Do Luong farmers earn high income from Taiwanese guava grown on poor soil

Mr. Nguyen Huu Binh's family in Hamlet 4, Trung Son Commune (Do Luong) started growing Taiwanese guava at the end of November 2017. Previously, on the 3-acre land where this guava variety was grown, his family grew rice, beans, and peanuts, but this was an area that was dry in the dry season and often flooded in the rainy season, so income was very unstable, sometimes losing everything.

Mr. Nguyen Huu Binh's family in Hamlet 4, Trung Son Commune (Do Luong) grows pear guava with high efficiency. Photo: Le Ngoc Phuong.

Mr. Binh has improved the land, dug ponds to store water to prevent drought; built ditches about 1m wide, 1m deep to drain water when there is heavy rain. He said: I dug a 200m2 pond, every time it rains, I store water from the stream flowing down until it is full, enough to pump water to the guava trees even if it has not rained for 2 consecutive months. Digging wide and deep ditches to drain water when it rains heavily for guava is also very important...

With this method, the first guava crop, Mr. Binh's family harvested over 300 kg of good quality fruit.

This year's guava crop, despite the severe drought last time, thanks to the stored water, Mr. Binh's family garden still produced a high yield and output. With 100 guava trees, including 60 Taiwanese pear guava trees and 40 four-season guava trees, Mr. Binh harvested 10.5 quintals of guava; pear guava alone yielded 7 quintals.

Nghe An: First time attaching traceability stamps to 'pear guava'

(Baonghean.vn) - Since December 2017, in Nghia Son and Nghia Lam communes, famous guava growing areas of Nghia Dan district (Nghe An), the Department of Science and Technology in coordination with the Agricultural Service Cooperative has officially printed and affixed electronic traceability stamps with the brand name "le guava".

Taiwanese pear guava is large, fragrant and sweet. Photo: Le Ngoc Phuong

Currently, the entire Trung Son commune (Do Luong) has over 100 households growing guava, large households grow about 100 trees, small households grow from 10 to 15 trees. Thanks to knowing how to take care of, prevent drought and waterlogging, the guava gardens of all households are effective.

According to the experience of the people, to keep the guava tree always bearing fruit, every 3 months, fertilize each tree with 10 - 12 kg of decomposed manure mixed with antibacterial yeast, 0.7 - 1 kg of NPK. Along with fertilizing, to avoid worms from boring into the guava, when the guava is as big as an eggplant, it will be wrapped in an empty cloth bag.

If you want the guava tree to bear fruit all year round, you must pinch off the top except for 1 to 2 pairs of leaves on the green, hard guava fruit. Guava buds will sprout from the leaf axils, and at the same time, buds, flowers, and fruits will appear. With this method, the guava will bear fruit regularly.

The drought-stricken land in Trung Son that grows rice precariously has shown its effectiveness with guava trees. Photo: Le Ngoc Phuong

The family of Mr. Nguyen Van Thanh - Chairman of the Commune Farmers' Association, grows 40 guava trees using seeds from the Do Luong District Agricultural Extension Station. Each year, the family harvests 3 batches of guava, not including the occasional additional batches. Each harvest has 25 fruits per tree, with 40 trees, he harvests 1,000 fruits. Because the pear guava produces large fruits (3 fruits weighing 1 kg), the selling price is 30,000 VND/kg, his family earns 10 million VND/harvest. With 3 main harvests in a year, the income is over 30 million VND.

As for Mr. Binh's family, every 4 to 5 days they pick 20 - 30 kg of guava and sell it to workers at a nearby garment company. Within 15 minutes, all the guava they brought to sell is sold.

With the effectiveness of guava trees, currently some households in Trung Son commune have dug holes, composted, and waited until the end of the 11th lunar month to plant guava trees.