Strawberry Farming Sets Zhang Lisheng on the Road to Prosperity
On April 3, when I met Zhang Lisheng, he and his wife were busy in the strawberry field. The 55-year-old Zhang Lisheng was once a laid-off worker from the Aksu City Sugar, Tobacco and Liquor Company. He later contracted land in Kezile Town, Wensu County and planted 300 mu of red dates, which not only failed to generate income but also cost him a good deal of his savings from over the years. This was a real headache for Zhang Lisheng, a man of unyielding character from Donggang, Liaoning Province.
In the winter of 2014, while home visiting relatives, Zhang Lisheng happened to see the business opportunity in small strawberries through a friend, and discovered that growing strawberries was a good money-making project.
In 2015, Zhang Lisheng contracted 4 greenhouses in Kezile Town and decided to first trial-plant strawberries in 2 of them. He introduced 10,000 strawberry seedlings of two varieties, "Hongyan" and "Zhangji", from his hometown of Donggang, Liaoning. In order to make the strawberries grow large and sweet, Zhang Lisheng, who knew nothing about the technology, applied an enormous amount of farmyard manure to the greenhouses, which burned all the strawberry roots and leaves to death, and that year's strawberry planting ended in failure. Having learned from this first failure, in 2016 Zhang Lisheng hired professional technicians from inland China to provide guidance. To build a good reputation, he resolved not to use pesticides or chemical fertilizers and to grow purely natural, pollution-free strawberries, and he specifically used insect-proof nets.
"Today I brought my family to pick strawberries. We play while we pick, which not only lets the child get close to nature but also broadens his horizons." Hao Chunying, 55, lives in Aksu City, less than an hour's drive from the strawberry field. Accompanied by her daughter, she made a special trip for a spontaneous short outing. She said that getting out and about not only puts her in a good mood but also makes her feel much more relaxed.
"The strawberry-picking price in Aksu is second only to Beijing, and it is especially popular with local tourists. The picking price is now 100 yuan/kg. On ordinary days the greenhouse receives as few as 10-plus visitors and as many as 60-plus, and on the best day it can bring in more than 5,000 yuan." A delighted smile appeared on Zhang Lisheng's face. He said that in the first year his greenhouse produced 1.5 tons of strawberries per mu, and the income from strawberry growing alone reached 70,000 yuan.
"Strawberry picking started gradually in mid-March. Up to now, the 2 strawberry greenhouses have received more than 600 visitors and brought in more than 60,000 yuan in income, and this year's yield per mu is expected to reach more than 3 tons." Speaking of this year's strawberries, Zhang Lisheng was full of confidence. He said strawberry picking can last until mid-June, and this year one greenhouse can bring in 150,000 yuan from strawberries, with the 2 greenhouses together bringing in 300,000 yuan.
"While picking strawberries, visitors can also pick 'cherry tomatoes', and we also give visitors pollution-free vegetables grown ourselves. Along the way, visitors can also photograph apricot blossoms and dig alfalfa, dandelions, elm seeds and so on. Food lovers can also taste or buy free-range chickens, pigeons and more here..." Zhang Lisheng explained that for strawberry growing he uses a purely green, organic method, so the berries are not only large and tasty but also sweet on the tongue with a creamy flavor, which the locals call "cream strawberries". The visitors who come to pick include not only locals but also tourists from neighboring counties and cities. Especially on weekends and holidays, the picking volume is three to four times greater than usual, and at peak times the number of visitors can reach 200 to 300 per day. In addition to strawberries, his greenhouses will also open 'cherry tomato' picking, goji berry picking and more, letting visitors eat in the countryside and enjoy themselves in the countryside, attracting large numbers of outside tourists, so there is no worry about sales at all.
With Zhang Lisheng's experience of getting rich, his younger brother and the surrounding villagers, influenced by him, also began trial-planting strawberries. "Getting rich alone doesn't count as getting rich; only when everyone gets rich is it truly getting rich." To help everyone get rich together, Zhang Lisheng also hired 4 poor households from the village to work in his greenhouses, paying them a monthly wage of 3,000 yuan, thus providing jobs for poor households. At the same time, he also became relatives with comrades of ethnic minorities, explaining greenhouse vegetable-growing techniques to them free of charge, and helping the surrounding masses shake off poverty and get rich as early as possible.
Looking at this year's strawberries, Zhang Lisheng felt full of confidence. He decided to continue expanding the strawberry planting area next year, focus on picking, and use some innovative ways and methods and one-stop service to attract more outside tourists.