give money to the farmers

Coconut is a fruit tree with a fairly large area in the South Central Region; where Binh Dinh is the largest at almost 9,300 ha, concentrated in Hoai Nhon city and Phu My, Hoai An and Phu Cat districts; followed by Phu Yen and Khanh Hoa, each province has about 2,000 ha. The coconut area in Ninh Thuan is not significant, only about a few dozen hectares, mostly Siamese coconut drinking water.

Especially in Binh Dinh, which has the largest coconut area in the South Central Region, there have been coconut trees on this land since ancient times, most concentrated in Hoai Nhon city, hence there is a saying “Cong Cong”. Waste of excess labor, where is the labor of carrying water to water Tam Quan coconuts”.

Coconuts in Hoai Nhon are immense, everywhere you go you can see the shade of coconuts, especially in Tam Quan, Tam Quan Nam and Tam Quan Bac districts. Most of the coconuts in Hoai Nhon were planted before 1975, wartime bombs destroyed this layer and people planted another layer instead, so the coconut area has been preserved to this day.

Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Thang in Phung Du District 1, Hoai Hao District (Hoai Nhon City) planted 180 coconut trees on surplus garden land around his house before 1975, until now Mr. Thang’s coconuts are 45 to 50 years old. In the past his family planted coconuts without a methodical plan of where he planted them, every tree felled by bombs he planted miles. Seedlings were not selected either, but now, on average, a coconut palm produces about 35 fruits each year.

Coconuts in Hoai Nhon were mostly grown before 1975, mainly coconuts, which we took for rice and then old-picked to use as raw materials for factories that process coconut products, such as: coconut oil, coconut candy, coconut jam, cakes, coconut water… coconut will Harvested 3 times a year. After eating the Lunar New Year, after harvesting the first batch, this is the fruit of the flowering period in October of the previous year’s lunar calendar. Harvest the coconut palms from April to June of the lunar calendar, the peak harvest time, through October of the lunar calendar so that they will bloom and bear fruit the following year.

“Each coconut tree average 35 fruits per year, my 180 coconut trees produce 6,300 fruits per year, when the price is high, each fruit is sold for 10,000 VND, it is a big profit, when it is low, it is 6,000-7,000 VND /Fruit, then the family wins. They also have a steady income to make ends meet,” Herr said.

Farmer Duong Minh Truong (67 years old) in Tan An Hamlet, Hoai Chau Township (Hoai Nhon City), who currently owns 36 coconut trees that we have planted on scarred garden land since 1985, added: “Take in flowering season old people coconut rice for processing oil for VND 11,000-12,000/fruit, now coconut fruits can sell about 1.5kg for VND 7,000/fruit, smaller coconuts are only VND 6,000/fruit. At the time when the coconut price went up, my family also earned an income of VND 6-7 million every time they picked coconuts, when the price was lower, every harvest of 36 coconut trees, my family also earned several million VND.

Not only processed coconut, but also coconut water ensures higher efficiency. “In Khanh Hoa there is only 3 months of rainy season a year, the rest is when the sun is hot, so coconut water sells very well. Currently in Khanh Hoa, 1 coconut drink bought at the market costs up to VND15,000, each coconut tree is only counted for 20 fruits, the grower has an income of VND300,000. My family only has 10 coconut trees to drink water, but each crop also brings in 3 million VND. While each hectare of coconuts has grown to 200 trees, it must be confirmed that the current coconut tree is a very good income fruit tree,” said Ms. Luong Kim Ngan, deputy chief of the Department of Plantations and Plant Protection of Khanh Hoa Province.

Still treated unfairly

Coconut trees bring economy to farmers, but in addition to the newly planted Siamese coconut acreage to provide fruit for refreshment services, the “elderly” coconut acreage is carefully tended, rice for processing is almost abandoned by farmers without any investment, the fruit after picking becomes heaven and earth and then waits for the next harvest. Coconut palms have been treated unfairly for more than half a century, but money is still being quietly “dumped” out to farmers.

“Before 1975, the war was devastating, and bombs and bullets were continuously destroying coconuts. At that time, it was time to choose a variety for transplanting, since an old coconut that had sprouted from under the root was dug and planted. Now the coconut yield is not high, 1 coconut tree gives 35 fruits per year. is very excited.

But it has never eaten fertilizer, let alone watered it. Farmers can only eat it but never feed it. If coconuts are well cultivated, the yield will be even higher, farmers will have better income,” said Duong Minh Truong, 67 years old, from Tan An Village, Hoai Chau Township (Hoai Nhon City, Binh Dinh).

According to farmer Nguyen Ngoc Thang of Phung Du District 1, Hoai Hao District (Hoai Nhon City), in the awareness of coconut farmers in Hoai Nhon, coconut is a perennial plant that is “large and healthy” so there is no need to invest in care . The coconut is also an easygoing tree, although not tended like other fruit trees, it is still difficult to bear fruit.

“The coconut in Hoai Nhon is getting older, so the yield is decreasing. In order to want to “rejuvenate” the coconut, it needs to be tended and fertilized, but now the price of fertilizer is sky high, while coconut fruit has fallen in price, making it impossible to fertilize coconut palms. If coconut trees are fertilized and watered periodically like coffee trees, the profitability of coconut trees will be many times higher than that of coffee trees,” says farmer Nguyen Ngoc Thang.

Coconut trees in Binh Dinh are treated unfairly by farmers, coconut trees in many provinces of the South Central Region are also “ignored” by local authorities who don’t care, for example in Phu Yen.

According to Mr. Nguyen Le Lanh Da, director of Phu Yen’s plantation and plant protection sub-department, the province currently has nearly 2,000 hectares of coconut trees, mainly scattered planting areas. Coconuts in Phu Yen are only concentrated in Song Cau town with about 800 hectares, most of which are coconut varieties that we process into rice. Coconut gardens in Phu Yen have been established since ancient times, later people cut down old areas without replanting, so the coconut area is decreasing, only a small area is replanted with Siamese coconuts.

“Consumption of coconut products is not as popular as other fruit trees and profitability is not outstanding, so Phu Yen farmers are not very interested in coconut trees. In the direction of developing fruit trees in the region, coconut trees are not on the list of trees that will grow in Phu Yen in the near future,” said Mr. Nguyen Le Lanh Da.

“In the past, there were 2,500 hectares of coconut trees in Khanh Hoa, but due to the urbanization process, many coconut areas have been demolished to make room for projects, so now there are only almost 2,000 hectares. Realizing that the coconut is a tree with high economic efficiency, Khanh Hoa still encourages farmers in crop restructuring to destroy inefficient trees and switch to growing Siamese coconuts for water harvesting.

The coconut is a fruit tree that has a long shelf life, unlike other fruit trees that must be consumed immediately. If the coconut cannot be sold immediately after harvesting, it can be sold the next day, even for a week without fear of damage,” said Ms. Luong Kim Ngan, deputy head of Khanh Hoa Plantation and Plant Protection Department.