Seedling industry drives rural development in Shandong

The seedling industry is prospering in Madian town. [Photo by Meng Lingtong for chinadaily.com.cn]

The seedling industry in Huimin county, in East China's Shandong province, has flourished as its high-quality fruit and vegetable seedlings have reached markets across China.

The Fuzhong Fruit and Vegetable Planting Cooperative in Madian town produces watermelon, melon and other crop seedlings with high survival and disease resistance rates. They're sold for 1.5 yuan ($0.21) per plant nationwide.

"Our seedling growth cycle is about 50 days and we've received orders for 15 million plants this year, twice as many as last year," said Li Chunpeng, a technician at the cooperative.

Huimin county, which has a long tradition of fruit and vegetable planting, used to depend on seedlings that were brought in, resulting in low yields and high risk. To change this, the local government introduced a seedling breeding and propagation integration model.

The cooperative invested more than 10 million yuan to build 15 standard greenhouses and enhance the scale and standardization of the seedling industry. As a result, its annual capacity reached 20 million plants.

More than 70 seedling cooperatives have now been established in Madian town. These produce 200 million plants annually, encouraging 90 percent of the town's farmers to grow fruit and vegetables.

What's more, the planting area has surpassed 90,000 mu (6,000 hectares) and per capita income has risen by over 20,000 yuan. The seedlings are also sold to more than 10 provinces, boosting rural vitalization. (Edited by Fan Yuanyuan)