Melon tree on Nghi Thach land

(Baonghean.vn) -For many years, farmers in Nghi Thach commune (Nghi Loc) have known how to exploit the land advantage to put melon into production. Up to now, the melon growing area of ​​the whole commune has reached 12 hectares/crop, the products are not only supplied to the local market but have also followed traders to other districts...

Melon has been grown in Nghi Thach for a long time, because it is suitable for the climate and soil here, so the quality of the melon is much more delicious than other regions, and is favored by many people. Almost all villages in the commune grow melon, although the area is not much, but every melon season, every family has melons to sell. When contacting people in the melon fields, they all have the same opinion: In terms of economic efficiency, growing melon is two or three times more profitable than growing rice and other vegetables. Melon has the advantage of not having to buy seeds, just choose ripe fruit, split open the seeds, dry them, and preserve them carefully so that they can be used for planting the next crop.

This year’s spring melon crop encountered unfavorable weather, with little sunshine and prolonged high humidity, leading to root rot and wilting, causing the vines and plants to die. Most of the area had wilted after only the first harvest. Currently, farmers have finished harvesting the spring crop and are preparing for the next crop.

Farmers in Nghi Thach commune (Nghi Loc) are continuing to take care of summer-autumn melon crops.

The introduction of new melon varieties for intercropping with rice has helped many families quickly escape poverty and have a stable income. Mr. Mai Khac Duong (in Xuan Tien hamlet) said: The family has taken advantage of shallow fields, which are difficult to grow rice, to grow melons. With 2 sao of spring melons like every year, if well cared for, within just 2 months, they will have an income of nearly 30 million VND. But this year, due to unfavorable weather, the melons have low productivity and fruit quality, 1 sao only brings in 8-10 million VND. If last year, from April 1 to April 20 of the lunar calendar, I cut 30-40 kg of melons to sell every day, this year it takes 2-3 days to harvest about 30 kg of melons. The melon crop was bad, the yield was low, so traders came to buy them right at the field, with an average price of 5,000-6,000 VND/kg."

Through studying the cultivation techniques of melons from some long-time melon farmers, we know that: This is a melon variety that is not picky about soil, does not require fertilizer and pesticides. New melon varieties can be harvested within two months, without the need to make a trellis, but let the melon stems crawl down to the ground and then bear fruit. The melon planting bed is not complicated. The care technique is quite simple, 1 sao of melon for the whole season only needs to invest 15-20 kg of NPK fertilizer, 5 kg of potassium fertilizer, 2 kg of nitrogen fertilizer, 1-2 kg of buffalo head fertilizer and a little manure. During the growth process, the melons have few pests and diseases, when the harvest season comes, the fruits are evenly ripe so they can be harvested neatly. To have high yield and good quality melons, it is necessary to pay attention to pest control. A common melon disease is wilt, so it is necessary to take good care of the melon plants to make them healthy and disease-resistant. And to have beautiful, good quality, easy-to-sell melons, each plant should only have 3-5 fruits.

Mr. Dang Ba Huong - Vice Chairman of Nghi Thach Commune People's Committee said: "Mulberry has been grown in Nghi Thach for a long time, mainly in hamlet 13 with a modest area of ​​about 1 hectare. Since 2005, the area has always been expanded, concentrated in hamlet 1, Xuan Lac, Xuan Tien, Xuan Hoa, Xuan Thinh... By 2007, the commune had changed the crop structure, forming specialized areas in the fields of Cang Ba, Toan, Sau Dinh... on high land, without proactive water sources. The reason why the melon tree was chosen by the people is because it is suitable for the local climate and soil quality, so it grows quite well, and has become a key crop to help many households develop their economy. But more valuable is that the spring melon is harvested from the end of April to mid-May DL, so it becomes a lifesaver for people in the lean days. However, one of the difficulties of melon growers is that they do not have the technique to preserve the fruit when harvesting. Therefore, in In the hot summer weather, the melons ripen all at once. If they are not sold in time, they will crack and rot.

The economic efficiency of melons is very promising, opening up a new direction for Nghi Thach people, overcoming difficulties due to complex farming terrain. The commune also focuses on changing the crop structure, upgrading the irrigation system, encouraging the expansion of melon growing areas, and at the same time promoting the transfer of science and technology for farmers to apply, improving the quality and yield of crops. Currently, the spring melon crop has ended, on this area, farmers are continuing to take care of summer-autumn melons.

Article and photos: Ngoc Anh