Guizhou agricultural systems receive national recognition

Two traditional agricultural systems in southwestern Guizhou province were recently selected as candidates in the fifth batch of China's important agricultural cultural heritage, by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

The candidates include the traditional planting and management system for China fir in the province's Jinping county -- under the administration of Qiandongnan Miao and Dong autonomous prefecture -- which officials said balances environmental protection and resource utilization.

The planting and trading of China fir in the county can be dated back to the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) and has been one of the main sources of income in the area ever since.

Another nominated system is the farming system in Tunbao, in Anshun city in Guizhou province.

Officials said this farming system retains features of Chinese culture in the Ming Dynasty, which provide references for the study of China's agricultural culture, the promotion of agriculture sustainable development and also acts to increase of farmers' incomes.

China's important agricultural cultural heritage originates from the Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System initiated by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in 2002.

To date, Guizhou's rice-fish-duck agrarian system in Congjiang county, in Qiandongnan Miao and Dong autonomous prefecture -- as well as the ancient tea planting and tea cultivation system in Huaxi district in Guiyang -- have been recognized among China's important agricultural cultural heritage.