Lankao sets example for impoverished areas

Folk instruments have helped lift families above poverty line

Fame doesn't always translate into wealth.

Few counties in China are as well-known as Lankao in Henan province. This is thanks to Jiao Yulu, the county's Party chief from 1962 until his death in 1965, who urged locals to plant paulownia - a deciduous tree with large, heart-shaped leaves - to guard against sandstorms and improve soil quality.