Liang Dalong: laid-off miners turned into growers

Liang Dalong inspects the growth of citrus

"the oranges in my family are growing well, and the watermelons under the citrus trees are growing well. Although they will not be harvested for two months, they have been fully booked." A few days ago, in the Longxiang Orchard in Cong Lin Town, owner Liang Dalong told reporters that he had reformed the traditional planting method, interplanted watermelons under citrus trees, had a high yield and a bumper harvest, and embarked on the road to wealth.

Laid-off to start a business to grow citrus

Liang Dalong, 45, is from Yongsheng Village, Conglin Town. After graduating from junior high school, he left home to work for many years and returned to Wansheng in 1994 to work as a coal miner in Yanshitai Coal Mine.

"when the coal economy was hot, my income was good. I became a family and had a baby, and I was very comfortable with my small life." Liang Dalong said that since 2002, the efficiency of the coal mine has been getting worse and worse, and it is really difficult for his family to make ends meet on a monthly salary of more than 1000 yuan.

"more and more workers have been laid off from the coal mine, and I was afraid that one day it would be my turn, so I paved the way for the family as soon as possible." Liang Dalong said that his ancestors have made a living by farming, so he decided to use the woodland in the back mountain of his family to develop the planting industry.

After many investigations and studies, Liang Dalong found that the climate of the jungle town is more suitable for growing oranges. In 2006, he transferred 2 hectares of land and began to grow oranges.

Interplanting watermelons like a bumper harvest

Liang Dalong bet on his entire fortune to grow oranges, but the effect was not satisfactory. "although my first batch of oranges were fruitful, they did not have a bumper harvest." Liang Dalong said that the first batch of oranges produced 5000 jin, but sold less than 500 jin.

"Citrus tastes sour and astringent, and no one cares about it no matter how good it is." Liang Dalong said that at that time, he watched his oranges rot in the ground, distressed and confused-what on earth caused the poor taste of the oranges?

Since then, Liang Dalong plunged into the pile of books, consulted various materials, and asked agrotechnical experts for on-site guidance, which found the reason: the soil was so acidic that citrus trees could not absorb sufficient nutrients. Under the guidance of experts, Liang Dalong adopted the method of interplanting, that is, planting watermelons under citrus trees, which can not only improve the soil quality, but also provide nutrients to citrus trees.

To Liang Dalong's surprise, his watermelons had a bumper harvest in the first year, and the quality was extremely high. He took the watermelons for sale in Wansheng City and was soon sold out.

In 2011, Liang Dalong's oranges matured and went on the market again. Rely on customers accumulated from selling watermelons, 10,000 jin of citrus sales are good, Liang Dalong, who has worked hard to start a business for 5 years, has finally tasted the fruits of victory.

Create four Seasons Orchard

Liang Dalong was officially laid off in 2015, but he was not worried because after tasting the benefits of interplanting, he transferred another 3.3 hectares of land, expanding the planting scale of oranges and watermelons. At the same time, pear and peach trees were planted in the clearing between the two. "Today, my orchard earns more than 100,000 yuan a year just by selling watermelons and oranges." Liang Dalong said happily.

At present, Liang Dalong's orchard has begun to take shape, and every year many tourists come to pick and play, from which he sees business opportunities.

"I will plant pear trees and other fruit trees on a large scale, combine them with oranges and watermelons, and then open them all to the outside world for citizens to play and pick." Liang Dalong said that it has always been his dream to create a four-season orchard that integrates leisure, sightseeing, picking and dining. He will continue to work hard to achieve it as soon as possible.