Strawberry farming boosts incomes and prosperity for farmers in Pu'an Village

Villagers are picking strawberries

Right now, it is the "golden season" for greenhouse strawberries to hit the market. A reporter noticed a small strawberry that is pink with a slight touch of white at a fruit stall. Although it sells for 5 yuan more per jin than red strawberries, it is still hugely popular among residents and in short supply. To find out more, the reporter went to the "home" of the small strawberries - Pu'an Village, Fangmu Town, Xifeng County.

In Pu'an Village, Fangmu Town, rows of neatly arranged greenhouses gleam silver in the spring sunshine. Walking into the strawberry greenhouse of grower Zhang Yongxiao, a fresh fragrance greets the nose. Under the lush green leaves, the pink strawberries are especially eye-catching. Small white flowers faintly "hide" among the green leaves, and a group of small bees fly busily back and forth among the flowers.

"This year's strawberries are selling especially well. One picking can bring in about a thousand or eight hundred yuan. I never expected these little bees to be so capable." While picking strawberries, Zhang Yongxiao said this to his wife, his face beaming with the joy of harvest. In 1994, Zhang Yongxiao began growing greenhouse strawberries. He insisted on using farmyard manure and basically did not use pesticides, so the strawberries he produced were of especially good quality. This year, under the guidance of experts from the County Agricultural Technology Extension Center, Old Zhang "invited" bees into the strawberry greenhouse. Pollination by bees is not only uniform but also saves labor and effort. The fruit-setting rate of the strawberries doubled, and the yield increased by 20 percent. Strawberries pollinated by bees have a beautiful shape, bright color and sweet taste. Their price is one third higher than ordinary strawberries, yet the phone keeps ringing with orders, and he can sell them at a good price without even leaving home.

In Pu'an Village, there are 41 farming households like Zhang Yongxiao who grow green strawberries, and more than 90 sunlight greenhouses have been built. The net income from strawberries in a single greenhouse can reach more than 30,000 yuan.