Optimizing orchards

Lushui's Laowo village is capitalizing on its long history of growing citrons and oranges.

Companies and experts have helped the settlement develop an advanced system to produce fruit more effectively and sustainably.

The e-commerce platform Pinduoduo gave the village 2.25 million yuan ($332,000) in financial aid and established the Duoduo Orchard in Laowo.

The village's 132 households registered as living below the poverty line formed a cooperative and became its shareholders. Today, 685 households benefit from the orchard.

Early in 2019, Yunnan Academy of Agricultural Sciences expert Li Jinxue, who specializes in tropical and subtropical crops, was assigned to assist Laowo alleviate poverty.

He innovated upon the traditional planting methods by breeding improved species and using relay cropping. He also introduced high-tech equipment, such as agricultural drones and drip irrigation.

"We should allow relatively underdeveloped areas to enjoy the benefits of advanced technology," Li says.

"The most stable and productive way is to develop advanced green agriculture. Quality crops can generate over 10,000 yuan per mu (1/15th of a hectare) per season," Li says.

Laowo native Zhang Lirong returned in 2015, after leaving for education and work.

"We have a small patch of land. So, I thought I could try growing citrons. But our skills were insufficient, and the harvest was poor. This orchard is much more advanced," he says.

"The drones can identify and locate diseased plants. And the drip-irrigation system is linked to a mobile app. We can water the fields with a few taps of our phones, even when we're sitting at home. It saves time and water."