Ca Mau farmers pull up white wild vegetables in deep fields, earning millions

Water hyacinth is a member of the same family as water hyacinth. However, water hyacinth lives in rivers and lakes, drifting with the water, while water hyacinth takes root in deep fields. The rainy season is the time when water hyacinth emerges from the soil with plump, round white stems.

If before, watercress was associated with the rustic meals of the Western people, today it is favored by many restaurants and diners (used as a dip for braised fish, sour soup, stir-fried beef...). Because watercress is more expensive, many people look to buy it, so the villagers who had a bad rice crop can have a vegetable crop again.

Mr. Phan Van Bach (residing in Khanh Binh Tay Bac commune, Tran Van Thoi district) shared: "My family cultivates more than 1.5 hectares of rice. Whenever it rains, my rice fields and those of neighboring people are flooded, at which time the watercress grows strongly. Every day, my wife and I go to the fields to pull out watercress to earn money to support our family."

Mr. Bach added that the watercress grows naturally, without having to spend time planting and caring for it. When a trader places an order, Mr. Bach’s family pulls out a boat to pick it up. After that, they wash off the alum, load it onto the boat, and bring it home to tie into bundles.

Each bunch of water spinach that Mr. Bach sells is from 3,000 to 4,000 VND. Every day, his family earns from 300,000 to 400,000 VND from selling water spinach. It is estimated that during the three months of the rainy season, the money from selling water spinach helps Mr. Bach's family earn about tens of millions of VND.

Watercress also brings a significant source of income to rural women in their spare time. On average, women who go out to harvest watercress earn between 100,000 and 200,000 VND per day.

Ms. Mai Thi Yen (residing in Khanh Binh Tay Bac commune, Tran Van Thoi district) shared: "I went to pick watercress at 5am and came back at around 10am, sat there peeling until 12pm and got more than 100 bunches. Then, I sold them to traders for 5,000 VND/bunch. Wild vegetables are now a popular food on the dining table and a savior for poor people with little land or land in low-lying, alum-rich areas where rice cannot be grown."

Watercress has a sweet, spongy, slightly chewy taste and can be stir-fried with shrimp or cooked in sour soup. Watercress is especially delicious when eaten raw with braised fish or hotpot.

Source: https://www.baogiaothong.vn/nong-dan-ca-mau-nho-cay-rau-dai-trang-non-noi-ruong-sau-thu-ve-tien-trieu-192231023124351196.htm