Farmers begin growing fruits and vegetables for Tet

Preparing for the important season

Ms. Nguyen Kieu Hong Hue (Phuoc Lam Commune, Can Giuoc District) has 8 years of experience growing vegetables. On an area of ​​3,500m², she grows basil, onions and cinnamon. Currently, the price of basil is from 50,000-60,000 VND/kg, bringing high profits.

Near Tet, the weather is favorable so the vegetables can grow quickly, do not need fertilizers or pesticides to stay fresh, so the yield increases. During the production process, Ms. Hue constantly learns knowledge and experience from predecessors, participates in training courses, especially high-tech application classes.

Ms. Nguyen Kieu Hong Hue (Phuoc Lam Commune, Can Giuoc District) and her basil field

Every year, she sets aside an area to grow flowers and watermelons to sell during Tet. She plans to grow seedlings in about 15 days. With 300-400 pots of marigolds and chrysanthemums, Ms. Hue has a profit of nearly 30 million VND. She is composting to plant flowers. Ms. Hue applies the knowledge she has been trained in to compost and mix the proportions of ingredients (chicken manure, coconut fiber, etc.) appropriately and effectively. Pointing to the newly cut vegetables, Ms. Hue said: "I am spreading compost on this vegetable patch, cutting the next batch will clear the land for planting flowers". According to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Can Giuoc district, the area of ​​​​vegetables grown in rotation in the district is about 1,400-1,700 hectares. The Department coordinates to organize training on the collection, classification, and reuse of plastic waste in the agricultural sector and the collection, transportation, and treatment of plastic fertilizer, pesticide and chemical packaging in agricultural production to ensure environmental hygiene and agricultural product safety, etc.

The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Tan Tru district has proposed a plan to serve the demand for fruits, vegetables, and watermelons during the Lunar New Year of of the snake in 2025. The area of ​​some crops for Tet such as watermelon is 60 hectares, with an expected output of 1,100 tons; vegetables are 80 hectares, with an expected output of 1,400 tons; off-season dragonfruit is 150 hectares, with an expected output of 1,350 tons; grapefruit is 52.8 hectares, with an expected output of 620 tons; etc.

The Department coordinated with specialized agencies of the province and district to organize 8 training sessions on fertilization techniques, pest and disease prevention, measures to reduce production costs, etc with more than 410 dragon fruit farmers attending; 3 training sessions on organic grapefruit cultivation techniques and cost reduction with 106 farmers attending; 3 demonstration sites for growing squash, gourds and cucumbers using organic fertilizers and pesticides of organic origin (each site 0.5 hectare) and 9 training sessions on vegetable cultivation techniques with more than 220 farmers attending; 6 training sessions on watermelon cultivation techniques with 175 farmers attending.

Mr. Dang Hung Luc (Thanh Loi hamlet, Duc Tan commune, Tan Tru district) has more than 30 years of experience growing watermelon. He has just harvested a 4,000m² watermelon field. To prepare for Tet, he cleans to fields, fertilizes the soil, prepares seedlings, etc. According to Mr. Luc, growing watermelons brings higher income than rice. For every 1,000m² of watermelon, if the harvest and the price is good, farmers can make a profit of about 20 million VND/season. In addition, he has more than 7,000m² of various vegetables.

Producing based on market demand

Mr. Tran Van Hoa (Phu Xuan 2 Hamlet, Phu Ngai Tri Commune, Chau Thanh District) is an excellent farmer and businessman at the provincial level. He currently has more than 2,000 dragon fruit pillars, 500 lime trees (300 trees are bearing fruit), 500 guava trees (300 trees are bearing fruit), the total area of ​​3 types of crop is more than 2 hectares.

Previously, he grew sticky rice, when the movement to grow dragon fruit in Chau Thanh District was effective, he switched to this type of tree. Thanks to his diligence and hard work, his family's economy has improved. Every year, at this time, he prepares for the Tet holiday by cutting off branches, pruning branches, lighting the dragon fruit, etc.

This year, he still does the above tasks but always monitors the market situation to come up with appropriate production directions. Because the price of dragon fruit is currently low (on October 24, 2024, it was about 5,000 VND/kg of type 1), he has limited the use of lamps to avoid wasting electricity.

Mr. Tran Van Hoa and his wife (Phu Xuan 2 hamlet, Phu Ngai Tri commune, Chau Thanh district) are pruning dragon fruit branches to prepare for Tet

Mr. Hoa is a farmer who boldly converted crops in Phu Ngai Tri commune. Realizing that the amount of dragon fruit on the market was too much and the price was unstable, he and his wife (Ms. Luong Thi Ha) destroyed part of the dragon fruit area and brought lime trees from Luong Binh commune (Ben Luc district) to plant. In addition, he also planted guava. Currently, Mr. Hoa's family has many sources of income and is not too dependent on dragon fruit.

According to information from the Farmers' Association of Phu Ngai Tri commune, the total area of ​​dragon fruit in the commune is 484.5 hectares, a decrease of 167 hectares due to the conversion to other crops. The commune has 13 cooperatives, of which 2 are VietGAP certified. Farmers in the commune are supported by the province and district through the District Social Policy Bank Transaction Office, and their income is relatively stable. However, farmers' consumption of agricultural products is still facing difficulties due to "good harvest, low price".

Ms. Luong Thi Ha (wife of Mr. Tran Van Hoa, Phu Xuan 2 Hamlet, Phu Ngai Tri Commune, Chau Thanh District) and her guava garden

Mr. Phan Minh Vu (Hamlet 4, Thanh Loi Commune, Ben Luc District) has nearly 20 years of experience growing pineapples. According to him, pineapples are a typical crop of Ben Luc agriculture. Pineapple bushes are resistant to alum, the more alum the soil, the sweeter the pineapple. Therefore, farmers who grow pineapples for several years must re-cultivate the soil to "revive" the alum. After nearly 1 year of planting, farmers stimulate the fruit for the first time. From the date of fruit treatment to harvest is 4 months and 10 days. After 2-2.5 months of harvest, farmers can stimulate fruit for the second time. The growth period of pineapple bushes is about 4 years. For nearly 20 years, Mr. Vu has made profit every year.

In previous years, Mr. Vu used technical processing to have both Tet and regular pineapples. But this year, realizing that the market was unstable, he focused on regular pineapples. To prepare for the Tet pineapple crop, from August 20 of the lunar calendar, Mr. Vu has been stimulating fruit. In addition, he has also planted more than 2 hectares of lemons, bringing in a good income. According to the People's Committee of Thanh Loi commune, the whole commune currently has 1,925 hectares of lemons and 355 hectares of pineapples (the highest numbers in the district).

Every year, Mr. Phan Minh Vu (Hamlet 4, Thanh Loi Commune, Ben Luc District) proactively stimulates both Tet and regular pineapples

Thanks to many years of experience and support from functional agencies, the production situation of many farmers is quite favorable. Preparing vegetables and fruits for the Tet market is an annual task, farmers are increasingly focusing on ensuring hygiene and safety of agricultural products. They are also more sensitive in monitoring the market to come up with appropriate production directions./.

By Chau Thanh - Translated by Q. Thien

Source: https://baolongan.vn/nong-dan-chuan-bi-trai-cay-rau-mau-phuc-vu-tet-a184809.html