Chapter 183: This Actually Proves Quite Difficult

Leaving aside the fact that there were tropical fruit trees inside the greenhouse, the sheer likelihood of a widespread greenhouse whitefly infestation nearby made this method a non-starter.

Even if you managed to kill off a portion of them in the short term, the moment you opened the ventilation flaps, countless more whiteflies would pour right back in. Besides, that might work once or twice.

Do it too often, and the tropical fruit trees would inevitably suffer. Tropical fruit trees had the word "tropical" in their name, which didn't mean they were infinitely heat-resistant; once temperatures reached a certain threshold, the trees would still be adversely affected.

High-temperature greenhouse sealing produced a terrifying level of heat, and the duration could not be long—five to ten minutes at most. Anything beyond that was pure nonsense.

For once, Zhong Di decided not to use his special abilities. It wasn't that his abilities couldn't solve the problem, but rather that he genuinely wanted to try tackling it conventionally.

Just as Zhong Di was feeling troubled by this issue, he suddenly noticed a small insect fluttering about.

Ah, that was a lacewing! If he remembered correctly, lacewings were natural predators of whiteflies.

Biological control!

Ultimately, Zhong Di settled on this method. All he needed to do was purchase some insect eggs and place them inside the greenhouse. There was no need to worry about buying too many; even if all the whiteflies were consumed, the lacewings wouldn't turn to eating plants.

As carnivorous insects, lacewings did not eat greens.

No, wait, something was still missing.

Just as he was about to suggest this method to Shao Hong, Zhong Di felt that something was lacking. Was physical control truly useless?

After filtering through several options, Zhong Di finally decided on using yellow sticky traps. Whiteflies were attracted to the color yellow, which could complement the biological control method.

Things were fine for now since the population wasn't large, and the timing would be just right for the lacewing eggs to hatch once purchased.

With this thought in mind, Zhong Di explained the method to Shao Hong. No matter what, Shao Hong had studied the basics, so he grasped the concept immediately without any trouble.

"Then what about those vegetable seedlings? What should we do with them?" Shao Hong raised another issue.

Zhong Di took a look and realized it was true. Only the very bottom stems of the seedlings were left.

As expected, it was cabbage worms.

Zhong Di instantly identified it as a classic pest infestation.

"Did we measure the pH value of the growing substrate?" Zhong Di asked.

"We did. Based on your previous suggestion, we specifically tested it, and it's somewhere between 5.5 and 6.5."

During the earlier seedling cultivation phase, Shao Hong had consulted Zhong Di on several related matters, and Zhong Di had offered his advice one by one. Measuring the pH value was one of those recommendations.

The substrate they used was slightly acidic. If it were too alkaline, combined with the water from the Northwest, things might not go well.

So, this pH value was indeed the root cause behind the appearance of the cabbage worms.

Was this pH range bad? Certainly not; it was actually very good, especially for vegetable seedlings like peppers and tomatoes, which thrived in it. The problem was that acidic soil also tended to attract pests easily.

Cabbage worms were one of them. With so many small white butterflies outside, just a few flying in and laying eggs would result in a multitude of small pests within a few days.

Given the current situation, the only option was to introduce their natural predator, the flower bug. However, the catch was that with the vegetable seedlings being devoured at such a rapid pace every day, by the time the flower bug eggs hatched, it would likely be far too late.

Cabbage worms were different from whiteflies. Whiteflies could wait; even when they damaged plants, it was a slow process. Cabbage worms, on the other hand, consumed the plants directly—once eaten, they were gone for good.

Sure enough, it seemed impossible to completely break away from chemical control.

"Apply some deltamethrin, but be careful not to spray it anywhere else." Zhong Di finally accepted reality and opted for chemical control.

强大的能力虽然好，可局限于植物抗病性上的提升，遇到这种虫害，除了引入天敌之外，他也别无他法，狂沙仙芽也不行。

No matter how perfect one tried to be, some things simply couldn't be done flawlessly. Fortunately, these were only seedlings at the moment, so spraying a low-toxicity stomach poison was still acceptable.

After discussing a few more details, Zhong Di left the greenhouse.

For pest infestations like this, aside from these measures, there truly wasn't a better approach. Otherwise, a country as vast as China wouldn't struggle to research a completely healthy and targeted solution.

Zhong Di stored this problem in the back of his mind. Once he had new inspiration another day, he could naturally develop a related technique.

Upon leaving the greenhouse, Zhong Di first headed to the Pallas's cat enclosure to check on the cats before moving on to other tasks.

As for what those tasks were? Was it possible he didn't know how to slack off?

That actually seemed a bit difficult.

By noon, Zhong Di received a call from Qian Weining, who said he wanted to drop by for a chat and talk a bit about his project.

Zhong Di certainly wouldn't refuse. He didn't have much going on anyway, and whatever needed to be done was already being handled. Having someone to chat with, especially about topics of mutual interest, was quite enjoyable.

Shortly after lunch, Qian Weining arrived.

"Goodness, Uncle Qian, why have you gotten so tanned lately?" Zhong Di asked bluntly.

Having dealt with Qian Weining for so long, their relationship was already quite close. There was no need for pleasantries; he just said whatever came to mind.

The weather in the Northwest was clear more often than not, and the ultraviolet radiation was exceptionally strong. Even though it was already mid-September, the UV rays remained intense, making getting a tan a completely normal occurrence.

"Isn't it all for that project? I've poured my heart and soul into it. Quick, get me something good to eat, and then bring out all your novel gadgets for me to check out."

Qian Weining didn't mind Zhong Di's remark and sat right down at the dining table in the Herb Garden.

Zhong Di instructed Zaker to prepare some fresh treats for Qian Weining and then sat down across from him.

Aside from Qian Weining, Zhong Di also decided to eat a little. After all, during a chat, it would be awkward if Qian Weining ate by himself while he just sat there watching. Anyone who knew would assume he had already eaten, but anyone who didn't might get the wrong idea.

"Uncle Qian, how is the project actually going? Is everything holding up?" Zhong Di proactively steered the conversation back to the topic.

Personally, he was quite invested in Qian Weining's project. The thought of twenty thousand acres of land turning into green spaces brought a deep sense of satisfaction to his heart!

Twenty thousand acres was no small figure. If this project succeeded and a stable profit model was figured out—such as the industrial chain Uncle Qian had mentioned—they could continue to scale up the operation.

Eventually, it would form a virtuous, sustainably developing industry while simultaneously tackling environmental restoration. For the younger generations, this was an immense blessing—how wonderful that would be.

"It's going alright. Aside from me suffering a bit, everything else is proceeding within expectations without any major deviations." Though Qian Weining claimed he had suffered a bit, there wasn't the slightest hint of aversion on his face.

This showed that Qian Weining was genuinely happy from the bottom of his heart, having found something valuable and meaningful. Why, he had even cast his greatest hobby—fishing—aside for this.

"That's good to hear. Which aspect of the project is it that you wanted to discuss with me, Uncle Qian?"

"Take a brief look through this document first. I had my assistant specially compile it just to show you. Look it over, and then we'll talk."

Instead of explaining verbally, Qian Weining handed Zhong Di a dossier for him to read. Many things could not be adequately described through mere words alone; only data could truly tell the story.