426 Modern Agricultural Reforms
- Courtyard dominated by timber tree species: In this type farmers plant trees
and shrubs in and around their courtyard. The tree species differ according to
local conditions and farmers’ interests. In successfully afforested districts, quick
growth and high yield forest are common. This type of homestead is often seen
in areas with a shortage of timber and fuel in northern and north-western
China. - Courtyard with dominance of fruit trees: This is characterized by planting
fruit trees around/in courtyards, mostly in the form of an orchard, but some-
times there are only a few fruit trees or even a single fruit tree in a courtyard.
Species of fruit trees vary with region. For example, apricot, cherry, jujube,
stone pomegranate, apple, pear, mandarin orange, tangerine, orange and
grape. - Courtyard dominated by tree seedlings and other cash tree species: in some
regions, where the market is available, farmers are engaged in tree seedling
cultivation. In other areas farmers are interested in cultivating cash tree crops,
such as magnolia, Eucommia and honeysuckle, which usually create high prof-
its.
Multi-dimensional cultivation
In order to fully use all the resources in space and in time, peasants usually design
multi-dimensional homestead systems consisting of trees, crops, vegetables and
edible fungi. There are several forms including:
- timber/fruit trees + melon and/or vegetables;
- lumber/fruit tree + edible mushrooms;
- trees + medicinal plants; and
- trees + flowering plants.
Cultivation–breeding–processing combination
This is developed on the basis of cultivation–breeding type in combination with
some processing industries. These include handicrafts and small cottage processing
industries:
1 Timber–fruit processing. This includes wood processing and craftwork such as
grass weaving, bamboo weaving, furniture making and fruit processing. Farm-
ers can gain high economic benefit if their processed products meet the needs
of markets.
2 Cultivation–breeding–processing industry. This combines agriculture, animal
breeding and horticulture with small agriculture processing industry in a
household system. The cultivated species depend on the natural conditions of
the areas. The waste from the family and the residue from agriculture harvests
are used to feed domestic animals, while grains are subjected to simple process-
ing to meet dietary requirements. The vegetables, besides being grown for con-
sumption, can be preserved in the form of pickles and salted vegetables.