Accelerating the breeding process has always been the focus of breeders. During May of 1958, the Ministry of Agriculture discussed how to speed up the breeding process of corn and sorghum when making suggestions for agricultural production in Liaoning. Xu Tianxi recalled his field trip in Guangxi in the 1930s, which often happened in Longzhou, about 22.4 north latitude. In winter, corn seedlings still grow in the field. Therefore, he began to analyze the meteorological data and phenology of the relevant areas in the north and south, and on this basis put forward the idea of "planting in the north and cultivating in the south in winter". In order to obtain first-hand information, during the four years from 1958 to 196 1, Xu Tianxi instructed young teachers to carry out various experiments on southern education in Guangzhou, Zhanjiang, Nanning and Haikou, and the results were all successful, especially in Zhanjiang. During this period, local cultivation experiments such as sowing by stages were carried out, and it was confirmed that the sowing date of maize was better in the first half of June, and that of sorghum was suitable in the middle of June165438+ 10. The experiment also proved that corn has certain adaptability to low temperature, and it can blossom, pollinate and bear fruit in the temperature range of 14- 15℃. In the aspect of genetic variation of traits, the first generation of Nanyu has no obvious influence.
The research led by Xu Tianxi pioneered the planting of spring corn and sorghum in northern China, which is of great significance to speeding up the process of cultivating excellent varieties and promoting the development of agricultural production.