Yuzhong Chinese Cabbage

Yuzhong Chinese Cabbage

Yuzhong Chinese Cabbage is a product certified with a Geographical Indication for Agricultural Products.

　　The southern part of Yuzhong County features a cool, moist climate in its "er yin" (shaded) highland areas, where vegetable pests and diseases are minimal and pesticide pollution is low. This provides an ideal natural ecological environment for producing pollution-free Chinese cabbage. Yuzhong Chinese cabbage is characterized by its cylindrical, tightly packed heads, pure white leaf sheaths, dark green outer leaves, short core, and excellent taste.

　　The production area of Yuzhong Chinese cabbage is located on the Loess Plateau, at the intersection of the Loess Plateau, Inner Mongolia Plateau, and Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, in central Gansu Province. It is one of the three counties and five districts of Lanzhou City, situated in the eastern suburbs of Lanzhou. The county seat is 38 kilometers from downtown Lanzhou, spanning between 103°49′15" and 104°34′40" east longitude, and 35°34′20" and 36°26′30" north latitude. The county stretches 96.6 kilometers from north to south and 66.4 kilometers from east to west, covering a total area of 3,301.64 square kilometers, with elevations ranging from 1,480 to 3,670 meters. It borders Dingxi, Huining, and Jingyuan counties to the east, Linxia to the west across the Maxianshan Mountain, and neighbors the Qilihe and Chengguan districts to the south. To the north, it faces Gaolan County and Baiyin City across the Yellow River. The county administers 8 towns and 15 townships, comprising 268 administrative villages and 1,619 villager groups, with a total population of 426,000, including 388,000 agricultural residents. The population includes 13 ethnic groups such as Han, Hui, Manchu, Dongxiang, and Salar, with Han Chinese making up 99%. The arable land covers 1.06 million mu, including 360,000 mu of irrigated land, 280,000 mu of reliably irrigated land, and 700,000 mu of rain-fed mountainous land, accounting for 66% of the total arable land. Yuzhong County has a relatively high terrain, sloping from north to south and from west to east. The soil is deep and fertile, and the region has a semi-arid to semi-humid climate. In the valley areas, water sources mainly consist of surface water and groundwater within the county. There are over 60,000 farming households engaged in vegetable cultivation, with the plains and tableland areas primarily relying on underground water resources. The region is free from industrial pollution, making it a natural production area for green food. Currently, the planting area of Chinese cabbage is 20,000 mu, with an annual yield of 80,000 tons. By 2010, the planned planting area is expected to reach 25,000 mu, with an annual production of 100,000 tons of Yuzhong Chinese cabbage.