Organic jujube orchard recruiting fruit-thinning workers at 1,000 a day; the owner is happy to share organic cultivation experience

At the organic jujube orchard in Zhongqi, Kaohsiung, there is a severe labor shortage every year from mid-October to mid-November. During this time the jujubes badly need extra hands to help with fruit thinning; otherwise, if the work is delayed, in serious cases the entire cluster of jujube trees may decline and wither. Ma Qinggong, the owner of the organic farm, says that trees are just like people: if you do not take good care of them, they really will die, and that would be too pitiful!

Every year at this time, Ma Qinggong's organic farm faces the same work and the same problem: the jujube orchard cannot find people to help with fruit thinning, and he always has to look everywhere for workers. Generally, jujube fruit thinning is divided into three stages. When the fruit first sets, the first step is to remove the bad fruit eaten by fruit flies. In the second stage, where a single flower cluster originally has seven or eight fruits, the insect-stung and rotten ones must be picked off until only one remains. In the final stage, three flower clusters will be left with one jujube. Every year from mid-October to mid-November, the excess amount on the trees absolutely must be removed; otherwise the fruit will be too dense, the trees will not grow well, and the later growth of the jujube trees will also be affected.

On ordinary days, Ma Qinggong always goes into the jujube orchard alone a little after six in the morning and does not come out until dark; for him, this is a kind of undisturbed spiritual enjoyment. Looking back to when he first wanted to grow organic jujubes, almost everyone was pessimistic and urged him not to be so "stubborn," but in his heart he always thought that as long as something is right, he must persist in it. "Arrive early or arrive late, you will definitely arrive," he says; this is the law of nature.

Back then, that jujube orchard of a bit more than four fen, Ma Qinggong spent more than three years building up the soil, and today it is already the fifth year; the land has slowly returned to nature. He believes that insisting on the impossible may be called stubbornness in the eyes of the world, but people also often lose themselves in this kind of "caring" from others and instead fail to see the real principle. So once you are clear about what you want and have chosen a direction, you must persist without ever giving up. "Adjust your pace, arrive early or arrive late, you will definitely reach the destination," he says.

Ma Qinggong's organic farm has a total cultivated area of 1.25 hectares, with jujubes taking up four fen, and other crops including guava, lemon, roselle, sweet corn, yellow sweet potato, tomato, papaya and more. He uses an ecological pond to collect rainwater, supplying it to the fields and restoring the environmental ecology. He does not carry out pest and disease control and does not kill living things; with the idea of coexisting with all things in nature, he practices an energy cultivation method that returns to nature, all in order to produce the most original-tasting agricultural products and make the food he produces beneficial to the human body.

In addition, he uses distiller's grains from a pig farm, edamame shells, and discarded agricultural products such as rice and tea seed meal, fermenting them to make his own compost. However, this compost is mainly not for the fruit trees to eat, but rather for growing grass. Ma Qinggong says grass can protect the soil, retain moisture, and maintain the ecology, allowing the growing environment of the fruit trees to form a natural ecosystem; this is following nature. Furthermore, none of Ma Qinggong's farm does pest and disease control; instead, he treats pests and diseases as doctors. "Nature originally does not need spraying or fertilizing; only wild-growing plants will survive better," he says.

Seeking helpers to assist with jujube fruit thinning, 1,000 per day

Starting today, there are still ten days left in the rush work period, and Ma Qinggong is recruiting people who want to help with the organic jujube fruit-thinning work, with a daily wage of 1,000, and no experience is fine; it is expected to be completed in 10 working days. Those who come must wear long sleeves and a hat, need to find their own lodging, and will be provided with a boxed lunch at noon. Finally, for anyone who wants to learn more about organic farming, he is very happy to share knowledge, and recently he also has harvested guava to share with everyone. Those interested can get in touch by phone.

Mobile: 0912710116, Ma Qinggong. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kevin.ma.52?fref=ts

Farmer Ma Qinggong interviewed on television