Dingzui Golden Vegetable

Dingzui Golden Vegetable

Dingzui Golden Vegetable is a geographical indication agricultural product.

　　Daylily, also known as golden needle vegetable or hemerocallis, is commonly referred to as "golden vegetable" by locals. According to folklore, in ancient times, the Dingzui area of Suqian was low-lying and frequently plagued by floods. The famous physician Hua Tuo once used acupuncture to treat people here and taught them how to grow hemerocallis flowers, which could be used to prevent illness and strengthen health. The hemerocallis flower closely resembles the golden needles used by Hua Tuo. To express their gratitude and honor Hua Tuo, the locals began calling the cultivated hemerocallis flowers “golden needles.” Even today, people in Suqian still refer to it as the golden needle flower, or simply golden vegetable. The Dingzui Town of Suqian is one of China’s four major daylily-producing regions. It enjoys a warm temperate monsoon climate with mild weather year-round, distinct seasons, ample sunlight, and abundant rainfall. The area was once known as Cangji Lake, formed from Yellow River alluvial soil, rich in aquatic life and organic matter. After drying up, the soil became deep, fertile, and primarily sandy loam—ideal for growing golden vegetables. This unique natural environment has contributed to the exceptional quality of Dingzui golden vegetables. The daylilies produced in the Dingzui region have large blossoms, thick petals, and excellent appearance, color, taste, and shape. Originally offered as tribute along the ancient Grand Canal, Dingzui golden vegetables gained nationwide fame. During the Qing Dynasty, daylilies were developed as an export commodity and became popular overseas, especially in Southeast Asian countries, where Dingzui golden vegetables were highly regarded as a premium variety of daylily. In recent years, Dingzui Town has expanded daylily cultivation, broken away from traditional planting, processing, and sales models, extended the Dingzui golden vegetable industry chain, and restored its reputation as the “hometown of golden vegetables.”

　　"Dingzui Golden Vegetable," also known as daylily, has a cultivation history spanning several hundred years. Its products have long been favored by consumers for their "long, thick stalks, bright yellow color, large blossoms, thick petals, and rich nutrition," even winning a gold award at the Panama International Exposition. The processing techniques of "Dingzui Golden Vegetable" have been included in the city’s first batch of intangible cultural heritage protection projects.

　　In recent years, Dingzui Town has built a 3,000-acre golden needle vegetable base centered on Dengshan Village, led by Suqian Cangji Lianchang Agricultural Products Co., Ltd. and the Dingzui Golden Vegetable Professional Production Cooperative. A combined model involving leading enterprises, cooperatives, family farms, individual farmers, and social capital has been adopted, enabling continuous income growth for both enterprises and farmers, achieving mutual benefits in the development of specialty agriculture. During processing, strict pollution-free agricultural product production procedures are followed. In business operations, comprehensive service information—including policies and regulations, crop varieties and techniques, agricultural product sales, and production materials markets—is published uniformly, accurately, and quickly to various operating entities and farmers through online platforms, helping enterprises consolidate and expand their external sales markets.

　　Currently, Suqian Cangji Lianchang Agricultural Products Co., Ltd. mainly operates independently developed brands such as "Dingzui Golden Vegetable," edible mushrooms, green rice, and space vegetables. The agricultural products it produces, as well as specialty farm products from various villages, are sold online via JD.com and Taobao, as well as offline, accelerating the construction of the "one village, one product, one store" initiative.

　　Geographical Scope

　　The geographical indication protection area for Dingzui Golden Vegetable covers longitude 118°30′20″ to 118°35′42″ and latitude 33°49′37″ to 33°54′14″. It spans 14 administrative villages (communities) within Dingzui Town, including Dingzui, Jixian, Dengshan, Nipaifang, Chahe, Degao, Zhouxia, Mozhuang, Dingchangzhuang, Dingzhuang, Miaochong, Jizhang, Zhangxinzhuang, and Chuzui, with a total area of 5,000 acres, an annual yield of 7.5 million kilograms, and annual sales revenue of about 45 million yuan.

　　Product Quality Characteristics

　　1. Sensory Features: Fresh golden vegetables appear yellow-green with stalks over 16 cm long, uniform color, three prominent vertical grooves, a faint fragrance, and a strong aroma after steaming. Dried golden vegetables are golden in color, with brownish-yellow tips and naturally wrinkled bracts. They feel soft yet resilient, with a honey-like aroma and a slightly sweet taste after cooking. 2. Physicochemical Indicators: Dried vegetables contain ≤15% moisture, ≥11% protein, and ≥38% sugar. 3. Safety Requirements: Product quality and environmental conditions should comply with relevant standards for pollution-free agricultural product production.