“You must cut off those dense, sick, and fragile branches. However, the key is to keep those fruit-bearing branches well,” said Zhou Xiaoyin, Chief Fruit Expert and team leader of Fruit Science and Technology Innovation in Lishui city, during an explanation of  key points in pruning kiwifruit during a course at the Xiangmiyuan Fruit Professional Cooperative Planting Base in Suichang County.

A technical training session on kiwifruit planting for the entire disabled population in Zhenjiang Province recently kicked off in Suichang. It was sponsored by the Disabled Federation of Zhejiang Province and the Disabled Federation of Suichang County and was undertaken by Suichang RTVU’s Miaogao Campus. Thirty-eight disabled farmers from across the province participated in the free training.

Since its 2009 introduction to Suichang, kiwi fruit has become an important part of its agricultural economy. At present, the county has grown 5,800 mu (1 mu = .165 acres) of kiwifruit, with its planting area ranking 3rd in the province. Gross output has reached over 31 million RMB, opening up a new means for local farmers to generate wealth.

According to Zheng Huifang, President of Suichang RTVU’s Miaogao Campus, “In light of the problems arising from present kiwi fruit planting, the training session aligned classroom teaching with field practice, focusing on the main factors that affect kiwi fruit cultivation, varieties selection, trellising, pollination, grafting, and other techniques.” The training session was also recognized by Huang Shidi, Deputy Director of Zhejiang Province’s Labor and Employment Services Centre for the Disabled. He said that the training allowed more disabled growers to abandon traditional planting techniques in favor of industrialization and large-scale development, increasing their ability to start businesses and generate wealth for themselves.

Zhu Bin, a kiwifruit grower from Pinghu, Jiaxing, Zhengjiang Province, proclaimed, “I’ve learned a lot of techniques from the training session. Such training is precious and rare. I’ll bring back what I’ve learnt to Suichang, letting the kiwifruit thrive in Pinghu!” All the participants commended the pragmatic training model.

                                                                                                           By Zhejiang RTVU