Xiangshan Selenium-Sand Watermelon

Xiangshan Selenium-Sand Watermelon

　　Xiangshan Selenium-Sand Watermelon is a specialty watermelon from the arid farming region around the Xiangshan area in Zhongwei City, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. The main planting and production areas, as well as the distribution hubs for the fruit, are located in Xingren Village and surrounding regions of Xingren Town, Shapotou District, Zhongwei City. The area’s unique arid and semi-desert geographical conditions, along with extreme day-night temperature variations, contribute to its excellent quality.

　　The annual precipitation in the regions around Zhongwei City is only 189.5 mm, while evaporation reaches 2,400 mm, leading to frequent droughts. Moreover, due to long-term scouring by mountain floods, large amounts of gravel have accumulated, hardening the land and making it highly unsuitable for farming. However, local farmers have developed a water-conserving and moisture-retaining dryland farming technique called “gravel-mulched melon cultivation.” This method involves pressing a layer of gravel onto the soil to prevent moisture evaporation, allowing melon seedlings to sprout through the stones and eventually yield watermelons. Subsequently, the region vigorously promoted this gravel-mulching technique, which conserves water, retains moisture, and maintains warmth, fostering the development of the selenium-sand watermelon industry. In just three years, a 1-million-mu (approximately 66,667 hectares) selenium-sand watermelon base was established. Vast, barren slopes that were once devoid of vegetation were transformed into lush melon fields. The planting area spans 18 townships and 65 administrative villages across Zhongwei City’s central arid zone, involving 14,600 households directly engaged in gravel-mulched melon farming. Xingren Village, Xingren Town, Shapotou District, Zhongwei City, has become the largest gravel-mulched selenium-sand watermelon production base in China, establishing itself as a flagship specialty industry of Ningxia. In 2011, Xingren Village, Xingren Town, Shapotou District, Zhongwei City, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region (Xiangshan Selenium-Sand Watermelon) was recognized by the Ministry of Agriculture as a “National 'One Village, One Product'” demonstration village.