The 13th Leijiadianzi Strawberry Festival was held on Hongshiya Street in Qingdao West Coast New Area (Qingdao WCNA) on March 11.

Featuring an array of themed activities and cultural performances, the festival aimed to expand the influence of the Leijiadianzi strawberry brand, build a new model for the integrated development of agriculture, culture and tourism and stimulate rural vitalization.

Based on the advantages of strawberry planting in the area, Hongshiya has combined the agricultural industry with tourism to spur rural vitalization. The "strawberry economy" has become a vital engine for local economic development.

To further improve and ensure the quality of strawberries, Leijiadianzi Economic Cooperative has utilized an "outsourcing plus self-cultivation" method to select and breed strawberry seedlings for many years.

"From September to October every year, our growers plow the land, use high-quality manure and soybean cake as base fertilizers and raise the ridges to plant the best seedlings," said Xue Jingping, a local strawberry grower. "We allow the strawberries to ripen naturally by applying drip irrigation and bee pollination without pesticides, swelling or ripening agents."

To enhance the popularity and market competitiveness of strawberries, in 2008, Leijiadianzi Economic Cooperation registered the "Hongdianziguan" fruit and vegetable trademark and embarked on a new path of brand development. The Leijiadianzi Strawberry has become another well-known regional characteristic agricultural brand in Qingdao along the Beizhai Cherry and Dazeshan Grapes.

Up to now, there are more than 150 strawberry growers in the cooperative, which has a strawberry planting area of more than 500 mu (33 hectares), 360 planting greenhouses and more than 10 varieties of strawberries. In 2022, the income of the strawberry industry in Leijiadianzi reached 12 million yuan ($1.74 million).