Qihe farmers earn more income from growing profitable plants

A farmer shows off the Chinese yam. [Photo by Liu Lei for chinadaily.com.cn]

With the weather getting warmer, farmers of Renliji town in Qihe county, Shandong province have been busy planting Chinese yam.

Local farmer Gao Fei has grown over 200 mu (13.33 hectares) of Chinese yam this year, and last year he had an abundant harvest, with the yield per mu reaching about 5,000 kilograms.

One mu of land can grow over 40,000 Chinese yam seedlings, while the average profit per mu exceeds 20,000 yuan ($3,000), about 10 times higher than grains, Gao noted.

In recent years, Renliji town has been revamping its agricultural system to grow more profitable plants such as Chinese yam and burdock, which has effectively increased local farmers' incomes.

The average yield of Chinese yam per mu in the town has exceeded 4,000 kg, while the net income per mu has reached 20,000 yuan, which is expected to increase the collective income of local farmers by over 100,000 yuan per year. Over 300 local farmers have found jobs related to Chinese yam planting. (Edited by Gong Jun)