A view of the vast hickory forests in Pingmen township, Chun’an county, Hangzhou city, Zhejiang province, on Sept. 7 (Xinhua/Xu Yu)
The arrival of White Dew – the 15th of China's 24 traditional solar terms– on Sept. 7 marked the beginning of walnut harvest season in Pingmen township, Chun'an county, Hangzhou city, Zhejiang province. A local folk ballad notes that “when White Dew arrives, bamboo carrying poles are shouldered, the ground becomes littered with gold, and baskets are filled...” Local farmers make finished products with unique flavors out of the nuts that they collect after husking, drying, and roasting them and completing other processes.
One of the main walnut producing areas in Chun’an, Pingmen’s 3,200 ha of hickory forests currently yield 180 million yuan (US$27.9 million) of annual output value. The industry has become one of the most important sources of income and means of enhancing one’s level of prosperity for its villagers. The township has created special volunteer teams composed of Party members that assist with harvesting and transportation, promote safety, observe and monitor proceedings, market and sell the crop on livestreaming platforms, and provide other forms of support in order to help ensure that tasks are completed efficiently and that farmers are able to increase their incomes.