Conquering foreign grape varieties
Taking us on a tour of a nearly 1,000m2 vineyard (O Mon district, Can Tho city), which has been invested in a greenhouse to grow in the yard, Mr. Nam introduced the characteristics of grape varieties and shared about his journey to conquer foreign grape varieties in the climate of the West.
In 2022, Mr. Nam began to test planting a few woody grapevines in his garden. When he learned that some gardeners in other provinces and cities had successfully grown many grape varieties, he took the time to visit these gardens to learn and connect with facilities specializing in supplying grape varieties in Ninh Thuan province, ordering various types of seedlings for experimental planting.
After a period of perseverance and experience accumulation, Mr. Nam successfully propagated and continued to import foreign grape varieties to grow in the West.
Currently, Mr. Nam's vineyard grows 8 grape varieties including: peony grapes, black summer grapes, black finger grapes, candy grapes, Bailey, red and black Kyoho grapes, and seedless American grapes.
Sharing about the difficulties and techniques of growing imported grapes, Mr. Nam said that foreign grape varieties such as peony (Korea) and black finger (China) require higher techniques due to the requirement of “hibernation” to form flower buds. Treating the plant to stop growing and forming flower buds is a challenge in the climate conditions in the West.
To limit pathogens, growing grapes in greenhouses is very important, along with fertilization, watering and pest control techniques similar to other fruit trees. The care process for grape varieties is also quite similar, with a growing time of about 6.5 - 7 months before flowering.
Mr. Nam shared more about the advantages of the Western climate: “Thanks to the two seasons of sunshine and rain, grape growing in the West can yield two harvests per year, while abroad there is usually only one season. After each harvest, I proactively prune the branches in April and October, letting the trees rest for about a month before processing them for the next crop.”
Own path, income nearly 50 million/month
In particular, instead of focusing on vineyard tourism and selling fruit like many others, Mr. Nam chose a separate direction in economic development from his vineyard by producing seedlings.
Every month, he supplies about 600 grape seedlings to customers in the southern provinces and cities, bringing in an income of nearly 50 million VND/month.
During the harvest season, Mr. Nam also has extra income from selling grapes to visitors at prices ranging from 100,000 - 250,000 VND/kg.
“Realizing the limitations of vineyard tourism in some other vineyards in the West, I chose my own path of producing seedlings, which can combine tourism during the fruit season and have a stable source of income from selling seedlings,” Nam explained.
To promote and reach many customers, Mr. Nam often livestreams on social networking sites, introducing the vineyard and sharing experiences on grape growing techniques, especially imported grape varieties; thereby helping to bring many economic benefits in developing this vineyard.
