Wushan crispy plums in Chongqing become a cash crop for villagers, with annual output value to reach 500 million in 3 years

Right now, Wushan crispy plums are coming onto the market in large quantities.

“Growing peaches is not as good as growing plums; crispy plums have economic value.” By growing crispy plums, an ordinary villager household in Wushan County, Chongqing, can earn an annual income of more than 100,000 yuan. The reporter learned that the county's crispy plum industry will reach 200,000 mu of planting this year, and strive to achieve an annual output value of more than 500 million yuan through 2 to 3 years of effort.

Right now is the season when Wushan crispy plums come onto the market. In the streets and alleys of Wushan County, villagers selling crispy plums are calling out everywhere.

“Growing peaches is not as good as growing plums; crispy plums have economic value.” A saying circulates locally, meaning that growing small fruits such as peaches and apricots is not as worthwhile as growing crispy plums. “A jin of peaches can only sell for about 5 yuan, while crispy plums can sell for more than 10 yuan.” Villager Peng Degui relies on growing crispy plums and can earn more than 100,000 yuan in a single year.

Wushan crispy plums are large, brightly colored, thin-skinned, crisp-fleshed, juicy and sweet. They have won the title of “Famous Chinese Fruit,” and Wushan has been awarded the title of “Hometown of Chinese Crispy Plums.” “Wushan Crispy Plum” has also been registered as a geographical indication trademark with the Trademark Office of the State Administration for Industry and Commerce, formally entering the national market and becoming a cash crop for villagers.

In recent years, the Wushan County Party Committee and County Government have taken ecological development as the foundation of the county, adhered to “protection across the board, development at specific points,” relied on key forestry projects such as returning farmland to forest, vigorously developed forestry for people's livelihoods, and formed a new pattern of simultaneous development of multiple characteristic industries with “Wushan Crispy Plum” as the main one and “1+3” industries, and through the integration of forestry and tourism and the interaction of agriculture and forestry, has embarked on a path of green development relying on forestry for poverty alleviation.

Large-scale planting, standardized management, branded marketing, chain-based development and multi-dimensional safeguards. After years of development, Wushan County has summarized much successful experience in Wushan crispy plum planting. Following the principles of “adapting measures to local conditions, planting trees where suitable, and giving priority to distinctive products,” the county takes the areas along the Yangtze River and the Daning River as demonstration lines, focuses on enterprises and large growers, guides farming households to participate fully, and has developed 88,000 mu of Wushan crispy plums, of which 35,000 mu have entered the full-production period, with an output of 20,000 tons and an annual output value of 250 million yuan.

Because crispy plum cultivation techniques are relatively simple, compared with fruits such as citrus, pest and disease control and variety assurance are both very easy. At the same time, Wushan County has also carried out school-local cooperation with Southwest University, implementing targeted training and the Wushan crispy plum selection and purification project, strongly promoting the upgrading and replacement of Wushan crispy plum quality, and fully implementing scientific management.

Grafting and raising seedlings in March, planting in autumn and winter, and fruit can be borne within 3 years. In Futian Town and Guandu Town of Wushan County, in nearly 1,000 mu of crispy plum seedling bases, more than 6 million seedlings are waiting to be transplanted in the second half of this year.

As the heart of the Three Gorges of the Yangtze River and the eastern gateway of Chongqing, Wushan County has developed the crispy plum industry into an industry that can both green barren hills and protect the ecological environment on both banks of the Yangtze River, while also enabling villagers to become wealthy and increase income. This is mainly due to unswervingly following the path of ecological conservation and development. According to reports, the development goal of Wushan County's crispy plum industry is to achieve 200,000 mu of planting this year, and strive through 2—3 years of effort to make the industry's annual output value reach more than 500 million yuan, truly becoming an agricultural specialty product that is well known and firmly established nationwide.