Turde Ahbar, a farmer from Korla, capital city of Bayingolin Mongolian Autonomous Prefecture in northwestern China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, was very satisfied with the yield of his orchard this fall.

"Though the production was a bit lower than last year, the fruits are of better quality and have been sold at a good price," he said.

Ahbar's 0.5-ha pear orchard has a history of more than 70 years. When he contracted it in 1986, the orchard was filled with old pears plagued by pests and suffered from low yields. But he began to employ trunk cutting technology he found in a book.

Between 1987 and 1988, he had the trunks of all the old pear trees chopped at the place where branches grow so as to rejuvenate them. In 1989 the pears began to improve in quality and bring their owner a 15 percent to 30 percent increase in annual income. Then the technology was gradually adopted for younger pear trees. Currently, a pear tree yields 80-200 kilograms of fruits and gross earnings from the orchard average 45,000 yuan (5,548 US dollars).

Ahbar said, "Deducting costs in watering, fertilizing, pesticide spraying, branch cutting and employing helpers, our pure income stands at 30,000 (3,699 US dollars) a year. In the 1980s, the figure was only 4,000-5,000 yuan (493-616 US dollars)."

Usually wearing a grey cap, Ahbar, 48 years old, did not expect to become a pace setter in using trunk-cutting technology in Korla. The technology has been applied in every pear orchard in his city, helping reduce the cost of pear growing and nursing and increasing yield by 15 percent and 30 percent.

According to Li Shiqiang, head of the Korla Research Center of Fragrant Pears, the fruit Turde Ahbars cultivates is officially named Korla fragrant pear as it originated at the bank of the Kongque River in the suburbs of Korla City. Its initial cultivation dates back to 1,500 years ago.

Currently, Li said, there are 23,333 hectares of fragrant pears in Korla City, with an average annual yield of 100,000-120,000 tons. The fragrant pears are sold in major Chinese cities and exported to North America and Southeast Asia. They contribute to 25 percent of the pure income for farmers in Korla.

"There are in Korla many farmers like Turde Ahbar, who has managed to live a well-off life through cultivating pears,"said Li Shiqiang.

"Some farmers even have 13.3 hectares of orchards each, with annual earnings of one million yuan (123,304 US dollars)," Li added.

Ahbar seems indifferent to being considered a "fruit magnate".He is rather more proud of gaining the title of senior horticulturist. The technology he pioneered has received a municipal award for technological progress.

Ahbar's has five family members, including two daughters and one son. The elder daughter, Azguli, majors in horticulture at the Agriculture University of Xinjiang, where Ahbar is often invited to give lectures.

According to official statistics, technological progress now provides a 45 percent contribution to the agricultural economy in Xinjiang.

Source: Xinhua