Peony blossoms pave the way for farmers to escape poverty and grow rich
"Only the peony is truly of national beauty; when it blooms, the whole capital is stirred." "Who does not love the peony? It takes all the finest splendor of the city." The ancients wrote many poems praising the beauty and richness of the peony, but this year 46-year-old Cao Hongwei, a villager of Caojiaping Village, Taoyang Town, Lintao County, Dingxi City, has found a new direction out of poverty from the purple-spotted peony.
Lintao County, located in the southwestern corner of the Loess Plateau, has an average altitude of nearly 2000 m. This dry land with little rain is nevertheless blooming with China's main peony variety, the purple-spotted peony. Every May, Lintao, honored as the "Hometown of Chinese Flowers and Trees," becomes a paradise for viewing peonies. These "true national beauties," one after another, are also helping local villagers escape poverty and grow rich.
Cao Hongwei's two daughters, one is studying at university, and the other is in junior high school. With two students in the family, this already not wealthy household became "impoverished because of education," and the burden grew even heavier. Relying on his own "bricklayer" skills, the family's 5 mu of land, and help from relatives and friends, Cao Hongwei barely kept the household's income and expenses balanced. Meanwhile, the village's "Peony King" Cao Baiping, relying on three generations of technology for planting and cultivating peonies, built industries including a peony garden that has now reached two hundred mu. This also brought Cao Hongwei hope of escaping poverty.
"In Lintao, it can be said that every household plants peonies. My family started planting in my grandfather's generation. At that time it was simply out of love, planted in the courtyard for viewing. By the 1980s, through an introduction from someone, my grandfather sold peony seedlings and earned some income. Our family then began to cultivate and continuously improve purple-spotted peony varieties, and at the same time sell our own peony seedlings to increase the family's income," said Cao Baiping, head of Lintao County Xingwang Peony Industry Co., Ltd.
After graduating from Gansu Agricultural University with a major in landscape architecture, Cao Baiping returned to Caojiaping, from flower grower to founder of a peony industry company. By means of internet sales and other methods, he has enabled Caojiaping's peony seedlings to be sold to many places across the country, and even overseas to Australia and the Netherlands. He has also become a local leader in growing rich and in poverty alleviation.
Wang Jianfu, secretary of the Taoyang Town Party Committee, told reporters that under Cao Baiping's leadership, local villagers, especially poor households, also joined the peony industry. Many poor households work in Cao Baiping's peony garden, and the daily wages are one source of income; they transfer their land to the peony garden, and the land rent is another source of income. With the tourists attracted by the peonies, villagers of Caojiaping and Cheliujia Village set up farmhouse restaurants, which also increased their income. Wang Jianfu introduced that combining the peony industry with the tourism industry is currently the wealth-building industry that Taoyang Town is focusing on developing. As the scale of the industry gradually expands and matures, the positive support and driving role of the peony industry for local villagers, especially poor households, will also become stronger. "This fragrant industry is becoming a new highlight of local poverty alleviation and income growth."
Relying on a 50,000 yuan targeted poverty alleviation loan and his own savings, Cao Hongwei set up a farmhouse restaurant at home, providing meals and rest services for tourists who come to visit the peony garden. His several mu of land also joined Cao Baiping's peony garden, and he got onto the fast track of escaping poverty and growing rich.
Li Meixiu, a 49-year-old poor household, originally also planted a little peony at home. With certain skills, she is now one of the skilled workers in the Caojiaping peony garden, earning a daily wage of 60 yuan. She is devoted to growing rich and escaping poverty and letting her children live better lives, and the peony industry gives her more to look forward to. Under the targeted poverty alleviation policy, she took out a 50,000 yuan microcredit loan to expand her own scale of planting peonies and herbaceous peonies. "The loan has already been repaid. The 'Peony King' (Cao Baiping) helped solve the sales problem, and I have more confidence in growing rich by planting peonies and herbaceous peonies," Li Meixiu told reporters
As the peonies gradually bloom, the Second China Lintao Purple-Spotted Peony Cultural Tourism Festival is being held locally. To attract more tourists, the local area used drones to shoot a promotional short film of the peony garden and promoted a publicity page on its official account. This reporter saw on his own WeChat Moments many peony beauty photos and promotional products shared by local friends.
Shi Lin, secretary of the Lintao County Party Committee, said: "In the future, we want to combine the construction of bases for ornamental peonies, mainly purple-spotted peonies, and woody oil plants, mainly oil peonies. By planting peonies, we will promote the adjustment of our industrial structure, drive tourism development, and raise farmers' incomes. Now our income from one mu of seven- to eight-year-old peonies has exceeded 100,000 yuan, and on average one seven- or eight-year-old tree sells for several hundred yuan. The effect of increasing farmers' income is very good. Moreover, the peony is an industry integrating medicinal, edible, health-care, and ornamental uses and is very characteristic of Lintao. In the future, the peony industry should be built up as one of the main industries for increasing farmers' income."