250 hectares of withered watermelon

Thousands of households in the watermelon “capital” of Quang Nam are standing still because of the consequences of the unusual flood in late March and early April. The winter-spring watermelon crop, which was sown in early February, promises a lot. autumn, in the blink of an eye, it was gone.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Thu Lan (55 years old, Phu Thinh town) planted 8 sao of melons (500 m2), costing 30 million VND for seed, fertilizer, and canvas. After two months of care, the tree yields about 15 tons. If the previous year’s price was 5,000 VND/kg, she could collect nearly 80 million VND. Excluding investment costs, the profit is about 50 million VND.

But the rare unseasonal rain caused her melon fields to flood. With more than 20 years of specializing in watermelon cultivation, she knows that if the water is not drained quickly, the melon will die. Therefore, despite heavy rain from March 30 to April 1, her whole family remained on duty day and night in the field, digging ditches to clear the flow, and using a pump to suck water out of the field to save melons.

But when the sun came up, her eight cucumbers began to die. With each passing day, the green trunks turn to wither. To save money, she harvested two poles of melons planted early, nearly 2 tons, selling for 4,000 VND/kg. The remaining area of ​​young fruit sold was not bought by anyone, so she had to leave it in the field.

“In a few days, I will uproot the field to clear the field and switch to the next rice crop,” she said, saying that this melon crop failed, losing more than 20 million dong of investment capital, not to mention the care.

Located next to Phu Thinh town, more than 100 hectares of cucumbers in Tam Phuoc commune also fall into the same situation. The melon fields are interspersed with the rice fields that are gradually withering, the fruit lying in the sun. Many farmers used leaves and straw to cover the fruit to save melons but failed.

Ms. Truong Thi Quyt (Cam Khe hamlet, Tam Phuoc commune) drowsily beside a field of melons of 3.5 sao, which has been planted for 64 days (70 days can be harvested). “It’s all gone,” she said, saying that watermelons had suffered from prolonged heavy rains, and the fields were waterlogged and could not grow. When the sun is up, the roots and roots will rot, unable to provide nutrients to the plant. As a result, the fruit will wither.

There was no other way to save it, so she had to tear it down to plant a new one. Many households in the commune have also uprooted trees and collected tarpaulins to use for the next crop. “If there is no rain, in five days I will harvest about 6 tons of melons, earning 30 million VND. But I will lose everything,” she lamented.

Phu Ninh district is the largest watermelon growing area in Quang Nam province, with as few as a few sao and many with 15. Phu Ninh Watermelon was granted a trademark registration certificate by the Department of Intellectual Property (Ministry of Science and Technology) “Ky Ly Watermelon” in 2009. On average, the watermelon yield in this district is about approx. 27 tons per hectare.

The head of the Agriculture and Rural Development Department of Phu Ninh district Trinh Ngoc An, said that this melon crop is about 387 hectares locally grown, concentrated in Tam Phuoc, Tam Loc, Tam Thanh communes… “The unusually heavy rain caused 259 hectares of damaged watermelon, the department reported and proposed the province to support farmers to restore production,” he said.

Farmers cried bitterly when 250 hectares of watermelons withered

Unseasonal rainfall in Quang Nam from March 30 to April 2 is 150-250 mm, in some places over 250 mm. The Provincial Steering Committee for Disaster Prevention and Search and Rescue said that floods have damaged more than 19,700 hectares of rice and vegetables, accounting for 33% of the total area of ​​the winter-spring crop in the province.

Dac Thanh