Cangxi Pear Blossom Festival

　　Like a thousand trees ablaze with flowers in the east wind. Cangxi County, known as the "Hometown of China’s Snow Pears," is blanketed with pear blossoms this season. Locals flock to the hills to admire the flowers, and visitors come in droves. The first "China · Cangxi Pear Blossom Festival" will be held in Cangxi from March 18 to 25, 2003.

　　The 150,000 mu (about 10,000 hectares) of Cangxi pears, nurtured by the spirit of the Bashan and Shu regions and six hundred years of history, bloom brilliantly in the spring of the Year of the Sheep in the 21st century. Under the care of the people of Cangxi, they dazzle the eye with their splendor...

　　Cangxi, located on the northern edge of the Sichuan Basin, at the southern foot of the Daba Mountains, and beside the Jialing River, boasts a long history, rich culture, and simple folkways. Historically, it has been praised as the "Pure Land of Northern Sichuan" and the "Little Zoulu." Over the past 20 years of reform and opening up, especially since the Ninth Five-Year Plan, this "Famous Hometown of China’s Snow Pears," standing gracefully by the Jialing River, has become a renowned garden, a civilized paradise, and a comfortable home in Sichuan.

　　Hometown of China’s Snow Pears, renowned both at home and abroad

　　The Cangxi Snow Pear originated in this very land and has a cultivation history of over 600 years. Initially called "Shi Family Pear," the 14th year of the Hongwu era in the Ming Dynasty’s Guangyuan County Annals noted, "The best among pears is the Shi Family Pear, grown in Cangxi." The Kangxi-era Cangxi County Annals recorded that it was named Snow Pear because "its flesh is as white as snow, sweeter than honey, fragrant and residue-free, melting in the mouth..." To distinguish it from other snow pears, it is called Cangxi Snow Pear or Cangxi Pear.

　　The Cangxi Snow Pear is large with a small core, crisp and tender, juicy and sweet. It can moisten the lungs, dissolve phlegm, reduce inflammation, regulate qi, and even darken hair. It is a fine summer fruit. Historical records state that in the first year of the Tang Dynasty's Huichang era (841 AD), Emperor Wuzong was ill, and no medicine worked until a Taoist priest from Qingcheng Mountain cured him with Cangxi Snow Pear juice. In the eighth year of the Song Dynasty's Qiandao era (1172 AD), Lu You traveled from Kuizhou (now Fengjie) to Nanzheng (now Hanzhong, Shaanxi), passing through Cangxi. In his later years, he wrote in "Nostalgia in the Rhyme of Ancient Shu Road Poems": "I most remember Cangxi County, where guests are seen off under a green pavilion. Beans wither as foxes and rabbits grow fat, frost comes early as persimmons and chestnuts ripen. The wine is sour, but the pears and hawthorns are pressed..." This confirms the medicinal value and long cultivation history of the Cangxi Snow Pear. In the 29th year of the Qing Dynasty's Guangxu era (1903 AD), County Magistrate Jiang Bingshan presented the Shi Family Pear as a tribute, making the Cangxi Tribute Pear widely renowned and highly praised. The Republican-era Cangxi County Annals recorded: "The Cangxi Pear is nearly conical, with the largest weighing over a jin (500g). Its flesh is fine and dense, white as snow, pure as jade, rich in juice, with a strong fragrance, sweet taste, and refreshing texture without residue. Its quality surpasses other pears, and it is also excellent for canning, cooking, and extracting syrups, which help moisten the lungs, dissolve phlegm, reduce inflammation, regulate qi, clear the heart, improve vision, nourish the brain, and enhance intelligence."

　　After liberation, the Cangxi Snow Pear was widely promoted, and its products were exhibited multiple times at agricultural fairs in Sichuan Province and nationwide, receiving high praise. In 1974, the Cangxi Snow Pear was included in the "Sichuan Fruit Tree Varieties Atlas," and in 1976, it was listed in the "National Major Varieties Color Atlas." In 1980, at the pear evaluation conference organized by the Sichuan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, the Department of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry, and the Horticulture Society, the Cangxi Snow Pear ranked first in the province for its regular shape, sparse lenticels, smooth skin, golden-yellow color, beautiful appearance, and excellent flavor. It subsequently topped provincial and national pear evaluations, earning the title "King of Sand Pears." In 1986, Cangxi was named the "Hometown of China’s Snow Pears" by a special committee of national ministries, and Zhao Puchu inscribed a congratulatory message.

