Affected by rainwater, sugar content is catching up with the trend, and the production of the "Four Great Kong" fruits in the local market is stable, with an increase in fruit | grapes | Kong

The crystal clear Malu grapes, sweet and juicy Nanhui peaches, crispy and sweet Songjiang crystal pears, sweet and fresh Jinshan peaches, and golden and fragrant Fengxian yellow peaches... It is once again a good season to eat local fruits, and this sweetness exclusively belongs to Shanghai citizens as promised.

Today, a reporter from the Shanghai Forestry Station learned from the Liberation Daily's Shangguan News that after the emergence of plum blossoms, with the return of sunlight and the continuous rise of temperature, the sugar accumulation of local fruits in the suburbs of Shanghai has accelerated, and the sugar content has gradually "rebounded". Not only is it sweet, but this year, the main force of local fruits such as peaches, pears, and grapes has also reached their maturity period about a week earlier than last year.

Pear and peach production increased by 10% to 30%

As of the end of 2022, the total area of economic fruit forests in Shanghai was 176800 acres. Among them, there are 51500 acres of peaches, 32700 acres of grapes, 28300 acres of pears, 51600 acres of citrus fruits, and 12700 acres of other fruit trees.

The forestry department in Shanghai stated that the expected production of the "Four Big Kong" fruits in Shanghai's real estate this year is 48600 tons of peaches, 32000 tons of pears, 37800 tons of grapes, and 61800 tons of citrus, with a total production exceeding 180000 tons, an increase of about 5% from last year. Among them, the yield of pears is expected to increase by about 30% compared to last year, peaches by about 10%, and grapes and citrus remain the same as last year.

At present, popular grape varieties such as "Xiahei", "Jingmi", "Jufeng", and "Sunlight Red" have been launched, and popular varieties such as "Sunshine Rose", "Nina Queen", and "Romantic Red" are about to make their debut. Through continuous innovation and technological improvement, as well as scientific cultivation, Shanghai's local grape varieties are abundant, and the sales period can be extended from early June to October each year.

Pear is a top grade for cooling. In early July, the early maturing variety "Zao Sheng Xin Shui" was launched, and the best-selling "Cui Guan" pear over the years is about to enter the peak picking season and can be sold until the end of August.

At present, the peach varieties "Datuan Honey Dew", "Hujing Honey Dew", and "Xinfeng Honey Dew" are in the peak picking season and are expected to end sales by the end of July. The Fengxian Huangtao "Jin" series is about to be launched in large quantities, and the sales period is expected to last until the end of August. The golden mountain peaches with dimples are in season, and the sales period is expected to last until early August.

Various types of local fruits

Extreme weather challenges are becoming increasingly frequent

The production and sweetness of Shanghai's real estate fruits have steadily increased, which is due to many people's unknown hardships and efforts. In recent years, extreme weather has posed great challenges to fruit farmers.

The peach trees that have been basking in the sun for most of the day are hot from the peaches on the trees to the roots of the peach trees. At this time, a sudden rainstorm, like pressing the person who has finished the sauna in the ice water, has a high probability of getting sick.

"Extreme weather like this has occurred frequently this year," said He Mingfang, the chairman of Shanghai Taoyong Peach Industry Professional Cooperative. Although there was no rain during the flowering period of the week before and after the Qingming Festival, each peach later grew into a "big fat", and the cooperative's peach production this year increased by about 20% compared to last year. However, the frequent exposure to heavy rain has had a negative impact on the good fruit rate, with peaches with a "pockmarked face" increasing by about 50% compared to previous years. The appearance is not good, and it is easy to not sell at a price.

The heavy rain during the rainy season this year has affected the sweetness of peaches. For example, the maturity of the "New Phoenix Honey Dew" produced by the cooperative in previous years can easily exceed 17 degrees. However, due to the influence of the rain, a batch of "New Phoenix Honey Dew" that was launched earlier dropped to 13 to 15 degrees. It was not until the recent release of plum blossoms that the "New Phoenix Honey Dew" at the end of the sales period recovered to 16 to 17 degrees.

The end of July in previous years was a crucial period for the Shanghai Taoyong Peach Industry Professional Cooperative to pick "Cuiguan" pears. After picking the eight ripe "Cuiguan" pears, they were placed in the cold storage and sold just in time. This year, He Mingfang was a bit worried that a typhoon would hit one week before the picking season, causing half of the "Cuiguan" pears, which were not yet eight ripe, to fall off and rot in the ground. "We still have one week left to pick now, and I hope this year's' God 'can spare us."

