From the third day of the Lunar New Year, while the spring atmosphere was still pervasive everywhere, many farmers in localities throughout the province took advantage of the favorable weather to go to the fields to care for their winter-spring crops with enthusiasm, promising a successful new year.
Farmers go to the fields to care for and thin out the rice plants, helping them grow healthily right from the start of the season - Photo: LA
Despite the festive atmosphere of Tet (Lunar New Year) still lingering, Mr. Nguyen Van Duoc from Ngo Xa Dong Cooperative, Trieu Trung commune, Trieu Phong district, is still busy thinning out his more than 15 sao (approximately 15,000 square meters) of rice seedlings in his field. Mr. Duoc said that his family's rice fields were sown nearly a month ago.
At this time of year, the rice plants are tillering and are very susceptible to pests and diseases. Therefore, after three days of celebrating the Lunar New Year, he immediately went to the fields to check on the rice plants' development and to replant any sparsely sown areas.
According to Mr. Duoc, this year's winter-spring crop season has been relatively favorable, with sufficient water resources, allowing for timely land preparation and sowing according to the seasonal schedule. Although there were some periods of cold rain after sowing, they were short-lived and did not significantly affect the crop. Currently, the rice fields are in the tillering stage, and no pests or diseases have appeared; the rice plants are developing well. "Hopefully, this year will bring favorable weather so that the harvest will be bountiful," Mr. Duoc happily stated.
According to Nguyen Van Dong, director of Ngo Xa Dong Cooperative, taking advantage of the gradually warming weather, many farmers have been going to the fields to check on their rice crops, weed, thin out sparse areas, or fertilize the rice plants since the third day of the Lunar New Year to "mark the auspicious day."
According to Mr. Dong, the cooperative has a total rice cultivation area of over 183 hectares, of which 65 hectares are planted with Ha Phat 3 rice variety under a consumption linkage with Dong Tam Agricultural Company Limited. This rice variety has a short growing season, high tillering capacity, is less affected by low temperatures, has good resistance to common pests and diseases, and yields high productivity and quality.
"Although it was only planted about a month ago, this new rice variety is already thriving and far superior to conventional varieties. This is a source of joy for us farmers on this first day of the new year," Mr. Dong said.
According to Vu Thanh Cong, Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Trieu Phong District, this year's winter-spring crop saw over 9,700 hectares of various crops planted throughout the district. Of this, over 5,950 hectares were rice, with the remainder being corn, cassava, sweet potatoes, peanuts, and various vegetables. Currently, the rice plants are in the tillering stage, and farmers are focusing on weeding and fertilizing. Compared to previous years, this year's winter-spring planting has been quite favorable and on schedule. In the early days of the new year, the dry weather has encouraged many farmers to go to the fields in high spirits. Besides rice, other winter-spring crops are developing well, with no signs of pests or diseases.
Mr. Cong stated that not only rice but also all other crops such as cassava, corn, and vegetables have basically completed planting according to plan. Specifically, for rice, high-quality rice accounts for over 80% of the planted area, with key varieties such as HN6, Khang Dan, HC96, Ha Phat 3, and HG1...
In addition, there are 60 hectares of naturally cultivated rice, 82 hectares of VietGAP-certified rice, and over 100 hectares of rice produced under product consumption linkages. “To date, most of the first and second crop rice fields have completed thinning and the first round of fertilization. Trieu Phong district is focusing on guiding farmers after the Tet holiday to continue monitoring the growth of their crops in order to take appropriate measures if unfavorable weather conditions occur. Furthermore, they are closely monitoring pests and diseases such as blast and rats, which are prone to damaging rice plants, to take timely preventive measures,” Mr. Cong added.
In Hai Lang district, farmers are currently focusing on weeding and fertilizing their rice crops. Recognizing this as a crucial production season, Hai Lang district has intensified its efforts to guide and educate farmers on experimenting with crop varieties and adhering to the seasonal planting schedule.
According to Mr. Van Ngoc Tien Duc, Head of the Agriculture and Rural Development Department of Hai Lang District, the district has so far planted nearly 6,900 hectares of rice and about 2,400 hectares of various crops. Before and during the Lunar New Year, the District People's Committee directed specialized units and localities to actively monitor the fields to guide farmers on technical measures to cope with weather conditions and track the development of pests and diseases in the fields. Currently, the weather is favorable, so the crops are developing well, and no pests or diseases have appeared. Farmers are focusing on caring for, thinning, and preparing the land for planting the remaining crops.
According to statistics from the Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection, the province has so far planted approximately 25,600 hectares of winter-spring rice, reaching 100.4% of the plan; over 3,000 hectares of corn, reaching 75% of the plan; over 3,000 hectares of peanuts, reaching over 100% of the plan; over 9,200 hectares of cassava, reaching 90% of the plan; and over 4,000 hectares of various vegetables. Recently, the weather has been relatively favorable, creating conditions for the good development of crops. Rice is currently in the tillering stage, with early varieties tillering vigorously. Farmers are currently working in the fields, tending to their crops, thinning out seedlings, and fertilizing to promote tillering. According to Bui Phuoc Trang, Head of the Plant Protection and Quarantine Sub-Department, field investigations have only revealed a few pests and diseases affecting rice plants, such as rats, golden apple snails, and aphids. On dryland crops, pests include fall armyworms and cutworms on corn; root rot on peanuts; and cassava mosaic virus... but all are at a mild level and have not yet affected crop development.
However, Mr. Trang also noted that, to ensure a successful winter-spring crop, localities and cooperatives need to continue closely monitoring weather developments and pests and diseases during the rice tillering stage, such as blast, small leaf roller, black stripe dwarf, various types of planthoppers, etc., in order to implement effective care, cold protection, and pest control measures.
Organize rodent control and golden apple snail eradication. Taking advantage of the dry weather, guide farmers in caring for and thinning rice plants that are tillering to ensure proper density, apply early and balanced NPK fertilizer according to the correct procedures, and regulate water properly to help the rice plants develop healthily from the beginning of the season.
Le An
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