Shared farms flourish as tranquil retreats

"We do not want to become just a photo opportunity spot," said Jiang, the farm manager. "We want to keep the commercial feel low and let people truly connect with nature."

The farm plans to introduce more education courses for seniors and parent-child activities.

Liu said that shared gardens deserve flexible policy support. He suggested that local governments streamline approval mechanisms, lower entry barriers for idle urban land, encourage social capital to participate in compliant operations, and adopt differentiated regulation.

"For projects that are purely about growing vegetables, give the operators as much freedom as possible to run things on their own," said Liu.

"For projects that have a few simple leisure facilities, local authorities can set clear construction standards to guide the development. For projects that extend into tourism, strictly control how much land they use and how big they build to protect the land."

The social benefits are considerable, said Liu.

"For seniors, farming brings back rural memories, supports health and leisure, and enriches their later years. For younger people, it is a way to spend time with family and return to a slower pace of life. For children, it is an outdoor classroom to have labor education, nature education and cultural education all rolled into one."

All three groups together, he added, help bridge the generation gap in cities, strengthen family traditions, and revive the culture of farming and learning.

Sun Qi contributed to the story.