Urgent telegram on cold prevention for crops and livestock

Lighting lamps to warm the breeding pigs. (Photo: Dinh Hue/VNA)

To minimize damage to crops and livestock caused by severe cold, as this situation is forecast to continue in the coming time, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development has issued an urgent dispatch requesting the Chairmen of the People's Committees of mountainous provinces to focus on preventing cold for crops and livestock.

Urgent telegram sent to the People's Committees of mountainous provinces including: Northern mountainous provinces (Ha Giang, Cao Bang, Bac Can, Tuyen Quang, Lao Cai, Yen Bai, Thai Nguyen, Lang Son, Quang Ninh, Bac Giang, Phu Tho, Dien Bien, Lai Chau, Son La, Hoa Binh); North Central (Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Ha Tinh, Quang Binh) and Central Highlands (Lam Dong, Gia Lai, Dak Lak, Dak Nong, Kon Tum).

Accordingly, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development requested the Chairmen of the People's Committees of the above provinces to focus on directing the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to coordinate with relevant departments, branches, sectors, organizations, and the People's Committees of districts to immediately send working groups to the grassroots to inspect, guide and support people in implementing cold prevention measures for crops and livestock, especially seedlings (including fruit trees, industrial trees, forestry trees, vegetables, flowers for the Lunar New Year and herds of buffalo and cows).

The telegram also stated that for crops, people need to use transparent plastic to cover and create a thermal effect, keeping the seedling gardens warm, especially the newly sown area; water sufficiently daily; cover the base with humus, straw, and stubble to keep the plants warm and moist.

For vegetable gardens that have been damaged by snow and frost, gardeners should collect and prepare a source of short-term leafy vegetable seeds to sow when the weather is favorable. For vegetable areas that have not been damaged and are still able to recover, officials need to propagate so that farmers do not use simple nitrogen fertilizers, but use NPK fertilizers or microbial fertilizers, organic fertilizers for plants combined with humus and materials to keep the roots warm and moist; when there is frost, water should be poured in the morning to wash away the frost on the leaves, avoiding cell rupture that causes "boiling leaves."

For livestock: Departments and branches need to guide farmers to mobilize all possible local food sources, ensure food supply in barns so that buffaloes and cows do not go hungry, and confine buffaloes and cows in barns, do not graze buffaloes and cows when the temperature drops below 12 degrees Celsius and let livestock rest.

In addition, barns and farms must be kept dry and covered to avoid drafts, warm coats must be made, heat sources must be created (burning rice husks and firewood) to warm the buffalo and cows, combined with cleaning, disinfecting, and sterilizing barns, handling dead livestock and animal waste; closely inspecting and monitoring livestock to prevent disease outbreaks; when sick livestock are detected, timely intervention measures must be taken.

In addition, the Minister's dispatch also requires localities to proactively issue policies to support farming households in terms of: vegetable seeds, cold-proof materials, materials to cover barns against cold winds, concentrated feed, especially for poor households and policy households, and regularly report the situation to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for synthesis and coordination in implementation./.

According to Vietnam+