After the rain, dozens of hectares of Nghia Dan guava trees fell in large numbers.
(Baonghean.vn) - The long rains in recent times have made it difficult for farmers growing guava in Nghia Dan because the guava is bland, of poor quality, and the price is only 3,000 to 5,000 VND/kg but no one is buying it.
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| Ms. Phan Thi Huyen in Dong Dai hamlet, Nghia Khanh commune said that this rain caused her nearly 20 million in damage. Photo: Minh Thai |
During the prolonged rain in recent days, many guava gardens in Nghia Dan district experienced massive guava falling, especially in the communes of Nghia Lam, Nghia Son, Nghia Yen, Nghia Khanh...
Coming to the guava garden of Ms. Phan Thi Huyen's family in Dong Dai hamlet, Nghia Khanh commune, one cannot help but feel heartbroken. Nearly 1 hectare of guava intercropped with oranges of her family has been almost completely lost, the guava has fallen around the tree and is in the process of rotting.
Ms. Huyen said that her guava garden has nearly 500 trees, the smallest tree produces more than 30kg of fruit, the largest tree produces more than 50kg. When it rained, her family tried to harvest the fruit, but many of the guavas were damaged, only about 1/3 of the trees could be selected. The damage during this rain was estimated at nearly 20 million VND.
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| Taking advantage of the sunny weather, Mr. Lo Van Thieu, Nghia Lam commune, sold all his guava garden to make up for the money spent on buying nylon to wrap guava. Photo: Dinh Thuy |
After the recent heavy rains, many guava trees have begun to wither and their fruits have fallen all over the garden. Just a slight shake of the tree can cause dozens of fruits to fall. Many guava growers in Nghia Dan are having trouble keeping or selling their fruit, especially at a time when many other fruits are also in season.
Mr. Lo Van Thieu's family in Hamlet 13, Nghia Lam Commune has 4 sao of guava. The recent rainy days have caused the guava crop to be soft and fall off when ready to be harvested. Currently, his family is trying to harvest to salvage the effort and money invested.
Mr. Thieu shared: "Heavy rain not only makes guava spongy but also reduces its sweetness, many wrapped fruits are still rotten and fall off. When it rains, no one buys them, so the family takes advantage of the sunny days to pick guava to sell, but there are few buyers because the guava is not delicious. Compared to other guava gardens, the family's guava garden is still sweeter but only sells for 5,000 VND/kg. Growing guava takes a lot of work, and without spraying pesticides, the family only arranges one person to take care of and wrap the guava. However, the poor quality guava and low price do not compensate for the effort of taking care of and buying bags.
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| Farmers can only salvage 1 to 2 million VND per sao of guava. Photo by Dinh Thuy. |
The family of Mrs. Nguyen Thi Hue in Nam Lam hamlet, Nghia Lam commune said that her family planted more than 1 sao of pink-fleshed guava. A month ago, the whole family focused on watering it because of the prolonged sunshine. This month, it rained for a long time, making the guavas ripe and unpickable. Luckily, after a few sunny days, they were able to pick and sell all the fruit, but the price of guava was only 3,000 VND/kg, 1/10 of the price of guava at the end of the year.
Nghia Son Commune is the first place and also the guava orchard in Nghia Dan with an area of 43 hectares, so farmers here have more experience growing guava than other places. However, according to the people, no matter what they do, guava in July is still of poor quality. This year is more difficult because of early and continuous rains, so the guava is not sweet and is often affected by pests and diseases. Guava gardens with a large amount of ripe fruit in July "cry" because the price is too low.
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| Agricultural staff of Nghia Son commune (Nghia Dan) instruct guava growers on how to preserve fruit. Photo: Dinh Thuy |
Mr. Tran Quoc Hong - Chairman of the Farmers' Association of Nghia Son commune said: The guava crop in July every year is cheaper than guava in other crops. Therefore, to limit damage, 2 to 3 months before the young fruits start to appear, farmers should pick and throw them away, leaving only a few fruits on the tree so that the guava will produce another crop, ripening around September and October, with higher quality and selling price.
"According to long-time guava growers, it is possible to regulate the amount of fruit and the time of ripening by removing young fruits so that the guava can produce another crop. This is also an experience for people to limit damage, not leaving too many fruits in July and August. We have also advised guava growers not to leave too many fruits in this season to limit damage" - Mr. Tran Quoc Hong added.
According to many guava garden owners, with the current weather conditions, the guava falling will continue in the coming days if it continues to rain, meaning the damage will be even greater./.
