Early lychee - a precious gift from Thanh Ha countryside

Once the “navel” of Thanh Ha district ( Hai Duong ) with low-lying land, sour fields, streams, and rotten seasons, but now the communes of Ha Dong have become “sweet” land. Lychee has long been a specialty of the local people for many generations.

It is called early lychee because this variety is harvested the earliest among lychee teas, and its economic value is very high. In Ha Dong area, many people got rich from early lychee trees.

Immense lychee fields, enriching the land of Ha Dong

Few people know that Ha Dong area is surrounded by rivers. Before Hop Thanh bridge was built, this area was like a remote island, difficult to travel. However, since people discovered lychee trees early and planted them widely in the area since 1994, the economic efficiency of this tree has contributed significantly to "changing the face" of the poor countryside.

Thanh Ha district currently has 1,700 hectares of early lychee.

According to the elders, a long time ago, a local saw a wild lychee tree and brought it home to replant, and it bore abundant fruit. After many years, the lychee tree was tall and had a wide canopy, making it difficult to harvest and care for, so the family of this local had to uproot and sell the tree. However, they managed to multiply it into many second and third generation seedlings... In the Ha Dong area, there are many lychee trees that are more than a century old and still bear sweet fruit. Compared to the original lychee tree in Thuy Lam village, these early lychee trees only appear after about 40 years. Gourmets often choose fruit from old trees to buy.

In the vast lychee fields, although the fruit is not as abundant as the main crop lychee, this lychee tea has never failed. Thanh Ha district currently has 1,700 hectares of early lychee. There are many types of early lychee here: white egg, thorny egg, pink u, and hybrid. However, the most delicious and widely grown early lychee tea is pink u. This lychee variety is grown in Thanh Quang, Thanh Cuong, and Thanh Hong communes.

Early lychee is usually sold at about 45,000 VND/kg, about 25,000 VND/kg higher than main-season lychee.

Mr. Nguyen Van Khoa, Chairman of Thanh Quang Commune People's Committee said: "Early lychee is a precious gift that nature has bestowed on Ha Dong land. This lychee variety has become a specialty, nowhere else can it be grown with such delicious flavor as here."

Many Thanh Ha people who live far from home bring early lychee varieties to plant in their hometowns, but nowhere is the quality as outstanding as in Ha Dong. In this area, lychee trees are always green and produce large, juicy fruits. If early lychee varieties are planted in other communes in the district such as Ha Tay and Ha Bac, the quality will not be as good and the astringency will be obvious. Early lychee fruits are larger than main-season lychees, with large seeds but thick, white, fragrant, and sweet flesh.

There is only one lychee season each year. Tourists from near and far often return to the lychee homeland at the right time to enjoy the delicious, sweet lychees. Early lychees are usually sold for about 45,000 VND/kg, about 25,000 VND/kg higher than the main season lychees.

Not only fragrant and delicious, Thanh Ha lychee also contains a lot of fiber, strengthens immunity, improves skin. In addition to natural sugar and fiber, lychee also contains micronutrients such as potassium, vitamin C, vitamin E, iron, vitamin B6... When ripe, lychee has a thin skin, rough spines, and a tough silk layer. With that characteristic flavor, Thanh Ha lychee is famous far and wide, known by many people.

In addition to propagating this lychee throughout the region, people in Ha Dong are always interested in improving the quality of lychee. 100% of the early lychee growing area has been produced according to VietGAP process. Therefore, the quality of lychee is always highly appreciated and prestigious in the market.

Thanh Ha early litchi is exported to many demanding markets.

With the attention of all levels, sectors and enterprises, Thanh Ha early lychee is exported to many demanding markets such as Japan, Australia, the US, Canada, Singapore, South Korea, France... and a large quantity to China. On average, each year Thanh Ha district harvests about 40,000 tons of lychee, of which about 25,000 tons are early lychee, bringing in a value of about 800 billion VND/year. Many enterprises have actively brought Thanh Ha lychee to demanding markets such as: Ameii Vietnam Joint Stock Company; Red Dragon Production, Trade and Service Co., Ltd.; Nhan Hoa Food Processing Co., Ltd.... In addition, the cooperative system in Thanh Ha district has also promoted the purchase and consumption of lychee. Mr. Nguyen Van Hien, Director of Hop Duc HD Agricultural Service Cooperative, said that for many years, early lychee has been brought into supermarket systems in Hai Duong, Hai Phong and Hanoi through cooperatives.

The good news in this year's lychee season is that although the output is low, the price has been stable since the beginning of the season, with an average price of 38,000 VND/kg.

Thanh Ha lychee has a traceability stamp.

For many years, Thanh Ha District People's Committee has actively coordinated with departments and branches to promote lychee consumption, thereby enhancing the value of the specialty and bringing lychee to newer markets. Along with that, the explosion of digital technology helps lychee reach further through e-commerce platforms. Customers everywhere can learn more and contact garden owners directly to buy lychee.

Ms. Hoang Thi Thuy Ha, Permanent Vice Chairwoman of Thanh Ha District People's Committee, said that the lychee export market has been expanded to many countries around the world. In the coming time, the district will continue to proactively apply digital technology and e-commerce in trade promotion activities such as online trading, actively participating in fairs, and strengthening supply-demand connection activities to promote domestic lychee consumption...

Currently, the area of early-season lychee in Thanh Ha is larger than that of the main-season lychee. The People's Committee of the district encourages farmers in Ha Dong to cultivate lychee early, taking advantage of the fertile land and nutrients that nature and rivers have bestowed. Particularly, the areas of Ha Tay, Ha Bac, and Ha Nam grow main-season lychee to maintain the area and maintain the brand that the government and people have built for a long time.

Content: MINH NGUYEN

Presentation, photo: TUAN ANH

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