Lingshan Lychees

Lingshan Lychees

Lingshan Lychees are a protected geographical indication product.

　　Qinzhou is a place of remarkable people and abundant natural beauty. It has nurtured great national heroes of China’s modern history, such as Liu Yongfu and Feng Zicai, who played pivotal roles in shaping the nation. The spirit of the Qinzhou people has been forged through values of self-reliance and perseverance, resilience, and inner strength. The region is also rich in natural resources, boasting the title of “China’s Hometown of Lychees,” as designated by the National Ministry of Agriculture. The city leads Guangxi in both total fruit output and per capita fruit production. It has over 30 types of identified mineral resources, with particularly abundant manganese and ilmenite deposits ranking among the top in Guangxi. The region also holds over 1.7 billion cubic meters of clay reserves and 320 million tons of gypsum. Culturally rich and blessed with diverse tourism assets, the hometowns of national heroes Liu Yongfu and Feng Zicai serve as national patriotic education bases. The red ironwood forests of Pubei form the largest contiguous ironwood forest in the country. The Dalu Village in Lingshan County is honored as the “No. 1 Couplet Village in Guangxi.” The Qishierjing Tourist Area of Qinzhou Port is known as the “Penglai of the South,” and nearby attractions such as Malan Fairy Island and Da’huan Peninsula Beach offer unique coastal scenery, making it a treasured destination in southern China.

　　 Lingshan is one of the golden zones most suitable for lychee cultivation. Lychee planting began here as early as the Han Dynasty, and today, there is hardly a village without lychee trees. Major varieties include March Red, Lingshan Xiangli, Guiwei, Feizixiao, Nuomici, Heiye, and Jizui. Lychees are a treasured fruit in China, often referred to as the “king of fruits,” and those from Lingshan are especially prized. Among them: March Red ripens in mid-to-late May, offering a sweet taste with slight acidity. Its juice contains 54.56–57.46 mg of vitamin C and 0.32–0.37 mg of acid per 100 ml, with 62–68% edible portion. Feizixiao matures in early June, featuring light red, attractive skin, thin peel, thick flesh, and a crisp, sweet, and fragrant taste. About 77.1–82.5% of the fruit is edible, with small seeds and excellent flavor. Lingshan Xiangli has purplish-red skin, snow-white flesh, a crisp texture, sweet taste, and fragrance, with 76.6% edible portion and mostly small or abortive seeds, making it top-grade. Guiwei has light red skin and milky white flesh, juicy and sweet with a osmanthus-like aroma. Around 75.80% is edible, with most being abortive-seeded kernels, making it one of the finest fresh-eating varieties. Nuomici has bright red skin, thick yellowish-white flesh, soft and smooth texture, abundant juice, and a richly sweet flavor with a hint of fragrance. The edible part makes up 73.8–74.4% of the fruit, with small seeds and exceptional quality. In June 1990, Song Jian, then State Councilor and Director of the State Science and Technology Commission, praised Lingshan’s Guiwei lychees in a letter recommending their development, noting they had “large flesh, small seeds, and excellent taste, surpassing other popular varieties from Guangdong.” Both fresh Lingshan lychees and their processed products have won numerous awards domestically and internationally. In 1988, Xiangshan-brand canned lychees produced in Lingshan were awarded the Gold Medal by the Gastronomy Institute of France. In 1991, at the National Spark Program Achievements Expo during the Seventh Five-Year Plan period, March Red lychees from Lingshan earned a Silver Award. In 1992, at the First National Agricultural Fair of China, Lingshan Guiwei and Lingshan Xiangli won Gold and Silver Awards respectively.

　　　　In 1996, Lingshan was designated as the “Famous Base for Tropical Crops – Lingshan Xiangli Production Base” by the Farm Reclamation Bureau of the National Ministry of Agriculture and the Office for Developing South Subtropical Crops under the Ministry of Agriculture. It was also named “China’s Hometown of Lychees” by the Organizing Committee of the National Campaign to Name the Hometowns of Special Products.

　　The administrative regions of the following 18 towns in Lingshan County, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region: Lingcheng Town, Xinwei Town, Tanwei Town, Nalong Town, Sanlong Town, Lüwu Town, Jiuzhou Town, Shaping Town, Taiping Town, Fozhi Town, Pingshan Town, Shitang Town, Fengtang Town, Yanding Town, Pingnan Town, Wenli Town, Wuli Town, and Bola Town.