Nature lover from Taiwan plants roots in Jiangsu with tourist farm

They transformed a 4-hectare peach orchard in an outer suburb of Kunshan to an experience-oriented farm, just one to three hours' drive away from large cities like Shanghai and Suzhou.

Named "Wonder Farm", Kuo and his partners aim to make the farm a wonderland for quality fruits and vegetables, nature exploration and relaxation with friends and family.

Besides peaches, they grow many other crops such as blueberries, grapes, dragonfruit, tomatoes, carrots, pumpkin, corn and rice, to name a few. "We want our customers to always have something fresh to pick up anytime they come," Kuo said.

"We refuse to use any pesticides, herbicides or artificial fertilizers in our farm because we try to return the taste of the fruit and vegetables to themselves," Kuo added. "Instead, we rely on animal fertilizers to ensure a better fragrance and higher degree of sweetness."

"We organize a lot of fun activities such as insect or star observations at night, music concerts in the rice fields, drama festivals, handcrafting with natural materials and camping with a bonfire. The list goes on, and changes with the seasons," Kuo said.

"Rice transplanting and harvesting seems to be the most popular activity among children. I introduce the life cycle of a rice plant to them, from transplanting, head sprouting, flowering, and ripening to harvest. We also use the straw to make rope or other handicrafts," Kuo said.