How many acres of wheat can one person cut in a day with a sickle? Under normal circumstances, a strong laborer can only harvest between one and 1.5 acres a day, and few people can harvest two acres. But that was in later generations, when wheat yields were high and they were planted densely. Even when there are few pesticides and fertilizers and there is water for irrigation, the yield per mu can reach 600 to 700 kilograms. In this era, the yield per mu was less than one-third, and the cutting speed was much faster.
In Wang Xiaolie's previous life, he had never seen a wheat field with a yield of two to three hundred kilograms per mu. I thought that all the wheat fields were densely packed, and when they were ripe, the wind blew like golden waves. In fact, if the wheat yield is 500 to 600 kilograms per mu, the fields will be very sparse. The yield per mu is one to two hundred kilograms. When mature, the wheat field looks sparse. Not only are they rare, but the ears of wheat are also small.
Ancient farmlands in TV movies basically don’t have this effect. Planting methods have changed, varieties have changed, and the appearance of the fields has naturally changed. Every time when the wheat and rice are ripe, Wang Xiaoxian will go to the fields to see. There is always a feeling of unreality. Everyone was talking about a good harvest, but in Wang Xiaolie's eyes, the situation in the fields was really pitiful.
In this era, an adult man could harvest two to three acres of wheat a day. A family farms 30 acres, and the husband and wife can basically harvest it within ten days. The climate in Xiangyang and Dengzhou does not delay planting another season of late rice. After crossing Fangcheng Mountain and arriving at Henan Prefecture in Ruzhou, planting in two seasons is no longer allowed. Without suitable seeds, the time for planting and harvesting is too short.
Before the founding of the People's Republic of China, the wheat yield in many places was less than 100 kilograms per mu. In barren places, it can even weigh only forty or fifty pounds. It is much lower than the current yield per mu in Xiangyang. The late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China were not normal years and cannot be regarded as the general situation in ancient times. At that time, there were few water conservancy facilities, lack of fertilizers, and the impact of imported flour. In fact, the output in the fifties after the founding of the People's Republic of China can be regarded as the general situation in ancient times. The national average is about 300 jins of rice per mu and about 100 jins of wheat per mu. This is the national average. Except for particularly poor land, it is generally higher in places with fertile land. The yield of rice per mu is no more than 500 jins, and that of wheat is no more than 300 jins per mu.
The land in Dengzhou, Xiangyang, is fertile and there is no shortage of water. The land planted in this era is all good, and the yield per mu is relatively high. The yield of rice per mu can exceed two stones and five buckets, reaching more than three hundred kilograms. Wheat weighs more than one stone and five measures, nearly two hundred kilograms.
I calculated it silently in my mind. Wang Xiaolie sighed: "Farming is really hard for farmers. After a year of hard work, one acre of land can only yield two or three stones. In real terms, what is it worth? In addition to busy farming, farmers actually have a lot of leisure time. The government wants to Think of a way. Don’t always think about conscripting farmers when they are free and let them do things. Instead, think about how to let farmers make some money when they are free.”
Chen Zaidao smiled and said: "Zhen Fu, if we collect two or three stones from one acre of land, it will be a good year. We charge three bushels of tax per acre and there are no other taxes. Even if we collect two stones from one acre, the people can live a good life."
Wang Xiaolian said: "Even if there are two stones of grain left in one acre of land, it is only a guan of money. To cultivate thirty acres of land, it is only 30 guan of money. What can you buy with 30 guan of money? In Xiangyang City, good restaurants are not enough. A meal for the whole family.”
Wang Xiaolie compared the purchasing power of copper coins in this era with those in his previous life and felt that one copper coin was only worth about 50 cents. A pound of mutton costs one hundred cents, and even if you save money, it costs seventy-seven cents a pound. If one penny is equivalent to fifty cents, then the price of mutton is about forty yuan. Although it can't be a complete kiss, it's almost the same. Most other things are priced the same. For example, a bowl of wontons in most places costs ten cents, which is equivalent to five yuan in later generations. There is no order of magnitude difference, and it can roughly reflect living conditions.
