A field meeting on improving the quality of red and yellow soils was held at the National Observation and Experiment Station of Agricultural Science in the town of Shuangxiqiao, in Xianning, Central China's Hubei province on July 3.

Xu Minggang, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and professor at Shanxi Agricultural University, and Shen Renfang, director of the Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, examined the measures to address significant obstacles in red and yellow soils and mid-to-low yield paddy fields in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River.

"Today's visit is encouraging, particularly seeing the different scientific response models for fields with different acidification levels,” Xu said. “Solving soil degradation and acidification problems is fundamental to ensuring national food security. We need to strengthen scientific experiments, integrate technologies, and to further promote, demonstrate and apply them,” Xu added.

"On-site investigation provides convincing thoughts in addressing soil acidification. I hope everyone continues their efforts to create breakthoughs and products and to ensure national food security," Shen said.

Cai Chongfa, a professor at the College of Resources and Environmental Sciences of Huazhong Agricultural University, recalled the soil improvement efforts made by generations of HZAU experts in Xianning.

“Senior professors like Yang Buqin and Li Xueyuan selected Xianning as a pilot area for soil acidification management. Over the past 40 years, generations of experts have accumulated their efforts to achieve the management results that we see today,” he said.

He also commended the achievements in soil management and called for continuous efforts to address the unique conditions of Xianning's soil and promote its experience across the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River.

The experts listen to a presentation on the soil quality of Xianning.

The experts provide feedback on the land's status.

"We will continue to optimize the classification and regionalized management with regard to soil acidification based on the monitoring results and carry out integrated application of techniques and models across over 1,000 acres of paddies and dry land," said Wang Mingxia, a professor at the College of Resources and Environmental Sciences of HZAU, expressing her hope to eliminate the soil acidification and promote agricultural development in the region.