Post-80s rich second generation refuses to live off parents, stubbornly persists in being a fruit farmer
Unlike many people engaged in agricultural projects, Wang Bo, the "owner" of Jingxiu Dadi Ecological Farm, is a "willful" member of the post-80s generation. To borrow a trendy saying: he could have lived a carefree life relying on his old man, yet he chose instead to become a "muddy-legged" farmer.
From the very beginning of entering this industry, many people concluded he wouldn't "play" at it for long. Now, 4 years have passed, and the traces of wind and frost are all over this young man's face, giving a powerful response to those who doubted him.
"Stubborn" post-80s refuses to inherit father's business, goes solo in agriculture --
Growing dragon fruit: 200,000 yuan tuition to get started and learn a lesson
In the bright spring of April, standing on the cement road of Songlin Village, Yuxian Town, Caidian, one's eyes are filled with vegetables, fruits and flowers, and the air carries a sweet fruity fragrance. Row upon row of farm buildings are neatly planned and well-arranged. This is what Jingxiu Dadi Ecological Farm looks like now. Four years ago, this place was still a stretch of wasteland by the lake, overgrown with weeds.
In fact, Wang Bo had a family business behind him, and his father's company was even a leading enterprise in Hubei's industry. Taking over from his father would have given him a much higher starting point than ordinary people. But after graduating from university, he tried to forge his own path. He sold houses, did internet work, did marketing, and even worked in a government department. "Later, when I came into contact with agricultural picking orchards, I felt this industry had great potential, so I decided to start from this field." Regarding his son "farming," his open-minded father chose tacit approval. "Some preferences are innate. After doing many things, I found that I love the land and love agriculture most." Wang Bo told reporters. To this end, he acquired 1500 mu of land in Caidian and began building his own farm.
Five or six years ago, he discovered that dragon fruit sold very well in the Wuhan market, and compared with local fruits such as oranges and peaches, its economic benefits were much higher. He learned that normally one mu of land can yield up to 2000 kg of dragon fruit. So Wang Bo decided to grow dragon fruit.
In 2011, he invested more than 200,000 yuan to test the waters, introducing red-fleshed dragon fruit from Shandong. "Dragon fruit is a tropical and subtropical fruit. I thought at the time that Shandong's winter temperature is much lower than Wuhan's, so if it can grow in Shandong, logically it should also grow in Wuhan." To keep the seedlings warm, Wang Bo covered them with 4 layers of insulation film. But when they were supposed to mature at the end of the year, he found that after spending more than half a year of effort, not a single dragon fruit had been produced.
Aside from his frustration, an expert who knew the field told him that the reason dragon fruit could grow in Shandong was that although Shandong's winters are cold, the sunshine duration is long, while Wuhan's temperature is slightly higher, but once it rains there are many consecutive overcast days, affecting the plants' growth. To grow them well in Wuhan, technical measures had to be taken to supplement light and control temperature.
After this setback, Wang Bo began to cram on fruit-growing techniques and invited agricultural experts to oversee things.
Not only selling fruit, but also selling services and health --
Four-season picking tourism and leisure farm takes shape
In recent years, picking tours have become a popular item in Jiangcheng's tourism industry, but farmers' picking operations often have a single variety, making it difficult to form a clustering effect. "Why not build a sightseeing and leisure farm with multiple fruits and vegetables for picking, integrating dining and entertainment?" Following this line of thinking, with the technical support of agricultural experts, starting in 2012, Wang Bo successively introduced nearly 100 kinds of fruit on his farm, with 11 varieties of grapes alone; peaches including flat peaches, honey peaches, and yellow peaches; pomegranates divided into soft-seeded pomegranates and black-seeded pomegranates; pears including Cuiguan pears and Wonhwang pears, etc. He also ensured that there were more than two kinds of fruit available for tourists to pick every month. For example, strawberries and winter jujubes mature in November, and after strawberries are out of season in April of the following year, there are watermelons, mulberries, cherries, etc.; peaches mature in June, grapes mature in July, and after grapes are out of season in October, figs and pomegranates mature one after another.
Just as he had envisioned, the clustering effect of rich varieties brings tens of thousands of visitors to his farm every year.
In 2014, in addition to fruit and vegetable picking, Wang Bo began to take the route of a sightseeing tourism and leisure farm, adding multiple amusement facilities so that tourists could stay longer after arriving. In 2015, the farm received 80,000 tourists for the whole year. "At present, the farm is still just a picking base. In the future, it should develop in the direction of a scenic area. Building the largest sightseeing and leisure agricultural picking orchard in Central China is my ultimate goal." Wang Bo said confidently, "Although we receive tens of thousands of tourists a year and many people praise my fruit as delicious, I am still selling fruit this way. What I want to do is take the path of sustainable development, not simply selling fruit, but also selling services, selling health, and selling the brand."