Homegrown durians are ripe in SW China's Yunnan

Staff members pick a durian at a promotional event in Jinping Miao, Yao and Dai Autonomous County, southwest China's Yunnan Province, on Sept. 4, 2026. (People's Daily Online/Hu Zunhui)

Green durians hung from the branches at a durian plantation in Jinshuihe town, Jinping Miao, Yao and Dai Autonomous County, southwest China's Yunnan Province, on Sept. 4, 2026. The county held a promotional event that day to showcase its specialty agricultural industries, featuring activities including durian picking, opening and tasting, and sugar content testing. Tests showed that a sample durian had a sugar content of 32.9 percent.

Located on a low-latitude plateau, the county has a tropical monsoon climate, with frost-free conditions, abundant sunshine and ample rainfall year-round, making it ideal for durian cultivation. It introduced durians for trial cultivation in 2017. The trees first bore fruit in 2023, producing two fruits in 2025. In 2026, 21 trees bore a total of 90 fruits, with the highest yield reaching 16 fruits per tree. The county now has 867 9-year-old durian trees.

The county has also established a 52-mu (about 3.47 hectares) standardized nursery, where more than 150 durian varieties from China and abroad have been collected. More than 20 high-quality varieties, including Monthong, have been selected for local cultivation, and 65,000 high-quality seedlings have been propagated.

The county aims to expand its durian cultivation area to 10,000 mu by 2028, develop three locally bred flagship varieties, and improve the entire industry chain, including fresh-fruit sorting, deep processing and cold-chain storage.

Green, plump durians hang from the branches at a durian plantation in Jinshuihe town, Jinping Miao, Yao and Dai Autonomous County, southwest China's Yunnan Province, on Sept. 4, 2026. (People's Daily Online/Hu Zunhui)

Green, plump durians hang from the branches at a durian plantation in Jinshuihe town, Jinping Miao, Yao and Dai Autonomous County, southwest China's Yunnan Province, on Sept. 4, 2026. (People's Daily Online/Hu Zunhui)

A durian is displayed at a promotional event in Jinping Miao, Yao and Dai Autonomous County, southwest China's Yunnan Province, on Sept. 4, 2026. (People's Daily Online/Hu Zunhui)

A test shows that a sample durian has a sugar content of 32.9 percent at a promotional event in Jinping Miao, Yao and Dai Autonomous County, southwest China's Yunnan Province, on Sept. 4, 2026. (People's Daily Online/Hu Zunhui)

Durians are opened for tasting at a promotional event in Jinping Miao, Yao and Dai Autonomous County, southwest China's Yunnan Province, on Sept. 4, 2026. (People's Daily Online/Hu Zunhui)