Jingning: For some villagers in east China's mountainous Jingning She Autonomous County, each tiny potted plant could be a green coin jingling toward a richer tomorrow. Established in 1984, Jingning in Zhejiang Province is China's sole autonomous county of the She ethnic group. The county is characterized by its 779 peaks over 1,000 meters high, with scattered, sparsely populated villages, predominantly inhabited by the elderly.
According to Namibia Press Agency, Wu Yong, a graduate of Wenzhou University with a degree in Apparel Design, returned to his hometown, Shenyang Village, Jingning, to revolutionize local agriculture. He introduced succulent planting to the villagers, hosting around 50 free training sessions annually and distributing succulents to raise awareness and build beautiful villages. This initiative has attracted tourists, thereby increasing the villagers' income through succulent sales.
Wu's venture into succulent and flower business began in 2009 when succulents were unknown to the villagers. Despite challenges in climate, terrain, and transport, Wu collaborated with experts from the Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences to innovate planting methods. Today, he manages Zhejiang's largest succulent base, spanning about 4.13 hectares with over 400 varieties. Last year's turnover exceeded 16 million yuan (about 2.24 million U.S. dollars).
Wu has expanded his business to include agritourism and bespoke gardens, developing various succulent-based foods like cakes and cookies. His succulent food store's popularity has even sparked interest in franchise opportunities from visitors. Wu's company also serves as an education and entrepreneurship hub, encouraging villagers to pursue their own succulent businesses.
Encouraged by Wu, many villagers have embraced succulent cultivation, with some growing up to twenty thousand plants. Wu's company assists in selling any surplus plants, ensuring villagers benefit from the enterprise.
In another part of Jingning, the town of Maoyang has turned moss, once seen as a weed, into a profitable venture. With its ideal conditions for moss cultivation, Maoyang has developed a niche industry selling moss-related products like potted plants and cultural items, including moss paintings.
To integrate environmental protection with profit, Maoyang has implemented moss-fish and moss-rice systems, where fish shelter in the moss and their waste nourishes it. Pan Dexiang, Party chief of Maoyang's Shayang Village, noted that villagers initially doubted the profitability of moss. However, workshops teaching moss cultivation techniques have proven successful, generating an additional million yuan last year and creating jobs for over 200 villagers.
Pan envisions further economic growth through a large automated moss seedling base, aimed at developing various products and promoting research to expand local dividends.