The fruit of prosperity

The life of Yao Zhengguo, a resident of Yueshi village in northern Shanghai's Baoshan district, has been significantly improved by his gourd plantation.

Yao, who started growing gourds at the age of 37 when he was diagnosed with congenital heart disease, started with a humble plot of land and has since expanded it into a 2,000-square-meter garden that is popular with families during the summer.

The elderly man, who learned how to plant and process the gourds himself, grows hand-twisted, Asian waist, camouflage, long-handled, crane-headed, and apple gourds.

"In Chinese culture, gourds, or 'hu lu' in Chinese, sounds similar to the Chinese characters 'fu', which means good fortune, and 'lu', which means wealth. My colleagues suggested that I grow gourds because it had an auspicious meaning for my health," Yao said.