GIES Case Study on the Guanghua Blueberry in the Cold Region and Black Soil Area of Tonghua, Jilin Province

Zhu Weihong¹², He Wensheng³, Liu Ying⁴, Jin Ni⁵, Zhuang Hongwei⁶, Qin Lipeng⁶, Wei Shibao⁶, Yin Xiuyan⁷, Wang Jingzhi¹², Jin Ri¹², Yang Yuanchao⁸, Tang Yuqi², Quan Donghe², Han Yingqi², Zhang Yue’e², Cai Xiaoyu², Tian Fangzheng²

1 Yanbian University, Yanji 133000, Jilin, China

2 College of Geography and Marine Sciences, Yanbian University, Hunchun 133300, Jilin, China

3 Tonghua Municipal Administration for Market Regulation, Tonghua 134001, Jilin, China

4 Tonghua County Government, Tonghua County 134100, Jilin, China

5 Tonghua County Administration for Market Regulation, Tonghua County 134100, Jilin, China

6 Guanghua Town People’s Government, Guanghua Town 134111, Jilin, China

7 Tonghua Heyun Modern Agriculture Co., Ltd., Tonghua County 134100, Jilin, China

8 Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture Agricultural Product Quality and Safety Testing Center, Yanji 133000, Jilin, China

Abstract: Guanghua Town is located in Tonghua County, Tonghua City, Jilin Province, within the mountainous geomorphic system of the Longgang Mountain branch, which is part of the Changbai Mountain range. The terrain in the area is predominantly characterized by gentle slopes and river terraces. It has a temperate continental monsoon climate and is one of the key production areas of high-quality blueberries in China. Soil analysis shows that the organic matter content ranges from 15.7 to 718 g/kg, total nitrogen from 0.084% to 2.282%, total phosphorus from 0.021% to 0.185%, and total potassium from 0.25% to 2.61%. In addition, the concentrations of heavy metals (including lead, cadmium, and mercury) in the soil are considerably lower than the national standards. In the case study area, the pH of surface water ranges from 6.58 to 7.62. The contents of heavy metals (such as mercury, cadmium, and lead) were below detection limits, and indicators including fluorides meet the national standards. Blueberries produced in this region are known for their plumpness, high sweetness, and excellent nutritional value. The total polyphenol content reaches 1,929.9 mg/kg, and the total flavonoid content is 87.15 mg/100g. The fruits are intact with no excessive heavy metal residues, thus demonstrating strong market competitiveness. A relatively complete industrial chain has been established, encompassing seedling cultivation, planting, harvesting, processing, diversified product development, and sales. The dataset includes: (1) boundary data of the case study area; (2) elevation and slope data; (3) land use and vegetation cover data; (4) climate and soil data; (5) blueberry quality and production data. The dataset is archived in .shp, .xlsx, .docx, .jpg, .txt, and .tif formats, comprising a total of 41 data files with a total data volume of 6.05 MB.

Keywords: Tonghua Guanghua Town; Changbai Mountain blueberry; GIES; Case 39

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3974/geodp.2026.04.03

CSTR: https://cstr.escience.org.cn/CSTR:20146.14.2026.04.03

1 Introduction

Blueberry (scientific name: Vaccinium uliginosum), a perennial small berry plant of the Ericaceae family native to North America, is widely recognized as the "golden berry" and "king of antioxidants" due to its high content of vitamins, trace elements, and abundant phenolic compounds ^[1]. Blueberries exhibit strong antioxidant properties, which can enhance human immunity, combat cardiovascular diseases, and slow the aging process. With high nutritional and economic value, blueberries have been listed by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) as one of the world's top five health foods ^[2].

Blueberries were first introduced to China in the 1980s. At present, domestic blueberry production can be divided into five major advantageous regions: the Changbai Mountain production area, the Liaodong Peninsula production area, the Jiaodong Peninsula production area, the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River production area, and the Southwest production area ^[3]. The Changbai Mountain production area is characterized by low pollution levels and virtually no environmental interference. The fresh fruit supply period in this region extends from late July to early September, making it the latest-maturing blueberry production area in China. The main cultivated varieties include 'Blomidon', 'Fenty', 'Northland', 'Bluecrop', 'Northblue', and 'Bluegold' ^[4].

