Coconut trees are suitable for sandy coastal soil or saline soil, so they were once widely grown in Hoang Hoa district. However, due to urbanization, pests and many other reasons, the number of coconut trees has seriously decreased in the past two decades. Now the district has many programs to revive the number of this beneficial native plant.
A section of Nam Hai Tien coconut forest in Xuan Phu village, Hoang Phu commune has taken shape.
Nostalgia for native plants
According to information from the People's Committee of Hoang Hoa district, there are peak periods when the district has more than 400,000 coconut trees, equivalent to more than 2,000 hectares, planted mainly along roads, pond banks, canal banks, and household gardens... Hoang Hoa is also known as the "coconut capital of Thanh" because the quantity and role of this native crop have been affirmed for many generations.
Throughout the feudal period, then the years of economic hardship, the coconut tree has played a role in fighting hunger and reducing poverty for many families. Coconuts are harvested for many months of the year, each tree can produce dozens of bunches, sometimes up to hundreds of fruits each year. Old coconuts can be stored whole for use for many months without spoiling, the coconut meat can be eaten raw, or can be stored as food for many generations of residents. A family only needs a dozen coconut trees, which not only provide firewood for cooking all year round, but can also sell the fruits to buy enough food to fight hunger. There are also few plants that have a exploitation cycle of hundreds of years like this large-trunk native coconut species.
Almost all pond banks, roadsides, home gardens, and all vacant land and sandbanks are green with coconut trees. Not only households, but also cooperatives and authorities of many coastal communes in the district have developed their economies from coconut trees with the concept of "cooperative coconuts". In the late 90s of the last century, rows of "cooperative coconuts" were still there, then gradually disappeared due to road expansion and aging. For example, in Hoang Hai commune, both sides of the commune's main road from Trung Thuong village to the sea and another route from An Lac village down to Hon market today are rows of "cooperative coconuts". In Hoang Yen commune, not only along the main road, but also along the large internal roads, the cooperative developed coconut rows, which were later auctioned off to households for exploitation until the year 2000. In Hoang Tien commune, before the road name was given, the main traffic route now coincides with the Gong - Hai Tien road from Hoang Tien intersection to Hai Tien beach tourist area, also known as "Coconut road" because both sides are covered with hundreds of green coconut trees...
Before the Nguyet Vien bridge and the Thanh Hoa City bypass, the old National Highway 1A running through Tao Xuyen Ward and Long Anh Commune (Thanh Hoa City) was the gathering and trading center for Hoang Hoa coconuts to be transported to all regions. In many communes of the district, the coconut trading profession was also formed for those who specialized in purchasing and transporting coconuts.
Not only bringing economic benefits, coconut is also considered a valuable tree. In the past, old coconut trunks were also cut to make houses with a durability of 50 - 70 years and were likened to "plain ironwood". Attached to many generations, coconut trees are also a part of the cultural and spiritual life of the people of Hoang Hoa coastal area. In difficult times, coconut shells were also polished to make bowls, and pieces of shells were polished to make ladles. The image that evokes the childhood of many generations is that the water ladles in families are all made from coconut shells.
Coconut trees hold the land and the village together with their deep, covering roots that prevent landslides. Coconut trees shade large and small roads, and are associated with many people's childhoods, but over the past 20 years, Hoang Hoa coconut trees have seriously declined in number. The causes are determined to be the end of the exploitation cycle, pests, natural disasters, and urbanization... In the 2020s, the entire district had only more than 200,000 trees (equivalent to about 1,000 hectares).
Hope for "revival" of coconut trees
Unlike the small-fruited Siamese coconuts of the South Central provinces or the dwarf coconuts in the South, the native Hoang Hoa coconut tree is large, tall, and sturdy against storms. Hoang Hoa coconuts are quite large, with green skin and sweet, cool water, as if they are drawn from the source of sandy soil and alluvium deposited by the Ma River.