　　　The Cangxi Snow Pear also enjoys international acclaim. In 1958, the Cangxi Middle School Horticultural Farm gifted "authentic" snow pear saplings to the Soviet Union and North Korea. In 1960, the Cangxi Snow Pear was invited to the International Fruit Exhibition in New Delhi, India, where it received praise. At the Fourth Spring Fair in Beijing, an American fruit expert doubted that the exhibited snow pears were real, holding one in his hand and exclaiming, "The Cangxi Snow Pears from China are enormous, rare, and truly amazing!" He even offered $10 to buy one. European and American media such as the French Weekly have also featured special reports on the Cangxi Snow Pear.

　　Currently, Cangxi has established 150,000 mu of pear orchards, with 6.8 million pear trees planted, producing 50 million kilograms of fruit annually, with the highest yield per tree reaching 500–600 kilograms. Farmers regard the snow pear as their "fruit of prosperity" and "money tree." Time may be silent, but folk songs bear witness: "Plant more snow pear trees, and you’ll be rich in a few years; plant a hundred or so, and you’ll surely be a ten-thousand-yuan household," and "To get rich, plant pear trees." In pear-loving Cangxi, countless households have become prosperous thanks to the snow pear.

　　The pear-loving locals uphold the ancient custom of admiring pear blossoms in early spring. On a misty spring morning, as you push open the window, the snow pear blossoms seem to blink open overnight, stretching from the riverbanks across the hills. Along the dikes and slopes, yellow and white intermingle—yellow for rapeseed flowers, white for pear blossoms. Houses dot the landscape, surrounded by a riot of blooms, vibrant or faint, a charming pear blossom scene. Locals head to the hills to admire the flowers, and visitors come in throngs. No one wants to miss this beautiful moment or the fresh charm of early spring, and everyone wants to witness the pear blossoms’ initial delicate beauty. Carefully picking a flower branch and inhaling the first crisp fragrance of early spring, you can’t help but marvel: Cangxi truly deserves its title as the Hometown of China’s Snow Pears.

　　When the gorgeous pear blossoms are in full bloom, the flowery pear countryside becomes an ocean of blossoms. Men and women, dressed in their finest, dance and sing passionately under the pear blossoms, like dragons leaping, wild horses galloping, phoenixes spreading their wings, or swallows in flight. Flowers reflect people, and people complement flowers, creating a dazzling, overwhelming spectacle.

　　Mountain courtyards, a model of western ecological agriculture

　　A thousand pear blossoms in the spring rain. This old revolutionary base area’s red soil is buzzing with vitality due to "ecological courtyard economy." Farmers here have embraced the market and adjusted their structures, building ecological courtyards around the "Six Ones" to create an important pillar for increasing farmers’ income and rural economic development. This grassroots innovation in the Daba Mountains has become a model for poverty alleviation and prosperity. "Ecological courtyards are the creation of Cangxi’s farmers," said Governor Zhang Zhongwei. The Cangxi ecological courtyard economy model has been widely publicized by media such as Xinhua News Agency, People’s Daily, and CCTV, and the provincial government has promoted it statewide. Leaders such as — have inspected Cangxi’s ecological courtyard economy. Last spring, Vice Premier — visited Cangxi and joyfully exclaimed, "The pear blossoms all over Cangxi are incredibly beautiful!" Cangxi was named a "National High-Efficiency Industry Demonstration County for Courtyard Economy" by the Chinese Association of Agricultural Science Societies, attracting over 20,000 visitors from eight provinces (including Shaanxi, Guizhou, Yunnan, and Guangxi) and 180-plus counties and cities in the province, as well as a Vietnamese delegation, for study, inspection, and tourism. Ecological agricultural tourism is becoming a hotspot with promising prospects.

　　Courtyards enrich the people, industry enriches the county, industries interact, and urban and rural areas integrate. Since the successful convening of the — Party Congress, the new county leadership, guided by the important thought of "—," has led 780,000 pear-country children to uphold the Cangxi spirit of "bearing burdens with strength, innovating despite challenges, working hard together, and striving for excellence." They implement the "3466" development strategy and the "13456" industrial interaction project, focusing on economic construction, accelerating development, fostering industrial interaction, driving progress with projects, powered by technological innovation, and vigorously advancing agricultural industrialization, new industrialization, urbanization, and informatization to achieve a moderately prosperous society in all respects. The spring breeze brings floral messages, and the pear countryside blooms with innovative "flowers." This ancient yet vibrant red land is turning a new historical page, and Cangxi will become a dazzling pearl along the thousand-mile Jialing River.