Villagers Grow Vegetables and Cleverly "Play the Time-Difference Card" to Get Rich

For many years, villagers in Huanling Subdistrict, Gongzhuling City, have relied on greenhouses to cleverly "play the time-difference card" and make the most of development opportunities, finding a path to prosperity through large-scale development and specialized cultivation.

Li Cuiping said that several years ago, her family contracted to build 4 greenhouses here, and at first they simply grew cucumbers and tomatoes. Because the vegetables grown in the greenhouses were not treated with chemical fertilizers or pesticides and counted as green, organic, pollution-free food, these vegetables were always in high demand on the market, and her family's income rose along with it.

Relying on a spirit of hard work and endurance and on growing experience gained through constant experimentation, Li Cuiping kept expanding her vegetable planting area. With a little savings accumulated, she began boldly trying new things. In February 2012, under the guidance of professional technicians, she planted 2000 fruit trees in two of the greenhouses, introducing saplings of nectarine, grape, cherry and other fruit trees. Li Cuiping did the math: of the 1000 nectarine trees she planted, this year was the first year of peach production, and each peach tree could keep only about 4 kg of fruit, with each peach tree bringing in 50 yuan, so nectarines alone could bring in 50,000 yuan.

Because winter and spring weather in the north is cold, using solar greenhouses to grow fruits such as nectarines, grapes and cherries brings them to market several months earlier, but the price is several times higher than that of open-field fruit. Farmers have to "play the time-difference card" to earn more money.

In Huoju Village and Kaoshan Village of Huanling Subdistrict, Gongzhuling City, farming households that build plastic sheds and grow vegetables like Li Cuiping are everywhere. They operate more than 100 solar greenhouses and have become wealthy by "playing the time-difference card."