Farmers excited about 'golden rain' to cool down

(Baonghean.vn) - The heavy rain that lasted from July 27 to this morning has "saved" thousands of hectares of summer-autumn rice that is about to bloom in many districts in the province from the risk of withering due to drought.

This summer-autumn crop, Nghia Dan planted 3,150 hectares of rice, of which 350 hectares could not be planted due to lack of water, dry dams in Nghia An and Nghia Lam communes...

During the recent heat wave, about 250 hectares of planted rice were at risk of water shortage, concentrated in areas with difficult irrigation conditions such as in some areas of Nghia Khanh, Nghia An, Nghia Duc, Nghia Hung, Nghia Loc communes...

Many rice fields in Nghia Dan are recovering after the rain.

Yesterday's rain made farmers very happy. Ms. Tran Thi Lan in Nghia Trung commune shared: Her family has more than 3 sao of rice. The drought in the past few days has affected the growth of the rice plants. Cracks have appeared in the rice fields. Visiting them made me feel very sad. Because the fields are far from ponds and lakes, irrigation systems have difficulty reaching them, so the prolonged rain has provided timely water for the rice plants.

Farmers in Nghia Dan go to the fields to take care of rice after the rain.

Taking advantage of the water, Nghia Dan farmers also went to the fields to weed and take care of the rice. In particular, the prolonged hot weather followed by rains has led to a high risk of pests and diseases. Under the guidance of agricultural officials, farmers need to proactively prevent and control pests and diseases on rice plants such as leaf rollers and rice blast; promptly spray pesticides on areas at high risk of infection so as not to affect the quality of the crop.

Thai Truong

At Hung Nguyen, Mr. Nguyen Thanh Son, an agricultural officer of Hung Yen Nam commune, Hung Nguyen district, said: This summer-autumn crop, the whole commune has only been able to plant 206/381 hectares of rice. Currently, there are still 175 hectares without water for planting, of which more than 100 hectares depend on the water source of Thach Tien dam and have to switch to growing other crops because the dam has no water. The prolonged drought over the past time has caused the water source at Gai canal to dry up, leaving hundreds of hectares of rice without water for irrigation; of which 16 hectares have withered.

Many hectares of rice in Hung Nguyen were cooled after the rain.

The rain on July 27 helped the withered rice area that was at risk of dying to recover. In addition, 86/216 hectares of dried lemon trees were also saved thanks to yesterday's rain. Taking advantage of the rain and water in the fields, this morning farmers went to the fields to prune and fertilize the rice.

Prolonged drought has dried up the system and canals in Hung Nguyen district, and dozens of pumping stations have stopped working. In the whole district,hOver 1,500 hectares of rice have been planted and lacked water due to severe drought, of which 800 hectares are dry and at risk of dying. Thanks to yesterday's rains, many rice areas have been saved. Pumping stations on the canal systems and canals in Hung Nguyen district all have water sources. In the 2016 summer-autumn crop, Hung Nguyen planted 4,646 hectares of rice. Taking advantage of the rain, farmers are focusing on getting water to the fields and building embankments to prevent water loss.

Thanh Tam

In Quynh Luu,The prolonged hot weather over the past months has made summer-autumn crop production difficult for farmers. Dams are all dry and do not provide enough water for production. Many mountainous communes such as Quynh Chau, Tan Son, Quynh Thang, Ngoc Son... have had late planting due to lack of water, and many areas have been converted to growing vegetables.

After the rain on July 27, Mr. Ho Van Khien in Hamlet 2, Quynh Yen Commune immediately went to the field to check his family's more than 4 sao of rice. The "golden rain" in 2 days cooled down his family's entire rice field, especially the leaf roller epidemic was pushed back. Mr. Khien said: "On hot days, more than 4 sao of BC 15 rice that had been planted were dry, the recent rain cooled and moistened the soil, the rice plants were greener, the leaf rollers also died, reducing the number of pests by 40%.

