Yuzhong county, the main production area of lilies in Lanzhou city, Gansu province, has fully embraced new technologies to boost its rural vitalization.

Recognized as a national geographical indication product, Lanzhou's lilies have been praised for having a pure white appearance like jade, a sweet taste without bitterness and delicate fibers.

However, the traditional lily breeding cycle lasts up to nine years and relies on natural retention, making it difficult to quickly update varieties.

Moreover, traditional lily bulbs rely on natural tillering, resulting in poor disease resistance and low reproductive efficiency, making them less suitable for the modern market's demand for high-quality and standardized agricultural products.

Farmers proudly show some high-quality lilies they plant. [Photo provided to gogansu.com]

Reforms started in 2023 where the county began to develop virus-free tissue culture technology. With it, a large number of new varieties or excellent individual virus-free original bulbs could be obtained in a relatively short period of time, providing high-quality seed sources for the breeding of lily seed bulbs.

To make the lilies better, sweeter and more resistant to disease, the county also cultivated new varieties of lilies through systematic breeding, hybrid breeding, ploidy breeding and mutagenesis breeding.

Measures also included covering the lily fields with wheat straw to effectively maintain soil moisture and prevent compaction, creating an optimal environment for cultivation.

Nowadays, the lily industry has become the engine of rural vitalization in Yuzhong, employing over 20,000 locals.

The lily planting area in the county currently has reached 6,400 hectares. What's more, the total output of the county's lily industry is expected to hit 42,000 metric tons in the current year and the output value of the entire industry supply chain will exceed 1 billion yuan ($136.96 million).