Growing bamboo is more profitable than growing rice.

DONG THAP In the past, water caltrop was only grown during the flood season, but now it has become a crop that brings stable income all year round for people in Lap Vo district, Dong Thap province.

Farmers harvest larva. Photo: Phuc An .

Grow and sell caltrops all year round

Water caltrop is an aquatic plant, originally grown by people in Lap Vo district, Dong Thap province in rotation to replace rice during the flood season. Later, when realizing that the economic efficiency from water caltrop could be higher than growing rice, many farmers here switched to growing water caltrop all year round.

Currently, in Lap Vo district, there are more than 80 hectares of water caltrops, most concentrated in Long Hung B and Vinh Thanh communes. People here mainly grow Taiwanese water caltrops because they are easy to grow and require little care.

Mr. Nguyen Huu Duc (residing in Long Hung B commune, Lap Vo district) has been involved in growing water chestnuts for more than 7 years and said that water chestnuts are quite easy to grow. The time from sowing seeds in the field to having tubers ready for harvest is about 3 months. After each harvest, about 10 days later, a new crop can be harvested, so water chestnuts are always available for sale all year round.

The harvested water chestnuts must be old, about 5 - 7cm in size. Photo: Phuc An .

“It is currently in season so the price of water caltrop is quite low, only 7,000 VND/kg. However, the price also changes from season to season, sometimes selling for 13,000 - 15,000 VND/kg. In general, growing water caltrop brings in higher income than growing rice,” Mr. Duc shared.

Owning more than 1 hectare of water chestnuts, Mr. Duc hires 3 to 5 workers to pick water chestnuts every day. The work usually starts at 6am and ends at 12pm, each person can harvest from 50 to 80kg of water chestnuts in a day. For the work of picking water chestnuts, each person is paid 140,000 VND/day by Mr. Duc.

After harvesting, water chestnuts are put into sacks and transported for consumption within the province and neighboring provinces.

Specialties not to be missed

Not only stopping at growing and selling fresh water chestnuts, people in Lap Vo district also strive to develop a variety of processed products from water chestnuts to increase value and expand the consumption market.

A shop selling water chestnuts and products made from water chestnuts along Highway 80. Photo: Phuc An .

Along Highway 80, passing through Vinh Thanh Commune (Lap Vo District), it is not difficult to see the image of large and small shops selling all kinds of products from childhood, from small makeshift stalls to larger, well-invested stalls. Sellers often display their products right on the edge of the road and take the opportunity to invite customers to stop and buy.

In addition to fresh water chestnuts, the featured items sold here include boiled water chestnuts, boiled water chestnuts in coconut water, peeled water chestnuts, and even water chestnut milk. These products are not only diverse in preparation methods but also have a distinctive flavor, attracting many locals and tourists to buy.

Ms. Dang Thi Huyen Tran, a vendor selling water chestnuts on Highway 80, shared: “Every day I set up my stall to sell from 7am to 5pm, on average selling about 15-20kg of boiled water chestnuts, earning about 400,000 VND.”

By processing and selling products from water chestnuts, local people not only increase their income but also contribute to promoting their hometown specialties.

Source: https://nongsanviet.nongnghiep.vn/trong-au-loi-hon-trong-lua-d403247.html