Prices increase with demand
Mr. Pham Thanh Quan - owner of a nursery in O Mon district (Can Tho city) - said that the rainy season is the time when many gardeners choose to plant new fruit trees to save on watering. High demand, attractive seedlings, prices also increase and the most popular is durian.
“Ri 6 durian has the strongest price increase, from VND115,000 to VND175,000 per tree because many people have converted or expanded the cultivation area of this fruit tree. Not only gardeners in the provinces and cities of the West but also customers in Dak Lak have asked to buy it,” said Mr. Quan.
Since mid-August, the nursery of Ms. Truong Thi Kieu (Thot Not District, Can Tho City) has become much busier. The amount of seedlings consumed has increased by 30-40% compared to other times of the year.
Ms. Kieu said that among the varieties of seedlings, durian has increased the most due to high demand from buyers: “In the past few years, durian has been very popular. In addition, the rainy season is when many gardeners choose to plant new trees, so the price is pushed up.”
Currently, the price of durian seedlings at Ms. Kieu's facility has increased from 30,000 - 40,000 VND/tree. Ri 6 seedless durian seedlings cost 120,000 - 160,000 VND/tree, Mon Thong durian costs 130,000 - 200,000 VND/tree, depending on size.
According to Ms. Kieu, durian is in high demand but the facility only imports enough seedlings because the price is high and the capital outlay is quite heavy.
Be cautious before converting
According to the Branch of Cultivation and Plant Protection of Can Tho City, in recent years, durian trees in Can Tho have been developed and invested in with an area increasing from 537 hectares (in 2015) to 4,816 hectares (in 2023), mainly concentrated in Phong Dien (3,285 hectares), Thoi Lai (333 hectares) and O Mon (233 hectares). Currently, over 86% of Ri 6 durian varieties are grown in gardens.
The total number of growing area codes granted by mid-September 2024 is 206 codes, with a total area of 2,740 hectares. Of which, for durian products, there are 61 growing area codes with a total area of 1,371 households.
Regarding the current durian production in the city, Ms. Pham Thi Minh Hieu - Branch Manager of Cultivation and Plant Protection of Can Tho City - recommends that farmers should not develop durian production in unfavorable areas. At the same time, it is necessary to clearly understand the characteristics of the land, choose quality varieties, understand the production process, and design gardens before deciding to switch to durian cultivation and should maintain the area of native crops such as star apple, mango, longan, etc.
This is suitable for local soil conditions, farmers understand the growth characteristics of crops so it is easy to apply technical measures to manage and improve the quality of native plants to serve domestic consumption, rural ecotourism and export when conditions permit.
