Hung Linh: Efficiency from alluvial land

(Baonghean) - After harvesting the spring crop on alluvial land, many localities located along the 42nd dike, near the Lam River, often leave this land vacant due to many unpredictable weather conditions. However, Hung Linh commune (Hung Nguyen) has boldly converted alluvial land, proactively built a 3-crop/year production model, and increased income.

Farmers in hamlet 2, Hung Linh commune harvest summer-autumn green beans on converted alluvial land.

Ms. Bui Thi Lan - Hamlet 1A, Hung Linh Commune has 2 sao of alluvial land. Every year, she produces 3 crops: 2 sao of peanuts in the spring crop, 1 sao of green beans in the summer-autumn crop, and corn in the winter crop. This time, she is harvesting green beans in the summer-autumn crop. This year, due to the prolonged drought at the beginning of the season, the planting was late, so the harvest was later than previous years. She said that before, her family only planted 2 sao of spring peanuts, then left the land fallow from June onwards because it was the time of storms and rains and they did not dare to produce. Last year, after harvesting spring peanuts, she prepared the land to plant beans, harvested beans before the storm season, and in early October, planted winter waxy corn with short-term varieties such as MX6, MX10. She is excited: This year's bean yield is estimated to reach 3.5 quintals/sao (previous years it reached 2.5 - 3 quintals/sao), the bean selling price is 28,000 VND/kg, she earns over 2 million VND/sao. Peanut yield is 1.4 quintals/sao, corn is over 3 quintals/sao. Thus, she has an additional income of nearly 4 million VND/sao/year from alluvial land.

Hamlet 2 of Hung Linh commune currently has 2 hectares of alluvial land divided into 2 areas. Area 1 is for specialized cultivation of 3 production crops/year, area 2 is a concentrated grazing area for buffaloes and cows. Currently, Hamlet 2 has over 350 buffaloes and cows, on average each household has 2-3 or more, mainly crossbred Sind cows and fattened buffaloes and cows. Mr. Nguyen Van Canh - Head of Hamlet 2 said: To protect safe production for crops in the alluvial land, after the spring harvest, the hamlet has divided the area for growing beans and separate grazing areas. The hamlet assigns people to take turns to look after and protect the crops so that buffaloes and cows do not destroy them. Thanks to that, production on alluvial land is maintained. The hamlet's winter corn product is an abundant source of food, preventing hunger during the lean season for buffaloes and cows.

Hung Linh Commune of Hung Nguyen District is a locality located along the 42 dike, on the bank of Lam River. The whole commune has 230 hectares of alluvial land/350 hectares of agricultural land, mainly concentrated outside the dike. Every year, during the rainy season, most of this land area is flooded and often fluctuates due to changes in the flow. Mr. Ho Quang Thong - Chairman of Hung Linh Agricultural Cooperative said: To stabilize the annual production area and create conditions for converting crop structure and increasing crops, from 1976-1978, the commune invested in traffic, building embankments, and draining water along the coast. People have implemented one crop per year on this land with many crops but the efficiency is not high. By 2004, implementing Decree 64 of the Government on land division for people to produce, alluvial land was divided by hamlets and groups, with an average of over 100m2/person. The commune arranges to convert crop structure and plan production areas by bringing short-term crops to the fields suitable for production conditions such as beans, vegetables, waxy corn, high-quality sweet potatoes...

For a long time, the alluvial land with about 30 hectares in hamlets 1B and 3 has been reserved for grazing cattle. Over 60 hectares of alluvial land in hamlets 1A, 1B, hamlets 2 and 3 produce various beans and summer-autumn vegetables. Up to now, on the commune's alluvial land there are 65 hectares of spring peanuts, 6 hectares of various summer-autumn beans, and 15 hectares of winter corn. According to Mr. Thong's calculations, thanks to the increase in production on the alluvial land, the average income has reached 3 million VND/sao, 1.3 times higher than growing pure rice.

Thanks to the creation of a reserve food source from corn on alluvial land, plus the large, fertile natural grassland environment, it is very favorable for livestock development. The whole Hung Linh commune currently has 1600/1700 crossbred Sind buffaloes and cows and breeding sows. The production value from livestock is quite stable. On average, 1 calf sold for 17-18 million VND.

The actual effectiveness of Hung Linh shows that the implementation of investment and replication of the model of developing crops, livestock and seasons on alluvial land is a suitable direction. It is known that currently, along with the process of converting land according to the new rural planning, Hung Linh commune focuses on consolidating plots, continuing to convert appropriate crop structures, planning areas for growing peanuts, beans, corn, vegetables with high commodity value, concentrated livestock areas, and gradually planning a stable traffic system to contribute to promoting the potential of alluvial areas.

Luong Mai