At the peak of the heat, Nghe An farmers actively water to save melons

In recent days, Nghe An has been experiencing intense heat, with the highest temperature ranging from 40 to 42 degrees Celsius. Many newly planted melon areas in Thuong Tan Loc commune have wilted, burned, and died. At this time, watering melons is an urgent task for farmers. Photo: Huy Thu

Currently, local melon growers are mobilizing all available means and tools to bring to the fields to water the melons. Photo: Huy Thu

Depending on the location of the field, households use appropriate water sources to irrigate the melons. For melon fields near rice fields, farmers dredge canals to bring water, for fields near ponds or rivers, they use pumps. Many households with melon fields far from water sources drill wells right in the middle of the field... Photo: Huy Thu

Mr. Tran Van Minh in Hop Tan hamlet said that his family planted more than 2.5 sao of watermelon this season. Last year, although they had drilled a well in the middle of the field, they did not have a pump, so every time they watered they had to borrow one, which was quite inconvenient. Now that they have just bought a new machine, they quickly brought it to the field and urgently pumped water to water the watermelons. Photo: Huy Thu

Mr. Nguyen Van Sy in Thanh Tan hamlet said: The sun is strong, the fields are dry and hot, the melon plants are still young, so it is not advisable to water early or rush. Therefore, his family brought the pump to the field early, but still waited until the sun was almost down and the weather was cool before starting to water the melons. According to Mr. Sy, because the fields are dry, each watering session lasts 4-5 hours, consuming about 20 liters of oil/6 sao of melons. Photo: Huy Thu

Many households have melon fields far from water sources, have not yet drilled wells... and have to transport cans of clean water from home to the fields to water the melons. Photo: Huy Thu

Ms. Nguyen Thi Hien in Thanh Tan hamlet this season grows 4 sao of melons divided into 2 batches. The next batch of 3 sao is only planted for more than 10 days. Every day, she and her husband have to use an ox cart to carry water from their house 3km away to the field to water the melons. Each watering session requires 2 carts. Photo: Huy Thu

This spring-summer melon crop, Thuong Tan Loc commune has more than 130 hectares, planted by households in many batches: Early melons have covered the beds, flowered, and set fruit. Late melons planted 1 week, 10 days, 15 days ago, encountered dry, hot weather, the melons grew poorly, and barely survived. Photo: Huy Thu

Along with watering, people are urgently filling the roots to keep the plants moist. It is known that in hot weather, dry fields, white soil, and small melon plants, the provision of irrigation water determines the survival, growth, productivity, and yield of melons. Photo: Huy Thu

During prolonged hot weather, using a pesticide sprayer to spray water can save water, but the "fire-fighting" effect is not high. According to farmers, if not spraying enough water "it will only heat the soil" and will not save the melons but will cause the plants to gradually die. Photo: Huy Thu

Initially, the heat has caused damage to the melon growers here. Ms. Nguyen Thi Loan in Thanh Tan hamlet said that this melon crop, her family planted 18 sao, mainly Thai melon, divided into 3 batches. The last 2 batches, about 15 sao, were planted 10 days ago, the melons grew beautifully and evenly, but due to the heat, almost all of them have died now, and each root has to be dug up and replanted. Ms. Loan said that to plant 6 sao of melons, she needed 5 packs of seeds (160,000 VND/packet), so replanting would cost double the cost. Photo: Huy Thu

Farmers in Thuong Tan Loc commune make efforts to water their melons. Video: Huy Thu

Source: https://baonghean.vn/nang-nong-cao-diem-nong-dan-nghe-an-tich-cuc-tuoi-nuoc-cuu-dua-post288545.html