A farmer in Guangyuan, Sichuan returns home to grow wood ear mushrooms, earning 1 million in 3 years

In the photo, Li Jie is turning wood ear mushroom logs.

In Yanzixiang, Wangcang County, Guangyuan City, Sichuan Province, when people mention "Wood Ear Mushroom Brother," everyone knows who he is: Li Jie, a villager from the local Group 4. This returning migrant worker began learning to cultivate wood ear mushrooms and shiitake mushrooms in 2014, and in 2015 he established a family farm, expanded the planting scale, and reached an annual net profit of more than 600,000 yuan. And this year, Li Jie says he is "striving to earn 1 million."

Unwilling to work for others for a lifetime, he decided to return home and start a business

Li Jie is 41 years old this year and has worked away from home for many years. But deep down, Li Jie had always been unwilling to work for others for a lifetime, thinking that one day he could start his own business, so he kept pondering how to use his hometown's rich forest and land resources to develop a profitable industry project. After investigation and consultation, Li Jie finally made up his mind in February 2014 to focus on developing wood ear mushroom and shiitake mushroom cultivation in his hometown. "At that time I had not yet learned much planting technology, and the income could only cover costs. Later, with the guidance and help of agricultural technicians in Yanzixiang, I mastered more practical planting techniques." Li Jie said that that year he raised 300,000 yuan, rented more than 20 mu of land from surrounding farmers, and planted 10,000 logs of wood ear mushrooms and 118,000 logs of shiitake mushrooms.

In the later process of developing the planting business, Li Jie also learned that the central government had issued policies encouraging and supporting the transfer of contracted land to specialized large households, family farms, and farmers' cooperatives, in order to develop various forms of appropriately scaled operations, so he and his wife discussed and decided to establish their own family farm. "The more I do, the more confident I become, and I am full of confidence in the market prospects for scaled development of specialty planting."

He returned home to grow wood ear mushrooms and says "this year I want to earn 1 million"

In 2015, with the support of relevant departments, Li Jie, as the farm owner, with his parents and wife as the main farm employees, successfully established Wangcang County Yanzizhibo Family Farm and began realizing his dream of a moderately prosperous life in the remote mountain township. From 2014 to now, 28 shiitake mushroom greenhouses have been built one after another. By 2015, Li Jie's farm planting scale had continued to expand, with 15,000 logs of wood ear mushrooms and 120,000 logs of shiitake mushrooms. "Gross income reached 4 million yuan, and net profit has already reached more than 600,000 yuan." Speaking of his earnings from his labor, Li Jie could hardly hide the smile all over his face. He told reporters that the farm currently has 4 regular migrant workers, with a monthly wage of about 2,000 yuan. At the same time, villagers from whom the land is rented are often hired as temporary workers, with a daily labor fee of about 80 yuan. "This year, in addition to planting 15,000 logs of wood ear mushrooms and 200,000 logs of shiitake mushrooms, I will also plant more than 30 mu of the Chinese medicinal herb bletilla, more than 10 mu of Polyporus umbellatus, and 4 mu of Gastrodia elata, striving to reach an income of 1 million yuan."