In the spring season, Tianshui is vibrant with life and blooming flowers. Across various counties and districts, modern orchards stand in orderly rows, and greenhouses are brimming with vitality. The distinctive planting industry is flourishing, becoming a powerful engine for increasing local incomes and driving comprehensive rural revitalization.
On April 8, Guo Baolin, a grower in Sangzhai Village, Jinji Town, Qingshui County, was busy tending to his apple orchard. Looking at the newly planted saplings, his eyes were full of hope for the future.
"Each plant needs to encourage branch growth; when branches emerge, they are trained horizontally to promote the differentiation of leaf buds into flower buds, which will bear fruit next year," Guo Baolin expertly explained the management techniques for densely planted dwarf apple trees. "Flowers appear in the first year, fruit in the second, and high yields by the third year. These saplings were just planted recently, with integrated water-fertilization and drip irrigation systems to be implemented soon, making management easier and more efficient."
Guo Baolin shared that he previously had a two-acre apple orchard and knew that the soil and climate conditions of Jinjiliang were particularly suitable for apple growth. Since last year, the town has vigorously promoted large-scale, densely planted orchards, further revealing the broad prospects of industrial development to him.
"This year, I planted a total of 18 acres across two varieties: one is 'Master Red Snake,' which requires no bagging and is easy to manage; the other is 'Qin Crisp,' which has excellent taste and belongs to the Fuji series," Guo said with great confidence about the future. "The supports are now set up, and the saplings are planted. With proper fertilization and management in the later stages, they will bear fruit and yield abundantly within two to three years."
Dong Wenzheng, Director of the Jinji Town Public Affairs Service Center, stated that in recent years, the town has consistently focused on improving the quality and efficiency of the apple industry, making it a core pillar for enriching residents and strengthening the town. Currently, the total apple planting area in the town has reached 24,300 acres. Relying on the completed Mamiaoliang Thousand-Acre Dwarf Rootstock Dense Planting Demonstration Base, the plan for this year is to renovate 1,117 acres of old orchards and establish 650 acres of new dwarf rootstock dense planting orchards.
"We are actively introducing high-quality new varieties such as 'Qin Crisp,' 'Rui Xue,' and 'Master Red Snake,' while vigorously promoting new models like dwarf rootstock dense planting and smart integrated water-fertilization management to drive the apple industry toward high quality and efficiency," Dong Wenzheng said. "Currently, 80% of the total task has been completed, and the renovation is expected to be fully finished by the end of April." He added that modern planting methods not only shorten the fruit-bearing cycle but also enhance the quality of the fruit, truly turning small apples into "wealth fruits" for the people.
After years of dedicated effort, Qingshui County has formed a distinctive fruit industry layout with "dry fruits in the southeast and north, and fresh fruits in the central and western regions," with the apple industry showing strong growth momentum. To date, the county's apple planting area has reached 160,000 acres, with an expected apple production of 206,000 tons and an output value exceeding 1.4 billion yuan by 2025.
Meanwhile, Qin'an County's distinctive mushroom industry is booming. At the Lingzhi Mushroom planting base in Fengshan Village, Xingguo Town, rows of standardized greenhouses stand neatly, with large, fresh Lingzhi mushrooms thriving inside. Workers are busy picking and sorting, their faces radiant with the joy of harvest.
"Our company settled in Qin'an through investment promotion last April and planted the first batch of mushrooms in November of the same year. Production began this February, and the first harvest is nearly complete," said Sun Wenlong, Chairman of Tianshui Qinlong Agricultural Technology Development Co., Ltd. He explained that the Lingzhi mushrooms have an extremely short growth cycle: "From planting to harvest, it takes only 25 days, with five harvests possible per year. Each harvest yields over 20,000 jin per acre. Fresh mushrooms sell for about 15 yuan per jin, generating approximately 300,000 yuan in revenue per harvest, with considerable profit margins."
Behind this high efficiency lies strong support from a complete industrial chain. Sun Wenlong stated that the company has built a closed-loop industrial chain encompassing "fresh mushroom cultivation—deep processing—sales—organic fertilizer production." In addition to selling fresh mushrooms, they have developed deep-processed products such as Lingzhi mushroom sauce and pre-made dishes, significantly increasing the added value of their products.
"This year, we have planned three projects: vegetable preservation and storage, organic fertilizer processing, and Lingzhi mushroom sauce processing, which were launched in March and are expected to be fully operational by June," Sun said. "A second-phase project is also in the planning stages and will adopt a 'company + cooperative + grower' model to involve more farmers in trial planting, with us providing technical guidance and handling end sales."
Currently, the base's products are selling well in the Pearl River Delta and Northeast China, while efforts are underway to explore dried Lingzhi mushroom export business, with the entire industrial chain expected to operate efficiently in the second half of the year.
"Lingzhi mushrooms are easy to grow; as long as water, temperature, and ventilation are controlled, daily management is not complicated," Sun Wenlong noted. "Ten greenhouses usually require only two workers for maintenance, but large numbers of workers are hired during planting and harvesting peaks, allowing villagers to earn income without leaving their hometowns."
In recent years, leveraging its ecological resources, Tianshui has adhered to the principle of "one industry per township, one product per village," vigorously developing advantageous industries such as apples, peppercorns, and specialty mushrooms. By promoting new varieties, technologies, and models, and strengthening industrial chain extension and brand building, distinctive industries have grown from "local specialties" into "major industries," shifting from isolated efforts to clustered development. Today, in Tianshui's countryside, the distinctive planting industry is driving the great ship of rural revitalization forward with strong momentum, painting a magnificent picture of robust agriculture, beautiful countryside, and prosperous farmers.
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