Many new flower varieties are grown in Phu Mau flower village
Keeping the local varieties
With 500 households involved, providing jobs for more than 1,000 workers, vegetable cultivation in Quang Thanh (Quang Dien) is bustling for Tet.
Mr. Duong Thanh Hung (Thanh Trung village) said, so far, after the flood, the weather has been mainly rainy and cold but there have been some sunny days, so the vegetables are growing quite well. Each bunch of vegetables now ranges from VND 9,000 – 15,000 (depending on the type), bringing in profit for the farmers. It is hoped that vegetable prices in the upcoming Tet will be stable.
Mr. Hung planted 1,500m2 of lettuce. According to his calculations, with 1,500m2 of vegetables, the average investment is less than VND 500,000 for seeds, fertilizer and other things. This area will yield about 750 – 800 kg of vegetables. At current prices, the profit is more than VND 10 million per crop season.
Mr. Dao Trong Thanh, Chairman of Quang Thanh Commune People's Committee informed that the whole commune has 30 hectares of vegetables, of which 5 hectares are planted under the VietGap model. Income from vegetable production is relatively stable, with the turnover reaching about VND 15 billion per year.
When the main vegetable cultivation areas were flooded, the vegetables of the sandy Dien Loc commune (Phong Dien) became the main source of income for the people of this coastal area. In particular, Nhat Dong, Nhi Dong vegetable fields were put into production with vegetable crops yielding high income. With one hectare of different kinds of mustard greens, chrysanthemum greens, lettuce, etc. the total revenue per each crop season is approximately VND 100 million.
Introducing new flower varieties
Through many years of experience with floods, many farmers in Thuy Van (Huong Thuy), Phu Mau (Phu Vang), Sia (Quang Dien) grow flowers in pots which are put up on frames or grow in areas with raised ground. The flower species cultivated are mainly marigolds, lilies, crystal chrysanthemums, gerbera daisy and some new flower varieties, to meet the needs of worship and decoration in Tet inside and outside the province.
With support from the government, Phu Mau flower cooperative has invested in new flower varieties. The new flowers include mokara orchids (from Thailand), lilies (from the Netherlands), and tulips (from Taiwan). It is hoped that they will bring economic efficiency, especially in the traditional New Year.
Le Van Liem, a flower farmer, said that two years ago, the People’s Committee supported his family with VND 60 million to pilot plant 500 mokara orchids on a 150m2 area. Since then, his family has focused on developing this model.
"With full technical training, with the guidance of the cooperative staff, and with the experience of traditional flower farming of our family, it has been easy to learn how to cultivate “foreign” flowers with new technology," said Mr. Liem excitedly.
According to Mr. Liem, the mokara orchid is a precious species, suitable with the closed model covered with nets and nylon. The type of irrigation for this flower species is a multi-purpose irrigation system. After six months of planting, the orchids bloom with 6-7 flowers per plant. Mr. Liem's flower garden now has thousands of local flowers and new varieties. On average, for each New Year, he earns several dozens of millions of VND.
In Sia town, in addition to traditional varieties, lilies have opened prospects for new varieties, bringing good income for farmers here. Households participating in the model have been quite successful since the investment was carried out professionally and was technically guided. More than 1,000 lily bulbs imported from the Netherlands were provided by the Hanoi Crops Research Institute and the Da Lat Crops Research Institute. Farmers were offered guidance on the cultivation, with the pilot planting in Giang Dong. After many crop seasons, it is clear that this flower species is suitable with humid land and cold weather of the Tet holiday. It has become a valuable commodity in the traditional Lunar New Year of the rice farmers.
According to Thuy Van Commune Farmers Association, in order to prepare for the traditional Tet holiday, nearly 120 households in the commune have planted about 10,000 flower pots on various kinds of frames. Planting flowers on the frames with many new varieties not only avoid the impact of weather, but also improve the quality of flowers.
The whole town of Huong Thuy has about 20 hectares of flowers planted on frames for Tet, concentrated in areas such as Thuy Luong, Thuy Duong, Thuy Van and Phu Bai. In particular, there are many new varieties of flowers which bring high economic efficiency.
According to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, since the flood, 130 hectares of fresh vegetables, flowers and nearly 100,000 flower pots for Tet have been planted. Local authorities have requested cooperatives and households to prepare materials, fertilizers, seeds of short-term vegetable varieties and flowers for re-planting on flood-damaged areas when the weather is favorable.
Story and photo: Ha Nguyen