Chapter 75.2
The two players squatting on the ground got up.
"Dear Administrator, we think those things look familiar, a bit like the green wheat we ate before."
As he said, the player stretched out his index finger and pointed at a few turquoise wheat ears swaying by the side of the granary.
In fact, they were more like green foxtails than wheat ears. On top of the thin stem was a handful of immature ears with tiny seeds at the edge, each bigger than a sesame seed.
Chu Guang had never planted this kind of thing. He had only planted shofar potatoes before, and he failed to grow them.
Although he had imported a lot of green wheat before, he had never seen where the green wheat came from, so he couldn't figure out what they were for a while.
Thinking that there was a savvy person in the outpost, Chu Guang went to the warehouse and called Old Luca who was standing there, familiar with the post, and brought him to the granary.
Luca gave a cursory glance without squatting down to confirm anything, then nodded and said in a positive tone.
"Master, those are indeed green wheat, and it looks like they’ve been growing for half a month. But since those seedlings were not planted at the right time, it looks like they are dying. In addition to the frost this morning, it will snow in two days at the latest. Those plants won’t be able to live for a few days."
Seriously?
They are ready-to-be-harvested green wheat?
Staring at the crumbling seedlings on the ground for a while, Chu Guang guessed that some of them were sprinkled there when he moved the grains.
"You know how to grow this stuff?"
"Master, you are very funny. I have been doing farm work for decades... Besides, green wheat is not wheat. This crop originated from green foxtails, so it is not difficult to grow them. Like shofar potatoes, you have to wait for it to sprout to be cut into pieces for planting. For green wheat, you don’t even need to make seeds. You just need to find a piece of land and sprinkle it on. After two or three months, it can grow a bunch, just like weeds would." Luca said.
"Really?" Chu Guang said in a daze.
"Yes, it's mainly because... this kind of food is not good, it is usually for people like us to eat. If you have seen what it looks like when it is just cut, you will know why I said that. It really smells like weeds, it only gets better after drying intensively under the sun."
Chu Guang: "..."
Luca glanced at Chu Guang cautiously, then continued.
"But this thing also has its advantages. It grows fast, takes deep roots, can absorb water, can withstand drought, and can live with bad temperatures. It doesn't require much care. The only disadvantage is that you can't get much from one crop, and the yield is not good."
"The ears can be cut down to fill the stomach and feed the animals. The stems can be burnt to ashes and used as potash fertilizer when they are sprayed into the soil, or they can be used for composting and fermentation. This kind of crop, we normally grow it in rotations with other crops."
"If there is some surplus fertilizer in the soil, for example, just after planting other crops, you can try to grow this crop. It is not a problem to produce two to three hundred kilograms per six hundred square metres. If you want to grow it alone, the harvest will be average. They are about the same height as this one when they are matured, so its yield is not very high."
"... In my impression, the merchant from the north will buy some of this kind of crop along with the nearby survivor stronghold, while those from the south will rarely buy it."
Before, Chu Guang had been curious about what variant of this green wheat was, and now he had solved the case.
It turned out that it was mutated from the foxtail?
No wonder the survivors of Bett Street grind this stuff into pancakes or boil them into a paste, presumably to volatilize more oxalic acid.
‘So this means that I have been feeding the players weed?’
Chu Guang's face twitched.
In short, this information should not be updated on the official website.
"Then what kind of crops did you usually grow before?" Chu Guang changed the topic.
"Many different types—green wheat and shofar potatoes are the cheapest, available in all seasons. Fruits and vegetables will be more expensive, and they are grown in the greenhouse. The Red Rib Leaves are the most profitable ones, which can be used as tobacco leaves when they are dried. Both scavengers and merchants can afford to consume it. I think some people use it as a substitute for spices to cover up part of the smell. In addition to this, there is also a crop called Camu Tree, which produces a kind of yellow-green fruit."
"What is that?" Chu Guang asked immediately.
Luca shook his head and said.
"Master, my old master wouldn't tell us what it is. I only know that the merchants from Boulder City would come over and buy them in a whole box. Seriously, that thing is not tasty—it tastes like a used tire. But you can get a lot of oil when you cut open the bark. Our generator burns that thing. It can be used after a little purification."
Chu Guang thought for a moment.
"Maybe the camu fruit is not food."
With Luca's knowledge level, of course he couldn't understand this sentence, but he didn't say anything. He waited obediently, only answering the questions asked by his master.
Chu Guang took out a small notebook and wrote a few notes on it.
[1. Tips for Wastelanders: Brown Farm has an economic crop called Camu Tree. The fruit is suspected to be able to produce rubber, and tree oil can be used as fuel. ]
[2. Force intelligence: Brown Farm has close businesses with the outside world. They have slaves and a certain number of weapons, but they deliberately hide their strength. Its real economic status and combat effectiveness may be slightly stronger than it appears on the surface. The threat level is appropriately raised from C- to C, and the force favorability remains neutral (0). ]
[3. Faction intelligence: Shelter outpost No. 404 has a harmonious relationship with the scavengers on Bett Street. The threat level remains unchanged at E-, and the force favorability has been increased from neutral (30) to friendly (50). ]
[4. Newly added NPC in the outpost: Warehouse Clerk Luca. Old Luca was a slave who had a miserable life. After being rescued by the administrator, he swore allegiance to the shelter. His ambition is to make hunger disappear from the wasteland.
He suffers from severe arthritis in his legs and can't do too much work. Helping him move things may be a good way to increase his favorability. At the same time, please note that acts such as stealing will reduce his evaluation of you. In addition, his experience with various plants on the waste soil is a valuable asset, and may be of great use during the spring plowing season. ]
Update of today's official website.
That's all for now!