Farmers excitedly harvest "gifts from nature" on a warm, sunny day.
Huy Thu - December 28, 2023, 3:34 PM
(Baonghean.vn) - When the mudworms come out to the rice fields on a warm, sunny day, it makes it easier for the locals to collect them, and they can also sell them at a good price.
In mid-November of the lunar calendar, in riverside communes along the Lam River such as Chau Nhan and Hung Loi (Hung Nguyen district), the mudworms surface in the rice fields during the day, making the work easier for the farmers. Photo: Huy ThuWith warm sunshine, people in villages with rice paddies where earthworms are found eagerly bring their tools to the fields to hunt for them. According to locals, during the months when earthworms are abundant (September, October, November, December), they usually surface in the rice paddies at night, making hunting difficult, especially on cold, rainy nights. Photo: Huy ThuDuring this full moon period, when the tide recedes in the rice fields on the 15th and 16th of the lunar month, around 6-8 am, the time for catching mudworms lasts until noon. Photo: Huy ThuAlthough each rice field has a small sluice gate to catch the worms, people still take the time to scoop them up with nets from the fields and ditches to avoid loss. Photo: Huy ThuThe time when the most lugworms emerge from the rice fields is also when the fields are busiest with lugworm hunters. Some households with few members have to ask relatives to help guard the fields, collect the lugworms, and transport them home. Photo: Huy ThuRice fields near riverbanks and irrigation ditches, where water flows in and out easily, are quite favorable for catching lugworms. When the tide recedes, people simply wait at the edge of the field, empty their traps, and collect the lugworms. Photo: Huy ThuThis year's mudworm season has seen the most mudworms ever seen in the rice fields; households with large mudworm fields all had a successful harvest around the 15th day of the 11th lunar month. Photo: Huy ThuMr. Nguyen Van Dien, from Phu Xuan hamlet, Chau Nhan commune, said that his family cultivates 2.5 sao (approximately 250 square meters) of rice paddies for catching earthworms, yielding 6-7 yens (approximately 100-700 kg) of earthworms each season. "Earthworms come to the fields during the day, especially on warm, sunny days, so people don't have to struggle to catch them at night," Mr. Dien said. (Photo: Huy Thu)According to locals, not only is hunting easier this year, but the Hung Nguyen worms are also of good quality, large, plump, and brightly colored, making them popular with traders and consumers. Photo: Huy ThuMr. Cao Ngoc Thanh (73 years old) from Phu Xuan hamlet, Chau Nhan commune, happily shared: "My family cultivates 5 sao (approximately 0.5 hectares) of rice paddies for catching earthworms. During the two periods of earthworm emergence in mid-October and early November (lunar calendar), we caught 7 yens (approximately 100 kg). This time we caught a few more yens, totaling nearly 1 quintal. My rice paddies have yielded a much higher earthworm harvest this year than last year," Mr. Thanh said. (Photo: Huy Thu)Ms. Nguyen Thi Linh, from Phu Xuan hamlet, Chau Nhan commune, has over one acre of rice paddies, harvesting nearly 200 kg of mudworms each year. Besides selling to traders directly from the fields, she also sets aside a few tens of kilograms each season to make mudworm sauce for sale during the Lunar New Year. With a purchase price of 400,000 VND/kg, mudworms have been and continue to be a significant source of income for local farmers. Photo: Huy Thu
Catching "gifts from nature" in Hung Nguyen. Video: Huy Thu
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