As thousands of trees along the Qingjiang Lake burst into scarlet, bayberries are welcoming the visitors with their tantalizing aroma.
On June 18, the Qingjiang Lake Camping Site in Tuokou Town, Hongjiang District of Huaihua, was transforming into a land of merriment. A festival dedicated to bayberry harvest celebration was launched here, attracting tourists nationwide to enjoy this sweet, juicy feast.
The bestowed natural conditions have made it quite possible for the town-people to breed bayberries with a distinctive flavor. The town boasts a planting area totaling over 12,000 mu, with an annual output of about 50 million yuan. “Thousands of miles of fertile soil contributes to the bayberry growing, with each and every fruit freshly delicious.” This is one line from the lyrics of a song titled I'm Waiting for You in Tuokou which initiates the harvest celebration.Afterwards,wonderful cultural performances were presented, bayberry-eating contests given, ceremonies for high-quality short videos promoting bayberries awarded, and agricultural product fairs performed. All these activities presented a visual, auditory, and taste feast right before the eyes of visitors, amply demonstrating the town’s unique charm.
Amazed at a dazzling array of characteristic agricultural products on the stalls, with freshly picked bayberries piled into “red hills”, Yan Jun, who came all the way from Changsha for the indulgence of delicious bayberries, happily said , “Tuokou not only has delicious bayberries, but also is home to many specialties and beautiful scenery. Next time, I will bring my family here to escape the heat and sample the local food.”
In the meanwhile, there was a ceaseless throng of visitors in the greenhouse bayberry picking garden located at Wangjia'ao Village. Holding fruit baskets, they were shuttling through the bayberry woods, tasting fruit, taking photos, and having great fun of picking fresh bayberries.
“The greenhouse is an integration of rain protection, sun protection, and pest control. It can also regulate the microclimate, thus helping to extend the bayberry sales period with an average income of 25,000 yuan per mu.” Xiang Hong, the base owner, said, “Now with the help of e-commerce, there's no worry about sales.”
The bayberry picking season has brought in a large number of tourists, injecting vigor and vitality to local cultural and tourism attractions. Many tourists, after picking bayberries, choose to spend a couple of days locally, experiencing featured projects like lakeside camping and home-stays, tasting local delicacies, and feeling the unique charm of the folk culture. Since the launch of the festival, the number of tourists has exceeded 3,000 on a daily basis, generating a revenue of over 80 million yuan among catering, accommodation, and retail businesses.
“We are capable of driving an integration of agricultural, cultural and tourism markets with a leverage of 'a single bayberry' . By connecting cultural and tourism resources such as Qingjiang Lake Wetland Park and Sanli Dongzhai, we have built up a full-chain tourism model of 'picking + sightseeing + experience'.” said Qu Taishan, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and Mayor of Tuokou Town. According to him, they will continue to improve the “bayberry + tourism” brand, develop more folk experience projects, and extend the industrial chain, turning lucid waters and lush mountains into valuable assets for ordinary people in years to come.
(Translated by Dong Yue)