Pilot model of vegetables cultivation in netted houses in Nhon Trach to obtain high efficacy

To help people make contact with clean vegetables cultivation methods, the District Economic Bureau, in coordination with the District Peasants Association selected the vegetables garden of peasant Vu Van Thuong as a pilot model of vegetables cultivation in netted houses. After one year’s application of this model, Mr. Vu Van Thuong’s vegetables garden has obtained excellent results: on the same land area the vegetables production has doubled while costs of insecticides and fertilizers have decreased to 70%... At present, the District is multiplying this model to all villages of the district to have enough clean vegetable for the inhabitants and industrial zones in Nhon Trach.

As a child, Mr Thuong helped his parents in vegetables cultivation, and as an adult and a married man he started to live on vegetables cultivation. Devoted to this occupation, he has always been concerned about planting clean, hygienic and safe vegetables for consumers. He once went to Cu Chi (Ho Chi Minh city ) to learn about cultivating safe vegetables. Only in extremely necessary cases does he spray insecticides; in these cases he still complies with regulations on isolation before delivery vegetables to the market. He earns about VND50 million from vegetables cultivation on 5,000 m² of land. In addition to many domestic appliances, he has bought water pumps and earth – loosening machines to mechanize vegetable cultivation.

As 47 – year old peasant Vu Van Thuong has been a skilled vegetables grower for many years, his garden located at Thi Cau, Phu Dong was selected to be a pilot vegetables garden in netted houses in Nhon Trach. When the village and the district made him this proposal, he accepted at once because had long dreamed of this advanced vegetables cultivation method. In addition to VND 6 million supported by the district, he spent 16 more VND billion from his “purse” to buy concrete columns and nets (for mosquito – nets) to build netted houses on his 25,000 m² of land. Since the use of “mosquito – nets”, water in vegetables has evaporated less soil humidity has increased and vegetables have growns faster. In this way, Mr Thuong has spent less work and money for watering. According to him, previously, cabbage greens took about one month to be ready for harvest; at present, this length time is reduced to 18 days. On the other hand, several vegetables which are very difficult to cultivate, such as coriander, grow easily in netted houses. Especially, with this method vegetables can be cultivated all year round, even in the rainy season, when vegetables would be easily damaged by rain drops without protecting nets. So, this method ensures all – year – round and more profitable vegetables cultivation.

What satisfies Mr Thuong most is that this cultivation model limits the use of a great quality of fertilizers and insecticides, which were used previously. With this method, little water in the soil is lost, so few fertilizers are lost; Insects and diseases develop with difficulty as a result, the quantity of insecticides used is reduced to 75% compared with the traditional vegetables cultivation method, giving an economy of VND 01 million per month on insecticide costs. Previously, with 5,000 m² of vegetables he earned only VND 50 million/year; at present 2500 m2 of vegetables grown in netted houses and the remaining 2,500 m² of vegetables grown according to the traditional method give him a yearly income of VND 100 million, so his income has income has doubled.

Encouraged by the new cultivation method benefits, is planning to build more netted houses on the remaining 2,500 m². He said, “You must persevere in vegetables cultivation. Whether their sale prices are high or low you must still cultivate them; if some of them are cheep, you can rely on others. A vegetables grower must be conscientious and value others’ health as his own”. For this reason, in his garden there are always vegetables, but not enough for the market. He cultivates many kinds of vegetables: cabbage green, lettuce, coriander, cauliflowers…In addition, on the occasion of the Tet he has cultivated 3,000 dianthus, 3,000 Dalat chrisom themums and 1 ton of turnips for the market. The income from vegetables and flowers during only the Tet amounts to VND 15 million. He is also planning to invest in an automatic watering system in his garden to limit manual work in the future. He says that many vegetables growers in other villages of the districts and even in BaRia – Vung Tau province have come to study his cultivation method, and he has willingly provided them with technical instructions. Encouraged by his successive and efficacious vegetables cultivation method, the village Peasants’ Association has recently appealed to peasants to form an agricultural cooperation for the cultivation of safe vegetables according to his method, and Mr Vu Van Thuong has the honour to be appointed vice – chairman of the cooperative.

Speaking about the netted – house vegetable cultivation, Mr Nguyen Kim Vinh vice – head of the district economic bureau, stated: “after one year’s experimentation, the netted – house vegetables cultivation model in the district has obtained excellent results. Later, we shall multiply this model to all villages of the district to have enough clean vegetables supplied to the district population and industrial zone.