Courtyard economy helps farmers increase income, small courtyards hold up a piece of sky
Yu Zaohua is from Zhonglian Village, Jiukeng Township, Chun'an County, Zhejiang. She owns more than 100 mu of high-quality, high-yield, efficient and ecological citrus orchard, producing 160,000 jin of oranges with an output value of 126,000 yuan; 20 mu of chestnuts produce more than 3,000 jin of chestnuts with an output value of 3,600 yuan, and 20 mu of raspberry seeds bring in 3,000 yuan; 10 mu of mulberry garden raises 15 sheets of silkworms with an output value of 18,000 yuan. According to statistics, the annual output value can reach 150,000 yuan and the net profit 100,000 yuan. She has become a well-known local leader in the courtyard economy.
In 1999, the local government called on farmers for the first time to plant fruit on a large scale. However, due to poor transportation at the time, one had to take a passenger boat to go to the county seat. Blocked transportation and poor access to information led to relatively backward thinking among farmers, who were doubtful about developing the courtyard economy and were not enthusiastic about planting. After careful consideration, and amid well-meaning discouragement from relatives and friends, Yu Zaohua obtained the development and management rights to 300 mu of barren mountain of the Jiaochi Chemical Plant for 30 years, paid 18,800 yuan in rent, and signed a 30-year barren mountain transfer contract.
Facing the barren mountain overgrown with weeds, Yu Zaohua tested and analyzed the soil pH, terrain and landforms, and then sketched out the blueprint in her mind: plant citrus on the lakeside slopes, plant mulberry gardens on the flatter plots, and develop chestnuts, hickory nuts and raspberry seeds on slopes above 25 degrees, achieving a combination of long-term and short-term crops, supporting the long-term with the short-term, and developing year by year. So she and her husband worked from dawn to dusk clearing the mountain and preparing the land, reclaiming the barren mountain. Yu Zaohua, who had a junior high school education, deeply understood that in today's world where science and technology are increasingly prevalent, enthusiasm and hard work alone are far from enough. The cultivation of fruit trees, mulberry gardens and Chinese medicinal herbs cannot do without science and technology. Therefore, on the basis of her existing knowledge of fruit tree, mulberry garden and Chinese medicinal herb planting, she subscribed to a large number of popular science books on fruit trees, mulberry gardens and Chinese medicinal herbs, and began to study hard, work practically and explore. During the day she was "soaked" in the base, and at night she read by lamplight. Where she did not understand, she called the science and technology personnel in the county and township and humbly asked for advice.
Through the unremitting efforts of the couple and the strong support of the local government, Yu Zaohua worked from before dawn until after dark for a period, and finally prepared more than 300 mu of barren mountain according to the requirements of a pollution-free standardized demonstration base, and screened and introduced the planting of many high-quality, high-yield and efficient cash crops such as citrus, chestnuts, raspberry seeds and mulberry trees. During the cultivation period, Yu Zaohua carried out green, pollution-free cultivation, fertilization, pest and disease control, scientific flower and fruit thinning, and scientific shaping and pruning of the seedlings of the economic forest, ensuring the ecological, environmentally friendly and pollution-free quality of the fruit. Under Yu Zaohua's careful cultivation, the large economic forest grew gratifyingly and became a pollution-free standardized demonstration base in Jiukeng Township. As transportation conditions continued to improve, Yu Zaohua was full of confidence: to popularize and promote courtyard economy production technology, and let the women of the whole village and even the whole township jointly hold up this piece of sky of the courtyard economy...
In 2002, Yu Zaohua's economic forest began to yield benefits, and the first-class quality citrus and chestnuts came on the market one after another, with an output value of 5,000 yuan, which brought Yu Zaohua the joy of harvest. In 2004 the output value reached 30,000 yuan, in 2005 it reached 60,000 yuan, and in 2006 it broke through the 150,000 yuan mark. Over the years, in the planting of the economic forest, through her own arduous exploration and through the method of combining "going out" and "bringing in", Yu Zaohua accumulated rich experience and summarized the scientific and technological awareness that must be established in developing courtyard economy production. Yu Zaohua used science and technology to pave a road to prosperity, and her annual income increased at a doubling rate. Farmers and fellow villagers from near and far came one after another to observe and learn...
"When you drink water, do not forget the one who dug the well." It is the policies of the Party and the government that have given Yu Zaohua her present affluent and joyful life. After becoming rich, Yu Zaohua did not forget the villagers. She always thought about how to repay society and help other people in difficulty. Influenced by her, some people saw hope, and their enthusiasm for developing the courtyard economy gradually increased. She enthusiastically helped and led the villagers in her village and the villagers in surrounding villages, and worked with them to become rich together. In order to promote planting technology, as a typical household she taught villagers hand in hand the planting knowledge, techniques and experience of cash crops. Under her guidance and influence, the people in the village and township also gradually changed their ideas and began to develop the courtyard economy, thus setting off an upsurge of valuing fruit and promoting mulberry production throughout the township.