Dashu’s Yuherbau Litchis / 南方有嘉果 大樹玉荷包荔枝
Dashu's Yuherbau Litchis
◎English written by Lin Fang-ju
◎Photos by Pao Chung-hui, Tsai Ming-hsu, Wang Jui-jung
The Dashu countryside roads were filled with fields of litchi crops in May. Due to the fact Dashu is situated near the Kaoping River, the surrounding natural environment and rich soil make Yuherbau litchis extra large and extremely sweet. Dashu's Yuherbau litchis are responsible for 80% - 90% of Taiwan's litchi market. Over the last four years, Yuherbau litchis have also been expanding in the Japanese markets.
Peak season is usually two weeks before and after Dragon Boat Festival. Harvest usually occurs in mid May. Farmers must complete the harvest within 15 days after the skin turns from green to red and yellow. A ripe Yuherbau litchi has a very tiny seed. The pulp is translucent, juicy with a slightly sour aroma, sweet and refreshing.
Chung Su-jen is a Yuherbau litchi field owner in Dashu District and claims the most critical issues facing farmers are pests and extreme weather, causing litchis to easily fall down to the ground. This year extreme cold postponed the Yuherbau litchis ripening by 2 weeks. It also contributed to a lot of cracked and unusable litchis, decreasing the crop by 30%.
Wang Jui-jung's Gilitchi Organic Orchard has the MOA Organic Certification. Wang insists on using an organic method to grow his litchis and guarantees they are 100% chemical-free. He conserves his land and keeps ecological balance. He believes his methodology would help the decrease of pests and diseases. Since Wang utilizes natural farming techniques, Gilitchi Organic Orchard's Yuherbau has maintained a high quality of juicy, fragrant and fresh litchis. As a certified farmer, Uncle Shun describes the ripe litchis, with a rough skin, red stalk and yellowish bottom. Besides the red and yellow color distribution, the pulp is not too juicy, yet not too dry and is usually sweet and delicious.
Yuherbau has a great reputation. This is exemplified in the fact that Japanese importers seek out Yuherbau farmers that have an unbeatable reputation and are certified by the Council of Agriculture. The Japanese use the bar code for production records, to get insight into different production stages, to find out if pesticides were used or to find a particular farmer. This helps give transparancy to production information.
南方有嘉果
大樹玉荷包荔枝
◎文／張嘉玲 ◎攝影／鮑忠暉、蔡明余、王瑞榮
踏進恬靜的大樹區，五月鄉間路旁隨處可見結實纍纍的玉荷包果園 ，大樹區為丘陵地形，鄰近高屏溪，土質排水性佳，得天獨厚的環境孕育出碩大、甜美的玉荷包。大樹區玉荷包荔枝占全國八、九成的市場佔有率，深受國人喜愛，除內銷之外，大樹玉荷包更飄洋過海，外銷日本今年邁入第四年，訂購量逐年增加。
玉荷包荔枝的盛產季約為端午節前後兩個星期，採收期為五月中旬，果皮逐漸由青色轉成紅黃相間顏色後，果農須於15天採收期內採收完成。成熟的玉荷包籽特別小 ，晶瑩透亮的果肉飽滿富有彈性，香氣微微帶酸，清甜爽口。
走訪大樹區，玉荷包果農莊素真表示 ，玉荷包最怕遇到病蟲害與氣候的問題 。非但荔枝細蛾會危害果實，使果實掉落，今年由於全球氣候異常，天氣格外寒冷，導致玉荷包成熟期不僅延遲半個月，『裂果』或『落果』的現象也特別嚴重，玉荷包荔枝總產量大減，約較往年減少七成。
果農王瑞榮經營的『吉荔有機果園』經日本財團法人國際美育自然生態基金會（MOA）有機驗證通過，他堅持以有機方式栽種玉荷包，完全不使用化學藥劑，利用自然界『一物剋一物』的特性讓病蟲害自然減少。關鍵在於需要一段時間『養地』，使土地生態達到平衡，病蟲害問題自然迎刃而解。由於他對自然農法的堅持，果園生產的玉荷包品質深受信任，荔枝果肉多汁，散發濃郁果香，嚐起來富有彈性，清爽不甜膩。