A farmer waters his crop (Source: VNA)
Hanoi (VNA) – The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development’s Cultivation Department has issued a set of techniques for rice and fruit cultivation in salty land in the Mekong Delta, its head Ma Quang Trung has informed.
He called for outlining a map of saltwater-infected areas, thereby studying suitable species of plants and animals to farm.
A research on early-maturing rice varieties that could stand high salinity levels should be promptly conducted, he said.
The summer-autumn rice should be sown in April and May, he said, adding that water should be used sparingly.
According to the departments of agriculture and rural development in the region, over 1.6 million ha of summer-autumn rice will be planted, up 628 ha from the same crop last year.
More than 900,000ha of autumn-winter rice will be sown, 25,800 ha more than last year’s crop.
According to the Vietnam Academy for Water Resources, saltwater will encroach deep into most of the Mekong Delta in the 2015-2016 dry season.
Many areas that have never experienced saline intrusion, such as Vinh Long province and Chau Thanh district and Nga Bay township of Hau Giang province, will experience the phenomenon.
About half of the farmland in Hau Giang and Kien Giang provinces is predicted to be ruined by saltwater, which will impact all farmland in Ca Mau, Bac Lieu and Soc Trang provinces.
In Long An province’s Tan An city in particular, saltwater with salinity of up to 10 – 12 grammes per litre is likely to enter 85km deep into the mainland in May if there is a lack of rain and timely prevention measures, the academy predicted.-VNA
