In August, the thousand-acre forsythia plantation in Wangshiwa Village, Yintai District, Tongchuan City, Shaanxi Province, has entered its peak harvesting season. Amidst the rolling hills, plump, green fruits hang heavily on the branches, releasing a refreshing medicinal aroma. Villagers move through the groves, seizing the sunny weather to pick the green forsythia, creating a bustling and orderly harvest scene across the landscape.

"Now I have work right at my doorstep. Picking forsythia and tending to medicinal herbs lets me care for my family while also learning new skills. Life is getting better every day," said villager Wang Quanmin, wiping his sweat. This newfound confidence stems from the village's long-term cultivation and scientific planning of the traditional Chinese medicine industry. In recent years, leveraging the local mountainous resource advantages, the village has positioned the herbal medicine sector as a pillar industry for rural revitalization. Abandoning traditional extensive methods, they have vigorously promoted standardized forsythia cultivation. Currently, the village's total forsythia planting area has reached 1,400 mu.

With support from Shaanxi University of Science and Technology, the village has selected and bred the high-quality "Tong Qiao No. 1" variety, establishing an integrated industrial model encompassing seedling cultivation, planting, management, harvesting, and drying. This has upgraded the process from "fresh field fruit" to "standardized medicinal material."

While expanding the forsythia industry, Wangshiwa Village is actively exploring an industrial layout that combines "short-term yields with long-term stability for diversified complementarity." In 2026, the village plans to solidify the leading forsythia industry while setting aside separate plots to trial-plant 100 mu of annual Isatis indigotica (Banlangen) and 60 mu of perennial white peony root (Baishao).

This "long-short term combination, multi-variety linkage" model uses a scientific mix of different crops to effectively mitigate the market risks of a single variety and maximize land utility. "Forsythia is the village's 'staple crop,' with a long growth cycle and stable returns; Banlangen and Baishao are our 'flexible supplements' for optimizing the structure," explained Xu Tao, the first secretary assigned to Wangshiwa Village from Shaanxi University of Science and Technology.

Banlangen, which is sun-loving, cold-tolerant, and has a short growth period, is ideal for separate plots that allow for fine management and yield returns within the same year. Although Baishao requires 3 to 5 years before harvesting, it has high medicinal value and represents an important experiment in diversifying the crop varieties. By matching the rhythm of "long-term crops for stability, short-term crops for income," the village's industry now has no idle periods. After completing the core task of forsythia picking, villagers can quickly move to manage and harvest other plots, achieving "multiple crops on one land, generating income all year round."

The thriving industry has provided stable local employment opportunities. Currently, dozens of villagers are involved in seedling cultivation, pruning, picking, and sorting. Through land transfer "rent" and wages from base work, villagers' income channels are continuously expanding, and the village-level collective economy is steadily growing.

In recent years, Yintai District has adhered to a development philosophy prioritizing ecological preservation and enriching the people through industry. They are continuously focusing on standardized planting, brand marketing, and chain extension. By strengthening the leading forsythia industry and optimizing the diversified trial bases for Banlangen and Baishao, the district is pushing the traditional Chinese medicine industry towards scale, standardization, and branding, painting a beautiful rural picture of ecological vitality, industrial prosperity, and people's wealth.