The green gems of Yunnan

In the past, the grass was mostly found in the wild and appeared only sporadically. But by 2017, Hu's team had made large-scale cultivation possible for the Daka villagers through plant domestication.

"With technical support from the Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden the yield per mu in 2025 increased by 35 percent, and the essential oil extraction rate has averaged 0.35 percent," said Li Yuhan, an assistant agronomist at the Mengla agriculture and rural affairs bureau.

The local "flea grass industry" has established a closed-loop supply chain, covering the entire process from the collection of fresh grass and the extraction of essential oils to the targeted supply of products to the Yunnan Huangya Dai Pharmaceutical Co for mosquito repellent and anti-itching ointments, said Li.

Sun Xueling, chairman of the pharmaceutical company, said that it has collaborated with villagers to set up several flea grass planting cooperatives and encouraged them to participate in cultivation. Young people are also being urged to return home and join the project.

"We have dedicated substantial funding and research efforts to developing key technologies for the standardized cultivation of flea grass, ensuring that growers can access higher-quality seedlings with reduced risk," Sun added.

Hu said that for flea grass to be preserved, its full value must be realized. It should be a crop that local farmers are eager to cultivate, companies can develop into appealing products, and consumers are willing to pay for, he said.

"This is a classic example of the development and utilization of tropical plants," said Xing Yaowu, director of the Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden.

"It began with ethnobotanists uncovering the plant, followed by the extraction of valuable components using modern biology, and ultimately bringing it to the market, which in turn led to better conservation."