High income from strawberry growing model combined with ecotourism

Taking us on a tour of the strawberry garden, Ms. Loan said: She started growing strawberries in 2019. Initially, she tested planting 2 sao of Japanese Hana strawberries. After seeing that this strawberry variety was suitable for the climate, soil and yielded quickly, in 2020, she decided to expand the area to more than 1 hectare. Along with researching garden care techniques to improve economic efficiency, she also promoted the image of the organic strawberry garden on Facebook to find customers.

“At first, I thought the products would only be sold to retail customers. However, after posting them on social media, many people found out and came to visit and experience strawberry picking. This helped me sell the products quickly and reduce the picking labor. From then on, I confidently developed this model,” Loan shared.

Ms. Loan uses organic fertilizers and biological products to care for and prevent pests and diseases in her strawberry garden. Accordingly, before planting, she uses manure and organic fertilizers to improve the soil. From planting to harvesting strawberries, she fertilizes with fish protein through a drip irrigation system. Once a month, she uses garlic essential oil to prevent pests and insects that are harmful to the strawberry garden, especially leaf-eating and fruit-eating insects such as thrips and red spiders. In addition, twice a season, she trims the leaves to create ventilation to help the plants avoid fungal diseases. In particular, when the strawberries bear fruit, she makes her own banana juice with biological yeast to fertilize to sweeten the fruit.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim Loan picks strawberries to deliver to customers. Photo: NH

With organic farming, the strawberry garden produces large, sweet, healthy fruits that are popular with customers. In particular, strawberries are harvested from mid-December of the previous year to April of the following year. This is the time when there are many holidays and Tet, so many families and schools organize visits to the strawberry garden to experience, helping her sell the products quickly and sell them at high prices. "With a selling price ranging from 200,000 to 400,000 VND/kg, after deducting expenses, I have an income of nearly 400 million VND/year," Ms. Loan happily said.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Thu (Khun village, Tra Ba ward, Pleiku city) shared: “I have taken my children to visit and experience strawberry picking at many gardens in the province. However, my children really like Ms. Loan’s strawberry garden because the fruit is sweet and crunchy.”

Ms. Phan Thi Xoan - Owner of the independent private kindergarten class Nang Hong (67/5A Nguyen Huu Huan, Pleiku City) said: "When I learned about Ms. Loan's organic strawberry garden, I organized to bring students here to visit and experience. In reality, I saw that the children were very excited to experience picking strawberries in the garden. Myself and my parents are also assured because the products are safe for health."

Many schools send students to Ms. Loan's strawberry garden to experience strawberry picking. Photo: NH

Talking more about her experience in growing strawberries, Ms. Loan said: Strawberry plants grow very well when planted in new soil. When planted in old soil, the plants are susceptible to pests and diseases and have reduced productivity. Meanwhile, the time from planting to harvesting is more than 5 months. Therefore, after harvesting strawberries, she plants peanuts to improve the soil. In addition, after harvesting, she also leaves some old strawberry plants for propagation and buys more tissue-cultured seedlings to propagate in greenhouses, thus reducing investment costs. Every year, she also has a good income from selling strawberry seedlings to customers in the area.

Mr. Tran Van Hung - Vice Chairman of Ia Bang Commune People's Committee - informed: Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim Loan implemented a model of growing strawberries in an organic direction. By applying this care technique, Ms. Loan's family has increased economic value, ensuring safety for consumers. In addition, by opening the garden for tourists to visit and experience strawberry picking right in the garden, her family has solved the problem of product output. At the same time, this model is also suitable for the orientation of developing agricultural tourism that the commune is aiming for.

Source: https://baogialai.com.vn/thu-nhap-cao-tu-mo-hinh-trong-dau-tay-ket-hop-du-lich-sinh-thai-post319697.html