Can melons combat desertification? An Ecology Master’s verdict after eight years of farming

This episode was recorded in the Alxa desert of Inner Mongolia by Qihua, Foodthink’s lead on climate change and ecological smallholder research, along with two guests. In late August 2022, the three of them sat under a large tree in an oasis within the Tengger Desert; you may hear the whistling wind and sand in the background, the song of birds, and the occasional hum of mosquitoes and flies.

Our guests for this episode are Ma Yanwei, an ecology master’s graduate from Beijing Normal University and the founder of the Alxa Zhiliangtian Ecological Farm, who hopes to improve the desert environment through the cultivation of honey melons; and Tiantian, who walked away from eight years of living and working in Shanghai to join Foodthink’s ecological agriculture internship programme at the Zhiliangtian farm.

After eight years of entrepreneurship, how is the ecological farm in the desert faring? And to what extent can a gap year spent on a farm transform a young person’s life?

Our Guests

Ma Yanwei

An organic farmer on the edge of the desert. Beyond the fields, he enjoys reading and travelling; he aspires to keep his feet firmly on the earth while keeping his eyes on the stars.

Lei Tiantian

A proponent of slow food and a nomadic lifestyle. An occasional workaholic who dreams of living as a wanderer. For her, weeding the fields and cooking are the most reliable ways to destress. Using the pen name ‘Tianshe Laoweng’ (Old Man of the Countryside), she dreams of being neighbours with the poet Su Dongpo.

Our Host

Qihua

Stepping out of the complacency of everyday life to see the world; it is a wonderful thing to come to the desert and speak with ecological farmers who cultivate melons not for the harvest itself.

Founded by Ma Yanwei, who holds a Master’s in Ecology, the Alashan Zhiliangtian Ecological Farm spans approximately 1,000 mu, with 160 mu of arable land. The farm grows millet, melons, fruits, and vegetables, with honeydew melon as its signature product. Photography: Magpie Granny

With a background in ecology, Ma Yanwei joined the Alashan SEE Ecology Association in 2005. After leaving in 2015, he settled in Alashan and founded the Zhiliangtian Ecological Farm.

Guest Tiantian (left), this episode’s host Qihua (centre), and Foodthink editor Zeen are lavishly preparing a huge platter of pumpkin pancakes using home-grown pumpkins at Zhiliangtian Farm. Do you want to experience a life like this? Why not check out our “Eco-Agriculture Intern” programme.

After the unusually persistent rains of the summer of 2022, the final harvest of melons at Alashan Zhiliangtian Ecological Farm was left uncollected. All that remains is a single “tail melon”, soon to return to the soil.

“Sand leek”, a wild delicacy favoured by the people of Alashan, sways its small, rose-pink flowers in the desert.

Timeline

01:43 Recorded beneath a large tree by the shores of Chagan Lake in the Tengger Desert (southeast Alashan, Inner Mongolia), the sound of wind and insects provides the backdrop for this episode.03:28 Why did our guest, Ma Yanwei, decide to work in the Alashan Desert, and how did he go about founding the ‘Alashan Zhiliangtian Ecological Farm’ and starting his honey melon crops?

07:07 Sand onion, a wild desert delicacy beloved by the people of Alashan, has recently started appearing in lamb rolls at hotpot restaurants. However, the unusually dry weather of 2022 delayed the growth of these onions by as much as two months.

09:42 Honey melons are the primary produce of Zhiliangtian Farm; why did yields plummet in 2022?

17:04 After seven or eight years in the Shanghai office, Foodthink’s ‘Lianhe Plan’ intern, Lei Tiantian, moved to the desert farm. From initially feeling like an exile from ancient times to the sheer pride of whipping up a bowl of pumpkin cakes from her own harvest, how has Tiantian found the experience?

22:00 A soul-searching question for Tiantian: after her internship at the farm, will she truly choose the ‘new farmer’ lifestyle for her future?

23:40 A question for Ma Yanwei: based on his observations over the last few years, what is life really like for this generation of ‘new farmers’ in China? And what do they talk about when they get together?

31:14 Looking back at the origins of the Alashan Zhiliangtian Ecological Farm—having operated since 2015, is the farm still running at a loss?

34:16 On collaborating with Foodthink to recruit interns: why has farm life suddenly become so much more appealing?

38:22 In the pursuit of ecological farming, what improvements has Zhiliangtian Farm made to the desert environment, and what efforts have been undertaken?

42:34 ‘Eating a single honey melon from the Alashan Zhiliangtian Ecological Farm helps restore one square metre of desertified land.’ Is this an exaggeration? And can fertile land in the heart of the desert truly support rich biodiversity?

46:55 Zhiliangtian Farm’s three seven-year plans: how can ecological farmers sustain their journey? If you wish to join an established farm, learn from experienced mentors, reduce the cost of trial and error, and master the art of farming more quickly, we invite you to join Foodthink’s ‘Ecological Agriculture Internship’ programme. Applications close today!

About the Ecological Farm Internship Programme

Recruitment for the second phase of Foodthink’s Ecological Agriculture Internship Programme is now open, with applications closing today! In 2022, 18 young people from diverse backgrounds took part in the first phase, heading to 12 ecological farms across the country for internships lasting between three months and a year. We hope that ecological farms can codify their valuable experience in management, production techniques, and sales and promotion to serve as a guide for young people wishing to return to their hometowns to pursue ecological farming. In turn, interns with diverse skill sets can contribute their expertise, injecting new vitality into the farms while reducing the learning curve and risks associated with future rural entrepreneurship. If you aspire to return to the countryside and engage in ecological agriculture, hurry and complete the application form!

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Podcast Production Team

Concept: Qihua

Production: Xiao Putao

Cover Art: Wan Lin

Music: Banong

Editing: Xiaojing

Contact Email: xiaojing@foodthink.cn

Can melons combat desertification? An Ecology Master’s verdict after eight years of farming | Food Talk Vol.16