In the midsummer, 50 mu (about 3.33 hectares) of sunflowers in Hongyang Village, Huangtan Town, Ninghai County are in full bloom. The large and plump flower disks glow with dazzling golden light in the sun, and the continuous golden field contrasts with the distant mountains, forming a magnificent rural pastoral scene.

This vibrant field of flowers was once an idle and low-efficiency wasteland in the village. At the beginning of this year, Hongyang Village planted sunflowers through land transfer, which not only retained the original rural texture but also cleverly created a layered pastoral landscape, bringing the "sleeping" wasteland back to life.

"Passing by the field of flowers, I was deeply attracted at once." Villager Zhang Linglin hoped to let more people see the beauty of her hometown through live streaming on the Internet. "Netizens often ask about it and say they want to come to check in in person," she said.

Similarly, in Aoliwang Village, Huchen Township, a "wasteland awakening plan" has covered 40 mu of wasteland with greenery. Faced with the problem of soil degradation, at the beginning of this year, the village cadres of Aoliwang Village led the villagers to improve the soil of the wasteland and introduced new varieties of high-quality fresh corn, which achieved a good harvest. The corn yield per mu reached 1,500 kilograms, and the income per mu was 7,000 yuan.

For the reclaimed wasteland, Ninghai mostly adopts crop rotation, which not only ensures the efficient use of land throughout the year but also realizes that there are scenic spots to enjoy in all four seasons. Hongyang Village adopts a seasonal intercropping model. After the sunflower blooming period, daylilies with high economic value will continue to bloom. Liuhe Village, Sangzhou Town, has carried out systematic management of more than 200 mu of wasteland, and interplanted wormwood and rape in the plots with a slope greater than 25 degrees and relatively poor soil. Villagers can get dividend income from the sales of agricultural products and also participate in farm work to get paid. Wang Ruyong, secretary of the Party branch of Aoliwang Village, said that after the corn is harvested, Lin'an small sweet potatoes will be planted in rotation. Throughout the year, the income per mu of land exceeds 20,000 yuan, and the annual output value of 40 mu of wasteland is expected to reach 800,000 yuan, injecting strong vitality into the village collective economy.

Developing wasteland not only brings income to the village collective and villagers but also empowers the development of rural tourism. Hongyang Village is located deep in the mountains. The idle old houses in the village have been transformed into noodle restaurants, and local characteristic sweet potato noodles and dried bamboo shoot noodles are served on the table; the newly opened Yexiu Coffee provides tourists with a new leisure choice. He Yuying, a village cadre of Hongyang Village, said that creating the sunflower sea landscape is an attempt of the village to promote the construction of a future village. In the follow-up, facilities such as wooden plank roads and viewing platforms will be planned and built. Combined with the sunflower blooming period, themed activities such as photography contests and parent-child research will be planned to continuously enrich the tourist experience.

In Huchen Township, "a grain of corn" has linked the agricultural, cultural and tourism common prosperity chain, becoming a fulcrum to promote the integrated development of local agriculture, culture and tourism. The township has launched the "Summer Corn Battle" parent-child activity, where tourists can experience the fun of picking, and at the same time drive the direct sales of local agricultural products and the development of rural tourism. The township also plans to develop instant corn, corn juice, pastries and other derivatives, so that more resources can be revitalized and a new path to common prosperity can be paved.