Wenshou Loquat

Wenshou Loquat

Wenshou Loquat is a protected geographical indication product.

Wenshou Loquat is an agricultural geographical indication product.

　　Wenshou is located at the southern foot of the Second Emei Mountain within the county. The soil and climate in this region are particularly suitable for loquat cultivation, with a planting history of over 100 years. Since the reform and opening-up, starting in the early 1990s, Wenshou Town has carried out large-scale commercial development of Wenshou loquats under the guidance of experts from provincial research institutes. It has intensified variety improvement and vigorously promoted the country’s best varieties such as Da Wuxing, Meizhang 77-1, Dayuan, Jiefang, and Meier 5. These varieties grow quickly, come into production early, yield high per plant, produce large fruits, and have unique flavors, as well as high nutritional and medicinal value.

　　Wenshou Town has been named the "Hometown of Loquats in China." It currently has over 20,000 acres of loquats, with plans to newly expand by 10,000 acres from 1999 to 2001. The layout is based in Wenshou and extends to nearby towns within a 10-kilometer radius including Songlin, Aolin, Gaoya, Qianhe, and Dahu. Main construction includes: 1) planting 4,000 acres in 1999, 3,000 acres in 2000, and another 3,000 acres in 2001; 2) establishing a high-end fresh-keeping box and gift box factory; 3) building a specialized loquat wholesale market; 4) constructing a medium-to-large scale cold storage facility. Investment estimate: planting 10,000 acres of loquats requires 10 million yuan, infrastructure investment is 11 million yuan, totaling 21 million yuan.

　　Natural Ecological Environment and Humanistic-Historical Factors

　　(1) Soil and Topography: The production area of Wenshou Loquat is located at the southern foot of the Second Emei Mountain in Renshou County, Sichuan Province, within the middle section of the Longquan Mountain Range at an altitude of over 500 meters. It consists of deep hills and low mountains, extending diagonally from the northeast corner to the southwest of the county, dividing Renshou into eastern and western parts and forming three major landform types: low hilly platforms, Longquan low mountains, and southeastern hills. Compared to other loquat production areas, the Wenshou Loquat region has advantages for developing high-quality loquats: first, the terrain, topography, and slope direction are favorable—the production area is on gently sloping terraces with good drainage, abundant sunlight, slopes below 25 degrees, and no waterlogging, making it the optimal terrain for growing premium loquats; second, the soil layer is deep, fertile, and mainly composed of brown-purple clay and gray-brown-purple soils developed from well-drained Jurassic Penglaizhen and Shaximiao sandy mudstone and shale. These soils have strong water and nutrient retention, organic matter content above 2.6%, nitrogen content of 0.101%, total phosphorus of 0.15%,

　　total potassium of 2%, available phosphorus of 11.6 mg/kg, and rapidly available potassium of 95.5 mg/kg. The soil is moderately sticky and sandy, deep, fertile, rich in phosphorus and potassium, and well-drained. With a pH value of 6.5–7.5, the soil is neutral to slightly alkaline—very suitable for loquat growth and offering natural conditions for producing green food loquats.

　　(2) Hydrology: Renshou County has a superior ecological environment and clean water quality. There are 339 streams of varying sizes, with a total length of 1,174.1 km, covering a drainage area of 2,222.34 square km and an annual runoff of 989 million cubic meters. Surface water and streams flow eastward and westward along the Longquan Mountain Range, converging into five larger streams with a total length of 282 km. Groundwater is widely distributed and shallowly buried, with a total volume of 107–109 million cubic meters, of which 70 million cubic meters are extracted and utilized, accounting for 15.7%. The county has 15,505 various water-retaining water conservancy projects, with a total water storage capacity of 511 million cubic meters, including 360 million cubic meters stored in the Heilongtan Reservoir. More than 10 loquat base towns, including Wenshou, Longma, and Gaojia, are within the Heilongtan Irrigation District of Renshou County. The Heilongtan Reservoir is the main source of water supply for domestic and agricultural use in the county.

　　(3) Climate: The production area of Wenshou Loquat has a subtropical monsoon climate, with distinct seasons and clear wet and dry periods. Spring arrives early but is often cool and damp; summers are not extremely hot; autumn brings frequent overcast rains; and winters are not severely cold. The average annual rainfall is 1,000–1,200 mm, with significant interannual variation. The production area faces south, with an average annual temperature of 16.5–18.6°C, about 1,300 hours of annual sunshine, and a frost-free period of 306 days. The abundant sunshine and relatively high average temperatures provide unique conditions for producing high-quality Wenshou loquats. Loquat seedlings require diffused light, while mature plants need ample sunlight, resulting in Wenshou loquats that color well, ripen early, and are of superior quality.

