Poverty reduction from plum tree

In early May, people in Cao Loc district (Lang Son province) are busy harvesting early-ripening plums. This year's plum crop, although the weather is unfavorable and the prolonged drought has reduced productivity, many farmers are still happy because the early-ripening plums have good prices, contributing significantly to helping people eliminate hunger and reduce poverty.

Mr. Lang Van Cu, Ban Lanh village, Hoa Cu commune (Cao Loc) shared: My family has more than 300 plum trees that are being harvested. This year, due to the dry weather and little rain during the flowering and fruit setting stages, the yield and quality of the fruit have decreased. In previous years, my family harvested three to four tons of fruit, but this year we only harvested about 1 to 1.5 tons. At the beginning of the season, plums were purchased by traders at prices ranging from 35,000 to 40,000 VND/kg. To expand the market, I have had to increase product promotion on social networking sites, so the plums are also more expensive than other households, with prices ranging from 5,000 to 15,000 VND/kg (depending on the size of the fruit). It is estimated that this year my family will earn about 20 to 30 million VND.

Like Mr. Cu's family, Mr. Luong Van Thuong, Tong Rien village, Hai Yen commune (Cao Loc) happily said: My family's plum garden has 260 trees, mainly trees from 7 to 10 years old. Previously, the family rarely cared for, pruned or fertilized, so the trees bloomed a lot but the fruit set was poor, and the yield was unstable. However, in the past two years, thanks to the implementation of comprehensive intensive farming measures according to the instructions of scientists , the yield and quality of plums have increased, especially the fruits are large, even, beautiful, and have a more delicious flavor, so the purchase price is more than 16,000 VND/kg.

According to Mr. Duong Trung Hieu, Deputy Head of the District Department of Agriculture and Environment: Plum is one of the crops suitable for the climate and soil in the area, helping people increase their income. In recent years, many households have taken advantage of hilly gardens to grow rice plums, each household planting an average of 50 to 100 trees. Plum trees are easy to grow, so people plant them in hilly gardens, streams and one-crop rice fields with a lack of water. After only three years, they bear fruit and the ability to bear fruit lasts for more than 20 years... Some farmers know how to apply science and technology to take care of plum trees, so productivity and quality have increased and are the main source of income, helping households escape poverty, build solid houses, and provide education for their children...

Currently, the whole district has more than 255 hectares of plums, the harvested area is about 205 hectares, mainly early-ripening plums. This is also the district with the largest plum growing area in the province. Plum trees are grown in communes such as Hoa Cu, Hai Yen, Loc Yen... Plum is one of the crops that bring economic efficiency to people in the district. Green plums are very crunchy, sour but not harsh, when ripe they are juicy, have a moderate sweet and sour taste, so they are loved by many people. It is estimated that this year, plum yield will reach about 3.5 tons/ha, output will be about 720 tons, down 97 tons compared to 2024.

Deputy Director of Lang Son Department of Agriculture and Environment, Mr. Hoang Van Chieu said: The whole province currently has more than 700 hectares of rice plum, of which the fruiting area is more than 570 hectares, with an output of about 2,680 tons. Rice plum trees are mainly grown in the districts of Cao Loc, Van Lang, Van Quan, Loc Binh... Thanks to the characteristic of harvesting earlier than other plum varieties, rice plum has brought farmers a significant source of income. Realizing that rice plum is a local specialty fruit tree with high economic value that needs to be preserved for the long term, since 2021, the Department of Science and Technology of the province has included the conservation of this tree variety in the provincial scientific task, with the implementation of the project "Research on conservation and development of rice plum genetic resources in Lang Son". Currently, the project has been accepted, bringing practical results to early-ripening plum growers.

However, currently, the development of plum trees in the province is still fragmented and small-scale. Most of them are done spontaneously by people, so plum trees are not properly cared for such as: fertilizing, pruning, pest control... so the productivity is not high and stable. In the coming time, the province needs to focus on propaganda, mobilization and guidance for people to continue expanding the plum acreage, considering plum trees as one of the commodity trees, and can form a specialized area for clean fruit trees to supply the market in and outside the province...

Article and photos: HUNG TRANG

Source: https://nhandan.vn/xoa-doi-giam-ngheo-tu-cay-man-com-post885133.html