From barren rocky fields to million-dollar custard apple orchards.

There was a time when he had to mortgage his land ownership certificate to borrow money from the bank to make a living. Now, Mr. Do Van Thai, from Doan Ket hamlet, Dan Tien commune (Thai Nguyen province), has built a spacious and comfortable home from over 1 hectare of fruit trees. With his determination to overcome difficulties, his eagerness to learn, and his commitment to innovating his production methods, he has transformed barren slopes at the foot of rocky mountains into orchards that generate hundreds of millions of dong in income each year.

Mr. Do Van Thai has implemented a technique of grafting Thai and Taiwanese custard apple varieties onto native custard apple rootstocks, helping to improve yield and fruit quality.

Nestled at the foot of the rocky mountains in Dan Tien commune, Mr. Do Van Thai's family garden is covered in lush greenery. Rows of custard apples, square-shaped persimmons, benevolent-looking persimmons, Dien pomelos, and Vinh oranges are laden with fruit in season, interspersed with rows of thriving wild spinach.

Mr. Thai's family has a tradition of growing fruit trees for decades. Previously, farming relied mainly on experience and was heavily dependent on the weather, resulting in low economic efficiency. Despite owning a lot of land, their lives were still marked by financial hardship.

To make ends meet, besides farming and growing corn, he also took on electronics repair jobs and worked as a construction laborer to earn extra income. The work was hard and unstable, but he never thought about giving up his land and gardens. In 2003, after going to a craft village in Hung Yen province to learn grafting techniques, he returned to his hometown to focus on developing his garden economy.

With limited capital, he persevered, following the principle of "a little at a time fills the nest," working and accumulating resources gradually. As a result, the area of ​​fruit trees expanded steadily, and the number of trees and fruit yield increased year after year. By 2016, his family owned more than 2,200 custard apple trees, 50 square-shaped and benevolent-shaped persimmon trees, along with dozens of Vinh oranges and Dien pomelos.

Although the orchard was thriving and yielding a good harvest, the income was still low because the farming methods relied heavily on experience. Wanting to change this, he visited many fruit-growing regions inside and outside the province to learn techniques for caring for the trees, pruning, pollination, and pest and disease control.

From those trips, he realized that to improve production efficiency, he had to apply advanced techniques and modern farming practices. As a result, his orchards received more systematic investment, and he strictly followed safe production processes according to VietGAP standards.

The soil in the rocky mountainous region is well-suited to the area, and the fruit trees on the hillside bear abundant fruit every year. Most of the trees in the garden have been grafted and reshaped to have low canopies for easier care and harvesting.

Specifically for custard apple trees, he grafts Thai and Taiwanese custard apple varieties onto native rootstocks and deliberately maintains a suitable fruit yield so that the tree can concentrate nutrients. As a result, the custard apples are large, aesthetically pleasing, with some weighing around 2kg, having thin skins, few seeds, and a sweet, fragrant taste, making them popular in the market.

Mr. Thai said: "For the past 7 years, our family's custard apple production has consistently been over 16 tons per year. In 2025 alone, after deducting the costs of fertilizer, pesticides, and labor, my family earned a profit of over 300 million VND from custard apples. In addition, we also have income from pomelos, persimmons, Vinh oranges, and wild spinach."

Leading us on a tour of his lush garden at the foot of the rocky mountain, Mr. Thai happily said: "Thanks to the custard apple trees and other fruit trees, my family has been able to build a spacious house and our lives are more stable than before."

According to Ms. Long Thi Thanh Hue, a specialist in the Economic Department of Dan Tien commune, Mr. Thai not only enriched his own family but also actively guided many households in the area on how to plan orchards, graft branches, care for, and pollinate fruit trees.

With his support, many households have boldly renovated their hillside fields, replacing weeds with fruit trees to increase their income and gradually develop a sustainable economy in this rocky mountainous region.

Source: https://baothainguyen.vn/kinh-te/202605/tu-nuong-da-can-kho-den-vuon-na-bac-trieu-0aa611b/