The effectiveness of growing fragrant sticky cucumbers in Van Du soil.
After the Lunar New Year, farmers in Van Du commune are busy harvesting fragrant sticky rice cucumbers on the previously converted, less productive rice fields. Thanks to this easy-to-grow, high-yielding, and market-favored native cucumber variety, many households have a fairly stable income before and after the Lunar New Year.
According to locals, fragrant sticky rice cucumber is a traditional variety that has been grown in Van Du for many years. The cucumbers are small, with light green skin, a crisp texture, and a distinctive natural aroma and refreshing taste, making them popular with consumers. Thanks to these unique qualities, the local cucumber product always enjoys a favorable market.
In the early days of the new year, Mrs. Tran Thi Lan in Hamlet 8, Van Du Commune, was busy harvesting cucumbers in the field with her family members. Mrs. Lan said that this winter, her family planted 3 sao (approximately 0.3 hectares) of cucumbers on land previously used for rice cultivation, which yielded low productivity. The period leading up to Tet (Lunar New Year) is when the plants yield their first harvest, with a selling price of around 7,000 VND/kg at the field. Thanks to the rapid growth of the fruit, they can harvest again after only a few days, so the harvesting is continuous.
After the Lunar New Year, market demand remained quite high, so the family continued harvesting and selling to traders. Currently, the price of cucumbers ranges from 5,500 to 6,500 VND/kg. Cucumbers can be harvested continuously for about two months, with a yield of over 2 tons per sao (approximately 1000 square meters). With an average selling price of around 5,000 VND/kg, each sao yields an income of 12 to 14 million VND, much higher than other crops grown on the same area.
Nguyen Van Linh, from Hamlet 7, who has also been involved in cucumber cultivation for many years, said that the local fragrant sticky cucumber variety is mainly grown by the people themselves. After each harvest, the farmers select mature, high-quality cucumbers to use as seeds for the next season, thus always having a readily available source of local seeds.
According to Mr. Linh, the trellis construction is crucial for the cucumber plants to grow well and yield high productivity. When the plants are about 30-35 cm tall, growers begin erecting trellises using bamboo stakes about 2.5 to 3 meters long, planted in an A-shape, and then covered with netting with a mesh size of about 20 cm for the cucumbers to cling to. In addition, farmers mainly use organic fertilizer to fertilize the plants, which gives the cucumbers a distinctive aroma, making them popular in the market. My family planted more than 2 acres of cucumbers this season, and after deducting expenses, we earned over 24 million VND, enough to cover living expenses and reinvest in production.
Besides providing income for growers, Van Du fragrant sticky cucumbers also create a stable supply for traders. Nguyen Tho Dung, a local cucumber trader, said that he collects about 8 to 9 tons of cucumbers daily to transport and sell in Hanoi and some neighboring areas. Towards the end of the season, the amount of cucumbers available from farmers decreases, making collection more difficult due to the limited supply.
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According to Mr. Dau Trong Giap, Head of the Economic Department of Van Du Commune People's Committee, the locality is a mountainous commune with many areas of high-lying, water-scarce land, resulting in low rice yields. For many years, the commune has encouraged people to convert these areas to growing cash crops, especially winter cucumbers in hamlets 1, 7, and 8. In reality, this model has proven to be much more economically effective than rice cultivation.
This winter, Van Du commune planted approximately 16 hectares of fragrant sticky rice cucumbers. Thanks to their distinctive flavor, the product is always popular with consumers, and traders from many places such as Hanoi and Thanh Hoa frequently come to the fields to buy them. However, the price of cucumbers still depends quite a lot on the weather; prices are usually higher on warm, sunny days, while prices tend to decrease when there is prolonged cold rain.
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In the coming period, the local government plans to continue expanding the area for cucumber cultivation on less productive land, while also seeking more stable distribution channels. Besides the traditional market at local markets, the commune will gradually connect with businesses to sign product purchase agreements, contributing to increasing the value of the crop and sustainably increasing income for the people.