Seeing the potential and at the same time to revive this native crop, since November 2019, the Hoang Hoa District Party Committee has issued Resolution No. 15-NQ/HU on sustainable development of brackish water aquaculture until 2030, including supporting coconut varieties for planting on aquaculture embankments. The resolution is practical, so immediately after its issuance, it was supported by the people. In 2020 and 2021, the district planted over 10,000 new coconut trees each year.
According to the People's Committee of Hoang Hoa district, in the period of 2020-2022, the district supported 923.14 million VND for households to buy seeds to develop coconut trees on the banks of aquaculture ponds. The total number of newly developed coconut trees in 2 years reached 22,066 trees, of which the communes: Hoang Hop 1,482 trees, Hoang Thang 1,845 trees, Hoang Luu 2,400 trees, Hoang Dao 3,393 trees, Hoang Dat 3,729 trees, Hoang Phong 1,487 trees, Hoang Xuyen 2,350 trees, Hoang Dong 1,983 trees... Currently, the Party Committee, authorities at all levels and the people in the district are still interested in expanding the coconut growing area in the area.
By July 2022, the People's Committee of Hoang Hoa district continued to issue Decision 1372/QD-UBND promulgating the Project on developing Nam Hai Tien coconut forest in Hoang Phu commune. The goal of developing coconut forest is to create an ecological landscape, prevent coastal erosion and encroachment, develop native crops, create a highlight to support the development of Hai Tien tourism, contributing to the socio-economic development of Hoang Phu commune in particular and Hoang Hoa district in general. Accordingly, the coconut forest will be developed on about 30 hectares along the coast of the commune, and will be put into operation by 2026. The total investment cost of this 30-hectare coconut planting project is estimated at 27 billion VND, of which 14.5 billion VND is invested in planting and caring for the coconut forest in the first 3 years; 12.5 billion VND to build connecting traffic routes in the coconut forest and connecting roads with route 510B.
The project also clearly states the great economic benefits of coconut forests when the fruit is harvested. During the exploitation cycle with a selling price of 8,000 - 10,000 VND/fruit, each year 1 coconut tree will bring an average income of about 500,000 VND, equivalent to about 100 million VND/1ha. That does not include by-products from coconut shells used as growing medium, when exploiting coconut trunks used as construction boards...
These summer days, the first coconut area planted right on the edge of the sea in Xuan Phu village, Hoang Phu commune has taken shape. On the Thinh - Dong traffic route, which has been put into operation for nearly 2 years, nearly 5,000 small coconut trees planted along more than 2m of the median strip are green and growing every day. According to Mr. Le Trong Hoa, Head of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Hoang Hoa district: "The coconut trees were nurtured from small, and now they have developed leaves 2 - 3m high. When the roots are strong, this dense row of coconut trees will be cut and brought to the coast of Hoang Phu commune to plant into a forest according to the district's project".
"As of July 2024, in Hoang Hoa district, there are about 223,000 coconut trees, if calculated according to the recommended density of the Ministry of Agriculture of 8 x 8m, it is equivalent to about 1,400 hectares. Some communes grow a lot of coconut trees such as: Hoang Thanh, Hoang Trach, Hoang Loc, Hoang Dao, Hoang Luu, Hoang Ha..." - Mr. Le Trong Hoa added.
It is known that recently, Hoang Hoa district and Flamingo Group are coordinating with relevant units to develop a tourism development plan; the district is waiting for the master plan, so the expansion of the coconut forest has been temporarily suspended.
In fact, the number of Hoang Hoa coconuts is increasing, which is the basis for many people to hope to bring Hoang Hoa back to its previous "title" of "Thanh coconut capital". Also in the Central region, people are impressed with Tam Quan district (Binh Dinh), Song Cau town, Phu Yen province with immense coastal coconut forests, becoming important economic development trees... Hoang Hoa can completely do it if it continues to be determined and takes steps in the right direction.
Article and photos: Le Dong
Source: https://baothanhhoa.vn/tim-lai-vi-the-cho-cay-dua-hoang-hoa-218447.htm
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