Golden season of prosperity in the highlands

A corner of Ban Ten, Van Lang commune.

New varieties on old fields

This season, the rice fields in Ban Ten, Van Lang commune, are breathtakingly beautiful. The rice waves sway in the wind, heavy with grain, giving off a sweet fragrance. Every rice harvest season, the people of Ban Ten are busy in the fields, harvesting, threshing, and bringing the rice home.

From the early days of hardship, eating wild vegetables and using men men (steamed corn flour) as the main meal, today, the Mong people in the highland villages have bowls of fragrant white rice in their daily meals. For more than 5 years, the new rice variety planted on the old terraced fields in Ban Ten valley has helped people no longer worry about having enough rice to eat during the lean days.

Ms. Vuong Thi My, a resident of Ban Ten, shared: In the past, we were only used to growing Khang Dan rice varieties, so the yield was low. Now there are new rice varieties to choose from. Many households grow hybrid rice varieties such as TH3-3, TH3-5, etc., so the yield is higher. This year, some families harvested 1.8 to 2 quintals of rice per sao, nearly double that of 5 years ago.

Not only in Ten, many hamlets and villages in the highlands have gradually become accustomed to planting new rice varieties with high yield and good quality. According to Mr. Nguyen Ta, Head of the Provincial Department of Cultivation and Plant Protection, hybrid rice and high-quality pure rice have been planted en masse in Thai Nguyen , especially in mountainous and highland areas, where food is not only used to meet the daily needs of families but also becomes a commodity or for livestock farming.

For many years now, rice varieties such as J02, SL8H-GS9, TH3-7, TH3-5, Syn6, B-TE1… have been widely distributed throughout the fields in the highland communes of the province. Not only achieving high yields, these rice varieties also produce white rice, which when cooked is sticky, easy to eat, and is favored by many people.

When thinking changes, the way of doing things of the highlanders also changes. Instead of "persisting" in cultivating old, low-yielding rice varieties, people have boldly brought new rice varieties to plant on old fields. By devoting their heart and soul to cultivating the fields, the highlanders have reaped the sweet fruits of heavy rice fields, full granaries, and a more prosperous life.

Coming to the highland hamlets and villages in Thai Nguyen today, it is difficult to see families living in the situation of "eating today's meal and tomorrow's full meal" during the lean season. It is thanks to the planting of new rice varieties with high yield and quality, and proper fertilization techniques that have helped make the story of "hunger" a thing of the past in the highlands.

Mr. Nguyen Ta emphasized: Propaganda work has been promoted; policies to support seed prices and suitable fertilizers are the catalysts for people in the highlands to bring new rice varieties to their villages. With the support of agricultural extension officers, people always plant rice on time, so the yield of winter-spring rice is always quite high, from 50 to 53 quintals/ha.

Ripe rice season attracts tourists

The Department of Agriculture and Environment has deployed many new rice varieties, productivity and quality models to encourage people to replicate them.

The Department of Agriculture and Environment is implementing experimental planting of many new rice varieties with high productivity and quality to encourage people to replicate them.

For a long time, Ban Ten, Van Lang commune; the rice fields in Than Sa, Nghinh Tuong, Sang Moc and the northern communes of the province have become destinations for many tourists. Mr. Nguyen Van Ngoc, Deputy Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said: The beautiful scenery, surrounding mountains, and majestic nature have given Ban Ten its own unique features. Especially, when the rice is golden ripe, this place is as beautiful as a painting, attracting many tourists...

As Mr. Ngoc shared, every time the rice ripens, the crowd of people flocks to Ban Ten like a festival. Ms. Le Kieu Minh, a tourist from Hanoi, said: Coming here, I am very excited to immerse myself in the production life and admire the beautiful scenery of the Mong people's village on the highlands. I like the most the long terraced fields, shimmering with golden light, weaving golden seasons of prosperity for the people of the highlands.

In addition to Ban Ten, the places with beautiful, golden ripe rice fields that many tourists "check in" when coming to Thai Nguyen also include highland hamlets and villages such as Lung Luong, Lung Ca (Than Sa); Na Man (Dong Phuc)... In particular, Na Man field is being exploited quite effectively by Dong Loi cooperative.

Not only bringing joy to the people in the highlands when their houses are full of rice, the ripe rice season in the highland hamlets and villages of the province has become an interesting meeting place for many tourists from far away who love to explore new things, opening up a new direction in economic development for the people. That is developing experiential tourism combined with agricultural development.

However, this potential and advantage in Thai Nguyen has not been effectively exploited. That is, the infrastructure and tourism products in areas with beautiful landscapes and great potential to attract tourists when the rice harvest season comes are still very limited.

For example, in Ban Ten, there are almost no restaurants serving tourists, especially for large groups. Moreover, in many localities, including the Na Man eco-tourism site, transportation is still difficult; tourism products and specialties that impress tourists have not been given much attention.

In order not to "leave open" this available tourism potential, it is time for the provincial authorities and functional branches to pay attention and develop long-term strategies to develop experiential tourism combined with agricultural development in the province.

In particular, investment in upgrading roads, building accommodation facilities, restaurants and hotels should be taken into account. In particular, propaganda should be made so that people, in addition to developing agricultural production, should be aware of tourism. When "1 arrow hits two targets", the people in the highlands not only have full granaries of rice but also have a decent income from tourism to get rich and build a better life.

Source: https://baothainguyen.vn/kinh-te/202509/mua-vang-no-am-vung-cao-08f5032/