Good gourd! It's great business

Dongchangfu district has established a gourd variety protection and improvement team, collaborating with scientific research institutions such as the Shandong Academy of Agricultural Sciences and Liaocheng University. Together, they have refined 17 local gourd varieties and developed more than 10 new ones.

High-quality gourds have provided materials for artistic expression.

"A wide range of topics like landscapes and images can be carved on gourds," says Wang Shufeng, director of the Liaocheng gourd cultural industry association and a provincial-level inheritor of Dongchang gourd carving.

Wang, who studied under national-level inheritor Li Yucheng, now passes on his craft through free training courses that have nurtured three city and five district-level inheritors.

To further promote the inheritance of this art, the district has set up dedicated craft workshops staffed with professional instructors. This initiative has trained over 3,300 local artisans, ensuring that skills continue to flourish.

In one such workshop in Mishi Street, Liu Jinghui, 35, uses soft clay to adorn gourds with pop-culture figures — from the animated hero Nezha to trendy toys like Labubu.

"Traditional pieces attract collectors, but I want gourds to be part of young people's daily lives," she says. Her shop has become a popular check-in spot, drawing crowds every weekend.

In addition to traditional motifs like flowers and birds, young artisans have developed diverse cultural and creative products including gourd ornaments and containers.

These innovative designs have attracted buyers from across China, with the digital economy amplifying their reach.

At 10 pm, Luzhuang village remains lively as young Hao Xuekun begins his nightly livestream.

"Take a look at this gourd — perfect shape, smooth skin and handcrafted pyrography by our master artisans," the 26-year-old enthusiastically tells his online audience.

Born into a family with generations of gourd expertise, Hao began filming gourd-related comedy sketches during university, gradually gaining followers.

After graduating in 2021, he returned home to focus on livestreaming. His humorous and informative content now draws more than 300,000 followers on short-video platforms, generating impressive sales of 100 to over 300 orders each night and annual sales of up to 700,000 to 800,000 yuan.

Dongchangfu has developed a multidimensional sales model integrating online and offline channels. Annual online gourd sales in Tangyi town have reached 1.2 billion yuan, with offline sales at 600 million yuan.

A robust logistics network supports this trade, with Luzhuang village alone dispatching over 3,000 packages daily, increasing to 6,000 during peak seasons.

Beyond domestic success, Dongchang gourds have also gained international appeal along the Belt and Road routes.

Wang, the Liaocheng gourd cultural industry association director, says Dongchang gourd carving products have been exported to more than 10 countries, including Italy, Serbia, Japan, South Korea and the United States.

"At cultural exchange events, small gourd items such as tea strainers and bracelets are especially popular among visitors," says Wang.

A complete industrial ecosystem has emerged in the district, he says.

Flawless gourds are collected by connoisseurs while those with minor imperfections become unique artworks through carving or painting. Supporting shops sell beads, tassels and tools. Even the once-discarded gourd skin is now used in traditional Chinese medicine.

This gourd boom has brought tangible benefits to villagers, helping boost local incomes and vitalize rural life. The district government has built on this momentum by promoting integrated development, creating demonstration zones where visitors can experience gourd farming, carving and painting firsthand.

Contact the writer at zhaoruixue@chinadaily.com.cn