Xiyuan Farming Combat Camp: One Thing I Can Do for Agriculture

Yuli is located at the southern tip of Hualien County, and the origin of its name is disputed. One account holds that the Xiuguluan River runs through the area, and when strong winds whip up the sand from the riverbed, everything turns white and hazy, giving the place its name through a Bunun transliteration. As early as the Japanese colonial period, the thriving local industries here were stone, timber, sugar, and tobacco, and the famous Yuli noodles became a specialty of the town, growing along with the timber industry. During the golden age of logging, workers would gather at the foot of the mountains after their shifts, and ordinary minced pork noodles could not provide enough calories, so the locals developed a version using sliced lean pork instead of minced pork. The noodles are also produced exclusively by a local noodle factory; the fine noodles paired with broth of distinct flavors from each shop mean each has its own territory.

Following the tail end of the cold snap, Xiyuan Wheat held the Xiyuan Farming Battle Camp from 1/18 to 1/20. The highly changeable climate has kept the soybeans from reaching the growth height needed for mechanical harvesting, so friends from all over the island were called together to come to the dusty little town of Yuli in Hualien and become farming helpers!

Zeng Guoqi, at the age of 27, returned home by chance and took over the organic agriculture operation from his father. "This is a hard road, don't jump in lightly!" Even as he said this, Brother Zeng's face was covered with smiles. Changwen, a farming friend at the farm, also said: "That's life, isn't it? Every day you find one thing you like to do, and then you'll be happy. When I'm in the fields, I talk to the crops too, and sometimes I even threaten them that if they don't grow faster, I won't give them any water!" Laughing heartily, he went back to feeling his way through the field.