The royal fruit harvest is good, the price is good, households in Quang Nam escape poverty

In the garden of Mrs. Tran Thi Huong (Tien Chau commune), longan is in its peak season, waiting for traders to come and buy.

Ms. Huong said: “This year, the weather is favorable, from June, the trees started to flower, and now the harvest is in full swing. This is the second batch I have sold, the first batch was sold at 30,000 VND/kg, earning 15 million VND. If I sell the entire garden of 50 trees, I will earn about 30 million VND.”

People in the mountainous areas of Quang Nam are harvesting ripe longan. Photo by Hoang Bin

Like Ms. Huong, hundreds of households in Tien Chau, Tien Canh, Tien My communes, Tien Phuoc district... are eagerly harvesting the main crop of longan. These days, throughout the Tien Phuoc rural market, the scene of longan buyers and sellers is very bustling.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Thuyen, a trader, said: "Every day, my facility buys 1-2 tons of longan to ship to customers in Tam Ky and Da Nang , and leaves some at home to sell. This is a specialty that only appears once a year, so customers really like it. This year's selling price is 10,000 - 15,000 VND/kg higher than previous years.

In the mountainous district of Nam Giang, for many years now, longan trees have been chosen by people to intercrop with many other fruit trees in their gardens, in order to diversify intensive farming models.

Ripe cantaloupe has a golden yellow skin, sweet, sour and refreshing flesh, it is a clean and gentle fruit. Photo by Hoang Bin. — Ripe longan has a golden skin, sweet, sour and refreshing flesh, it is a clean and gentle fruit. Photo: Hoang Bin.

Mrs. Alung Ich (Ta Po commune), pointing to a garden of about 300 20-year-old longan trees with ripe fruit, excitedly said: "It's only the beginning of the season, but the longan garden has brought her an income of more than 30 million VND. Thanks to the longan tree growing model combined with the livestock farming model, my family has risen out of poverty."

According to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Tien Phuoc district, longan is an easy-to-grow plant, requires little care and investment, and after a short time of planting, it produces a large yield of fruit, bringing high economic value.

Longan fruit, also known as Nam Tran (a precious fruit in the South), is currently an effective poverty-reducing crop in the mountainous areas of Quang Nam. Photo by Hoang Bin — Lon bon fruit, also known as "nam tran" (precious fruit in the South), is currently an effective poverty-reducing crop in the mountainous areas of Quang Nam. Photo: Hoang Bin

With nearly 120 hectares of longan trees bearing fruit, every year, if the longan season is good, the whole district can produce about 600 tons, bringing a stable source of income, helping many mountainous households to sustainably reduce poverty. In the coming time, the district will expand the longan tree planting model, combined with the development of eco-tourism.

Lon bon also has a very beautiful name: "Nam Tran" (precious pearl of the South), or another name is Phung Quan Moc (tree that meets the king), because it is associated with Lord Nguyen Phuc Anh when he was in hiding, he found a wild fruit (lon bon) that saved his life, so when he ascended the throne, he gave it the name "nam tran". The lon bon tree has also been carved into a symbol on the Nhan Dinh in the Imperial Citadel, Hue.

Source