During the New Year's Day holiday, the "Mei Chi Tang" ecological family farm greenhouse in Lülü Village, Guanqian Town, Youxi County, Fujian Province—known as the "Hometown of Chinese Kumquats"—was filled with a warm atmosphere. Plump, golden kumquats hung heavily from the branches, while visitors weaved through the rows, picking and tasting the fruit amidst constant laughter.
"While the open-field kumquats have already hit the market, ours in the greenhouse are perfectly timed to follow, capitalizing on this 'time gap'," said farm owner Zhuo Kaijian with a broad smile. By utilizing steel-frame greenhouses to achieve "on-tree fresh-keeping," his kumquats not only boast superior quality but also command double the price, selling for up to 40 yuan per kilogram.
Zhuo Kaijian's beaming face is a vivid snapshot of how Youxi County is leveraging technology to empower its traditional kumquat industry and drive rural revitalization. This "golden fruit" industry, with a cultivation history spanning over 380 years, is now taking flight on the wings of modern technology, undergoing a remarkable transformation from relying on the weather to practicing "smart fruit cultivation."
The kumquat ripening period coincides with winter, a time when rain, snow, and frost were once the greatest worries for growers. In recent years, Youxi County has vigorously promoted protected cultivation of kumquats in greenhouses, achieving protection against cold, frost, and fruit cracking. By the end of 2025, the county's area of kumquats under steel-frame greenhouses is expected to exceed 500 acres.
Zhuo Kaijian is a firm follower of this technological wave. In 2020, recognizing the vast potential of the kumquat industry, he returned to the village to take over the base and immediately began constructing greenhouses. "The data is linked to my phone, allowing for timely temperature and humidity control—management is becoming more and more precise," he explained, pointing to the sensors on the greenhouse roof. He plans to "continue covering the newly planted 20 acres of 'Cui Mi' kumquats with greenhouses in 2026." His greenhouse area now spans 66 acres, accounting for sixty percent of the base.
Quality is the lifeblood of a brand. Youxi County actively collaborates with research institutions such as China Agricultural University and South China Agricultural University, promoting green technologies like reduced pesticide and fertilizer use, biological pest control, and ecological cultivation across multiple demonstration bases. At benchmark bases like the "Mei Chi Tang" farm, organic fertilizer is used throughout the growth cycle, and integrated water-fertilizer systems along with micro-sprinkler irrigation are installed.
"We've even stopped using herbicides, allowing weeds to decompose naturally back into the soil, and we recently trialed bio-fertilizer made from sugarcane bagasse to nourish the land," Zhuo Kaijian remarked, holding up a cluster of kumquats. He noted that through a set of green, precise nutritional management practices, the fruit achieves more uniform color, higher sugar content, and tougher skin, with the leaves remaining a glossy green, laying a solid foundation for high yields the following year.
Concurrently, Youxi County has established an agricultural product quality and safety traceability system. Consumers can simply scan a QR code on the packaging to view the complete archival record of the kumquats' journey from flowering to harvest.
This rigorous ecological management has yielded substantial market returns. According to data from the Youxi County Agriculture and Rural Affairs Bureau, Youxi kumquats saw both increased volume and price in 2025, with production expected to surpass 39,800 tons and output value exceeding 400 million yuan. Powered by technology, this "golden fruit" is forging a path toward a quality-driven, branded model for revitalizing modern mountainous agriculture.