A worker drives a tractor for tillage in Daning county, Shanxi province. [Photo/Linfen Daily]

The Shanxi Department of Agriculture and Rural Affairs recently determined the key tasks for Shanxi province's planting industry this year.

The five key tasks include stabilizing grain production, promoting soybean and oil crop production, promoting cash crop development, advancing green production, and strengthening pesticide regulation.

A farmer is busy irrigating wheat in a field in Yicheng county, Shanxi province. [Photo/Linfen Daily]

Shanxi will sow 31,381 square kilometers of grain, promote soybean and corn strip compound planting technology over more than 546 sq km of areas, ensure 1,100 sq km of growing area for soybeans and increase the rape growing area by more than 5 percent in 2022. 

The province will also further the high-quality development of the fruit industry, ensure the stable production and supply of vegetables, and enhance the quality and efficiency of the traditional Chinese medicine industry.

Farmers sow seeds in a glutinous corn plantation area in Xinzhou, Shanxi province. [Photo/Xinzhou Daily]

It will promote green production, develop organic dry-land farming, strengthen the construction of plant protection systems, increase the efficiency of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, and develop high-efficiency water-saving agriculture.

The province will also investigate information related to pesticide production, sales, and prices and realize full supervision of pesticide production, circulation and use.