Lao Wang Seizes the Business Opportunity of Growing Pear Seedlings and Finds a Path to Wealth
Recently, the ten thousand pear seedlings cultivated by Wang Xuebao sold out in a rush, and he made a tidy profit.
Wang Xuebao, now 65 years old, lives in Wangzhuang Village, Yangyi Township, Ningling County. He originally worked at a township civil affairs office and retired in 2011. To pass the time, he cleared the cogongrass roots and weeds from a piece of more than 1 mu of poor sandy wasteland behind the village, leveled it, bought pear rootstock seeds, and started growing pear seedlings. At the time, his family advised him that cultivating pear seedlings takes a long cycle: the rootstock seeds need one year to sprout and grow, and after grafting the pear buds, another three years of growth are needed before they become strong seedlings ready for sale. But Lao Wang said, our county is a major crisp pear-producing county, and Jinding Xiahua crisp pears now sell for 4 yuan per kilogram. The whole county is still stepping up its development of crisp pear production, so this business opportunity must not be missed.
Growing pear seedlings is also very hard work. Watering, weeding, fertilizing, and spraying pesticides kept Lao Wang busy all day long. But he felt that with a goal and work to do, life was fulfilling. After the seedlings had been in the ground for a year, it was time to graft, so Lao Wang invited two technicians to help. He also learned grafting techniques from them. Every day he squatted down to do the grafting work. The intense and heavy labor made his back ache and his legs hurt, but he still persevered and finally completed all the grafting work on the seedlings.
The pear seedlings were successfully grafted and gradually grew taller. Lao Wang simply set up a tin shed in the nursery, moved in a small bed, set up a stove, and camped out there. He worked tirelessly in the nursery, watching over the pear seedlings as they grew taller and thicker day by day. By this deep winter, the township, in order to help farmers shake off poverty and become rich as soon as possible, called on farmers to plant pear trees. As a result, the pear seedlings cultivated by Lao Wang became popular and sold out at 10 yuan per plant.
No pain, no gain. The day before yesterday, Wang Xuebao counted on his fingers: these more than 10,000 pear seedlings actually sold for more than 100,000 yuan. After deducting production and operating costs, there was still a profit of 80,000 yuan. He said happily, "Four years of hard work was worth it. I am also planning to buy some more pear rootstock seeds and lead my fellow villagers to continue growing pear seedlings together. While increasing income, it also supports the county's crisp pear production."