What Are the Prospects for Grape Growing? Planting Time and Profit Analysis

On June 1, Zhu Zihui and several fruit growers were pruning the vines of the grapes.

  In the past, most rural young people chose to leave home to work as migrants. Today, with the introduction of national policies benefiting farmers, many rural young people who once struggled away from home are choosing to return and start businesses. Zhu Zihui of Zhugang Village, Yangping Town, Dawu County, is one of them.

  In 2003, Zhu Zihui and his wife went to Guangdong one after the other to work. "Over 10 years, I worked at 4 companies." At first he was a worker earning only about 850 yuan, which later rose to 1,500 yuan. By the time he reached the 3rd company, he was already a mid-level manager with a monthly salary of more than 5,000 yuan.

  "Working away from home always means working for someone else, and the longer the time, the more you want to start your own business," Zhu Zihui said. Seeing that much of the farmland back home lay idle, with income of no more than 1,000 yuan per mu, he felt it was truly a waste. If the right project were chosen, even yellow earth could grow "golden fruit."

  No sooner said than done. In August 2013, Zhu Zihui and his wife returned to their hometown together and transferred 10 mu of wasteland in Zhugang Village, Yangping Town. Clearing the land, measuring distances, loosening the soil and planting were all carried out in an orderly way to build the vineyard.

  The path of entrepreneurship is always arduous. Although the project was good, technology was what really mattered. Zhu Zihui made many trips elsewhere to inspect and learn, and at home he had two boxes full of books on grape growing alone. At first, he did not dare plant on a large scale and only studied and trial-planted repeatedly in an experimental plot. Because his planting methods were relatively novel, nearby villagers joked that he was "just playing around."

  By 2016, the grapes Zhu Zihui had planted gradually began to bear fruit. Looking at the grapes ripening day by day on the vines, he thought to himself: hard work ultimately brings rewards. But misfortune can strike without warning. Just when the grapes were ripe and ready to be picked, a catastrophic flood ravaged the village, and more than 5,000 kg of grapes in the vineyard were all washed away overnight.

  More than 3 years of effort were destroyed in an instant, and coupled with difficulties in cash flow, Zhu Zihui nearly gave up. At that point, some financial institutions in the county extended a helping hand, allowing him to overcome the crisis, and he began a new round of planting plans. This time, every step of the planting process was done personally by Zhu Zihui and his wife.

  On June 1, a reporter walked into the grape planting base in Zhugang Village. The leaves were emerald green and vivid, and clusters of grapes had basically taken shape. Zhu Zihui was pruning the flower clusters with several fruit growers to ensure that the grapes would have a proper appearance after fruit set. Zhu Zihui told us that the grapes sold on the market now are in clusters that are either very compact, squeezed together, or relatively loose. If pruning and shaping are done in time during the grape growing period, this situation can be changed.

  "June is the critical period for grape growth. By fixing the shoots, the space between the grape branches becomes wider, which helps them absorb light evenly, allows air circulation and prevents pests and diseases." When it came to grape growing, Zhu Zihui opened up.

  Because of the excellent grape varieties and eco-organic growing methods, Zhu Zihui's vineyard gradually embarked on a path of large-scale, modernized planting. The vineyard area also grew from the original 10 mu to more than 150 mu today. This year, more than 30 mu can bear fruit for harvest, with expected net income reaching 150,000 yuan. As the planting area has expanded, nearly 30 people are employed nearby each year.

  Next, Zhu Zihui plans to build new steel-frame greenhouses, expand the scale, and encourage more people to grow grapes, making grapes the "wealth-building fruit" of his hometown.