The increasingly frequent extreme weather also caused a headache for Shan Tao, the general manager of Malu Grape Park Co., Ltd.: "It's a pity that the early maturing 'golden fingers',' yellow roses' and 'early roses' were too bad. A rainstorm before the plum blossom season caused the river to flow backward and all of them were flooded. The bad fruit rate of the early maturing grape varieties in the garden was as high as 80%, and the yield of these grapes accounted for 2% of the total annual grape yield in the garden."

Fortunately, most grapes are planted in greenhouses. After the plum blossoms arrive, the emergency plan is solidly implemented, and the subsequent heavy rains are promptly drained to avoid waterlogging. "There are many sunny days, sun exposure, and large temperature differences between day and night, and the quality of several grape varieties that are in season is actually better than in previous years." Dan Tao said that "Sunshine Rose" was launched yesterday, nearly 10 days earlier than in previous years. "Jufeng" has a purple and black skin this year, and its appearance is excellent.

Common progress in variety, brand, and quality

Since 2002, the layout of Shanghai's forestry and fruit industry has been continuously optimized by supporting leading enterprises, establishing professional fruit trading markets, and establishing characteristic fruit research institutes.

In recent years, Shanghai has introduced over 400 forest and fruit varieties and promoted over 40 excellent varieties. Among them, there are over 30 grape varieties, over 20 peach varieties, and over 10 pear varieties produced.

According to the characteristics of fruit production and regional layout, Shanghai has successively established 7 municipal level professional fruit tree technology research and promotion institutions, including grapes, peaches, citrus, pears, small fruits, flat peaches, and blueberries, actively carrying out new variety introduction, technical training, technical consulting, and technical research.

At the same time, the forestry department has hired 47 local experts in fruit production and regularly organized field classes to "show fruit farmers" and solve the "last mile" problem of fruit tree technology promotion.

Nowadays, grapes from Jiading Malu, peaches from Pudong Nanhui, crystal pears from Songjiang Cangqiao, and Chongming citrus have become the top fruit products in the suburbs of Shanghai. Jinshan Pantao, Fengxian Huangtao, Qingpu Loquat, as well as characteristic fruits such as blueberries, kiwifruit, and dragon fruit, are also widely known among Shanghai residents.

The variety is constantly increasing, and the brand effect is also constantly amplifying. According to incomplete statistics, there are over 100 registered fruit brands in Shanghai.

Grapes have names such as "Ma Lu", "Chuan Lun", "Guan Jia", and "Shi Quan", peaches have names such as "Tao Yong", flat peaches have names such as "Empress Mother", yellow peaches have names such as "Si Er Teng", pears have names such as "Cang Qiao" and "Feng Ye", and citrus fruits have names such as "avant-garde" and "Qian Xiao Ju". Nanhui Honey Peach, Cangqiao Crystal Pear, Jinshan Pantao, Malu Grape, and Fengxian Huangtao have become famous brand products and national geographical indication protection products in Shanghai.

The "Four Kings" of Shanghai real estate fruits have gradually transitioned from being sold in baskets to being sold in boxes with standard packaging. With the improvement of production standardization, many brands of peaches, grapes, citrus, and pears have started to be sold individually or in clusters, and have won gold awards multiple times in national fruit evaluations.

To further improve the quality of Shanghai's real estate fruits, Shanghai has launched the creation of "Safe, High Quality, Trustworthy Orchards" since 2011.

The selection mainly includes these criteria: water, soil, and gas meet the pollution-free standard, and there should be no pollution sources in the surrounding area; Strictly control the production process and strictly prohibit the use of highly toxic and residual pesticide fertilizers; Regularly inspect product results, and reject key items related to food safety if they are not qualified; It performs well in important indicators such as fruit appearance, high-quality fruit rate, and soluble solid content.

At present, there are 106 "safe, high-quality and trustworthy orchards" in the city, distributed in various suburbs, cultivating various fruits such as peaches, pears, grapes, citrus, blueberries, kiwifruit, grapefruit, etc.

High quality real estate fruits are traceable

Starting from July 15th, the upgraded version of the "Shanghai Trustworthy Orchard" WeChat mall mini program was launched, and the mall interface has been optimized and upgraded this year. At present, 38 orchards have been settled, with fruits including grapes, pears, peaches, yellow peaches, etc.

The Shanghai Forestry Station has also released 22 suburban "forest and fruit tourism routes". Following the map, citizens can travel to the suburban areas of "safe, high-quality and trustworthy orchards" and open leisure forests, enjoying a fulfilling, ecological, and healthy journey of freedom.

22 suburban "forest and fruit tourism routes"