Cucumber and bitter squash yield high income

In 2010, family members of Mr. Nguyen Van Hung, born in 1973, residing at Hamlet 4, Vinh Tan Commune, Tan Uyen Town have ventured to grow cucumber and bitter squash on a land area converted from their 2-ha household rubber tree plantation. The move yielded great income for them.Hung started his family rubber tree plantation on an area of 2 hectares. By 2010, he decided to convert 5,000 m2 of it to grow cucumber and bitter squash – the two easy-to-grow plants.According to Hung, the preliminary low cost of VND 4 million per 1,000 m2 shall be profitable after 35 to 40 days and continue in the next 20 to 25 days.On the peak of harvest, his family could earn averagely from 50 to 60kg per 1,000 m2 for cucumber and 40 to 50 kg per 1,000 m2 for bitter squash.The price varies from VND 6,000 to even VND 11,000 a kilo leaving Hung annual income of VND 140 to 150 million on an area of 5,000m2.As for selling out, the merchants buy the produces right at their farms, remove the transportation costs. Seeing greater income from cucumber and bitter squash, Hung decided to convert another 7,000 m2 for the growing with circulated caring.Besides, attention to leaves and fruits should be taken to ensure righteous pesticide administration and fertilization.Then, after 3 consecutive crops, the soil should be renovate to create more nutrition to the plants.For his achievement of earning from farm produces, Hung was honored by Tan Uyen District (now Tan Uyen Town) as an excellent farmer in 3 consecutive years from 2011 to 2013Various families have learned from the model of cucumber and bitter squash of Mr. Hung.Mr. Nguyen Cao Thanh, Deputy Chair of Vinh Tan Commune Association of Farmers said: “Planting cucumber and bitter squash could bring great income to households to improve their lives.”Currently, Vinh Tan Commune has 5 ha of cucumber and bitter squash. For the time to come, the commune shall offer loans and invite the town agricultural promotion center to help local farmers with more knowledge about transition of seedlings to improve production.Reported by D. Tuan – X. Thi – Translated by Vi Bao