Cherry cultivation boosts farmers' incomes, small cherries bear fruit of prosperity
Villagers of Yanshan Village, Xiaba Town, Wudang District, shake off poverty and grow rich by developing the cherry industry.
Every May, when the cherries ripen, in Yanshan Village, Xiaba Town, Wudang District, red cherries hang all over the hillsides, farmers are busy without pause, visitors come in an endless stream, and the village road is packed with traffic...
For Song Zhaoping, a villager from the Guaizha villager group of Yanshan Village, although this year's continuous rainy weather reduced the cherry yield, the income was still considerable.
In the cherry orchard, 50-year-old Song Zhaoping is still busy without pause. "In the past, growing corn brought in only a few thousand yuan a year, just enough to make ends meet. Now with cherries, the income is much higher and life is far better than before." Song Zhaoping's family already has 13 mu of cherries planted, and in the best year they sold 80,000 yuan worth.
In the past, the villagers here all made a living from traditional farming, growing corn and vegetables and depending on the weather. Now, almost every household in Yanshan Village grows cherries. "At present, Yanshan Village has planted more than 3,000 mu of cherries, with an annual output of about 60,000 kg and an output value of 1.2 million yuan," said Wang Chao, Party secretary of Yanshan Village. Yanshan Village has become the core area of cherry cultivation in Wudang District.
In 2003, in order to solve the local poverty and backwardness, Wudang District sent agricultural technicians to Yanshan Village. After on-site surveys of the soil and climate conditions, they concluded that the area was suitable for growing fruit trees, so they introduced 500 mu of Black Pearl cherry saplings, distributed them free to villagers and guided trial planting. From then on, the cherry industry grew stronger year by year and became the main pillar industry for local villagers' economic development.
Xiaba thus became a famous "home of cherries" far and wide. At present, the cherry planting area in Xiaba Town has reached more than 35,000 mu. In 2015, more than 15,000 mu were in full production, with an annual output of more than 4,500 tons and an annual output value of more than 124 million yuan. Per capita income also rose from 2,000 yuan at the time to nearly 20,000 yuan now.
To solve the problem of a single product, Xiaba Town explored planting more than 4,000 mu of Qingcui plums and Cuihong plums to cultivate new branded fruits. Today, in addition to cherries, characteristic fruits such as Qingcui plums, Cuihong plums, bayberry, Yanhong peaches, passion fruit and fruit-type tomatoes continue to grow and expand, gradually forming a fruit base with the Xiaba brand effect.
With the rapid development of characteristic agriculture and the growing reputation of the brand, Xiaba Town actively cultivates new types of agricultural business entities, vigorously develops rural tourism, beautiful countryside construction and rural e-commerce, and promotes the integrated development of industry and poverty alleviation.
Long Yong, the owner of a farmhouse restaurant, is one of the beneficiaries. The good ecological environment, plus the many tourists who come to Xiaba every year to pick cherries, has brought booming rural tourism to Xiaba. In 2012, Long Yong, who had always worked away from home, spotted this business opportunity, quit his job and returned to the village, took out a loan and opened the largest farmhouse restaurant in the whole town. Unexpectedly, this decision truly set Long Yong on the road to prosperity. "Our farmhouse restaurant earns about 1 million yuan a year from food, about 60,000 yuan from lodging and about 40,000 yuan from selling local specialties on commission. After deducting costs, the net profit can reach 300,000 yuan." This is an account Long Yong has calculated.
Today, more and more villagers in Xiaba Town are making a living from the "ecological economy." While protecting its green mountains and clear waters, Xiaba Town has embarked on a uniquely characteristic road to prosperity.