Racing against storm No. 3 Wipha, Nghe An farmers rush to harvest agricultural products

According to forecasts, storm Wipha will cause heavy rain over a large area, so on the morning of July 20, when the weather had just cleared, farmers in Nghe An went to the fields, urgently harvesting agricultural products in the spirit of "racing" with storm No. 3 Wipha.

A storm on the evening of July 19th caused extensive damage to chayote, loofah, and pumpkin crops in the Quỳnh Mai area, resulting in their collapse. (Photo: TP)

On the evening of July 19th, many areas in Nghe An province experienced heavy rain and strong winds, affecting a significant area of ​​vegetable crops. In particular, climbing plants like gourds, chayote, and pumpkins suffered broken stems, dropped fruit, and even complete collapse of trellises.

Anticipating that Typhoon No. 3 would continue to affect the area for the next few days, as soon as the sun came out on the morning of July 20th, farmers in key areas predicted to be affected by the typhoon proactively went to the fields to harvest their crops with the motto "better to harvest while the produce is still green than to let it rot in the field."

Taking advantage of the clear weather before the storm, people are harvesting sweet gourds. Photo: TP

In the province's largest vegetable-growing areas, such as Quynh Mai ward (formerly part of Hoang Mai town) and Quynh Anh commune (formerly part of Quynh Luu district), hundreds of households were out in the fields from early morning, pulling up onions, picking tomatoes, breaking pumpkins, and cutting gourds... Everyone was taking advantage of every hour to gather their produce. This is the harvest time for vegetables like onions, sweet cabbage, tomatoes, and gourds – vegetables that are very easily damaged by heavy rain and strong winds.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Khoi, residing in Binh Minh Hamlet, Quynh Mai Ward, said that her family planted 5 sao (approximately 0.5 hectares) of onions using a staggered planting method, which hadn't yet reached its optimal yield. However, due to unfavorable weather, she decided to harvest early to avoid losses. “I hired extra workers and called traders to come directly to the field to buy the onions. The price of onions is now around 9,000 VND/kg, which is quite high…,” Ms. Khoi said.

Farmers in Quynh Mai harvest scallions to escape the storm. Photo: TP.

Besides onions, people in Quynh Mai and Quynh Anh districts are also busy harvesting eggplants, pumpkins, and gourds. Some eggplant gardens have only just had their first harvest, with the fruits not yet reaching the standard weight, but the farmers are still deciding to harvest them prematurely to "save" some of them from the risk of strong winds breaking the plants and causing the fruit to fall.

"Young eggplants have lower yields, but the current selling price is 9,000 VND/kg, and traders are still buying them regularly. It's better than waiting until a storm comes, which could result in a total loss," said Ms. Ho Thi Nhan, an eggplant farmer in Quynh Anh.

Although the eggplants are not yet ready for harvest, the people of Quynh Anh have decided to harvest them prematurely and sell them at a better price than to let the storm knock them over. Photo: TP

In Dai Hue commune (formerly part of Nam Dan district), the atmosphere is equally bustling with activity. This area is famous for its fields of herbs and jasmine flowers. This morning, from dawn, many households were busy harvesting jasmine flowers, cutting perilla, basil, and other herbs, while also clearing ditches and unblocking drainage channels.

“The jasmine vine is easy to fall off and the trellis collapses in heavy rain. Herbs and spices rot quickly if waterlogged. Therefore, every household has to harvest quickly and clear the drainage ditches between the rows to allow water to drain,” shared Ms. Nguyen Thi Hanh (Xuan Son hamlet, Dai Hue commune).

Despite having harvested the flowers yesterday, Ms. Nguyen Thi Hanh still went to the field this morning to pick the budding jasmine flowers, fearing that heavy rain and strong winds would cause them to fall. (Photo: TP)

In lemon-growing areas like Hung Trung (formerly Hung Nguyen district) and Thien Nhan (formerly Nam Dan district), farmers are also rushing to harvest lemons to "beat the storm." Even though the lemons are still unripe and not yet juicy, people are still taking advantage of the opportunity to pick and sell them before the storm arrives.

Mr. Phan Van Chau (Hung Trung commune) said: “A whirlwind caused the lemons to fall off. Therefore, although the harvest season is supposed to be 10 days away, we have to harvest some of the early-ripening lemons early. Today, I expect to harvest about 200 kg of lemons, and I have contacted traders to buy them directly from the orchard at a price of 10,000 VND/kg.”

Farmers in Dai Hue are clearing drainage ditches to prevent flooding caused by heavy rain. Photo: TP

Not only did the people proactively harvest, but they also quickly reinforced trellises and sheltered the remaining areas, while simultaneously dredging ponds and ditches to drain excess water and minimize the risk of flooding. This urgency was not a reactive response to the weather, but clearly demonstrated a spirit of readiness to respond, minimize damage, and preserve some of the fruits of their labor after days of care.

According to the forecast of the North Central Region Meteorological and Hydrological Station, Typhoon No. 3 is moving rapidly and is complex. The meteorological and hydrological agency predicts that Nghe An province may be affected from the night of July 20th, with heavy rain, strong winds, a risk of flooding in low-lying areas, thunderstorms, and landslides in mountainous regions.

Farmers in Hung Trung are securing their lemon trees before the storm arrives. Photo: TP

In this context, the fact that farmers are proactively and collectively going to the fields, undeterred by fatigue, to "escape the storm" is proof of their flexible adaptation to increasingly frequent extreme weather events.

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Source: https://baonghean.vn/chay-dua-voi-bao-so-3-wipha-nong-dan-nghe-an-cap-tap-thu-hoach-nong-san-10302686.html