In recent years, Xiangxi Prefecture has developed the tea industry as an advantageous characteristic agricultural industry. As of now, the total planting area of golden tea, Guzhang Maojian Tea and vine tea in the whole prefecture has reached 917,000 mu (about 61,133 hectares), with an annual tea production of 19,800 tons and a comprehensive output value of 9.82 billion yuan.
There are over 600,000 people involved in the tea industry in the prefecture, and 200,000 people have shaken off poverty through tea industry.
Yongshun County is located in high mountains and deep valleys, shrouded in clouds and mist, with Red sandstone soil, making it a golden production area for vine tea.
At the vine tea planting base of Sanjiaoyan Village, Yongshun County, villagers are busy planting purple vine tea with greater economic value.
“The picking period of vine tea is from April to October. Now, the village plants 200 mu (about 13.33 hectares) of vine tea, which increases villagers’ income and injects new momentum into industry revitalization,” said Xiong Xiaoqian, first secretary of Sanjiaoyan Village. To develop the vine tea industry, the county has introduced a series of support policies and provided industrial development funds. The village plans to develop the vine tea with 200,000 yuan of assistance funds, bringing greater benefits to villagers.
“Last year, the sales exceeded 30 million yuan, and the acquisition of vine tea worth 18 million yuan from growers resulted in good profits for cooperative farmers,” said Wang Shaofu, chairman of the company.
Golden tea is an ancient and rare tea tree germplasm resource in Xiangxi Prefecture. Xiangxi Prefecture has successfully developed rapid seedling cultivation techniques and film mulching cultivation techniques for golden tea.
“The seedling period has been shortened from 13 months to 6 months, and the formation time of tea gardens has been shortened to 2 years, more than one year earlier than traditional techniques,” said Shi Chunzhi, chief agronomist of the local authority of agriculture and rural areas. Since 2018, more than 100 million high-quality and nutritious bowl seedlings of golden tea have been cultivated, which accelerated the construction of standardized tea bases in Xiangxi.
Zhang Caixia, head of the catering department of Sima Tea Homestay Inn, has been busy for one month since the spring tea picking season. Zhang Caixia used the golden tea leaves picked in the village to make delicious tea snacks like tea-flavored shredded chicken, sweet green rice balls and fresh meat cakes, receiving praise from tourists.
“The restaurant has 12 tables, with over 40 tables of tourists received in a day during peak season, which can earn me a gross income of 10,000 yuan,” said Zhang Caixia with a smile.
Aikou Village has become a demonstration village for rural revitalization through integrated development of tea and tourism in Xiangxi Prefecture. Now, the village has developed 20,000 mu (about 1,333 hectares) of golden tea, with an annual output value exceeding 100 million yuan.
“Our village has more mountainous areas and few land, and we used to struggle with three meals. After planting tea, the per capita annual income of the village has exceeded 30,000 yuan.” Xiang Tianshun, Party secretary of Aikou Village, said that most of villagers who worked outside have returned to develop the tea industry.
To better meet the demand for tea picking during the peak season, Jishou City has increased its transportation capacity in six key tea related village routes.
Nowadays, the integrated development of tea culture and tourism has become a green engine for rural revitalization in Xiangxi Prefecture.
Recently, the tea culture museum in Guzhang County welcomed the first batch of study tour groups this year.
Through the detailed introduction of a docent, the primary students understood the planting history of Guzhang Maojian Tea. The school also encouraged parents to take their children to nearby tea gardens to experience the charm of tea culture up close.
Qu Jituan, head of Qingzhushan Tea Industry Base in Guzhang County, believes that the market for integrating tea tourism with popular science education is vast. The production process of Guzhang Maojian Tea is a provincial ICH project, and tea cultivation is a main source of income for local villagers. It’s hoped to drive more students to inherit tea culture and increase villagers’ income through study activities.