Da Nang focuses on building "urban agriculture"

Dual benefit model

For over 10 years, the 70 m2 terrace and balcony of Mr. Pham Ngoc Hoang’s house (45 years old) on Truong Chinh Street have been used to grow flowers and vegetables. His family usually spends about 30-45 minutes a day taking care of them. The types of plants chosen by the family to grow are very diverse, such as bitter melon, watermelon, okra, spinach, cabbage, fruit trees, etc. The garden helps him satisfy his passion as well as increase green space and provide a source of clean vegetables and fruits.

He said that at first, he only planted small pots, mainly researching flower varieties for experience. But gradually gaining experience, the family gradually expanded the area and number of plants. He bought more pots, built a trellis nearly two meters high to grow climbing plants, and placed smart vegetable shelves and flexible foam boxes underneath. The plants were mainly cared for with organic fertilizer.

“The family does not use stimulants to take care of the plants. Members take advantage of the early morning, late afternoon and weekends to take care of and harvest. In addition to being a hobby, the plants are also used as food for the family, and even given to relatives and neighbors. Not to mention, the business is stressful, so the garden gives him more space to relax,” Mr. Hoang shared.

According to Mr. Hoang, growing vegetables on the terrace is often very difficult because the area is not large and the need to ensure environmental hygiene. Therefore, growers need to pay attention to the arrangement, cleaning and prioritizing plants that adapt to weather conditions. Usually, plants have a short life and need to be studied on how to care for them. In particular, it is necessary to choose clean soil, free of pathogens, quality fertilizers and reputable branded tuber varieties.

Mr. Thai Van Cong (43 years old) also took advantage of the vacant land on Phuoc Ly Street (Da Nang City) to pursue his passion for growing flowers and fruit trees. Although he is originally from Quang Nam , he has had a hobby of gardening and loving trees for over 10 years. The yard mainly grows plants that are difficult to care for and die easily such as periwinkle, primrose, asparagus, green chili, etc.

Although he has arranged many different types of plants, his garden is not monotonous or boring, but on the contrary, lively. Each type of plant has many different shapes and colors. He spends most of his time in the garden taking care of the plants, mainly watering and fertilizing.

He said that at first he did it out of passion, but later he shifted to commercial purposes. Besides serving Tet, the flower garden also receives orders from organizations and individuals to buy flowers as gifts on normal days.

“The campus used to be a vacant, messy lot, so I had to spend a lot of money to renovate, clean and invest in additional infrastructure. Over time, the campus has become more prominent, well-known and environmentally friendly. The main fertilizer is organic fertilizer because it helps limit the impact on health and is environmentally friendly. This is also a place that creates jobs for about 4-5 people,” Mr. Cong shared.

Many policies to replicate the model

Da Nang currently has an urbanization rate of up to 87.3%, twice as high as the national average (42% in 2022). That means the agricultural land area is increasingly narrowing. This is a condition for people to make adjustments and adapt to the living environment, following the urban agricultural model, applying biotechnology.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Thu Suong - Owner of Mai Ngan agricultural supplies store, said that farmers in Da Nang are becoming more and more popular and diverse in scale. Typically, before and during the Covid-19 pandemic, people have paid more attention to taking advantage of space to grow trees and fruit to serve their lives.

“People aged 30-40 are increasingly interested in growing agricultural crops. Because they pay attention to health, being close to nature and ensuring health with what they make themselves. Areas with dense and modern populations are often not large in scale but are invested in technology and fertilizers that meet standards. Therefore, material distributors also try to learn and cooperate to produce quality product lines,” Ms. Suong shared.

A representative of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Da Nang City said that in order to have clean vegetables, many households have planted plants in pots, foam boxes, and converted the entire rooftop into a garden. Some households apply hydroponics to grow vegetables on balconies and rooftops. In Da Nang, the development of green agriculture in urban areas is gradually taking shape to satisfy passion, create green space, and create safe products for family meals.

In 2019, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development coordinated with the Da Nang Institute for Socio-Economic Development to issue the Project "Developing agriculture towards urban and sustainable development, developing concentrated agricultural production areas, high-tech agriculture in the city by 2025, with a vision to 2030" (Decision No. 197/QD-SNN dated May 24, 2019). In 2024, the Da Nang City Agricultural and Forestry Extension Center continued to build the model "Developing urban agriculture applying high technology in narrow spaces in the inner city"... Helping farming households produce clean vegetables for their families, and at the same time building a model for other households in need to visit, learn, and replicate.

High-tech tomato production

According to the leader of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Da Nang City, the locality has been implementing many policies to support agriculture, building a number of projects, agricultural promotion, and agricultural models such as Program No. 42-Ctr/TU of the Standing Committee of the City Party Committee on "Promoting restructuring of the agricultural sector towards applying high technology, concentrated production, large scale associated with new rural construction".

For inner-city areas, focus on developing small-scale models in which small areas of land are exploited and used economically and effectively to produce safe vegetables, fruits, mushrooms and ornamental plants associated with environmental protection and improvement, creating green urban ecological areas, associated with tourism and education in the city center.

Particularly in suburban areas, the city organizes production development in the direction of focusing on promoting the production of high-quality rice varieties, organic rice, leafy vegetables, mushrooms, and flowers; renovating mixed gardens, converting rice-growing areas without proactive irrigation; promoting the development of concentrated livestock farming, aquaculture, mushrooms, vegetable and flower growing; building concentrated livestock farming areas, developing high-tech agriculture associated with eco-tourism, growing medicinal plants and fruit trees.

Currently, products serving urban agriculture of Binh Dien - MeKong Joint Stock Company are sold at agricultural supply stores in Da Nang city.

Source: https://kinhtedothi.vn/da-nang-chu-trong-xay-dung-nong-nghiep-do-thi.html