Growing sugarcane and grapes, raising pigs: a tough old man walks the road to poverty alleviation and prosperity

Xie Kaiju cleaning the pigpen

Xie Kaiju, 68, from Group 4 of Diandeng Village, Longshi Town, Longchang County, is a registered poor household in the village. Although his hand is disabled, his spirit is strong. With a drive that fears neither hardship nor fatigue, and with the support of the government's targeted poverty alleviation policies, he has taken up growing sugarcane and grapes and raising pigs. Through developing farming and breeding, he has increased his income through multiple channels and is realizing his dream of escaping poverty and becoming prosperous step by step.

Husband disabled, wife ill: the whole family lost its source of income

Recently, a reporter came to Xie Kaiju's home. Standing at the edge of the courtyard, one could see across his fields, where the green seedlings looked especially "spirited" under the sunlight. A flock of free-range chickens was foraging by the yard, and several pigs in the pigpen were about to be ready for market...

That day, the outdoor temperature was 28°C. Xie Kaiju had just returned from the fields and immediately went to feed the pigs; his clothes were already soaked through. Although he is elderly and his hand is disabled, thanks to years of breeding experience, Xie Kaiju works with ease.

"With hands, feet and life in you, you can overcome the greatest difficulties." This is a saying Xie Kaiju often repeats. At 68 this year, his thin body holds a tough character, and the villagers affectionately call him "Tough Old Man."

Once, Xie Kaiju worked as a migrant worker while his wife farmed, and they ran their small household. Though life was not wealthy, they had enough food and clothing and lived with some comfort. But in 2009, through carelessness, Xie Kaiju injured his right hand, leaving him with a permanent disability and unable to do heavy work. At the same time, misfortunes never come singly: in 2013, his 62-year-old wife, Zhang Guqin, developed severe lumbar spine disease, and they scraped together 30,000 yuan for surgery. At present, after surgery, Zhang Guqin still cannot farm, and medical visits cost about 1,000 yuan per month. The whole family relies only on Xie Kaiju's son, who does odd jobs away from home, to make a living. What had been a happy family fell into poverty.

But the hardships he encountered did not extinguish Xie Kaiju's hope for life. "I am a farmer, and I know that if you don't cultivate, you get no harvest. To keep living, you have to be doubly diligent," Xie Kaiju told the reporter. Although his right hand is disabled and unable to work, he firmly refused to give up and learned to work, farm and feed pigs with his left hand... Due to a lack of development funds and planting techniques, he could only plant corn and rice in his own fields, barely achieving self-sufficiency and meeting his basic food needs.

Xie Kaiju (left) and Pan Junjiang, the village's "First Secretary" stationed in the village, inspecting the growth of grape seedlings

Department assistance: the poor household embarks on the road out of poverty through farming and breeding

In 2015, Xie Kaiju's family was listed as a registered poor household. To help Xie Kaiju's family escape poverty, in October 2015, the Longchang County Agriculture and Forestry Bureau paired up with Xie Kaiju's family as relatives. The assisting officials visited his home many times to learn about the situation. Through repeated conversations and heart-to-heart talks with him, the assisting officials found that Xie Kaiju had a strong desire to escape poverty and had the confidence and fighting spirit to do so.

Pan Junjiang, the "First Secretary" stationed in Diandeng Village by the Longchang County Agriculture and Forestry Bureau, said in an interview with the reporter that after discussion, and in light of the local natural conditions and climate environment, they found that the area was very suitable for sugarcane growth, and Xie Kaiju also expressed willingness to grow sugarcane.

Afterward, Pan Junjiang successively brought sugarcane seedlings provided by the Municipal Academy of Agricultural Sciences, as well as fertilizer and other supplies. Xie Kaiju could hardly wait to plant nearly half a mu of sugarcane, hoping for a good harvest the next year.

In growing sugarcane, Xie Kaiju lacked techniques and experience, so the county Agriculture and Forestry Bureau invited technicians from the Municipal Academy of Agricultural Sciences to provide him with technical guidance, helping him avoid many detours. Not only that, whenever he had time, "First Secretary" Pan Junjiang would go to Xie Kaiju's home and check the sugarcane's growth in the fields. Whenever problems arose during planting, he would consult professionals in cultivation and then "learn on the spot and teach on the spot," teaching Xie Kaiju hand by hand.

"The assisting officials encouraged me to learn techniques well and gave me great confidence," Xie Kaiju said gratefully. In the first year, Xie Kaiju worked early and late, farming diligently, and under his careful cultivation, the sugarcane achieved a bumper harvest. "Last year's sunshine and rain were both sufficient, and the sugarcane tasted fresh and sweet. The government also helped solve the sales channel. The sugarcane sold at a relatively good price, bringing in 1,000 yuan!" Speaking of last year's sugarcane harvest, Xie Kaiju was so happy he could not close his mouth.

The government's assistance gave Xie Kaiju even more drive to develop farming and breeding. Using his spare time from growing sugarcane, Xie Kaiju built a pigpen on the open space in his yard. "Last year, I sold 8 piglets and earned 4,000 yuan. Now it's better: the annual income from growing sugarcane and raising pigs is more than 5,000 yuan. For me, this was something I never dared to imagine before!"

The poverty alleviation officials also applied for medical assistance for Xie Kaiju's family. From then on, the family no longer sighed day and night over expensive medical costs. Speaking of the help the assisting officials gave him, Xie Kaiju said: "Without the officials' assistance, we could not have lived such a good life."

Broadening income channels: actively developing grape cultivation

"Although the country's policies are good, you can't rely on the country's support for a lifetime. Only by striving with your own two hands, fearing neither hardship nor fatigue, can the good life you gain feel secure," Xie Kaiju said. Growing sugarcane and raising pigs alone brought only an average income at home, and there was still some distance to go before escaping poverty and becoming prosperous, so he always thought about finding a suitable project to get rich.

By chance, Xie Kaiju discovered that local villagers got quite considerable returns from growing grapes, and grapes are also a fruit with a very long harvest period and broad market prospects, so he set his mind on the path of grape cultivation.

After the county Agriculture and Forestry Bureau learned of Xie Kaiju's idea, in March this year it sent him "timely rain" — nearly 100 grape seedlings. At the same time, professional technicians from the county Agriculture and Forestry Bureau came to Xie Kaiju's home to teach him hand by hand how to fertilize, spray pesticides and build trellises.

Whenever he had time, Xie Kaiju would stay in the vineyard checking the growth of the grape seedlings, and several times he even took a bus to Neijiang to learn cultivation experience from specialized grape growers. From planting and fertilizing to disease and pest control, Xie Kaiju carefully tended the grape seedlings.

Seeing the planted grape seedlings grow better and better, Xie Kaiju became more and more confident as he worked. "The county Agriculture and Forestry Bureau and the village are doing everything they can to help our family. No matter what, I must improve my farming and breeding business. Growing grapes is a long-term plan; in 3 years they will bear fruit, and then I will see the returns," Xie Kaiju said firmly.

Now, Xie Kaiju's road to poverty alleviation and prosperity is getting wider and wider. Next, he is also thinking that the current crawfish market is doing well and wants to use the remaining one mu of his field to raise crawfish, increase his income through multiple channels and strive to escape poverty as soon as possible.