Vegetables flooded due to heavy rain, Nghe An farmers rush to harvest to avoid flooding

Vegetables flooded after heavy rain

On the night of August 16, heavy rain that lasted for many hours caused the vegetable growing areas of Quynh Anh commune, Quynh Luu district, to be partially flooded. The green fields of green onions, mustard greens, and Malabar spinach were now submerged in murky water. The vegetable plants had soft leaves, and their roots were starting to rot, threatening to be crushed and die en masse.

The colored areas in Quynh Anh, where the largest vegetable growing area in the province is located, were heavily affected. The main reason, according to local authorities, was that many drainage ditches were filled up, causing the flow to be blocked, causing slow drainage.

Mr. Tran Minh Chinh - Chairman of the Farmers' Association of Quynh Anh Commune, said: "Sandy soil in the coastal area absorbs water quickly, but if soaked for a long time, vegetables easily rot and their roots are broken. Just being flooded overnight can cause serious damage. Currently, the commune is mobilizing people to clear drainage ditches, and at the same time directing early harvesting of areas that are ripe for harvest and salvage harvesting of heavily flooded areas."

According to statistics, the entire Quynh Anh commune planted 1,048 hectares of summer-autumn vegetables, of which the coastal area specialized in vegetables accounted for 954 hectares. By the morning of August 17, about 400 hectares were heavily flooded, of which many areas of green onions planted only 1 month ago had to be pulled out early.

Not only Quynh Anh commune, Quynh Mai vegetable area is also heavily affected by heavy rain. These days, in the fields, people are rushing in the rain to pull onions, carry bags of vegetables to the market to sell in a hurry, hoping to recoup some capital after many months of hard work.

In Dai Dong block (Quynh Mai ward), Ms. Nguyen Thi Hong sadly had to cut 3 sao of onions that she had just sown: "Due to heavy rain, the onions were flooded at the roots, if not pulled out, they would be lost. Selling them for only 1,000 - 2,000 VND/kg, considered a heavy loss."

Mr. Nguyen Van Nam (Hamlet 5, Quynh Anh Commune) had to hire 7 workers to harvest 3 hectares of onions that were ready to harvest: "If we keep them, they will all be ruined. But now we sell them for only 7,000 VND/kg, a loss of more than 50% compared to the normal price."

People flee floods, recover capital

Not only Quynh Luu, the Lam River banks in Anh Son, Do Luong, Nam Dan, Thanh Chuong districts are also being affected by heavy rains. The river water level is rising, overflowing the crop fields, threatening the growing areas of squash, pumpkin, sticky corn and many other summer-autumn vegetables.

Mr. Nguyen Van Thanh, owner of a farm in the Lam Thanh commune area, said: “The historic flood at the end of July swept away all the cucumber and squash trellises. After renovating and rebuilding the trellis system with iron pipes, now the heavy rain has flooded the squash field of more than 1 hectare. Thanks to digging a 1-1.5 meter deep ditch to drain into the river, it is still safe. But if the rain continues and the flood from upstream comes, it will be very unpredictable.”

In Van An commune, the Farmers' Association also advised people to proactively harvest early. Ms. Nguyen Thi Ha - President of the Commune Farmers' Association, said: "Currently, the river water is high but has not yet flooded the crop area. To proactively limit damage caused by heavy rain, people have been encouraged to pick sticky corn and cut off squash tops while they can still be harvested, to avoid leaving the plants for too long, causing the roots to loosen and fall over."

In fact, in Van An field, many households rushed to the fields to "run the rain". Ms. Nguyen Thi Thanh, who planted 3 sao of corn and 1 sao of squash, said: "The corn was planted on higher ground so it was not flooded yet, but heavy rain can easily cause it to fall. I had someone pick the corn and sell it early, accepting a loss. I also took the opportunity to cut the squash tops, if left for a few more days, it would be considered lost."

Currently, the situation of unusual rains and floods is becoming more and more unpredictable. Meanwhile, the drainage system in many vegetable growing communes is still limited, leading to frequent localized flooding.

In the short term, the urgent solution is to clear the flow, advise farmers to harvest promptly and quickly calculate the damage to have a solution. In the long term, the agricultural sector should invest in upgrading the drainage system, and support farmers to change the structure of vegetable varieties that are more resistant to flooding.