The blueberries cultivated in Guanghua Town, Tonghua County, are located within the Changbai Mountain forest region. These blueberries possess strong competitiveness in both domestic and international markets due to their late maturation, delicate fruit texture, rich flavor, and outstanding nutritional quality. Their research value lies in providing genetic resources for cold-region blueberry breeding and revealing mechanisms of cold tolerance; investigating the effects of multiple factors on blueberry quality to improve cultivation theories for cold regions; and offering a whole-industry-chain model that can serve as a reference for the development of characteristic agriculture in cold regions. This paper focuses on Tonghua Changbai Mountain blueberries, aiming to systematically review their high-quality habitat conditions, suitable varieties, and key cultivation techniques, thereby providing a scientific basis for the sustainable development of the blueberry industry in this region and the full utilization of its geographical advantages.

2 Dataset Metadata Overview

The metadata of the Case Study on the Geographical-Indicator Habitat of Guanghua Blueberry in the Cold Region and Black Soil Area of Tonghua ^[5] include the following elements: title, authors, geographical region, data time period, dataset composition, data publishing and sharing service platform, data sharing policy, etc. Detailed information is presented in Table 1.

Table 1 Metadata summary of the case study on the geo-indicative habitat of Tonghua Guanghua blueberries in cold black soil regions

Item	Description
Dataset name	Case Study of Cold-Region Black Soil Habitat for Blueberries in Guanghua, Tonghua
Dataset alias	Tonghua Blueberry Habitat Landmark Dataset
Author information	Weihong Zhu, Yanbian University, whzhu@ybu.edu.cn Wensheng He, Tonghua Municipal Administration for Market Regulation Ying Liu, Tonghua County Government, Tonghua City Ni Jin, Tonghua County Administration for Market Regulation, Tonghua City Hongwei Zhuang, Guanghua Town Government, Tonghua County Lipeng Qin, Guanghua Town Government, Tonghua County Shibao Wei, Guanghua Town Government, Tonghua County Xiuyan Yin, Tonghua Heyun Modern Agriculture Co., Ltd. Jingzhi Wang, College of Geography and Ocean Sciences, Yanbian University, jzwang@ybu.edu.cn Ri Jin, College of Geography and Ocean Sciences, Yanbian University, jinri0322@ybu.edu.cn Yuanchao Yang, Agricultural Product Quality and Safety Testing Center of Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture Yuqi Tang, College of Geography and Ocean Sciences,Yanbian University Donghe Quan, College of Geography and Ocean Sciences,Yanbian University Yingqi Han, College of Geography and Ocean Sciences,Yanbian University Yue’e Zhang, College of Geography and Ocean Sciences, Yanbian University Xiaoyu Cai, College of Geography and Ocean Sciences, Yanbian University Fangzheng Tian, College of Geography and Ocean Sciences, Yanbian University.
Geographic area	Guanghua Town, Tonghua County, Jilin Province
Data year	2025
Data formats	.docx、.tif、.jpg、.xlsx、.shp
Data size	2.3 MB (compressed)
Dataset composition	Case-area maps, natural-geographic data, processed soil data, product characteristic data, and socio-economic, historical, and cultural data
Publishing and sharing service platform	Global Change Research Data Publishing & Repository, http://www.geodoi.ac.cn
Address	No. 11 Datun Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100101, China; Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Data sharing policy	(1) The data are made publicly accessible to society through an Internet system in the most convenient manner; users may browse and download them free of charge; (2) users are required to cite the data source appropriately in works generated from using the data, including formally published works and unpublished works; (3) users who disseminate or distribute the data by any means, including through computer servers, must sign a written agreement with the Global Change Research Data Publishing & Repository (GCdataPR) and obtain permission; (4) records extracted from the “data” through extractive methods or partial modification must follow the 10% citation rule, namely, records extracted from this dataset must account for less than 10% of the total number of records in the new dataset, and the source of the extracted data records must be clearly cited^[6]
Data and paper indexing systems	DOI，DCI，CSCD，WDS/ISC，GEOSS，China GEOSS

