Dragon fruit trees on Nam Xuan hill

(Baonghean)Besides traditional crops that have established their brand for many years, such as persimmons, oranges, tangerines, longan, and lychee, many families in Nam Xuan commune (Nam Dan district) have recently boldly introduced new crop varieties, yielding high economic returns. The dragon fruit farming model of Mr. Nguyen Huu Tam's family in Hamlet 9 is one such example.

Previously, on his nearly 3 sao (approximately 3,000 square meters) of hilly land, Mr. Nguyen Huu Tam only grew pepper plants, but the economic efficiency was low and his income was unstable. After much deliberation, searching for a suitable alternative crop that would yield high economic returns, in 2007, he boldly decided to try planting 20 dragon fruit trees. Learning and gaining experience along the way, after a while, he realized that dragon fruit was well-suited to the hilly terrain and expanded his planting to over 100 trees. Thanks to proper care and technical procedures, his dragon fruit orchard yields abundant fruit every season and fetches good prices. Mr. Tam proudly shared: “In the beginning, I faced many difficulties because I lacked experience, but I learned and researched through books and newspapers about how to get a large, sweet, and abundant harvest, when to prune the branches… to maximize efficiency.”

Mr. Tam stands beside his dragon fruit orchard laden with fruit.

According to Mr. Tam, dragon fruit is an easy-to-grow plant, resistant to pests and diseases, requires little care, adapts well to basaltic hill soil, and yields a harvest after only one year, with each season lasting from June to September. Dragon fruit has high nutritional value, is popular in the market, is easy to sell, and has stable prices. Importantly, this plant does not require chemical treatment or growth stimulants; it only needs to have loose soil, be fertilized regularly, and pruned annually for optimal growth.

With farmgate prices ranging from 18,000 to 20,000 VND/kg, Mr. Tam earned over 10 million VND this season. Evaluating the effectiveness of this model, Ms. Nguyen Thi Quyet – Head of Hamlet 9, Nam Xuan Commune (Nam Dan District) said: “Dragon fruit cultivation is a new model in Nam Xuan, and Mr. Tam was the first to boldly introduce it on a large scale, bringing economic benefits. In the future, many households in the hamlet and commune will learn from and follow his example.”

Although not yet a large-scale model, the initial success of dragon fruit cultivation by Mr. Nguyen Huu Tam's family has opened up a new direction in the transformation of crop structure. It contributes to enriching the variety of fruit trees, already renowned for their diversity along the slopes of Dai Hue mountain (Nam Dan), and helps the rural economy of this semi-mountainous commune develop in a diversified and sustainable direction.

Hong Suong