Addressing the issue of slow growth in spring rice crops.

Since the spring rice planting, the weather has consistently been characterized by low temperatures, overcast skies, and little sunshine, causing the spring rice crops to develop slowly.

Low temperatures, lack of sunshine.

Despite the drizzling rain and gloomy weather, almost every rice field in Ninh Thang commune, Hoa Lu district, has farmers diligently tending to their crops. While quickly thinning and replanting rice seedlings and picking out golden apple snails from her two plots of rice, Mrs. Vu Thi Hien said: "I sowed this area on the 4th day of Tet (Lunar New Year), and it's been over a month now, but the plants are still sparse like this. Not to mention that a few days ago, taking advantage of the cooperative's water pumping, my family applied fertilizer, and the rice plants have only just started to turn green like this. The other day, the cold weather and frost had turned the rice leaves bright red. These days, taking advantage of the warmer weather, despite the heavy drizzle, I still have to go to the field to thin and replant the missing plants caused by rats and golden apple snails..."

Similarly, in the Cung field, Ninh My commune, many farmers are also worried about the slow growth of their rice plants, so they spend their mornings and evenings in the fields regulating water, caring for the plants, and fertilizing them... hoping that the rice plants will soon grow healthily.

Ms. Truong Thi Hoa (Phong Hoa hamlet) said: "My family planted more than one acre of rice late, and it coincided with a period of gloomy weather, so the rice plants grew slowly. Today, I had to apply nitrogen fertilizer as a starter. Hopefully, when the weather warms up, my family's rice fields will regain their growth momentum, develop well, and yield high productivity." More than 39,000 hectares of spring rice in Ninh Binh were sown and planted by farmers from February 4th to 25th. However, since planting, the weather has continuously maintained low temperatures.

According to the National Center for Meteorological and Hydrological Forecasting, statistics from the past 10-15 years show that in the North, there have been few widespread periods of intense cold lasting from February into March, with temperatures below 15 degrees Celsius in the lowlands and below 13 degrees Celsius in mountainous areas, as recently experienced. Although the weather has warmed up in recent days, it remains overcast and lacks sunshine. These factors significantly impact the growth and development of rice plants in particular, as well as many other vegetable crops.

Intensify care and fertilization.

According to the Provincial Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection, the entire area of spring rice in the province was sown and planted before February 25th, ensuring the best planting schedule. However, after sowing and planting, due to unfavorable weather conditions, low temperatures, and few sunny days, the rice crops are growing and developing slower than in previous years. Currently, the early spring crop is in the late tillering to heading stage, while the late spring crop is in the tillering to vigorous tillering stage.

Regarding recommendations on techniques and farming practices to address slow rice growth, engineer Nguyen Thi Nhung, Head of the Plant Protection Department, Provincial Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection, stated: First, farmers must maintain an appropriate water level for rice development, especially in broadcast-sown rice areas; for young rice plants, the water level should be around 2-3 cm. Second, timely topdressing is crucial. In many areas, farmers still practice bare-cropping (without base fertilization), leading to nutrient deficiencies in young rice plants, making them susceptible to gradual death in unfavorable weather conditions, especially direct-seeded rice. Therefore, for late spring rice crops, farmers who haven't yet applied the first topdressing should do so promptly. However, it's important to ensure a balanced ratio and dosage of different fertilizers; excessive nitrogen fertilization should be avoided during this period due to overcast weather, as high nitrogen levels can lead to pest and disease infestations. For early spring tea, this is the ideal time for farmers to apply the second topdressing to encourage panicle development, using up any remaining potassium fertilizer.

Furthermore, the recent cloudy and foggy weather, along with drizzle in the mornings and evenings, creates favorable conditions for rice blast disease to develop. Therefore, farmers must regularly inspect their fields to detect the disease early. Particular attention should be paid to healthy fields planted with rice varieties susceptible to blast disease, such as TBR 225, Thai Xuyen 111, Bac Thom, Thieu Uu 8, and Dai Thom.

In addition, regularly catching rats and golden apple snails, as well as weeding combined with stirring the mud, and detecting and removing weeds from rice plants are essential. The best control measures at this time are using traps and manual catching methods, limiting the use of chemical pesticides, and avoiding harm to the development of the young rice plants. For rats, a nationwide campaign should be organized to go to the fields to dig and catch rats to protect crops and the environment. For golden apple snails, manual catching and using them as feed is very good for raising chickens, ducks, pigs, etc.

During this stage, rice growth slows down, but this may not necessarily affect later yields and production. However, it will certainly prolong the rice plant's growth period, impacting the planting schedule. Therefore, localities need to proactively plan and arrange planting schedules, seed varieties, and appropriate technical solutions for the next cropping season.

Text and photos: Nguyen Luu

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