Should we investigate and reach a conclusion about the sorghum plant soon?

(Baonghean) - There have been reports for some time that people in Ky Son are massively clearing forests to plant sorghum. During this trip to Ky Son, I asked Mr. Vu No Denh, Vice Chairman of the Tay Son Commune People's Committee, about this, and he affirmed: "That's completely wrong!"

According to Mr. Dềnh, the plant known as "Chi Khấu" in the Hmong language is a wild plant that grows naturally in damp places; if it grows under the canopy of large trees, it will still develop normally, so why would people need to destroy the forest? Mr. Dềnh cited the example of Tây Sơn commune: The Vừ Xây Chù household in Huồi Giảng 3 village has 5-6 hectares of bo bo, with half of it intercropped with forest trees; the Vừ Pa Rê household in Huồi Giảng 2 village and the Vừ Như Cờ household in Huồi Giảng 3 village plant less, but most of it is also intercropped with forest trees…

The sorghum plant, which initially resembles ginger, has a three-year growth period and is harvested in July and August each year. After harvesting the fruit, farmers cut the base of the plant to encourage branching. According to many sources, sorghum seeds are a medicinal herb, so for the past few years, traders have been coming to villages in Ky Son and Tuong Duong districts to buy them at prices ranging from 20,000 to 40,000 VND per kilogram (depending on the time of year). Mr. Vu No Denh added that in Tay Son district this year, Mr. Vu Xay Chu (Huoi Giang 3 village) earned at least 30 million VND from harvesting sorghum. Many households in Huoi Tu and Muong Long communes also grow sorghum and earn a good income. The sorghum plant is easy to grow, requires little care, and fetches a good price, so farmers are very enthusiastic about it!

When asked about the local policy on developing this crop, the Vice Chairman of Tay Son commune said that the commune had no plan yet, as they were waiting for instructions from the district. When asked, a leader from Ky Son district said that the district did not have a specific plan, but had a policy of supporting people in developing this crop to increase their income. Another leader from Tuong Duong district said they were planning to find this variety to guide the planting of a few hectares... Upon hearing that the Nghe An Plant Seed Center had also published a document guiding the technical aspects of planting sorghum, Mr. Vu No Denh said he very much wanted that document to reach commune officials like himself so they could disseminate it to the villagers to plant sorghum according to the correct procedures and regulations.

Therefore, given that many people in the mountainous districts of Ky Son and Tuong Duong are spontaneously planting sorghum and have been profiting from it for several years, the fact that the district authorities have not yet inspected and evaluated the situation is quite slow. Very slow! If planting sorghum is beneficial, then I think the districts should soon develop a specific plan to guide and direct the people from planting to selling.

Viet Long