Strange story in Lam Dong, "matchmaking" of three-flower plum with peach tree, the short tree bears a lot of fruit, bringing in big profits

From the plum tree of memories

With the guidance of the Chairman of the Farmers' Association of Da Chais commune, Dan Viet reporter found the plum garden of Mr. Cao Van Than.

Mr. Than is one of the pioneers in growing plums in Da Chais commune, Lac Duong district. Now, plum trees have become a livelihood that helps local people develop their economy and increase their income.

Mr. Than said that his family moved from Hai Huong province to Lam Dong in 1998. At that time, Mr. Than was only 15 years old and went to Lam Dong to study culture.

"I must say that my parents followed me to Lam Dong. After I went to Lam Dong to study culture for a few months, my parents missed me and loved me so they planned to move to Lam Dong to settle down. Until now, the whole family still lives in Dong Mang village, Da Chais commune," Mr. Than recalled.

Like other local families, Mr. Than's family has grown coffee and persimmon trees since coming to Lam Dong to start a business.

However, the efficiency of these two crops is not high, just "taking labor for profit". However, by chance, Mr. Than learned about plum trees and changed the way he did business with plum trees.

Mr. Than talked with Dan Viet reporter next to the plum tree that his family planted in the early days.

Mr. Than is one of the pioneers in growing Tam Hoa plum in Da Chais commune.

Taking reporters on a tour of his plum garden, Mr. Than said: "In 2016, a friend grafted a plum tree for me, the root of which was a peach tree.

After that, the tree bore fruit and tasted delicious, so I propagated it to plant on an area of 2,000m2. Since then, the plum trees, about 5 years old, have been yielding quite a stable harvest, bringing good income to my family every year.

From that accidental plum tree, I have now planted about 2 hectares of plums. Of these, there are about 500 large trees that give stable harvests. I am currently planting more yellow plum varieties for testing. If successful, I will continue to expand."

Mr. Than said that the main difficulty for plum growers at present is that the rootstock of peach trees to graft plums onto is quite scarce. Therefore, the process of finding rootstock of peach trees to graft is difficult, and the expansion of acreage is slow.

To Da Chais's New Livelihood

Mr. Than said that a 4-year-old plum tree will yield an average of 40kg of fruit per year. Meanwhile, plum trees that are 5 to 7 years old will yield up to 100kg of fruit per year.

"We are very happy because plum trees grow well, suitable for the climate and soil in Dong Mang village, Da Chais commune.

Currently, many people are also planting plums locally to develop the economy. My family alone harvested 10 tons of fruit in 2023. After deducting expenses, I made a profit of more than 300 million VND.

However, this year's output has decreased due to last year's heavy fruit production. Since the beginning of the season, my family has been allowing tourists and visitors to visit the garden, pick the fruit themselves and buy plums at prices ranging from 50,000-100,000 VND/kg depending on the time," Mr. Than happily shared.

Just as Mr. Than said, within only 30 minutes of arriving at the plum garden located right on Highway 27C, the reporter recorded 5 tourists coming to the garden to pick plums.

Each visitor will be given a basket and will be able to pick and choose the plums they want. This is also the main form of plum sales for Mr. Than in the 2024 plum season.

Plum trees planted in pots as ornamental plants are also bringing high economic value to Mr. Than every year.

Tourists enjoy picking plums of their own choosing in Mr. Than's family garden.

Not only selling plums, Mr. Than also grafts and receives plum seeds to sell to local people or those in need.

According to Mr. Than's estimate, each year he sells about 4,000 plum seedlings at a price of 35,000 - 50,000 VND per tree.

In particular, Mr. Than also grows plums in pots as ornamental plants. Plum trees only 50-100cm high that Mr. Than planted in pots have dozens of fruits, and many people buy them to plant.

Each potted plum tree is sold by him for 150,000-250,000 VND. On average, each year Mr. Than sells about 100 plum trees to the market.

Currently, Tam Hoa plum has become a new livelihood, bringing high income to people in Da Chais commune, Lac Duong district, (Lam Dong province).

Talking about the plum growing model of Mr. Cao Van Than's family, Mr. Cil Ha Nien - Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Da Chais commune commented: "Mr. Than is a pioneer household growing Tam Hoa plum in the commune.

Up to now, after more than 5 years of implementation, this model has brought high economic efficiency, bringing high income to the family. In addition, when plum season comes, tourists passing by also come to visit and buy plums, thereby creating parallel development between agriculture and ecotourism."

Mr. Nien also said that currently in Da Chais commune, there are 6 households growing Tam Hoa plum on an area of about 3.85 hectares.

According to local statistics, there are currently about 1,546 plum trees with stable harvests. In the coming time, implementing the Economic and Social Development Program for Ethnic Minority Areas, Da Chais Commune will support people to develop 7 hectares of Tam Hoa plum.

Source: https://danviet.vn/chuyen-la-lam-dong-ghep-duyen-man-tam-hoa-voi-cay-dao-cay-thap-te-trai-ra-qua-troi-thu-lai-to-20240528214525764.htm