　　(4) Humanistic-Historical Background: The production area of Wenshou Loquat is located at the southern foot of the Second Emei Mountain in Renshou, Sichuan. The soil and climate conditions here are especially suitable for loquat cultivation. According to the Republican-era Renshou County Annals, there were 25 types of fruit trees, including loquats, pears, cherries, peaches, plums, apricots, citrus, oranges, and pomelos—with a planting history of over 100 years. Large-scale cultivation began in the 1990s, and now planting has spread across 20 towns and 195 villages, covering an area of 13,333 hectares, mainly of premium varieties like Da Wuxing. Wenshou loquats are renowned for being “large in size, bright in color, thin-skinned, thick-fleshed, tender, juicy, delicious, and dense.” They yield high per plant, produce large fruits, have high sugar content, a unique flavor, and high nutritional and medicinal value. Evaluated by national fruit experts, they scored 92.36 overall. Loquats belong to the Rosaceae family and are evergreen small trees. Their leaves resemble the traditional Chinese instrument pipa (a lute), hence the name. Legend says: “The Pipa Fairy and her two sisters, standing together atop the mountain, lamented the hardships of the mortal world and threw their three pipas into the mountains. One turned into a golden bird taking flight, one turned stones into gold, and one became a shower of golden stars.” In early summer, beneath the Second Emei Mountain in Wenshou lies a magical scroll of loquats—an experience so refreshing it rivals the feeling of immortality. Behold the Pipa Fairy playing her lute, as pearls both great and small scatter through the garden. Today’s Wenshou bustles with traffic and people, hosting an unprecedented loquat festival.

　　Since 2001, the Wenshou Loquat Festival has been held for nine consecutive sessions. Using the festival as a platform, Wenshou loquats have grown from a small spark into a sweeping trend. Currently, Wenshou Loquats have developed into the largest loquat production demonstration base in Sichuan, integrating tourism, leisure, and agricultural science and technology.

　　Wenshou Loquats were awarded the title of “Famous and High-Quality Product” by the Provincial Department of Agriculture at the 2002 Western China Agricultural Expo. In 2007, they received a Silver Award for “Sichuan Tourism Souvenir” and were honored as a “First-Class Excellent Sichuan Tourism Commodity” brand. In 2008, they were recognized as “Sichuan Famous-Brand Agricultural Products” and “Meishan Well-Known Trademark” by the Sichuan Provincial Department of Agriculture and the Sichuan Famous Agricultural Products Promotion Committee. The Wenshou Loquat Base has also obtained certificates as a “Sichuan Pollution-Free Agricultural Product Base,” “Sichuan Green Food Base,” and “Renshou County National Green Food Raw Material (Loquat) Standardized Production Base,” becoming the first “National Green Food Raw Material Loquat Standardized Production Base” in Southwest China.

　　In 1998, the Wenshou District of Renshou County was awarded the title of “Hometown of Loquats in China” by the Organizing Committee for the Promotion of China’s Specialty Towns. In 2005, Wenshou Town in Renshou County received the same title. The Wenshou Loquat Association has also been honored as a “Major Agricultural Product Marketing Entity,” “Key Leading Enterprise,” “Top Ten Rural Specialized Cooperative Economic Organizations,” “Top 100 National Rural Professional Technical Associations,” and “Advanced Rural Professional Cooperative Economic Organization.”

　　Renshou County has also leveraged its abundant loquat resources to develop a unique loquat beverage on the market. This drink not only quenches thirst but also enhances physical health, prolongs life, beautifies the skin, and offers herbal conditioning benefits—making it a purely natural green health beverage.

　　Wenshou Loquat

　　Sichuan Province

　　Renshou County Fruit Tree Station

　　The protected geographic indication area for Wenshou Loquat agricultural products covers 20 towns in Renshou County, Meishan City, Sichuan Province, including Wenshou Town, Aoling Township, Guansi Township, Gaoshi Town, Gufu Township, Banyan Township, Longma Town, Dahu Town, Qinggang Township, Zhujia Township, Fangjia Town, Yuantong Township, Zhonggang Township, Shigao Town, Fujia Town, Wenlin Town, Xiangjia Township, Longqiao Township, Qujiang Township, and Yulong Township. The protected area spans 13,333 hectares with an annual yield of 80,000 tons. This region is located between 104°5′–104°25′ east longitude and 29°55′–30°20′ north latitude, stretching 32.5 km from east to west and 47.3 km from north to south, at elevations between 350–988 m. The county borders Ziyang and Jianyang to the east, Weiyuan, Rongxian, and Jingyan to the south, Qingshen, Dongpo, and Pengshan to the west, and Shuangliu to the north.

　　The protected production area for Wen Gong loquat as a geographical indication of agricultural products covers 20 towns and townships within Renshou County, Meishan City, Sichuan Province, including Wen Gong Town, Aoling Township, Guansi Township, Gaojia Town, Gufu Township, Banyan Township, Longma Town, Dahu Town, Qinggang Township, Zhujia Township, Fangjia Town, Yuantong Township, Zhonggang Township, Shigao Town, Fujia Town, Wenlin Town, Xiangjia Township, Longqiao Township, Qujiang Township, and Yulong Township. The total protected area spans 13,333 hectares with an annual production of 80,000 tons. This region is located between 104°5′–104°25′ east longitude and 29°55′–30°20′ north latitude, stretching 32.5 kilometers from east to west and 47.3 kilometers from north to south, with elevations ranging from 350 to 988 meters. The county borders Ziyang and Jianyang to the east, Weiyuan, Rongxian, and Jingyan to the south, Qingshen, Dongpo, and Pengshan to the west, and Shuangliu County to the north.