Warm weather, Nghe An peach growers worry about crop loss

Although he regularly checks weather forecasts to find ways to take care of his trees, Mr. Nguyen Van Hoi in Tien Thuy commune (Quynh Luu) is worried that the warm weather could cause the peach blossoms to bloom earlier than expected.

The family of Mrs. Tran Thi Ha in Tien Thuy commune (Quynh Luu) gathered manpower to go to the garden to strip leaves from peach blossoms. Photo: Viet Hung

Mr. Hoi said that his family has more than 200 peach trees planted on a coastal hill with an area of ​​nearly 1 hectare. Like every year, around the 5th day of the 11th lunar month, the family strips the leaves so that the trees can focus on nurturing and developing flower buds. Last year's Tet flower crop, with his experience and techniques, hundreds of peach trees bloomed right on the occasion of Tet, bringing in a high income. However, in the warm and sunny weather for more than a week now, his family is worried that the flowers will bloom before Tet.

The entire Quynh Luu district currently has dozens of households growing peach blossoms with thousands of trees, concentrated in the communes of Quynh Thang, Tan Thang, Quynh Tan, Tien Thuy... Since 2015, mountainous households have taken advantage of the opportunity to plant peach trees for Tet to increase their family income. Since then, many families have invested money, effort and learned from many places about caring for and shaping the trees, waiting for the harvest day.

Stripping leaves helps the tree concentrate nutrients to create peach blossom buds. Photo: Viet Hung

However, according to the people, unlike other trees that can be cared for and restored entirely based on the variety and techniques, only peach trees depend largely on the weather. However, peach growers in Quynh Luu still focus on caring for them and learning from each other's experiences so that the flowers bloom in time for Tet.

Not only in Quynh Luu, peach growers in Yen Thanh district are also worried because the warm weather can be unfavorable for farmers. Due to the complicated weather, some peach growers are stripping leaves later this year instead of stripping leaves early like previous years.

Ms. Ho Thi Ly in Kim Thanh commune (Yen Thanh) said that her family planted more than 500 peach trees. In previous years, the process of stripping leaves was completed between the 5th and 10th of the 11th lunar month, but this year, due to the hot weather, the stripping was delayed by about 10 days. If the warm weather lasts for another 10 to 15 days before turning cold, it will be considered a good harvest.

For peach trees that have been stripped of their leaves for 10 days, if the warm weather continues until near Tet, there is a risk of early blooming, causing crop losses. Photo: Viet Hung

“When Tet is near, if the flowers have not yet bloomed, it is easier to take care of them so they bloom in time. Farmers just need to water them regularly 2-3 times a day to create conditions for the flowers to bloom,” said Ms. Ly.

Nghe An is a locality that develops peach growing, most concentrated in Yen Thanh, Quynh Luu, Que Phong, Nghia Dan districts... From peach growing, on average each household earns from 50 - 100 million VND per year.

In the days leading up to Tet, traders from all over gather in peach villages in Nghe An to buy peach trees by the truckload to sell at markets. Peach trees are sold whole or cut into branches, with prices ranging from 300,000 VND to millions of VND per tree.