Growing pumpkins for 70 days yields a profit of 100 million VND.

(Baonghean.vn) - In just 70 days from planting to harvesting, pumpkin plants have yielded more favorable economic results compared to traditional crops on the alluvial soil of Anh Son and Tan Ky districts.

With 5 sao (approximately 0.5 hectares) of pumpkins, Ms. Le Thi Niem's ​​family in Ha Du village, Cam Son commune, earned over 40 million VND.

In Ha Du village, Cam Son commune, Ms. Le Thi Niem's ​​pumpkin farming model has yielded over 7 tons of pumpkins this spring. At a price of 5-6 thousand dong per kilogram, she earned nearly 20 million dong, resulting in a profit of over 18 million dong after deducting expenses.

Ms. Niem excitedly said: "We expect to harvest about 6 tons of pumpkins from now until the end of June. Thanks to this pumpkin crop, my family will earn over 40 million VND. In the same 6-month period, if we planted one sao (approximately 1000 square meters) of corn on riverside land, after deducting expenses, we would only earn 400,000 VND. Meanwhile, growing pumpkins requires the same investment as corn, but takes less time and yields seven times more income."

The entire Anh Son district currently has over 20 hectares of pumpkins, grown in the alluvial plains along the Lam River, such as Cam Son, Tao Son, and Thach Son. Traditionally, due to the high risks involved, farmers in these riverside communes only cultivated one spring crop per year, growing traditional crops like corn, peanuts, and sweet potatoes, but the results were not very good. Since introducing pumpkins to this area, the cultivation has proven highly effective.

Ms. Thuy said that pumpkins are easy to grow and require little care, especially in this barren land, yet the plants still thrive. Each pumpkin weighs between 1 and 2.5 kg when sold.

According to experienced farmers, pumpkins are drought-tolerant, fast-growing, have a short growing season (70-75 days to harvest), avoid flooding, and produce high-quality fruit that is popular in the market. Furthermore, they are less susceptible to pests and diseases, requiring minimal pesticides, resulting in low investment costs. The average yield is 30 tons/ha, bringing in revenue of at least 100 million VND/ha after deducting expenses. In addition, pumpkin shoots and flowers also provide a significant source of supplementary income for farmers.

Recently, farmers in Tan Ky district have focused on changing their crop structure to increase income per unit area. A typical example is the model of growing pumpkins on barren sandy soil in the riverside area along the Con River, covering an area of ​​12 hectares, by Ms. Ngo Thi Thuy's family in Thai Son hamlet, Nghia Thai commune.

Ms. Thuy's family is very excited because pumpkins are fetching good prices and are easy to sell this year. Traders buy everything they harvest at 5,000 VND/kg. Each hectare yields 12 tons of fruit, averaging a profit of 50 million VND per hectare over a period of 6 months.

It can be affirmed that the effectiveness of pumpkin cultivation models in Anh Son district represents a new direction in the restructuring of crop patterns, increasing productivity per unit area of ​​cultivated land. This also serves as a driving force for farmers to intensify crop cultivation and develop their economy.

Le Na - Hoai Chung - Cam Tu