The story of the 'father' of the 3-level asexual cassava variety in Tan Ky

Passion for research

I met Mr. Vu Duc Dung, currently a technical officer of the Tan Ky District Agricultural Service Center, on the last day of the year, right when the disease-free cassava planting model researched by him and his colleagues had proven successful.

Sharing his chance to develop cassava, Mr. Dung said: "Nghe An has a lot of potential to develop cassava, providing raw materials for cassava starch processing factories in the province. However, farmers have long faced the situation of cassava plants being infected with mosaic disease, reducing cassava productivity and quality. Meanwhile, there is no solution to overcome cassava mosaic disease. Therefore, I am wondering how to have disease-free cassava varieties, helping farmers feel secure in production and bringing in profits."

In early 2020, along with a number of colleagues in the agricultural sector, Mr. Dung began to invest effort, money, and diligently research disease-free cassava varieties. When cassava mosaic disease broke out strongly in Tan Ky district, he traveled to heavily infected cassava gardens, selected 15 disease-free cassava plants, and brought them back to plant on his home garden. Initial results showed that 2 disease-free cassava lines were selected.

“To obtain disease-free cassava seedlings using the 3-level asexual propagation method, one must go through many stages. First, one must find a source of disease-free mother plants, then proceed to process the cuttings... During the breeding process, one must regularly monitor the development of the cassava plants through each stage,” said Mr. Dung.

In April 2021, he contacted the Institute of Agricultural Genetics and received 8 cassava lines from the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) to plant along with his 2 cassava lines. The purpose was to select cassava varieties suitable for the soil and climate conditions of Tan Ky district. After a trial planting period, the results showed that the 2 cassava varieties, HN1 and HN5, had outstanding characteristics and good disease resistance, and the yield and quality of cassava were also higher than those of previously planted cassava varieties.

Since then, he has used 3 hectares of his family's hilly land, from 2020 until now, he has been planting 2 of his own disease-free cassava varieties as a model, showing that the average cassava yield is 40 tons/ha, while the previous cassava varieties that people planted only reached 23 tons/ha; the quality of cassava is also higher, with a starch ratio of over 28%, meeting the raw material requirements for processing factories.

In 2024, Mr. Dung participated in a project to apply scientific and technological advances to test-plant some disease-resistant cassava varieties in Nghe An province, ordered by the Department of Science and Technology.

Accordingly, the Department of Science and Technology supported 40% of the funding, the project was implemented on an area of ​​6 hectares, with 3 models, including: 1 model in a greenhouse; 1 model of 3 hectares of cassava seed production at households in Tien Ky commune (Tan Ky), Tho Son commune (Anh Son) and intensive cultivation of mosaic disease-resistant cassava varieties on nearly 3 hectares in Tan Ky town, Nghia Phuc and Tien Ky communes...

To obtain these two disease-free cassava varieties, agricultural master Vu Duc Dung had to spend a lot of effort to complete the huge amount of work. He meticulously selected, planted each cutting, and carefully selected. If anyone witnessed each step in the selection process, they would feel a part of Mr. Dung's spirit of working all for the cassava plant.

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Having been involved in the plant protection profession for 32 years, my wish is to do something to benefit farmers. Therefore, over the past 4 years, after office hours or on holidays, friends and relatives often see me working on cassava hills dozens of kilometers away from home, sometimes working until dark. Many people advise me to rest and take care of my health, but I always tell myself not to give up.

Master of Agriculture Vu Duc Dung

Cassava also "rewarded" the burning passion of agricultural master Vu Duc Dung, when his disease-free cassava variety was successfully researched and received good response from farmers and quickly received orders from many localities. It is expected that in the upcoming cassava crop, he will supply hundreds of thousands of disease-free cassava cuttings for people to plant.

Successful initiative to prevent mosaic disease on cassava

Mr. Nguyen Tien Duc - Head of the Provincial Department of Cultivation and Plant Protection said: High-yield cassava is a familiar crop, accompanying Nghe An farmers for many years. High-yield cassava products not only provide raw materials for cassava starch factories in the province, but also help farmers in mountainous areas earn income.

Every year, the cassava area of ​​the whole province is about 10,000 hectares, but mosaic disease is infected on an area of ​​about 3,000 hectares, causing many farmers to lose their crops. This is an alarming situation for high-yield cassava, for which there has been no effective solution to prevent it for a long time.

Mr. Nguyen Tien Duc also affirmed that Master of Agriculture Vu Duc Dung is the first person in Nghe An to research and select two cassava varieties resistant to mosaic disease suitable for Nghe An's ecological conditions, which are being widely replicated.

At the end of November, the Council for Acceptance of Experience Initiatives of Tan Ky district recognized the initiative solution to prevent mosaic disease on cassava for Mr. Vu Duc Dung and his colleagues. Talking with Mr. Dung, I clearly felt a simple, close, hard-working, creative agricultural officer. He also expressed his satisfaction and always followed Uncle Ho's saying: "Whatever is beneficial to the people, I will do my best."