shi said that the annual labor cost for soil disinfection, which is directly related to the yield of the next year, is about 60,000 yuan ($9,186). To minimize investment, Shi duplicated the soilless cultivation facilities to the greatest extent without changing their principle and functions.

In the test shed, nearly 900 strawberry seedlings have come to fruition. Through data calculation and comparison of survival rates and yields, the advantages of soilless cultivation obviously exceed those of traditional soil planting.

In the past when strawberries were cultivated in the open air or in greenhouses, workers often had to squat down for planting and picking, which was time-consuming and inconvenient.

Now, the fruits can be watered and fertilized through a flexible pipe. And the construction of three-dimensional plantation shelves greatly facilitates daily cultivation. Considered from the aspects of yield, costs and quality, new technology is an obvious driving force for the business in the future.