THE Malu Grape Park in Jiading District has grapes, more grapes, a lot of attractions, and now offers people a chance to adopt a grapevine of their own. It's an experimental promotion for a park that just keeps growing. Fei Lai uncorks the plan. Adopting a tree is a great way to make nature part of your family. But think again - try adopting a grapevine and see what more fun there can be for all.

At the Malu Grape Park in Jiading District, families can now adopt a grapevine for 800 yuan (US$117).

After strolling through the peaceful park, the family can select a vine that appeals.

They can name the vine they have adopted, take care of it under the supervision of experts and decorate it - as long as no harm is done to the plant. And every year the family can have the fruit of their vine - about 10 kilograms of delicious fresh grapes.

Park staff will tell the family by phone or email exactly when they should come to pick their grapes. The owner family should complete its picking within 20 days.

"I'm very happy to hear that we can adopt a grapevine at the park. Since my family left our farm and moved to the downtown area of the district more than 10 years ago, growing grapes has become just a sweet memory from my childhood," says Lu Xiaofeng, a local resident.

"It's meaningful. The tree is like a harbor which holds and protects my love for the hometown. As well, I can bring friends from Shanghai's downtown area here to enjoy my grapes. That will really entertain them."

People who sign up to buy a grapevine have a lot more privileges and discounts as well. They get free admission to the park and a 15-percent discount when they buy grapes and try other entertainments in the park.

It's not just for individuals and families - businesses can also buy grapevines. The costs for this can rise up to 20,000 yuan, depending on the size of the business and the number of vines involved. Management and staff who jointly own grapevines can collect up to 250 kilograms of fruit a year.

Businesses can also use the park for business events, they can invite clients to join in grape picking and give their employees a place for fun after work.

The Malu Grape Park, which opened in 2006 at a cost of about 30 million yuan, is a place where city dwellers can enjoy the pleasures of the fruit of the vine.

Covering 30 hectares, visitors can pick grapes, boat on a lake and relax while listening to music and drinking wine in a 400-meter arbor decoratively strung with grapes.

Famous throughout the nation for their quality, Malu grapes are also among the most expensive, usually five to six times the average price of domestic grapes.

Yin Genxing, a technician from Malu Town's agricultural integrated services station, says the town's grape output will reach around 8,000 tons this year, 500 tons more than last year. Currently, the town has set aside 353.33 hectares for growing grapes.

"The town has been growing grapes for almost 30 years and there are more than 120 varieties. With improvements in quality and the influence of branding, they have won popularity nationwide and bring a fortune to local farmers," Yin says.

"Vine adopting is a new experiment for us. It builds a closer tie between consumers and Malu grapes. People can expand their knowledge of grapes and they are certain to fall in love with the place where their own grapes grow."

According to officials from the Malu Grape Research Institute, grapes grown in solar greenhouses are ripening early and will be available at the park later this month. Some lucky vine owners might be able to enjoy grapes within two weeks.

Last year, the park had over 200,000 visitors, more than half of whom drove their own cars to the park. They are the major targets of the vine adoption program.

"The park is improving its services and will offer a perfect outing for visitors." says Xu Qiong, who works at the marketing department of the park.

The 2009 Shanghai Malu Grape Festival will begin on July 5 at the Malu Grape Park. With the theme "A trip to World Expo, a date with Malu," the festival will run through to October 7.

This is the ninth festival and the three-month event offers a lot more than grape- picking and wine salons.

Some of the events on the program include a group wedding under grapevines on August 26, Chinese Valentine's Day, and a display of logos for the festival suggested by the public.

A World Expo vineyard with a love theme will be open at the park during the festival. Visitors will be able to write wishes for the World Expo and hang them in the vineyard. Grapes will be sold to raise money to buy Expo tickets for the underprivileged.

A passport which doubles as a tourist map of the district will be distributed citywide with the help of travel agents and auto clubs.

To match the Expo theme, a grape-themed Expo will be launched at the park's newly built science museum during the festival. Visitors can discover a variety of grapes and their various uses.

Quality matters

To encourage more people to experience the charm of the town and the district, routes for a one-day tour, either for tour groups or individuals, will be revealed by the local government, local travel agents and tourist Websites.

With the local government's support of tourism and grape cultivation, local farmers have benefited. Grape planting has become one of the main economic drives for local farmers.

Jin Huijuan is one of them. The grapes she grows won the Golden Grapes of Malu Town title last year, and their value has increased from 4 yuan per 500 grams in 2002 to 12 yuan last year.

"I don't know what the price this year will be. My job is to guarantee what I grow is of the best quality with the juiciest sweetest taste," Jin says. "As long as the quality meets people's demands, the price doesn't matter."

Although she has been growing grapes for seven years now, Jin started from scratch and was glad to see the changes introduced in grape growing techniques. To learn the scientific methods of growing grapes, she attended training courses provided by the town's agriculture committee. Although she knew little about the market, she studied hard and her efforts were returned with her harvests.

Nowadays, she is fully aware that quality for Malu grapes is as important as water is for man. Jin hopes more visitors will come to the town to pay homage to her fruit.

It usually takes less than 45 minutes to reach Malu from Shanghai's downtown area. With convenient transport and the lure of grapes, the town is becoming a very popular spot for outings with friends, families and colleagues.



The 2009 Shanghai Malu Grape Festival

Date: July 5-October 7

Venue: Malu Grape Park, 27 Dazhi Rd E.

Transport: A12 Expressway-Malu exit-Liuxiang Road-Dazhi Road

Website:www.maluputao.com