Mr. Zhou, who retired from school, began to concentrate on planting his orchard when he was free.
In the fields of Lingao County, Hainan, more than 600 mu (40 hectares) of grapefruit orchard are lush, and heavy grapefruit is covered with branches-this orchard that has accompanied Mr. Zhou for ten years has ushered in a bumper harvest this year: not only the grapefruit peel is clean, the rate of substandard fruit is extremely low. It sold for the best price in the country and became the first orchard in the area to be "sold out" by fruit merchants.
All these changes are inseparable from Mr. Zhou's "old partner" for three years —— the EAVISION drone.
Old orchard revitalized, scientific planting yields fruitful results
Three years ago, before using the EAVISION drone, plant protection in Mr. Zhou's orchard was a major challenge: for his 600-mu orchard, manual spraying required hiring 20 to 30 people who would work day and night for a week to complete one round of spraying.
"Not only did it cost a lot of money, but manual spraying was also uneven. In some places, too much pesticide burned the leaves, and in other places, too little pesticide failed to control the pests, so the rate of substandard fruit could not be reduced." Mr. Zhou recalled the past, full of emotion.
Everything changed when the EAVISION drone flew into the orchard.
"Now one drone can replace 30 human workers!" Mr. Zhou said with a smile. Now, using the EAVISION drone, the task that used to take one week can be completed efficiently in two or three days, with uniform spraying and remarkable effect.
Significant quality improvement leads to higher prices: good fruit fetches good prices
What really makes Mr. Zhou realize that "science and technology bring premium" is the leap in fruit quality.
"This year's grapefruit, the rate of substandard fruit has been greatly reduced, almost no defective fruit can be found, the fruit surface is clean, the color is uniform, and the sugar content has also increased." He said.
"Fruit merchants were immediately impressed when they entered the orchard and decided to buy them all on the spot. The price is also the best in the market this year, which is a bit higher than the purchase price of the surrounding fruit farmers!" His words were filled with relief and pride.
The first generation of users who grew up with EAVISION were all very professional.
Mr. Zhou's connection with EAVISION began with a friend's recommendation. It was through this opportunity that he met Mr. Liu, a professional and reliable drone pilot with whom he would later collaborate for three years.
As early as 2019, Mr. Liu became one of Eavision's first drone users. Every year, he closely followed product iterations and upgraded his equipment, making him a true "golden-level fan" of EAVISION. "It was really good at that time and the experience was very smooth. Later, I simply recommended my friend to buy one and we gradually built a small drone spraying team." Mr. Liu recalled.
With his conscientious and responsible attitude, Mr. Liu gradually won the trust of local farmers. Not only pomelo growers sought his help for pesticide spraying, but also farmers of various fruits such as green oranges, lychees, and longans came to him for assistance.
The team has steadily expanded, now boasting nearly twenty full-time and part-time drone pilots. Mr. Liu proudly stated, "This year, our operating area in Hainan has exceeded 200,000 mu (approximately 13,333 hectares)."
Three years of companionship with EAVISION drones not only helped Mr. Zhou solve his plant protection problems and achieve good prices, but also enabled Mr. Liu to grow from a solo drone pilot into a regional leader in aerial spraying, driving improvements in local agricultural efficiency.
Behind this success lies a two-way collaboration between technology and farmers—farmers embrace innovation with trust, and technology rewards hard work with its strength.
