EARN MILLIONS FROM THE "FENCE" TREE
In her garden in Village 3, Leng R'Sội hamlet, Gia Hiep commune, Mrs. Ka Doi (68 years old) introduces rows of curry trees that have been with her family for more than half of her life. "My parents used to plant this curry tree to make a hedge, but now people buy the seeds at a very high price. No need to take care of it, it flowers when the season comes, wait for it to ripen and then pick the seeds to sell," Mrs. Ka Doi said. "In the past, people often planted the small-leafed, white-flowered variety, the plants were taller and bloomed later, and had low yields. But now, people have switched to planting the purple-pink flowered variety, with large leaves, giving high yields, which people often call export curry. People now prefer the export curry variety because the flowers are beautiful, the plants grow quickly, and have high yields," the K'Ho woman commented.
She said that her family's curry garden has been planted for more than 7 years, without fertilizing or watering regularly, yet the plants still grow well. "Every year, the harvest season is right when the grandchildren go to school, giving them more money to buy books and clothes," said Ms. Ka Doi. The curry tree flowers in May - June and is harvested in October - November, right before the coffee harvest season. When there was no coffee, many farmers had income from purple-flowered curry trees.
“Curry plants are easy to grow, suitable for dry, rocky soil - places where other plants cannot be grown. People often uproot small wild plants to bring home to plant or sow seeds directly. Curry plants grow very quickly and do not require care. When they bear fruit, people cut the whole bunch, bring it home, grind it to get the seeds and dry it,” Ms. Ka Doi shared. In previous years, when there was not much labor, Ms. Ka Doi used to grow curry on 1 hectare. She did not need to take care of it but still had a harvest when the season came, helping her family earn extra income right at the beginning of the school year.
Not only Mrs. Ka Doi's family, many households in Gia Hiep commune and neighboring areas such as Phu Hiep 1, Phu Hiep 2... have maintained and expanded curry trees into green hedges, intercropped in coffee gardens, or planted concentratedly on areas of less fertile land, even rocky land. In 2024, curry trees will have a high price, farmers will earn tens of millions of dong from this seemingly worthless plant.
CREATE BEAUTIFUL HABITAT FOR COFFEE GROWING AREA
Ms. Nguyen Thi Thuy Dung, a female cadre of Gia Hiep commune, informed that Gia Hiep is home to a large number of ethnic people from the Central Highlands. The main crop of the people is coffee, a plant species suitable for the soil conditions of Gia Hiep. “Coffee is a shade-loving plant, requiring reduced sunlight and wind protection. At the same time, mobilizing people to plant different types of trees to create diverse habitats is also the goal of Gia Hiep. Among them, curry plants have been and are closely associated with the lives of the people,” Ms. Thuy Dung said.
According to Ms. Thuy Dung, almost all Gia Hiep people grow curry as a border between coffee gardens. With land that is too rocky and has no irrigation water, curry is grown at a high density. "In recent years, the price of curry as well as coffee has been stable, people are very excited, having income to develop their family economy ," Ms. Thuy Dung shared.
Ms. Thuy Dung herself is also growing hundreds of curry plants in her garden. According to her, curry plants only need to be planted for 18 months to start flowering. Each plant produces an average of 2 - 4 kg of seeds, which are brought home to be processed, dried and sold to traders. After harvesting, people cut the plants in half, wait for the rain to come, and then the buds will grow again, following the cycle. "Curry flowers bloom in June, with a beautiful purple-pink color. This is also a unique feature of our Gia Hiep region," Ms. Thuy Dung proudly said. Currently, many Gia Hiep hills are blooming with purple curry flowers, a dreamy color among the immense green of coffee.
Curry seeds are now very easy to consume in the domestic market, many places use them as spices, produce essential oils, medicinal herbs or export. The selling price fluctuates according to quality and time, however, the stability and clear output make Gia Hiep people feel secure to expand their scale. And, the purple color of curry flowers blooming also signals a prosperous season for the residents of Di Linh plateau.
Source: https://baolamdong.vn/mua-hoa-ca-ri-tim-doi-gia-hiep-381245.html
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