Lhasa’s figs enter into harvest season

The fresh figs are rich, sweet, and juicy, helping produce saliva and slaking thirst.

In Qia Village, Changdo Township, Dagze District in Lhasa, Tibet, figs grown by the Dagze District Pure Ecological Farmer and Nomad Professional Plant Cooperative are now bearing fruit with a total output of 1,000 kilograms.  

Here is the first fig picking garden in Tibet, the highest region in the world.  

There is a warm greenhouse in the fig garden. The purple and green fruit are aplenty, with some the size of an adult’s fist. “These varieties are called ‘Bojihong’, which were introduced from Shandong Province,” said Zhang Tao, an official with the Dagze District Pure Ecological Farmer and Nomad Professional Plant Cooperative. “In March of this year, we introduced more than 800 trees, and the survival rate across six mu (1 mu = 0.165 acres) of land has been over 98 percent. The trees began to fruit since June, and it’s now available on the market!”

“After the figs have ripened, their shelf life is only 48 hours,” Zhang Tao told reporters. “It takes a while for fresh figs produced in inland areas to be transported to Tibet, so freshness and taste are difficult to guarantee. Therefore, you seldom see fresh figs for sale in markets in Lhasa!” He added, “According to our understanding, some research institutes have tried to introduce figs here before, but we are the only one that has had success in large-scale planting. A single fruit can be between 70 and 150 grams, which is very good on the plateau! Later the people of Lhasa will be able to taste figs at home!”  

Figs are sturdy, drought resistant, and they prefer a warmer climate. “The thick soil and lighting conditions here are more suitable for fig cultivation!” Dachom, a villager from Qia Village in Changdo Township, Dagze District, told reporters. After the cooperative was established, figs and strawberries were introduced here, and other cash crops will be introduced in future. Dachom can work for the cooperative during the off-season. “In the off-season, I go to the greenhouse of the cooperative to work, and I do some simple tasks like weeding and watering. I can get 140 yuan a day!” he said. Dampa, who is also from Qia Village, feels the same as Dachom. “Figs are priced at 88 yuan per half kilo for picking, which is several times more than the value of barley,” he said. 

The picking garden of the Dagze District Pure Ecological Farmer and Nomad Professional Plant Cooperative is currently open,. Fresh figs are quite suitable for people with indigestion, loss of appetite, hyperlipemia, and high blood pressure.