Farmers in Hebei Province, north China, have succeeded in keeping locusts away by growing clover, a fodder plant disliked by grasshoppers.

Clover is what grasshoppers don't like to eat. But the drought-resistant plant, which can grow in saline-alkali land, is of considerable value to farmers.

In Huanghua City, which has been plagued by locusts for centuries, farmers have increased the area sown to clover since 1997. This has helped reduce the number of the pests in the city.

Currently, local farmers grow 8,000 hectares (19,768 acres) of clover and each of them earns 7,200 yuan (US$870) annually by selling the plant.

To promote the growth of clover, three big companies specialized in processing of the pasture plant have been set up with the help of the city government. The products of these companies are well received at domestic and international markets, a local official said.

A demonstration zone devoted to controlling grasshoppers, developing clover-related business, increasing farmers' income and improving the local ecological system is taking shape in the city, the official said.

(Xinhua News Agency July 24, 2002)