Research Article
Open Access
Construction and Application Performance of a Smart Farm Technology System for Plateau Cold-Season Vegetables: A Case Study in Huangzhong District, Qinghai Province, China
1
Nongxin Technology (Beijing) Co., Ltd., Beijing 100097, China
2
Beijing Hangtian Fengyi Information Technology Co., Ltd., Beijing 100094, China
3
Huzhu County Agricultural Technology Extension Center, Haidong 810500, Qinghai, China
4
Huangzhong District Vegetable Technical Service Center, Xining 811600, Qinghai, China
5
Wenzhou Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Wenzhou 325006, China
* Corresponding Author:
Changxian Zhou,
[email protected]
Volume 2, Issue 3
2026
Received: 07 July 2026
Revised: 14 September 2026
Accepted: 15 September 2026
Published: 23 September 2026
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CC BY 4.0 License
Article Information
Abstract
Open-field vegetable production in the cold plateau regions of Northwest China faces labor shortages, extensive management, meteorological risks, and inefficient use of agricultural inputs. Taking a 6.67 ha smart farm in Huangzhong District, Xining, Qinghai Province, China, as a case study, this study developed a four-tier smart agriculture system comprising perception, transmission, platform, and application layers. The system integrates agricultural Internet of Things (IoT) monitoring, BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS)-based intelligent machinery, precision water and fertilizer management, and a big-data decision-making platform, all adapted to plateau conditions. Field trials and operational data from a complete production season showed that the system increased labor productivity and output per unit area by 18.2% and 11.7%, respectively, while reducing labor cost per unit area by 16.3%. The irrigation water use coefficient reached 0.82, pesticide use efficiency increased to 43.5%, and annual net income increased by 18\,000 CNY ha$^{-1}$. These results demonstrate that the locally adapted system improves production efficiency, resource utilization, and economic performance, providing a practical framework for smart agriculture in Northwest China and other high-altitude cold regions.
Graphical Abstract
Keywords
plateau cold region
open-field vegetables
smart farm
IoT-based sensing
precision water and fertilizer management
intelligent agricultural machinery
Northwest China
Data Availability Statement
Data will be made available on request.
Funding
This work was supported without any funding.
Conflicts of Interest
Jianbo Shen served as an Editor-in-Chief of the Digital Intelligence in Agriculture at the time of manuscript submission. To ensure the integrity of the peer-review process, Jianbo Shen was not involved in the editorial handling, peer review, or decision-making process for this manuscript, which was handled independently by another editor. Changxian Zhou, Xinxin Feng, and Pengcheng Luan are affiliated with the Nongxin Technology (Beijing) Co., Ltd., Beijing 100097, China; Shuang Chen is affiliated with the Beijing Hangtian Fengyi Information Technology Co., Ltd., Beijing 100094, China. The authors declare that these affiliations had no influence on the study design, data collection, analysis, interpretation of the results, or decision to publish. The authors declare that they have no other competing interests.
AI Use Statement
The authors declare that no generative AI was used in the preparation of this manuscript.
Ethical Approval and Consent to Participate
Not applicable.
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APA Style
Zhou, C., Chen, S., Ma, J., Ba, S., Feng, X., Luan, P., & Shen, J. (2026). Construction and Application Performance of a Smart Farm Technology System for Plateau Cold-Season Vegetables: A Case Study in Huangzhong District, Qinghai Province, China. Digital Intelligence in Agriculture, 2(3), 168-178. https://doi.org/10.62762/DIA.2026.880326
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Compatible with EndNote, Zotero, Mendeley, and other reference managers
TY - JOUR
AU - Zhou, Changxian
AU - Chen, Shuang
AU - Ma, Jinyu
AU - Ba, Sanjie
AU - Feng, Xinxin
AU - Luan, Pengcheng
AU - Shen, Jianbo
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/23
TI - Construction and Application Performance of a Smart Farm Technology System for Plateau Cold-Season Vegetables: A Case Study in Huangzhong District, Qinghai Province, China
JO - Digital Intelligence in Agriculture
T2 - Digital Intelligence in Agriculture
JF - Digital Intelligence in Agriculture
VL - 2
IS - 3
SP - 168
EP - 178
DO - 10.62762/DIA.2026.880326
UR - https://www.icck.org/article/abs/DIA.2026.880326
KW - plateau cold region
KW - open-field vegetables
KW - smart farm
KW - IoT-based sensing
KW - precision water and fertilizer management
KW - intelligent agricultural machinery
KW - Northwest China
AB - Open-field vegetable production in the cold plateau regions of Northwest China faces labor shortages, extensive management, meteorological risks, and inefficient use of agricultural inputs. Taking a 6.67 ha smart farm in Huangzhong District, Xining, Qinghai Province, China, as a case study, this study developed a four-tier smart agriculture system comprising perception, transmission, platform, and application layers. The system integrates agricultural Internet of Things (IoT) monitoring, BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS)-based intelligent machinery, precision water and fertilizer management, and a big-data decision-making platform, all adapted to plateau conditions. Field trials and operational data from a complete production season showed that the system increased labor productivity and output per unit area by 18.2% and 11.7%, respectively, while reducing labor cost per unit area by 16.3%. The irrigation water use coefficient reached 0.82, pesticide use efficiency increased to 43.5%, and annual net income increased by 18\,000 CNY ha$^{-1}$. These results demonstrate that the locally adapted system improves production efficiency, resource utilization, and economic performance, providing a practical framework for smart agriculture in Northwest China and other high-altitude cold regions.
SN - 3069-3187
PB - Institute of Central Computation and Knowledge
LA - English
ER -
BibTeX Format
Compatible with LaTeX, BibTeX, and other reference managers
@article{Zhou2026Constructi,
author = {Changxian Zhou and Shuang Chen and Jinyu Ma and Sanjie Ba and Xinxin Feng and Pengcheng Luan and Jianbo Shen},
title = {Construction and Application Performance of a Smart Farm Technology System for Plateau Cold-Season Vegetables: A Case Study in Huangzhong District, Qinghai Province, China},
journal = {Digital Intelligence in Agriculture},
year = {2026},
volume = {2},
number = {3},
pages = {168-178},
doi = {10.62762/DIA.2026.880326},
url = {https://www.icck.org/article/abs/DIA.2026.880326},
abstract = {Open-field vegetable production in the cold plateau regions of Northwest China faces labor shortages, extensive management, meteorological risks, and inefficient use of agricultural inputs. Taking a 6.67 ha smart farm in Huangzhong District, Xining, Qinghai Province, China, as a case study, this study developed a four-tier smart agriculture system comprising perception, transmission, platform, and application layers. The system integrates agricultural Internet of Things (IoT) monitoring, BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS)-based intelligent machinery, precision water and fertilizer management, and a big-data decision-making platform, all adapted to plateau conditions. Field trials and operational data from a complete production season showed that the system increased labor productivity and output per unit area by 18.2\% and 11.7\%, respectively, while reducing labor cost per unit area by 16.3\%. The irrigation water use coefficient reached 0.82, pesticide use efficiency increased to 43.5\%, and annual net income increased by 18\,000 CNY ha\$^{-1}\$. These results demonstrate that the locally adapted system improves production efficiency, resource utilization, and economic performance, providing a practical framework for smart agriculture in Northwest China and other high-altitude cold regions.},
keywords = {plateau cold region, open-field vegetables, smart farm, IoT-based sensing, precision water and fertilizer management, intelligent agricultural machinery, Northwest China},
issn = {3069-3187},
publisher = {Institute of Central Computation and Knowledge}
}
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