Abandoned farmland: [1] Weeds grow green on fertile fields

In early August, along both sides of the North-South national route through Ha Tinh and Quang Tri provinces, vast, deserted fields stretch, where weeds grow thickly under the scorching sun. In Quang Tri, along major roads leading to villages and hamlets, many fields are covered only with the stubble left from the previous crop. Mr. Nguyen Van Duc, a farmer in Hoan Lao commune (Quang Tri), sadly said, "These days, many local farmers are leaving their fields uncultivated during the summer-autumn crop. Even fertile fields with reliable irrigation water are being abandoned, left for weeds to grow."

"First-class field" lies deserted

The fields covering tens of hectares in Dai Trach are conveniently located, with contiguous plots stretching across two flat farming zones on either side of National Highway 1A. In recent years, farmers have cultivated only the winter-spring rice crop, leaving their fields fallow and allowing weeds to grow during the summer-autumn crop. These are considered “first-class fields” by farmers in the two hamlets of Phuc Tu Tay and Phuc Tu Dong in Hoan Lao commune.

Mr. Phan Van Hieu, Head of Phuc Tu Tay Hamlet, said that the hamlet has about 60 hectares of fertile fields with convenient access to both internal farm roads and irrigation and drainage canals. However, farmers mainly cultivate the winter-spring crop. During the summer-autumn crop, only about 20 hectares are farmed, while the remainder is left fallow.

In Phuc Tu Dong hamlet, farmers have almost entirely abandoned their fields. According to Mr. Pham The Quang, Head of Phuc Tu Dong Hamlet, the hamlet has more than 61 hectares of rice-growing land. This year, farmers have "turned their backs" on sowing, leaving almost all fields uncultivated for various reasons. "They calculate that farming would result in losses, so we have been unable to persuade them to plant," Mr. Quang said sadly.

Hoan Lao commune currently has more than 1,400 hectares of land under annual rice cultivation. Under this year's plan, more than 600 hectares were expected to be cultivated during the summer-autumn crop. However, the hamlets planted only about 450 hectares, leaving roughly 950 hectares uncultivated.

According to Mr. Bui Quoc Thanh, Head of the Economic Division of Hoan Lao Commune, after the winter-spring crop ended, local authorities introduced several support policies, including subsidies for rice seed prices and pest and rodent control, to encourage farmers to maintain production in line with the plan. However, due to various objective difficulties, large areas of farmland remain fallow, as farmers have become increasingly reluctant to plant the summer-autumn crop.

In Dong Trach commune (Quang Tri), tens of hectares of farmland have been equipped with convenient internal farm roads and a robust irrigation and drainage system. Despite prolonged periods of hot, sunny weather, the fields here have no shortage of water. Yet these days, the only thing growing across the fields is weeds. On the vast fields, a flock of more than a dozen ducks can be seen scurrying around in search of food.

The inter-commune road linking Quang Ninh and Ninh Chau (Quang Tri) runs through the Duy Ninh rice field with an area of more than 10 hectares. Last year, local farmers still cultivated the summer-autumn crop here, with average rice yields of over 5.5 tons/hectare. But this year's summer-autumn crop has been completely abandoned. In the fields, Bermuda grass has spread across the land. According to Mr. Nguyen Mau Tai, a resident of Ninh Chau commune, these fields can produce two crops a year and could be considered fertile, yet they have now all been abandoned. It is such a waste.

Ratoon rice suffers heavy losses

Previously, Le Thuy district (in the former Quang Binh province) had more than 10,000 hectares under cultivation for the winter-spring rice crop. During the summer-autumn crop, about 800 hectares were planted, approximately 8,500 hectares were used for ratoon rice, and the remainder was left uncultivated. At the time, local authorities and Le Thuy district introduced various support policies for farmers and cooperatives to reduce the area devoted to ratoon rice and increase the area planted during the summer-autumn crop. However, the results remained limited.

Following the implementation of the two-tier local government system, Le Thuy commune, formed through the merger of five communes and one town, has a large rice-growing area of more than 4,000 hectares. However, as in other localities, after the winter-spring crop, as much as 3,900 hectares in Le Thuy commune are used for ratoon rice. Compared with previous years, the area planted during the summer-autumn crop has declined sharply.

According to Mr. Le Van Tam, Vice Chairman of the Le Thuy Commune People's Committee, the commune currently has only about 144 hectares of summer-autumn rice cultivated by two agricultural cooperatives, Xuan Lai and Xuan Bo. "In recent crops, farmers have also become less interested in ratoon rice cultivation. In most of the area, they invest little in fertilizer and simply let the rice grow on its own. As a result, the area of ratoon rice that actually produces a harvest has been declining, while yields are significantly lower than before," Mr. Tam said.

In recent years, ratoon rice yields in Le Thuy have fallen considerably. While the average yield previously reached around 3 tons/hectare, it has now dropped to below 2 tons/hectare. This year's ratoon rice crop has been hit by unfavorable weather, prolonged heat, and inadequate farmer care, leaving many areas with no harvest or yields far below previous levels.

Mr. Le Xuan Minh, a farmer in Le Thuy commune, has more than 2,500 m² of ratoon rice planted. This year, the rice developed poorly, leaving most of the area without a harvest. "For many households whose ratoon rice does produce a harvest, yields are only around 1–1.5 tons/hectare. Production costs have risen sharply, while cultivating the summer-autumn crop is increasingly unstable, so farmers are no longer enthusiastic about it," Mr. Minh said.

According to the Quang Tri Sub-Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection, the total area of winter-spring rice growing across the province's localities reaches approximately 55,000 hectares. During the summer-autumn crop, in addition to the 8,500 hectares used for ratoon rice, more than 9,200 hectares of farmland are left fallow.

Mr. Bui Phuoc Trang, Director of the Quang Tri Sub-Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection, said the area of farmland left fallow during this year's summer-autumn crop has increased by more than 400 hectares compared with last year's crop. Farmers abandoning their fields wastes valuable land resources and public investment in irrigation systems and internal farm roads. The failure to cultivate the summer-autumn crop also significantly reduces farmers' incomes. In addition, agricultural services such as land preparation, transplanting, seeds, fertilizer, and harvesting have also declined sharply.