One copper coin is equivalent to fifty cents in later generations, and three copper coins is approximately fifteen thousand yuan in later generations. Farmers only grow food at home, and future generations will need more than ten acres of land to earn so much. Over the course of a thousand years, the situation of farmers has not changed much.
If farmers want to make money, they cannot just rely on farming. This will be the case thousands of years later, and it will be the same in this era as well. If there is an order of magnitude difference in the money earned by farmers who only rely on farming, it means there is something wrong with society.
Think for a while. Wang Xiaolie said: "If you want farmers to make money, you can't just rely on farming. You have to find other ways. Let farmers not be idle during slack times, but make money. This is what I think. In addition to rural areas Nowadays, the common cattle cooperatives, canal cooperatives, etc., the supply and marketing cooperatives must find ways to set up other profitable cooperatives. For example, in places with a lot of reeds, they can set up mat cooperatives to make mats for sale. In places with many willow trees, they can set up weaving cooperatives to sell willow weavings. Products. Each locality adapts to local conditions and uses local land to set up some profitable cooperatives. The supply and marketing cooperatives are responsible for selling the products."
After hearing this, Chen Qiudao and Chen Yuyi couldn't help but open their mouths. After living for decades, this is the first time I heard this statement. What does a happy life look like for farmers? Live a carefree life, sing with your belly bulging when drunk, and live happily in this world. Wang Xiaolie's statement actually thinks that it is not enough for farmers to have enough food and clothing, but also money?
Seeing the looks of the two of them, Wang Xiaolie said: "What is money? Don't just think that money is a dirty thing in the world that restrains people. You must also realize that money can buy things and allow the people who sell them to live. In addition to There are still many things for people to do, including clothing and food. If you are not a farmer, you have to rely on the money from the farmers to buy their things. Only by buying their things can these people survive. With these people, the whole society will become active and prosperous. .”
Seeing that Chen Qiudao and Chen Yuyi just smiled and did not speak, Wang Xiaolie sighed secretly.
This kind of thing cannot be explained for a while. How social wealth is generated and how it is distributed is a big question. The study of this knowledge has just sprouted in this era, and not everyone realizes it.
If you study history and politics in the past, you will inevitably talk about the British enclosure movement when capitalism first emerged. This leads to the fact that in order to provide emerging industries with sufficient labor force, various capitalist countries will drive farmers into factories. Historically speaking, this is not wrong, this is what European countries have done. But from the perspective of human development, this is not inevitable.
For industry to develop, there must be a market. Where did the market come from when it first started? European countries were facing special circumstances at that time, and the great voyages developed the whole world into their market. What if there is no great voyage? The market is first and foremost the yeoman of the country.
Only by first making farmers rich and providing a market can we guide industrial development. To make farmers rich, in addition to sufficient land and advanced production tools, they must also have other side businesses. Agriculture ensures the stability of the country. Fundamentally speaking, farmers who cultivate the land cannot be made too rich. Growing food has become too profitable, which means that the cost of living is high, which also reduces the living space of other industries.
Without the vast market brought by the great voyage, we should develop the countryside and make farmers rich first. Farmers who become rich can provide a broad market for industry. Only with a market can industrial development be driven. Sufficient labor does not necessarily mean depriving farmers of their means of production, leaving them with nothing but work in factories. It can also create more wealth in industry and attract farmers into factories.
In addition to Europe, the United States has also completed industrialization in history. The United States has vast land and abundant resources. But at the beginning, there was no vast overseas market, and instead it was suppressed by European countries. But the United States has a domestic market that can support its industrialization.
After China's reform and opening up, it has been facing various problems for a long time. After joining the WTO, China had a vast world market and rapidly completed industrialization. In this process, China did not drive away farmers, but ensured the stability of rural land. On the contrary, South America, which drove farmers from the land, created a large number of slums with no prospect of industrialization.
In this era, if we want to achieve industrialization, even just to get started, we must first make farmers rich. Only when they have money can they buy various industrial supplies and provide an industrial market.
