Wu Zhengquan, a returning migrant worker from Chayuan Town, Jinsha County, leads farmers to prosperity through science
Wu Zhengquan introduces the basic situation of the base to reporters.
“A golden nest or a silver nest is not as good as one's own earthen nest at home.” During more than 20 years of working away from home, Wu Zhengquan always had his heart set on every plant and tree of his hometown, determined to return home to build his own career, promote the development of his hometown, and help more local people get onto the path to prosperity.
Wu Zhengquan, male, Han ethnicity, born in December 1973, lives in Heping Group, Shizhong Village, Chayuan Town, Jinsha County. He is currently general manager of Jinsha Xinshun Agricultural Development Co., Ltd. and honorary village director of Shizhong Village, Chayuan Town.
Before even graduating from junior high school, Wu Zhengquan went out to work and start businesses in Fujian, Guangdong and other places, successively involved in foreign trade operations, leather processing, cosmetics sales and many other industries, accumulating a certain amount of capital and management experience. On ordinary days, whenever he had spare time, he would follow his hometown's development through the internet, television and other media, with the aim of seizing favorable policy opportunities and returning home to lead local people in common development and prosperity. On one occasion, he learned through the internet that Guizhou was vigorously developing efficient mountain agriculture and had issued a series of preferential policies on agricultural industrial structure adjustment, and he secretly resolved to return home and start a business. Taking advantage of the Spring Festival opportunity to go home for the New Year, he attended the “New Spring Tea Gathering for Returning People” organized by Chayuan Town, and gained a further understanding of Chayuan Town's industrial development plan and Jinsha County's various policies and measures encouraging returning migrant workers to start businesses. In 2013, after a period of visits and investigations, he arranged his Guangzhou business affairs properly and resolutely returned home to start a business, registering and establishing Jinsha Xinshun Agricultural Development Co., Ltd.
“As long as you set your goal clearly, can endure hardship, and have perseverance, there is nothing you cannot accomplish.” This is the experience Wu Zhengquan summed up over more than 20 years of struggle, and it is also the creed he has always followed in life.
Wu Zhengquan is inspecting the growth of the peonies.
Traditional agricultural planting can no longer meet the needs of modern agricultural development; only efficient, ecological and high-quality mountain agriculture can change the model of traditional agricultural development. The company was established, but what should it develop? This was the first major problem facing Wu Zhengquan. With his childhood love and admiration for peonies, as well as his experience in operating peony-derived products, he discovered that peonies could not only “be admired for their beauty” but also “bring prosperity to the people.” So he invited experts to successively inspect China's peony development in Heze, Shandong; Luoyang, Henan; Tongling, Anhui; Baishan, Hebei; and Hanzhong, Shaanxi, and through introduction experiments finally selected two oil peony varieties with commercial oil development value from Heze, Shandong - Fengdan and Ziban - for planting development.
Once the development direction and varieties were determined, how should the site be selected? He spent about 2 months traveling all over the mountains and rivers of Chayuan Town, initially selecting 3 points, then invited experts to conduct comprehensive testing and analysis of the soil, climate, water sources and other factors at the 3 points, and ultimately selected Maolipo in Shizhong Village, Chayuan Town as the core area of the peony planting base. The base has a planned area of 8 square kilometers and planned land use of 16 square kilometers. It focuses mainly on the cultivation of improved oil (medicinal) peony varieties and deep processing, supplemented by leisure sightseeing, tourism and vacation functions, and is a distinctive Chinese medicinal herb industry demonstration base integrating production and scientific research, science popularization and training, leisure and entertainment, environmental protection and other multifunctions, with planned investment of 380 million yuan.
At present, construction of the base has started, and it was fully completed and put into production in 2017, adopting the “company + base + farmers” development model. With the strong coordination and help of the town Party committee (government) and the village Party branch and village committee, 5000 mu of land have been transferred, 3500 mu of peonies have been planted, an office building of 500 sq m has been built, a square of 2500 sq m, 29.2 km of machine farming roads, 58.4 km of production paths, 29.2 km of main canals, 58.4 km of branch canals, 73 water storage pools of 30 m3, and 2 pumping irrigation stations (1 station irrigating 2500 mu). In order to solve technical problems in the planting process and reduce losses and farmers' worries, the company successively signed technical cooperation agreements with the Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences. The formerly bare Maolipo, under Wu Zhengquan's careful cultivation, whenever the spring breeze arrives in March, is filled with peonies blooming competitively throughout the base, flowers covering the ground, fragrance filling the air, and a scene full of vitality.
At present, the base has more than 60 employees and 12 management personnel, and at peak times can help more than 50 households and more than 200 people increase income and become prosperous. With his own hard work and selfless striving spirit, Wu Zhengquan has reaped abundant fruits, won the praise and favorable comments of the masses, and also gained the recognition of higher-level leaders. In December 2013, the company was awarded the title of key leading enterprise in agricultural industrialization operation in Bijie City; in 2014 it was listed by the Guizhou Provincial People's Government as one of the province's 100 efficient agriculture demonstration parks.
Wu Zhengquan told reporters that next they will continue to increase investment in base construction, build 1 fine processing base of 4000 square meters, and build 8 supporting ancillary facilities including an agricultural sightseeing experience center, a comprehensive service center, an oil (medicinal) peony research and development center, a peony planting germplasm nursery, an oil (medicinal) peony improved variety breeding center, and a peony garden hotel. After the base is fully completed, it is expected to produce 7.8 million high-quality oil (medicinal) peony seedlings annually, with an annual output of 7460 tons of oil (medicinal) peony seeds, 12,920 tons of peony petals, 1615 kg of peony essential oil, 100 tons of peony seed oil, and 14,500 tons of other Chinese medicinal herbs; annual tourist reception is expected to reach about 400,000 person-times. Each year it can achieve a total output value of 604.0432 million yuan and create profits of 185.6029 million yuan. It will provide employment for more than a thousand people, directly driving more than 500 households in the core area to increase income by an average of 20,000 yuan per household and 5,000 yuan per capita, while farmers in the expansion area will increase income by 3,000 yuan per capita.