Felix Dapare Dakora, a foreign academician at the Chinese Academy of Engineering from South Africa, visited the Xihe Organic Farm in Beiyang town, Huangyan district, Taizhou, East China's Zhejiang province, for hands-on crop inspections and technical guidance on Aug 7.

This was his second visit since first examining local organic farming practices in 2023.

Dakora specializes in agricultural chemistry and plant ecology. He guided farmers through on-site diagnosis of crop issues and shared practical solutions.

Under his advice, the farm adopted nitrogen-fixing legume cultivation to improve the soil health — nearly doubling the yields of cucumbers and eggplants over two years.

His visit also served as training for the first group in the town's "academician-apprentice" program — which selects skilled agricultural workers and growers to receive advanced instruction in precision agriculture, ecological farming and biotechnology.

A 20-square-meter "academician service station" at the farm acts as a hub connecting experts with local agricultural enterprises.

The station collects technical challenges from farms across the district and organizes regular training sessions, ensuring that cutting-edge research is quickly applied in the field.

Through the platform, Dakora's expertise is extending beyond Beiyang to other agricultural areas, including citrus farms in the Chengjiang subdistrict.

Huangyan is building an agricultural technology network linking scientists, government departments, and farmers — enabling the rapid transfer of know-how and targeted solutions to local needs.