Spotlight on Dr. Guohua Li

Dr. Guohua Li, ICL’s Agronomy Lead for China, envisions a future of precision agriculture driven by integrated water and fertilizer management. With expertise across more than ten crops, he emphasizes tailored nutrient programs that improve soil health and optimize yield. His work helps farmers apply science-based solutions for smarter, more efficient, and environmentally responsible farming.

What is your vision for the future of agriculture?

Large-scale, digitalized, automated and integrated water and fertilizer agriculture will be the development direction of China’s agriculture. High quality and high yield are a basic requirement for future agriculture. How to improve soil health, how to supply nutrients to crops more precisely, and how to be more scientific and environmentally friendly will be the demands of fertilizers in the future.

What professional tip would you like to share with farmers?

Growers should understand the patterns and characteristics of nutrient requirements for their specific crop. And formulate a scientific and reasonable fertilization plan based on the nutrient status of their farm soil. ICL China has supplied the whole fertilization recommendation package to farmers.

Which crops do you specialize in and what makes them unique?

I specialize in more than 10 crops including grapes, tomato, potato, corn, wheat, strawberry, ginger, vegetables. Each crop has its own pattern of nutrient requirements. For instance, potatoes and grapes prefer potassium and calcium respectively, while ginger likes potassium and strawberries are highly sensitive to EC values. Therefore, fertilizers should be applied with caution to avoid salt damage.

Dr. Guohua Li with his colleagues