Enhancing the value of Thanh Chuong's crisp persimmons.
(Baonghean.vn) - With its advantages of large size, sweet taste, fragrant aroma, crisp texture, and especially being seedless, Thanh Chuong crisp persimmons are highly favored by the market and command high prices.
Key crops in the development of horticultural economy
The family of Ms. Nguyen Thi My (My Chua village, Thanh Tien commune) planted 20 persimmon trees, 10 of which are over 30 years old and 10 are 3-4 years old. Currently, all 20 trees have borne fruit and are ready for harvest.
Ms. My said: “This is a native variety of crunchy persimmon, grown locally for decades. Initially, we only planted a few trees for personal consumption and as gifts for relatives. The persimmons are sweet, fragrant, crunchy, and seedless, making them very popular. Many people sought them out, so our family expanded the cultivation. Each year, a mature persimmon tree yields 150-200 kg of fruit, selling for 30,000-40,000 VND/kg, providing a stable income of 5-7 million VND per tree.”
According to Mr. Duong Dac Thang, Chairman of the Farmers' Association of Thanh Tien commune, the crunchy persimmon variety is very suitable for the soil and climate here, so it doesn't require much care or land area. Therefore, persimmon trees are chosen by many families in the commune as the main crop when renovating their gardens, building model gardens, and establishing new rural standard gardens; many small farms and large farms choose it as the main crop in developing their VAC (gardening, animal husbandry, and aquaculture) economy. Currently, the entire commune has about 2 hectares of crunchy persimmon trees planted by 100 households.
On his 25-hectare farm, Mr. Nguyen Tien Hung (Thanh Lieu village, Thanh Tien commune) is planning to dedicate 2 hectares to growing persimmons. Currently, 200 persimmon trees are already bearing fruit. Mr. Hung said: “Previously, the farm mainly grew green pomelos and Dien pomelos, but the economic efficiency was not high. Starting in 2019, I replanned the fruit tree planting area, focusing on persimmons as the main crop. Currently, I have planted 200 trees that are bearing fruit, and I plan to expand to 700-1,000 trees in the near future.”
In Thanh Linh commune, in recent years, the area planted with seedless persimmons has been restored and expanded. According to statistics, the entire commune currently has nearly 4 hectares of seedless persimmons, many of which are already yielding stable harvests; persimmon trees are planted scattered throughout all villages, but are concentrated in Dong Thuong and Trung Long villages… Among them, households that plant 50-100 trees or more include Mr. Dinh Van Tuat, Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Soi (Dong Thuong village); Mr. Nguyen Duy Khanh, Mr. Nguyen Tien Bay, Mr. Tran Van Thien, Mr. Nguyen Van Thu, and Mr. Nguyen Van Thang (Trung Long village).
Enhancing the value of crisp persimmons.
Unlike the persimmons from Nam Dan and Ky Son, the seedless, crunchy persimmons from Thanh Chuong are round and elongated, with a yellowish-green skin that turns completely yellow with a reddish tint when ripe. When cut open, they reveal a bright yellow color, are crunchy, intensely sweet, and seedless, making them very popular.
Mr. Le Van Quang, Director of the Thanh Chuong District Agricultural Services Center, said: “Seedless crunchy persimmons are a delicious and distinctive variety in Thanh Chuong. They have been grown by local people for several decades, mainly in Thanh Lien, Thanh Tien, and Thanh Linh districts. For a time, due to shrinking orchard land, many hillside gardens switched to growing fruit trees such as pomelo and guava, causing the crunchy persimmon to lose its popularity. In recent years, many households have restored this variety. Currently, it is estimated that the cultivated area is about 10 hectares.”
Currently, people in Thanh Lien, Thanh Tien, and Thanh Linh districts are harvesting crunchy persimmons. Early season prices are high at 35,000-40,000 VND/kg, while peak season prices are around 30,000 VND/kg. Persimmons are bought up by traders as soon as they are harvested and ripened, leaving farmers with little need for retail sales.
“Persimmon trees have a long lifespan; the older the tree, the better the quality of the fruit. They are a valuable asset in our orchards. Therefore, in addition to expanding the persimmon cultivation area, we hope to receive support in planting techniques, caring for persimmon trees to ensure VietGAP standards, and building a brand so that Thanh Chuong persimmons become a local specialty. Once the persimmon cultivation is expanded and developed, we need to establish cooperatives to create conditions for expanding the market and increasing the value and price of persimmons. This will bring livelihoods to the people in the semi-mountainous communes,” said Mr. Nguyen Van Thang, a persimmon grower in Long village, Thanh Linh commune.
Currently, Thanh Chuong persimmon varieties are propagated by grafting by individual households or purchased from other households to expand cultivation areas, while some households buy seedlings from dealers. Therefore, the quality of persimmon seedlings is not guaranteed, and many households buy seedlings that are not the standard Thanh Chuong persimmon variety.
Therefore, the households growing persimmons also hope that the district will coordinate with specialized agencies to select superior persimmon varieties and mother plants, and develop policies to preserve and protect them as a long-term source of seedlings for production, especially distributing seedlings to other communes with suitable soil conditions to expand the area of persimmon cultivation.
