Hainan offers fertile ground for fruit farmers from Taiwan

The island's tropical climate and unique location are among the major attractions. Zhang Yi reports.

In Hainan, China's southernmost province, Lin Ho-chou, a farmer from Taiwan, is busy tending to his fruit plantation: his wax apple crop is ripening and the fruit will soon be sold in supermarkets nationwide and by vendors on the streets.

The mature fruit is bell-shaped, and red or crimson in color. Local people call it the "water that grows on trees" as the white flesh under the thin skin is spongy and has a high water content.

It's one of many widely planted fruits in Hainan that were brought by farmers from Taiwan, an island that is home to many tropical fruits.

According to the local authorities, there are more than 300 Taiwan-funded enterprises working in Hainan's agricultural sector.

Lin is one of many farmers from Taiwan who have settled in Hainan in search of opportunities. They bring deep experience and variety to the island province, and make good use of the local land, climate and the Chinese mainland's market to realize their planting dreams and take root.

Lin's family has been planting pomelos in his birthplace — Tainan in southern Taiwan — for generations. Due to the land limitations in Taiwan, such cultivation is small in scale.