People worry because peach blossoms bloom early

(Baonghean) - There are still more than 2 weeks until Lunar New Year, but currently, peach gardens of people in Kim Thanh commune, Yen Thanh district have more than 80% of the area in full bloom, making people worried and restless.

The consecutive unusual floods in 2013 have greatly affected the growth and development of the peach garden of Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Toi's family - Dong Ban hamlet - Kim Thanh commune - Yen Thanh. Although after the floods, his family made efforts and devoted efforts to fertilizing, the peach garden gradually stabilized and developed well. He planned to keep the peach trees and use measures to force them to bloom to sell them right on Tet. However, all efforts were in vain when the erratic rainy and sunny weather caused his family's peach garden to not bloom as expected. Mr. Toi said: Peach growers work hard all year long to care for the trees in the hope of having more income at the end of the year and a more fulfilling Tet, but this year the peach trees bloomed too early, my family and the villagers suffered great losses. All the effort to care for the trees but no harvest, everyone is very discouraged.

Peach blossoms bloom early, Kim Thanh people lose crops during Lunar New Year.

Not only Mr. Thanh's family but also more than 140 peach growing households in Dong Ban hamlet, Kim Thanh commune are facing the risk of losing the peach crop. According to the people here, the cause of this phenomenon is due to the erratic weather, at the beginning of the rainy season it is still hot and dry, but in the middle of the season it rains too much, causing the tree roots to be waterlogged, disrupting the biological rhythm of the peach trees, so they bloom early. Mr. Phan Tat Thanh - Dong Ban hamlet, Kim Thanh commune, said: Every year, around December 15, the peach trees lose their leaves, then bud and bloom, and we can cut them down and sell them for Tet. But this year, it has rained too much, and the peach trees are not suitable for water, so at the beginning of December, the peach trees have lost their leaves, bud and bloom, making people very worried. Many households have also used all measures but still cannot limit it, they can only helplessly watch the flowers bloom with their hearts in turmoil.

Since 2005, seeing the increasing interest of people in playing with peach trees for Tet, farmers in Dong Ban hamlet have boldly propagated native peach trees and developed them on 5 hectares of hill gardens, with households planting a few hundred trees and up to 1 hectare (equivalent to about 1,200 trees). On average, each branch costs 200,000 VND, so each year, people earn about 50 million VND, many households earn up to hundreds of millions of VND, not to mention that there are trees with beautiful shapes, many buds and flowers that can be sold for millions of VND/tree. Kim Thanh peach trees have many beauties, because they are natural peach trees, pink in color, small petals, when blooming intertwined with each other, hiding a noble and charming look.

Therefore, Kim Thanh peach blossoms have gradually conquered peach players inside and outside the district, even reaching out to other provinces. Every year, around December 20, the whole village is bustling with buyers, sellers, motorbikes, cars from Nghi Loc district; Cua Lo; Vinh city to buy peach blossoms. However, this year, peach blossoms bloom early, making people restless, many households with many years of experience in growing peach blossoms, but can only helplessly watch the peach blossoms bloom, feeling heartbroken. Mr. Nguyen Van Quan - Vice Chairman of Kim Thanh Commune People's Committee - Yen Thanh said: Growing peach blossoms is a very effective profession... bringing in a huge income for farmers compared to some other types of trees. The annual revenue from peach blossoms in Kim Thanh is up to 400 - 500 million VND, contributing greatly to the socio-economic development of the locality. But this year, peach blossoms bloom early, people are very sad, affecting income during Tet, it is a difficult year for a poor mountainous commune like Kim Thanh.

This year, peach blossoms in Kim Thanh bloom earlier than usual. If this situation continues, by around December 25, there will be no peaches to sell, and people will suffer great losses. This is also a lesson for peach growers to gain more experience, especially to master technical and biological factors to apply in practice.

Article and photos:Anh Tuan - Thai Hong

(Yen Thanh Radio)