Quynh Luu farmers go to the fields to take care of rice after the rain

At the end of the 2016 summer-autumn crop, the entire Quynh Luu district had planted over 7,300 hectares of rice, of which nearly 1,500 hectares were at risk of water shortage and rice diseases. The heavy rain that lasted for 2 days on July 27-28 helped cool down 1,500 hectares of rice in the district that was preparing to form panicles, which were struggling with drought.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Huong - Officer of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Quynh Luu district said: This summer-autumn crop, the hot weather has created favorable conditions for pests to develop, especially the small leaf roller that damages rice. In response to this reality, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of the district supports 50% of the cost for communes to spray pesticides for 5,700 hectares of rice; about 300 hectares are sprayed by people themselves. However, the pest epidemic has decreased slightly, many rice areas are damaged by leaf rollers over 70%. The rain during the 27th and 28th has had a major impact on the development of pests, reducing their growth density. If it continues to rain in the coming time, pests will be controlled, and the entire rice area affected by pests will grow normally.

Viet Hung

In Anh Son districtThere are scattered thunderstorms, some areas have quite heavy rain. These are considered "golden" rains that reduce the prolonged hot temperature, quench the thirst of the fields, especially the lack of water and drought for hundreds of hectares of rice during the heading period.

After the rain on the morning of July 28 had just stopped, in the field of Hamlet 4, Thach Son Commune, Mrs. Nguyen Thi Nam's family took the opportunity to visit the field, weed and water the rice. Mrs. Nam excitedly said: This summer-autumn crop, my family planted 2 sao of NA2 rice, but because there was no rain for many days, the canals were dry, the fields were cracked, and the rice was in the ear-forming stage, so we were very worried. This rain is very precious, it stores water for the rice, helping the rice grow again, currently Mrs. Nam is watering the field for the rice to form ears.

Anh Son farmers are happy to welcome water into their fields after days of drought.

Taking advantage of the rain, farmers are gathering in the fields to get water for their rice fields, and at the same time building embankments to prevent water loss for the rice to form panicles because this is the period when rice plants need irrigation water to accumulate nutrients.

In the summer-autumn crop of 2016, Anh Son planted 2,400 hectares of rice, but due to harsh weather and prolonged heat, the water level in the dams dried up, and many places dropped low such as Khe Nay, Ruong Xoi, Khe Chung lakes...

Mr. Le Van Dan - Director of Tay Nam Nghe An Irrigation Company Limited said: To overcome the drought situation, Anh Son Irrigation Enterprise has repaired 2 drought-resistant pumping stations in Vinh Son and Lang Son; repaired 6 sets of field oil pumps ready to pump water from the lake. Focusing on directing localities to organize dredging of canals, building embankments, repairing irrigation works, and building embankments to retain water in the fields, but the shallow water source has made it difficult to pump water. The rain on the afternoon of July 27 has improved the situation. Currently, the rice plants are in the stage of preparing to flower, so last night's rain is extremely valuable. Taking advantage of the water source after the rain, the enterprise is also directing the stations to stop pumping to save water and electricity to serve the upcoming drought period."

Thai Hien

In Nghi Loc,The rain that lasted from July 27th saved thousands of hectares of agricultural land in Nghi Loc which was suffering from drought. Immediately after having enough water for production, local farmers quickly went to the fields to take care of nearly 5,000 hectares of summer-autumn rice in 2016.

In the past few days, Mr. Vo Phan Tuyen - Hamlet 4, Nghi Hoa Commune, has been restless because his family's 7 sao of rice fields have not been taken care of due to lack of water. The recent "drought-relief" rains, combined with the water pumped from the Cam River, have dispelled his family's worries. Today, the fields are full of water, he hastily mobilized all the family's labor to take care of them in time for the crop season. Mr. Tuyen happily said: "The rain has come, there is water, we have started weeding, fertilizing and pruning. Farmers here are also taking care of the rice. This crop season, my family produces 7 sao of rice fields, I am very happy because yesterday's rain has saved the rice area that has been dry for a long time".

After the Nghi Loc District People's Committee decided to block the Cam River to store water, farmers in the agricultural area including Nghi Dien, Nghi Van, Nghi Phuong, Nghi Thuan, and Nghi Hoa communes took advantage of the opportunity to bring more water after the rain to supplement their fields that needed care.

Mr. Nguyen Xuan Quang - Head of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Nghi Loc district said: "Yesterday's thunderstorms have improved the drought situation in the district. Currently, the summer-autumn rice is in the stage of differentiation, preparing to flower, so this golden rain is very valuable, so the propaganda department is encouraging farmers to focus on building embankments to retain water, fertilize, and prune to promote the growth of plants, contributing to a successful crop."

Hong Vinh - Thu Hien

(Nghi Loc Radio)