3 Case Study Data Development

3.1 Scope of the Case Study Area

Guanghua Town, Tonghua County, Tonghua City, Jilin Province, is situated between 125°17′–126°25′ E and 41°49′–42°02′ N. It is located 56 km from the county seat and has a total area of 333.1 km². The town currently administers eight administrative villages and 62 resident groups. The total cultivated land area in the town is 142 hectares, including 3.2 km² of paddy fields, 1.336 km² of dry farmland, and 4.86 km² of cash crop land. Grain crops grown in Guanghua Town mainly include corn, rice, and soybeans; livestock farming focuses on pigs, cattle, and poultry ^[7].

Figure 1 Geographical location map of the case study area

3.2 Eco-environmental Data

3.2.1 Topography and Geomorphology

The landform of Guanghua Town belongs to the mountainous geomorphic system of the Longgang Mountain branch, which is itself a branch of the Changbai Mountain range. Mountains account for 87.3% of the town's total area, with an average elevation of 459.5 m. To the east lies the Sifang Mountain and to the west the Longgang Mountain—both are north–south trending mountain ranges—forming a core geomorphic pattern described as "two mountains flanking one river." The terrain is centered around the Hani River, with low elevation in the middle and higher elevation on both sides [8]. Combined analysis of elevation and slope (Figure 2) shows that most of the town's elevation ranges between 400-800 m, with moderate undulation, presenting an overall pattern of high surroundings and a low central area. Slopes are predominantly gentle; steeper slopes appear only sporadically in the peripheral mountainous areas. The terrain is gently undulating and exhibits good continuity.

Figure 2 Classification map of slope and elevation in the case study area

3.2.2 Climatic Conditions

The annual average temperature in Guanghua Town is approximately 3.6 °C. The hottest period occurs from late July to early August, with an average temperature of about 23.8 °C, while the coldest period is from late January to early February, where extreme low temperatures can reach -26 °C [9]. The winter season is characterized by a long duration of low temperatures, with an accumulated duration of temperatures below 7.2 °C exceeding 800 hours. The annual precipitation in the town ranges from approximately 865 to 995 mm, with rainfall concentrated in July and August, reaching 219 mm and 196 mm, respectively. The region benefits from favorable light conditions, with abundant sunshine throughout the year. During the growing season, there are frequent sunny days, and the average daily sunshine duration exceeds 6 hours. After September, the region enters a short-day photoperiod phase, which aligns with the requirements for flower bud differentiation and contributes to an increase in fruit soluble solids content.

Figure 3 Annual average precipitation and annual average temperature in Guanghua Town (2016–2025)

Figure 4 Annual average sunshine duration in Guanghua Town (2016–2025)

3.2.3 Land Use and Vegetation Cover

The land use structure of Guanghua Town presents a typical mountainous pattern characterized by ecologically dominated land use, clustering of agriculture in river valleys, and sparse, scattered construction land. Mountains account for 87.3% of the town's total area, and the forest coverage rate reaches 79.4%. Forest land is the predominant land use type across the entire town, widely distributed in the mountain ranges on the eastern and western sides. Cultivated land is mainly distributed in strips along the river terraces of the Hani River, with a total cultivated area of 2030.93 hm² ^[10]. Cultivated land is primarily used for grain crops such as corn, soybeans, and rice. Additionally, relying on suitable terrain and loose soils, blueberry specialty cultivation has been established, forming a grain–cash crop composite agricultural land use structure ^[8].The vegetation cover is highly coupled with the land use pattern as a whole. NDVI analysis shows that high-value areas are concentrated in the forested mountain areas on the eastern and western sides. The central Hani River valley, where cultivated land is distributed, exhibits medium-value coverage, with relatively high vegetation cover during the crop growing season, reflecting the vegetation characteristics of grain–cash crop composite cultivation. Built-up areas, including the town center, residential settlements, and roads, show low NDVI values, appearing as scattered point-like patches with small area and weak disturbance.