Red-fleshed dragon fruit - new specialty of Con Cuong

The hilly land was reclaimed by Mr. Luong Van Binh's family in Thanh Dao village, Bong Khe commune (Con Cuong) for cultivation. Previously, due to lack of experience in selecting plant varieties suitable for the soil, crops such as corn, beans, peanuts, cassava as well as acacia and sycamore had low yields.

Realizing that red-fleshed dragon fruit - a fruit tree of the South - adapted well after trial planting, grew well and produced sweet fruit, the family was one of 7 households registered and selected by Con Cuong district for experimental planting. The households were supported with training in planting and care techniques, varieties, pillar casting, fertilizers... after 1 year the tree produced sweet fruit.

Tourists come to visit and buy red-fleshed dragon fruit at the garden of Ms. Lo Thi Hoan's family in Thanh Dao village, Bong Khe commune (Con Cuong).

Through economic calculation from the experimental model of 7 households with 1,311 tree pillars on an area of ​​1.2 hectares, the total investment cost was 374 million VND, of which the State supported 150 million VND, after 1 year the tree began to produce the best quality fruit, fragrant, delicious, and sweet.

On average, each year the tree produces 6-8 batches of fruit, the harvest time is from the 5th lunar month to the end of the 10th lunar month, each batch is about 20 days apart. On average, each tree pillar produces 2.5 kg of fruit/batch, with a selling price of 20,000 - 25,000 VND/kg, the total revenue is over 650 million VND, minus costs, the net profit is over 200 million VND/ha. In particular, the lifespan of a red-fleshed dragon fruit tree is at least 10-15 years, and it does not require much care, so it will bring quite high profits to farmers.

Red-fleshed dragon fruit can be harvested 6 times a year, earning an income of over 100 million VND.

Mr. Tran Thanh Binh - Deputy Head of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Con Cuong district said that although it was a trial crop, it showed that the soil quality was suitable and the fruit quality was sweet and fragrant, and could be widely replicated to serve tourists in the area.

With the current stable consumption market, red-fleshed dragon fruit has opened a new direction for farmers in the mountainous district of Con Cuong. Thus, Con Cuong now has a variety of new fruits, including: oranges, apples, guava, grapefruit, sapodilla, jackfruit and red-fleshed dragon fruit.

Con Cuong's red-fleshed dragon fruit is sweet and has a beautiful color. Photo: Tuong Vi

It is known that previously in the communes of Mon Son, Chau Khe, Bong Khe, many families spontaneously planted white-fleshed and red-fleshed dragon fruit, but the varieties were of low quality, so the economic efficiency was not high.