Long Xuyen Quadrangle is located in the west of the Mekong Delta, in the territory of 3 provinces and cities: Kien Giang, An Giang and Can Tho. Once a low-lying area, heavily contaminated with alum and high salinity, but now this area has become a field of "storks flying straight" and golden harvests. To cope with the scarcity of water for irrigation during the annual dry season, farmers in the Central Highlands have applied smart irrigation technology, using increasingly popular water-saving irrigation methods. Thereby, saving water, labor and helping crops have enough water to grow and develop well. General Secretary To Lam and his wife will visit Indonesia, the ASEAN Secretariat and Singapore from March 9 to 13. Long Xuyen Quadrangle is located in the west of the Mekong Delta, in the territory of 3 provinces and cities: Kien Giang, An Giang and Can Tho. Once a low-lying area, heavily contaminated with alum and high salinity, but now this area has become a field of "storks flying straight" and golden harvests. Lang Son is a mountainous province in the North of Vietnam, famous not only for its natural beauty but also for its unique and rich cuisine. With its location bordering China, Lang Son cuisine is clearly influenced by the culinary cultures of the two countries. In particular, Lang Son's spring cuisine has a unique feature, rich in the flavor of heaven and earth, blending the freshness of nature and the long-standing cultural identity of the ethnic minorities here. To cope with the scarcity of water for irrigation during the annual dry season, farmers in the Central Highlands have now applied smart irrigation technology, using increasingly popular water-saving irrigation methods. Thereby, it saves water, labor and helps plants have enough water to grow and develop well. "The buffalo is the capital of the industry", but for the highland people in Na Hoi commune, Bac Ha district, Lao Cai province, horses are also the main livestock serving agricultural production and transporting goods... These days, the weather continues to drop, the people in the commune have been and are continuing to implement many measures to prevent and protect the horse herd from the cold. On March 6, the Inspection Team of the Ministry of Education and Training led by Deputy Minister of Education and Training Pham Ngoc Thuong inspected the implementation of Circular No. 29, dated December 30, 2024 of the Ministry of Education and Training regulating extra teaching and learning (Circular No. 29) at the Department of Education and Training of Bac Giang. General news of the Ethnic and Development Newspaper. This afternoon's news on March 6, 2025, has the following notable information: The 2nd Putaleng Festival of Tam Duong district. Ancient Kơ nia forest in the middle of the plain. A storyteller of the Cham village through music. Along with other news in the ethnic minority and mountainous areas. The herring fishing season usually starts from September of the previous year to April of the following year. These days, fishermen in coastal areas in Quang Nam simultaneously go out to sea to catch herring to sell to traders. Within just a few hours of fishing, fishermen can earn from 1 to 3 million VND, having a good additional source of income. In the spacious space of the Gươl house, each loom echoes with the bustling sound of shuttles. Each person has a job, some weaving, some threading beads, creating a vivid picture of labor. Not only is it a job to earn a living, those skillful hands are also contributing to preserving the colors of Co Tu brocade. The People's Committee of Phu Yen province has just issued a Plan to support the development of rural industries in the province in 2025, with the goal of building and implementing projects and models for developing rural industries associated with the OCOP Program, linking along the value chain, in order to create stable jobs, increase income and contribute to building new rural areas in the province. Dak Lak province has more than 217 thousand Catholics. In recent years, Catholics in the province have made many positive and effective contributions to emulation and patriotic movements, joining hands to build a rich and beautiful homeland. "With more than 30 years of social work, from being an official of the Women's Union and the Association of the Elderly, Ms. Chia has always done everything meticulously. She always lives and works according to the law, sets a good example, has high prestige in her family and community, and is trusted by the Party Committee, government and people." That is the proud comment of Ms. Ha Thi Ngo, President of the Association of the Elderly of Tuyen Quang province when talking about Ms. Giang Thi Chia.
We had the opportunity to visit the vast fields of Hon Dat district, Kien Giang province, right when farmers were busy harvesting rice to sell to traders. Visiting the “millionaire farmers”, everyone was happy and excited, because rice prices were at a high level.
Looking at the beautiful scenery on the field of "storks flying straight", it is hard for anyone to imagine that this place used to be a remote lowland, the land was very difficult to cultivate.
