Sleepless nights because of custard apple

We visited Hat Lot commune (Mai Son, Son La) - one of the custard apple orchards of Son La province with a total output of thousands of tons of fresh custard apples per year; bringing tens of billions of dong in income to farmers. But few people know that, before bringing huge profits, becoming one of the main crops, recognized as a 3-star OCOP product of Son La province, custard apple trees here used to cause headaches and sleepless nights for the custard apple growers.

Hat Lot Commune (Mai Son, Son La) - one of the custard apple orchards of Son La province with a total output of fresh custard apples reaching thousands of tons/year, bringing tens of billions of dong in income to farmers. Photo: PVTB.

Mr. Tran Ba ​​Cuong - the first person to bring custard apple trees to plant in sub-area I, Hat Lot commune, Mai Son district, recalls: In 1990, at the age of 30, I settled down on this land. At that time, the entire strip of land along National Highway 6, stretching for kilometers, was full of dry rocks and gravel, where grass could not grow. I was the only household that chose the land between Hat Lot stream and National Highway 6 as a settlement. In the 90s, this whole area had no electricity or water. My wife and I just dug the soil, turned over grass, planted cassava, planted corn, and earned a living. Custard apple trees were one of the first fruit trees I planted on Mai Son land, simply because in the past, custard apples were a type of tree that did not require much water or fertilizer, and were suitable for the saying "Young people plant custard apples, old people plant bananas".

"Luckily, my wife and I both have a good hand, so every custard apple tree planted in the ground grew quickly and bore fruit early. That's why I gradually expanded the custard apple garden, without thinking about getting rich from the custard apple tree. But then the new hybrid corn variety flooded Mai Son, creating a life-changing situation for hybrid corn growers. Many corn growers have not only overcome poverty, but also become wealthy, becoming millionaires. So the idea of ​​destroying the custard apple garden to grow corn kept haunting me. The desire to quickly eliminate poverty and the desire to have a large custard apple garden became a contradiction, causing me many sleepless nights" - Mr. Cuong told the story with a thoughtful expression.

The custard apple garden of Mr. Tran Ba ​​Cuong's family (sub-area I, Hat Lot commune, Mai Son district, Son La province) is pollinated, carefully covered, and cared for organically, ensuring food safety. Photo: PVTB.

Then, in the early 2000s, during a trip to Lang Son, Mr. Cuong saw people carrying custard apples to sell very busily with a not small revenue. When he returned, he discussed with his wife, deciding not only to keep the custard apple garden but also to invest more in this fruit tree. Mr. Cuong honestly said: Actually, at that time in Son La, selling custard apples was not simple because the means of transporting them long distances were rare, and few people bought them to eat domestically. Moreover, the custard apple variety had very small fruits, often cracked stems, and the skin was tanned, looking very ugly, and the harvest time was very short, so I had to wander down to the lowlands to find customers, sell them, sell them wholesale, and make a profit for the fruit garden. At the same time, I also had to intercrop longan, mango and corn to get one thing to compensate for the other.

"If it is an OCOP product, it must be worthy"

Thanks to the development of socio-economy, convenient transportation, the internet and social networks are increasingly being expanded by Son La province; training courses to transfer science and technology to farmers are opened more and more; agricultural extension officers stay close to the people and villages to "give fishing rods" to the people, Mr. Cuong is like "a tiger with wings".

Mai Son custard apple brings in billions of dong in revenue for farmers. Photo: PVTB.

Mr. Cuong said: My knowledge about custard apple trees is increasingly improved; my understanding of the market is increasingly expanded, so my consumption of custard apples is much more convenient, and the profit from custard apple trees is also increasing day by day. Seeing that I am doing business with custard apple trees quite well, many households in and outside the commune also come to visit, learn from my experience, and ask for custard apple seeds to plant. I think that if I want to do big business, I must "buy with friends, sell with partners" - as our ancestors said; therefore, anyone who has the desire to grow custard apples and comes to me, I will help them unconditionally.

Then, new custard apple varieties with high yield, good quality and beautiful appearance began to appear on the market such as: Queen custard apple (Thai custard apple), durian custard apple, Taiwanese custard apple... I went to the Agricultural Academy to learn, bought the seeds and brought them back to Son La to renovate my custard apple garden. "This era allows us farmers to access many advanced science and technology, reducing investment costs while increasing profits, so I applied technology very thoroughly and was successful. I renovate the custard apple garden by grafting new varieties onto the main branches so that the custard apple trees grow quickly, bear fruit early and are more resistant to diseases and unusual weather. I learned many more ways to fertilize trees and prevent insects that harm custard apples very effectively. Even pollination so that each custard apple grows round and not twisted; how to keep the custard apple skin from sunburn or cracking when ripe... I learned everything myself and succeeded", Mr. Cuong shared.

Mai Son custard apples ensure the criteria of deliciousness, cleanliness, and beauty, and are favored by many traders in and outside the province as well as consumers.
Photo: PVTB.

Regarding the quality of custard apples in Mai Son today, Mr. Cuong said: It is not simple that custard apples in Mai Son are recognized as 3-star OCOP products, it is a journey of innovation from awareness, from the sense of responsibility to consumers of the owners of the custard apple orchards here. Our custard apples are fertilized according to VietGap standards, the fertilizer is mainly organic fertilizer. The custard apples are wrapped in plastic bags when they are still very small, so there is no need to worry about toxic pesticide residues. Even when it is necessary to catch harmful insects, we use traps with lights and sugar, instead of spraying pesticides as some people think. Many drivers and traders come to my house to buy custard apples; when they see my wife, children and grandchildren directly eating custard apples picked from the garden, they are also assured to experience it. "Creamy custard apple growers in Mai Son are now very conscious of the brand, so our custard apples are sold in dozens of provinces and cities across the country. My family currently has only over 5 hectares of custard apples; of which nearly 4 hectares are at the peak yielding age, but each year we still earn billions of dong from custard apples. The entire Mai Son region has thousands of hectares. Each hectare generates an income of 300 - 550 million dong/year, which is a huge source of income for many households. Therefore, we are determined to maintain the Mai Son custard apple brand at all costs. And since it is a 3-star OCOP product, it must be worthy of that title."

According to: trangtraiviet.danviet.vn