A sweeping view of the rejuvenated area with its slopes covered with healthy trees and vegetation. [Photo/zbnews.net]
On the slopes of Daiqing Mountain, Hedong village is something of a lush oasis with fruit trees, an established lotus pool and a coat of vegetation that covers the once gray mine site in the Linzi district of Zibo city, in East China's Shandong province.
And it all comes down to years of hard work by one man: villager Zhang Hanxiu.
Over the period of nine years, Zhang has spent 110 million yuan ($16.7 million) rejuvenating the land and planting pomegranate trees in area of 1,600 mu (106.7 hectares).
Now, the area is home to the largest soft-seed pomegranate industrial park in Shandong province, which won a gold medal in the national forestry expo. In the process, Zhang has also become a leading authority in pomegranate cultivation.
Zhang Hanxiu checks a pomegranate tree carefully. [Photo/zbnews.net]
Zhang Hanxiu waters the saplings. [Photo/zbnews.net]