Recalling the time of efforts to reclaim and "treat acid sulfate soil" on this land, Mr. Ba Hung, 68 years old, residing in Giang Thanh district, Kien Giang province shared: In the past, people entering this wild area only had to pay 100,000 VND/acre of land to Forestry 422 to be able to reclaim the land. However, few people were interested in this "monkey" place.
“My roots are in Ha Tien City. In the past, when I came here to reclaim 3 plots (equivalent to 60 hectares of rice fields), I witnessed generations of farmers leaving this alum land. Experienced farmers from Vinh Long, Tra Vinh, Dong Thap, and Tien Giang who came here to reclaim land also ran away,” said Uncle Ba Hung.
Hai Gon, 58 years old, living in Tan Chau town, An Giang province, and his family settled in this alum land more than 30 years ago. He and his father sailed from Tan Chau silk village deep into the alum fields to reclaim land. Initially, Hai Gon's family registered to reclaim a plot of land (30 hectares), which was overgrown with grass.
Learning from the experience of their predecessors, Hai Gon’s family came up with a very unique way to “treat alum”. On his land, Hai Gon used a tractor to dig ditches to remove alum, then bought phosphate fertilizer to apply as base fertilizer. Thanks to that, the alum gradually decreased through the ditches and flowed into the canal. Hai Gon said that in the past, farmers from Vinh Long also knew how to reduce alum, but before cultivating, they did not use phosphate fertilizer but applied lime. However, when exposed to sunlight, the lime would evaporate, so “chasing” alum was not effective.
“As a later settler, farming has an advantage. Because the reclaimed land is washed of alum once, twice, and then abandoned. The next person comes to reclaim the land, continues to clear it, and then abandons it again… Just like that, the land is cleared of alum many times, and whoever comes last, accidentally grows rice successfully. The land does not fail the person, growing rice yields 30 bushels/cong. Since then, my family has maintained the rice fields until now,” Hai Gon confided.
The land repays the people
The golden harvest seasons bring a prosperous life to farmers. They also remember the late Prime Minister Vo Van Kiet, the leader who planned the strategy of digging the T5 canal to bring water from the legendary Vinh Te canal to sweeten the alum fields from Lac Quoi, Tri Ton district to neighboring districts of Kien Giang province. This 48km long canal is one of the strategic canals that both brings fresh water to cool the fields and quickly drains floods to the West Sea.
The Long Xuyen Quadrangle has now become one of the key areas for food production in the Mekong Delta with an area of 125,000 hectares that can grow 2-3 rice crops per year, with an estimated yield of 7-8 tons per hectare, and an output of more than 4 million tons of rice per year, accounting for about 25% of the region's output.
Mr. Luong Sau, residing in Tri Ton district, An Giang province, recalls that before 1997, the Long Xuyen Quadrangle was a low-lying area, heavily contaminated with alum and high salinity. With 6 months of dry fields and burnt grass, 6 months of flooded fields, people could only produce one crop a year, so life was very difficult.
“In the past, houses were sparse, only about every 1km there was a camp. There was no water to drink, so we had to wait for the rain. In the dry season, I took my boat to the head of Vinh Te canal to fetch water for use. At night, mosquitoes chirped like flutes, it was so sad. At that time, there were no fertilizer or pesticide stores here, I had to take my boat to Tan Chau market to buy them for rice cultivation. When the flood season came, the water was everywhere, with reed grass and cajuput trees surrounding a large area,” Mr. Luong Sau confided.
In 1999, the T5 canal was completed to “cut” the alum soil area to bring fresh water from the Vinh Te canal, the people were overjoyed. People boldly pumped water into the fields to discharge the alum. Farmers gradually grew two successful rice crops each year. The old farmers who came here in the 90s of the last century knew that the soil had bowed its head in alum, and that they had a successful rice crop, but they regretted it.
Currently, the Long Xuyen Quadrangle has become one of the key areas for food production in the Mekong Delta with an area of 125,000 hectares that can grow 2-3 rice crops per year, with an estimated yield of 7-8 tons per hectare, an output of more than 4 million tons of rice per year, accounting for about 25% of the region's output. During harvest time, the Long Xuyen Quadrangle is covered in the golden color of ripe rice fields.
Source: https://baodantoc.vn/mua-vang-tren-canh-dong-phen-1741231879543.htm
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