Did ancient people also use 'plastic film'? Observing the millennium spring plowing transformation in the Hexi Corridor

The Hexi Corridor has been an important agricultural area in Gansu Province since ancient times. Based on the spring plowing records on Dunhuang murals, an AI short film was generated to experience the ancient scene of spring plowing in the Hexi Corridor together.

AI restores ancient spring plowing scenes in the Hexi Corridor

After Emperor Wu of Han established four counties in Hexi, including Zhangye and Dunhuang, a large number of people migrated to the Hexi Corridor. This also brought advanced agricultural technology, which led to rapid development of agriculture in the Hexi Corridor. During the Wei and Jin dynasties, the mixed residence of multiple ethnic groups led to an increase in the number of plow oxen. Most ordinary farmers could afford to raise a cow, and plow oxen began to become the main force in farming during this period. Every year in the third lunar month, neighbors and relatives help each other by sowing seeds of millet and wheat in the fields. In some areas with sufficient water sources, rice can even be planted.

During the Ming and Qing dynasties, people invented the "sand field method". During spring plowing, farmers evenly spread gravel and coarse sand on the surface of the prepared land, with a thickness of about 10 centimeters, to reduce soil moisture evaporation. At the same time, sand fields can absorb and store solar radiation heat, slowly release it at night, and increase soil temperature, which is beneficial for early maturity and high yield of crops, similar to ancient plastic film.

Promote 350000 acres of high fortress film to reduce non-point source pollution

Nowadays, plastic film has replaced the sand field method to preserve water and increase temperature in farmland. But there are still some small pieces of plastic film residue on the ground. Although Gansu has stipulated that the thickness of plastic film cannot be less than 0.01 millimeters, plastic film still needs to be collected after autumn harvest. But after using the plastic film for a year, there will always be some small pieces that cannot be picked up and left in the fields and along the roadside. This year, after two years of experimental verification, Ganzhou District plans to promote 350000 acres of high fortress film throughout the district. What's different about this kind of plastic film?

Although in terms of thickness, Gaobao film is only similar to ordinary agricultural film, it is actually made up of 3 or 5 layers, with higher strength. Ordinary polyethylene agricultural film breaks when pulled, but high tensile strength and tear resistance in both longitudinal and transverse directions are higher than ordinary agricultural film. Although the cost of high proof film per acre is 20 yuan higher than that of ordinary polyethylene film, according to comparative experiments in previous years, high proof film has the advantages of water and moisture retention, as well as better insulation effect. The yield per acre can increase by 5% to 8%, and after deducting the cost, it can also increase income by more than 100 yuan.

From ancient wisdom cultivation to modern technological empowerment, the agricultural stories of the Hexi Corridor are still being written. The characteristics of "easy recycling", "high-value reuse", and "promoting yield increase" of Gaobao film effectively solve the problem of "white pollution" caused by the "difficulty in recycling and useless" of ordinary plastic film, while achieving "cost saving and efficiency improvement" for crops such as corn, cotton, vegetables, and tobacco, opening up new possibilities for agricultural development in the Hexi Corridor. In the future, it will also promote the agricultural development of this land to move towards a greener, more efficient, and sustainable direction.

Part of the content of this article is excerpted from the article "Did ancient people also use 'plastic film' for farming? How much has the landscape of spring plowing changed in the Hexi Corridor from ancient times to the present?" published on April 18, 2025 on the CCTV News App

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https://content-static.cctvnews.cctv.com/snow-book/index.html?item_id=1187967505438138295&toc_style_id=feeds_default&track_id=4587ACC7 -04B7-42D3-BD5A-FF5FB52C82A6_766668253712&share_to=WeChat. Did ancient people also use "plastic film"? Observing the millennium spring plowing transformation in the Hexi Corridor