Early ripening watermelons help Nghe An farmers earn more than ten million VND per sao

Farmers in Thuong Tan Loc commune (Nam Dan) are excited when the price of early-season watermelons is high. Photo: TP

Growing 2 sao of early watermelon, up to now, Ms. Nguyen Thi Xuyen's family (Thuong Tan Loc commune, Nam Dan) has sold more than 300 kg of watermelon to the market. The price of early-season watermelon ranges from 6,500-8,000 VND/kg, her family earned more than 25 million VND, after deducting expenses, the profit is nearly 20 million VND.

This year, the entire Thuong Tan Loc commune planted 195 hectares of watermelon, of which 70 hectares were planted 20 days earlier than the main crop. Therefore, from mid-May, the early watermelons were harvested.

Melons are purchased by traders at high prices, from 6,000-8,000 VND/kg. Photo: TP

Ms. Phan Thi Trang, Chairwoman of the Farmers' Association of Thuong Tan Loc Commune, said: "Early harvest of melons coincides with the peak of the heat wave, the demand for cooling increases, the market is easy to consume, the selling price is high, so people are very excited."

After 2 months of care, these days, in the melon field of Dien Thinh commune (Dien Chau), farmers are also urgently harvesting 4 hectares of early-ripening watermelon.

Farmers in Dien Thinh (Dien Chau) harvest early ripening melons. Photo: CSCC

The yield of early-ripening melons is lower than that of the main crop (only 1.5-1.7 tons/sao) due to whitefly disease. In return, melons are harvested early, so they are easy to sell and the selling price is also higher than that of the main crop, so people are very excited to have a good income. On average, for each sao of melons, after deducting expenses, people earn a profit of 10-12 million VND. Compared to other crops, melons have a much higher income per unit area.

Nghia Dan is considered the “capital” of Nghe An watermelon with the entire district area of ​​over 500 hectares. In recent years, to facilitate consumption, the agricultural sector of Nghia Dan district has recommended and directed people to plant in different seasons, avoiding melons ripening at the same time, harvesting massively at the same time, which can easily lead to traders forcing down prices. Therefore, many areas have now been harvested.

Nghia Dan people harvest early ripe watermelons. Photo: TP

According to the assessment of Nghia Dan melon growers, the early season watermelons are in season and have good prices. With a yield of about 23 - 25 tons/ha, the selling price at the field is 6,000 - 7,000 VND/kg, each hectare of watermelon, people earn a profit of 60 - 70 million VND.

“Due to the early season, the supply of watermelons is not much, some areas, due to unusual weather, have lost a lot of areas while the market demand for this cooling fruit is quite large, so the price of watermelons is higher than previous years and higher than the main season. Compared to melons in the South, watermelons from Nghe An have thicker skin, are easier to transport; the taste is sweeter and richer, so they are popular,” said Mr. Bui Van Tuan, a trader specializing in buying melons in Nghe An.

Watermelons are bought by traders right in the field. Photo: TP