Unstable weather
Durian is a specialty tree, very picky and sensitive to the weather. Especially during the “flowering” preparation stage, even a small change in the weather will affect the flowering and fruiting process. The erratic weather in the first months of 2025 in many localities in the province is the main reason why many durian gardens are facing the risk of crop failure.
Specifically, in January and February 2025, cold air from the North poured in with strong winds and frost, causing the durian trees to shed a lot of leaves, making them unable to "flower". Therefore, many orchards had to "flower" for the second and third time. However, in the following months, prolonged hot weather (with a large difference in day and night temperatures) caused the trees to flower and bear fruit unevenly, and even cause young fruit to fall off.
At the end of 2024, the 200-tree durian garden of Mr. Le Hung's family (village 2, Nghia Hoa commune, Chu Pah district) had lush foliage, which was a good condition to prepare for "flowering". However, due to the impact of the frost in early 2025, the garden lost all its leaves, so it could not "flower" for the first time. Then, the climate changed rapidly, suddenly turning cold, combined with strong winds due to the influence of cold air, causing damage to the durian garden.
That is why, up to now, his family's durian garden still has sporadic flowers. The situation of the garden not blooming at the same time makes care difficult (each stage of fruit growing will be fertilized and sprayed with different chemicals).
“Up to now, I have spent hundreds of millions of dong on fertilizers and medicines for the garden, but this year’s weather is so harsh that it is very difficult to “make flowers”. At this time last year, durian was in the stage of preparation for harvest, and some gardens had already harvested, but this year they are just starting to flower and bear fruit.
According to experience, this time, if the fruit does not fall, when it is time to harvest, it will be a rainy season, the durian flesh will easily become hard, cannot be sold at a high price, but can only be sold to make ice cream at a cheap price, reducing 60-70% of the value" - Mr. Hung said sadly.
Although not affected by frost, the durian garden of more than 200 trees of Mr. Nguyen Thien Nhat (Hoa Loc village, Ia Phang commune, Chu Puh district) was also affected by the prolonged heat. During the day, the temperature sometimes reached 37-39 degrees Celsius, and at night it dropped sharply, causing the durian garden to suffer from "heat shock" and cause a lot of fruit to fall.
Mr. Nhat shared: “Durian is very sensitive to the weather, especially the temperature difference between day and night, which greatly affects the flowering and fruiting process. Therefore, along with using some specialized foliar fertilizers to help increase the plant's resistance, I also focus on maintaining humidity in the garden.
To limit the “heat shock” for the garden, I watered early in the morning and increased drip irrigation. However, the fruit drop still occurred. If the weather continues to be complicated as it is now, the risk of crop failure is very high.”
Mr. Nguyen The Minh, Director of Nghia Hoa Agricultural Service Cooperative (Chu Pah District), said: This season, most durian gardens in the area have been affected by the weather. His family's durian garden of more than 100 trees has now had to "flower" for the third time, but the amount of fruit left is very little.
“The harsh weather has made the “flowering” of durian orchards very unfavorable. If last year we only did the first batch, this year we have to do the third batch, but the prospects are not very promising. Not to mention, at this time the pistils have just begun to bloom, so it will be August or September before the harvest season, which is a period of heavy rain, so the durian flesh will inevitably be hard. The prospect of a crop failure is inevitable,” Mr. Minh confided.
Proactive response
According to durian growers, there are many reasons for fruit drop such as: physiological fruit drop, nutritional imbalance... In particular, durian is a difficult crop, sensitive to the weather. During flowering and fruit setting, if there is strong sunlight or sudden rain, it will have a very negative effect on the fruit setting process.
Mr. Vo Van Tan - Director of the Agricultural Service Center of Chu Pah District - informed: The whole district has more than 600 hectares of durian, mainly intercropped in coffee gardens. Of which, about 400 hectares are in the business stage. Recently, unusual weather developments have led to the phenomenon of durian flowers and young fruits falling off, with the risk of reduced productivity.
“Durian is a sensitive crop, difficult to care for. Especially during the flowering and fruiting stages, if extreme weather events occur, it will greatly affect the yield and quality of the fruit. Flower and fruit shedding occurs every year, especially at the beginning of the rainy season.
The center has also provided technical training to durian growers. However, in reality, it is difficult to avoid the situation of durian flowers and young fruits falling off due to adverse weather effects," said the Director of the Chu Pah District Agricultural Service Center.
The whole province currently has about 6,387 hectares of durian, mainly concentrated in the districts of Chu Prong, Chu Se, Chu Pah, Chu Puh, Duc Co, Dak Doa... In 2024, the average durian yield will reach 159 quintals/ha.
According to Mr. Nguyen Minh Tu - Vice Chairman of Chu Puh District People's Committee: The total durian area in the district is about 772 hectares, of which about 370 hectares are in business.
Recently, people have proactively invested in water-saving irrigation systems for durian trees to prevent them from suffering from heat shock. Recently, some durian gardens have lost flowers and young fruits, mainly due to physiological shedding.
The District People's Committee has directed specialized agencies to organize 2 training courses on flower treatment, young fruit care, and disease control on durian trees so that people can grasp the care process to prevent flowers and young fruit from falling, causing crop failure and affecting people's income.
Speaking to reporters, Mr. Hoang Thi Tho - Deputy Head of the Provincial Department of Cultivation and Plant Protection (Department of Agriculture and Environment) said: Recently, the impact of climate change has significantly affected the area of durian trees in the province. In particular, extreme weather phenomena such as prolonged heat, strong winds, and local tornadoes have caused flowers and young durian fruits to fall in some districts: Chu Pah, Ia Grai, Chu Puh, Chu Prong, Duc Co, etc.
“To limit fruit drop on durian trees during the time the trees are growing young fruit, people need to increase phosphate and potassium fertilizers and fertilizers with added silicon content and micro-nutrients such as magnesium, sodium, etc. At the same time, focus on maintaining moisture in the garden, increase the use of drip irrigation technology, save water and focus on watering in the early morning to avoid heat shock to the trees.
People also need to string ropes and plant stakes around the branches to the trunk and fix each branch on the ground to keep the tree more stable, reduce vibration when strong winds cause broken branches and fruit to fall" - Mr. Tho recommended.
In the long term, the Department of Agriculture and Environment has also issued a document requesting localities to focus on directing the implementation of solutions to guide people in developing durian trees in a sustainable direction.
In particular, it is recommended that people do not spontaneously expand durian acreage in areas with unsuitable land and climate. Do not cut down other crops to switch to pure durian cultivation and do not convert effective coffee and pepper gardens to pure durian cultivation.
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Source: https://baogialai.com.vn/nguy-co-mat-mua-sau-rieng-post323013.html
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