Increase the number of seeds
For this year's Tet crop, Mr. Pham Thanh Quan (O Mon District, Can Tho City) plans to plant mustard greens, cabbage and lettuce to supply the market. These are all popular vegetables during Tet. With the economic recovery and development, Mr. Quan expects that in the near future, purchasing power and prices will be at a good level.
“Demand is forecast to increase, so the amount of vegetables planted this year will be about 10% higher than in 2023. Mustard greens and cabbage will be planted first, followed by lettuce. Mustard greens are often purchased early by traders to supply to melon production facilities,” Mr. Quan said.
According to Mr. Truong Van Tan (Binh Thuy District, Can Tho City), the market currently has many good signals, so this year, in addition to red-fleshed watermelon, this farmer also grows golden melon to serve the Tet market. Mr. Tan plans to plant two crops to have melons to supply to traders from before until the days before Tet, avoiding the situation of goods being congested and prices falling.
“I have now planted 3 hectares (1 hectare = 1,000 m2) of red-fleshed watermelon. Next time, I plan to plant 2 hectares of red-fleshed watermelon and 2 hectares of golden melon. Each crop is expected to be 2 weeks apart,” said Mr. Tan.
Proactively prevent weather risks
With the stormy weather and high tides, Mr. Quan said that taking care of the plants is quite difficult. Heavy rain washes away fertilizer and easily causes diseases. To help the crops grow well, Mr. Quan proactively covers the beds with straw right after sowing and regularly dredges the canals around the planting area to facilitate drainage.
Mr. Tan also proactively arranged pumps in the fields to be able to drain water in time during heavy rains or high tides. Between the rows, Mr. Tan also carefully dug small ditches connecting to drainage ditches to prevent flooding.
“It has been raining quite a lot these past few days, although there has been little drizzle, I still have to focus on taking good care of my plants to reduce the cost of fertilizers and pesticides and ensure that they grow well. If everything goes well, it is expected that in December, melons will be available for the market,” Mr. Tan shared.
In the face of the complicated flood forecast situation, the Can Tho City Agricultural Service Center (Can Tho City Department of Agriculture and Rural Development) recommends that farmers cultivating dry crops such as short-term vegetables need to update information on weather, climate, hydrology and forecasts of pests and diseases that harm crops every week to be able to proactively plan the planting season.
Farmers also need to equip water pumps, strengthen dikes to prevent floods and proactively respond in emergencies. Irrigation ditches, irrigation ditches, and surrounding drainage ditches need to be dredged deeply and cleared to drain water quickly in conditions of heavy rain or storms that last for many days.
