After four years of solid development, the sole butterfly orchid farm in the Hailing district of Taizhou city – located in East China's Jiangsu province – has grown vigorously to now have a planting area of nearly 10,000 square meters.
Zhang Ying, founder of the plantation, had the dream of becoming a flower farmer when she started her succulent plants business back in 2016.
"At that time, succulents were at their peak, an annual income of around 100,000 yuan ($13,890)," Zhang said, adding that she then made up her mind to diversify into the flower market. In 2020, the dream came true when Zhang began her own business planting butterfly orchids.
Then, in March 2022 Zhang, along with her partners, founded Taizhou Haipeng Agricultural Technology Development Co Ltd and rented a modern intelligent greenhouse devoted to cultivating butterfly orchids.
To date, the cultivation area at the flower farm has expanded to nearly 10,000 sq m, with an annual production of 113 varieties of butterfly orchids totaling up to 100,000 plants.
Zhang said that most of the butterfly orchids in the market nowadays lack distinctive features and are expensive, making many people hesitant to buy them. As a result, she strives to cultivate new varieties of butterfly orchids in a bid to bring "high-end flowers" into the homes of more people.
Last year, the company newly developed macaron-colored butterfly orchids and the new plants with their fresh colors and full petals have proved to be a big hit with customers since their launch.
In addition, Zhang has taught local villagers the basic techniques of flower planting, offering many positions to them.
"Our company's employees are all nearby villagers and during the busiest times, more than 20 are working," said Zhang, who wants to make a contribution to rural vitalization.
Zhang Ying (R) checks out some of her butterfly orchids. [Photo/WeChat account: weihailing0523]
These days things are really flourishing at the only butterfly orchid farm in the Hailing district of Taizhou. [Photo/WeChat account: weihailing0523]