The "Bletilla striata king" of Yingfeng Town, Shishan County, Shaanxi, attracts a "golden phoenix," driving villagers to prosperity

Bletilla striata flowers look like dancing phoenixes, one after another, very beautiful.

The Bletilla striata seedlings planted just this year have already sprouted new roots, and Xu Qifang now feels confident.

Yingfeng Town, located on the ancient Ziwu Road, is rich in land resources and has well-preserved original natural scenery. Historically it was an important commercial post station, but with the rapid development of modern transportation and information, Yingfeng, which is relatively far from the county seat, gradually became marginalized. How to break the shackles and find a way out for development? The beautiful woman born in the 1970s in Wutong Village of this town dared to think and act, investing nearly a million to develop Bletilla striata and other Chinese medicinal herb industries, taking the counterattack path from urban elite to rural mud-legged farmer.

Bletilla striata is an expensive and precious Chinese medicinal herb. Wild resources are extremely scarce, and artificial propagation has only recently entered the exploratory stage in recent years. Because seedlings are relatively expensive and Bletilla striata has high requirements for the growing environment, few people dare to plant it. Xu Qifang previously sold medicines and was extremely optimistic about the market prospects of Bletilla striata.

In 2015, after extensive investigation, Xu Qifang resolutely gave up her comfortable life in the city and returned to her hometown Wutong Village to develop Bletilla striata planting. She successively transferred more than 60 mu of land and invested nearly a million yuan. Under her careful management, the Bletilla striata everywhere grew well.

Because Bletilla striata flowers look very much like dancing phoenixes when in bloom, very beautiful, Xu Qifang often calls her beloved plant the "golden phoenix." In the eyes of the villagers, this little bird who flew out of Wutong Village is more like a "golden phoenix," and now she has flown back.

Why return to Wutong Village for development? Xu Qifang said: "I once walked out of the mountains from here. The mountains and rivers here raised me. Now that I am back, it is not only for my own development. I also want to bring in good projects so that the villagers can get rich together with me." In 2016, driven by Xu Qifang, a total of 6 households in Wutong Village and Sanguanmiao Village were led to plant Bletilla striata, with more than 20 mu of demonstration planting, and more than 40 households in the neighboring Xinzhuang Village developed Astragalus planting, with more than 80 mu of demonstration planting.

Xu Qifang calculated an economic account for us: Bletilla striata generally can be harvested after 3 years of planting, with a yield of up to 2000 jin per mu. Calculated at the current market price of 60 yuan, the output value per mu can reach 120,000 yuan. The more than 60 mu of Bletilla striata she planted will reach an output value of 8 million yuan. Astragalus planting requires little investment and takes effect quickly. It can be harvested in the same year it is planted, and the output value per mu can reach more than 3,500 yuan, very suitable for poor households to plant.

At present, Xu Qifang has applied for a family farm, registered and established Shiquan Quanfeng Bencao Planting Co., Ltd., and signed product purchase and sales contracts with several pharmaceutical companies. Next, she will begin organizing the Wutong Village Chinese Medicinal Herb Planting Cooperative. She wants to drive more villagers, especially poor households, to prosperity.