One mu of white lotus and three mu of rice is a good way to shake off poverty and become rich.

"We must take off our poverty hat this year!" On March 29, Luo Qiyou, a poor household in Tieyuan Village, Junbu Township, Yongfeng County, received free lotus seeds from village cadres, and confidently set up a "military writ" in front of everyone.

Before planting white lotus, Luo Qiyou, 69, had a tight life. Last year he tried to plant 2 mu of white lotus, did not expect net income of more than 10,000 yuan. Luo Qiyou, who tasted the sweet taste, increased 3 mu in one breath this year, plus 2 mu planted last year. The planting area of white lotus this year has doubled compared with last year. "I hope my income can go up another level." With the lotus seed into the field, Luo Qiyou began to look forward to this year's white lotus harvest.

Tieyuan Village is a remote mountain village in Junbu Township, Yongfeng County. Last year, with the support of policies, some people tried to plant more than 200 mu of white lotus, which achieved very good benefits. The white lotus planted on trial has an income of three or four thousand yuan per mu and five or six thousand yuan per mu, which is much more cost-effective than planting rice. Farmers who have received benefits are enthusiastic this year and take the initiative to expand their scale. Driven by the influence of "experimental households", other grain farmers have also become "lotus farmers", and the planting area of white lotus in the village has exceeded 600 mu. Even the low-lying land that had been deserted for six or seven years was reclaimed and planted with white lotus.

Tieyuan Village white lotus planting hot is the county this year white lotus planting hot mountain township a microcosm. Junbu, Tantou, Shaxi and other 8 towns located in the southern mountainous areas have been difficult to develop and establish leading rich industries due to high mountains and long roads, backward production technology conditions and natural environment. For a long time, villagers 'income mainly depends on the income of young and middle-aged labor force going out to work, and poverty is relatively common. Last year, according to the characteristics and industrial foundation of the southern mountainous areas, Shanggu, Junbu and other places vigorously supported the development of white lotus industry, developed 3500 mu of white lotus, and more than 1500 lotus farmers increased their income by tens of thousands of yuan, thus breaking a new way of precise poverty alleviation.

The county timely issued the "Implementation Opinions on Vigorously Developing White Lotus Industry in Key Areas of Southern Mountainous Areas", which awarded and supplemented from six aspects: scale planting, equipment purchase, base construction, standard demonstration, expansion of sales and deepening processing. At the same time, it established a small loan support mechanism, vigorously promoted the "improved varieties + good methods" supporting high-yield cultivation techniques and standardized production techniques such as interplanting and rotation cultivation modes, and paid attention to brand cultivation and interaction between lotus and tourism. All-round boost the development and growth of white lotus industry in southern mountainous areas.

"The policy is so good. There's no reason why we shouldn't do something big." Junbu Township old party member Cheng Daigui excitedly said. Cheng Daigui, who is in his 50s this year, is one of the earliest lotus farmers in Kongkeng Village. Two years ago, Cheng Daigui registered and established Chuanming Family Farm in Junbu Township. The annual net income of white lotus planting is more than 100,000 yuan. This year, under the guidance and support of rural cadres, Lao Cheng increased the intensity of land circulation. The planting area of white lotus broke through the 100 mu mark for the first time, becoming the "No.1" of white lotus in the township and even the whole county.

Large lotus farmers expand the scale, poor people pay close attention to follow-up, migrant workers returning home of course also unwilling to show weakness. "If the income per mu is three or four thousand yuan, although it is worse than the income outside, but taking care of the elderly and children, it is better than the outside world." Wang Hegui, a young farmer in Luofang Village, Sanfang Township, returned home and became the younger generation of lotus farmers. Wang Hegui said, Let him make up his mind to develop white lotus industry at home is, Last year in Shenzhen factory Junbu friends returned home scale lotus planting, Net income earned more than 60,000 yuan, More than in Shenzhen work income. The growth of the lotus farmer team has made the white lotus industry present a welcome "blowout" momentum. This year, the planting area of white lotus in the whole county exceeded 20,000 mu, soaring to 6 times of last year.

"One mu of lotus field is better than three mu of rice field." Wu Zhengyuan, the county's white lotus industry office, said the reason for the white lotus planting fever. Due to soil, water source, climate and other reasons in the southern mountainous areas, rice yield is low, and the yield per mu is generally about 600 or 700 jin. Even if two seasons of rice fields can be planted, the net income is only more than 1,000 yuan, not to mention that many cultivated land can only be planted for one season. However, the average investment per mu of white lotus planting is only about 500 yuan, which can be effective in the same year, and the income is 4000-6000 yuan/mu, which is 2-3 times that of rice planting. Practice has proved that if the labor of stripping and drying is saved, a left-behind old man can manage about 2 mu of lotus field. Investment is not large, income is not small, labor intensity is not high, coupled with "free seed supply, various awards and subsidies" and other real preferential policies, white lotus industry is indeed a good way to get rid of poverty and become rich suitable for the natural conditions of mountainous areas and the general lack of young and strong labor force at present.

At present, through the support and guidance of the government, the county is striving to cultivate and guide the development of centralized continuous scale production bases in southern mountainous towns, strive to build a management system with reasonable layout, optimized structure, sound system, high-quality and efficient white lotus industrial economy, combination of production and marketing, and integration of agriculture, industry and trade, strive to create the geographical indication certification trademark of "Yongfeng White Lotus", create white lotus industrial culture, and let more common people produce silver in lotus, dig treasure in lotus and make gold outside lotus.