Proactively respond to irrigation water shortages

Recently, many places in the Central Highlands have experienced drought, causing damage to agricultural production. According to hydrometeorologists, in the dry season of 2023 - 2024 in the Central Highlands, drought will occur on a large scale and is likely to be severe. Therefore, localities and owners of irrigation works have taken the initiative to provide water for crops right from the beginning of the season.

According to the Central Highlands Hydrometeorological Station, the Central Highlands is forecast to face severe drought this dry season. In February and April 2024, there is a possibility of showers and thunderstorms, but the rainfall is not much. At the same time, hot weather occurs in many places. The total flow of rivers and streams in the Central Highlands during the entire dry season will be about 10-50% lower than the average of many years, which could cause a shortage of domestic water and irrigation water for the entire Central Highlands region.

On average, each crop, coffee growers have to water for 10-20 hours to ensure enough water supply and drought resistance for coffee plants.

Dak Lak is entering the peak of the dry season, the lack of irrigation water has affected many crop areas of farmers. To cope with the drought, farmers in many localities in Dak Lak province have proactively implemented many response solutions to protect crops and maintain production activities. Mr. Tran Van Hung, Krong Nang district (Dak Lak) grows about 2 hectares of coffee, saying that the demand for irrigation water for crops is quite large, especially in the dry season. If not watered enough, the plants will lose flowers and not set fruit. If during the growth and fruiting stage, there is a lack of water, the plants will lose fruit, reducing productivity.

According to Mr. Hung, this dry season, on average, the plants need to be watered once every two weeks to nearly a month; each time, the family has to water for 10-20 hours to ensure enough water supply and drought resistance for the coffee plants. Because they have to rent a generator and water source, each time they water, the family spends nearly a million VND. "If they do not water in time, the productivity of the coffee plants will be affected. Therefore, to limit the rapid evaporation of water, thereby helping to reduce the number of waterings, while cleaning the garden, the family will keep a layer of grass about 3-4cm to keep the soil moist this season," Mr. Hung shared.

Mr. Le Dung, Ea Ktur commune, Cu Kuin district (Dak Lak) said that his family has about 8,000m2 of land intercropping coffee and pepper. Mr. Dung's family has been attached to coffee trees for nearly 20 years. Mr. Dung said that the most important thing in caring for coffee trees is the timing of watering. If watering is not done in time, the tree will lose its leaves and dry out its branches; and watering too early when the tree has not yet differentiated its flower buds will cause the coffee to bloom unevenly, making it difficult to harvest and affecting productivity. Therefore, the principle of watering coffee trees is to be correct and sufficient.

Mr. Dung said that in recent years, the situation of water shortage in the dry season has occurred frequently. Therefore, people have been ready to respond by using drip irrigation, storing water for irrigation right from the end of the rainy season... However, this year's dry season is very harsh, the possibility of water shortage in the next irrigation periods is very high.

Farmers take advantage of everyone's water to water their crops.

According to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Cu Kuin district, there are 39 lakes, dams and some dry streams, wells... in the area to irrigate 12,072 hectares of coffee. The water source situation basically meets the irrigation needs of crops in the dry season. If the hot weather continues and there is no rain, the risk of water shortage is very high.

However, in the face of erratic climate developments in 2024, the unit has proactively advised the District People's Committee on drought prevention and control plans in the area to ensure effective production and minimize damage caused by drought.

Similarly, the family of Ms. Nguyen Thi Hieu, in Cu M'gar district (Dak Lak) has more than 7 sao of coffee. In recent days, due to unusual weather and prolonged heat, many types of pests have appeared in the garden. Notably, mealybugs are attacking strongly, threatening the productivity of this crop of coffee. This is one of the most worrying pests on coffee trees due to its fast spreading and difficult to control characteristics. When heavily infected with mealybugs, coffee fruit grows slowly; if not eradicated promptly, the fruit bunches will dry out and rot, affecting the productivity of the next crop. In severe cases, prolonged heat can cause the tree to wither and die.

“In recent days, in addition to implementing preventive measures, while watering the coffee plants, I also use water to spray and clean the flower clusters infected with mealybugs to limit the spread throughout the garden. However, if the dry weather continues for a long time without rain, it will be very difficult to completely handle it,” Ms. Hieu worried.

To proactively respond to drought, ensure people's lives and water resources for agriculture, the People's Committee of Dak Lak province has directed all levels, sectors and localities to proactively review, evaluate and balance actual water resources in lakes, dams, rivers, streams and groundwater sources of each region to regulate and exploit them reasonably...

Source link