Agroforestry boosts soil health in mountainous Lao Cai

Over 70% reduction in washed-away soil

Bac Ha Commune (Lao Cai) is home to many ethnic minority groups whose livelihoods depend on natural resources. The terrain here is heavily fragmented with high mountains, steep slopes, and prolonged agricultural monoculture lacking soil conservation practices, which caused the loss of topsoil and reduced crop yields. In addition, farming practices relying heavily on chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides further degraded soil organic matter and beneficial microflora.

The project "Restoring degraded land and building climate resilience in Lao Cai through sustainable agroforestry to enhance livelihoods and improve value chains" (REDAA) aims to minimize soil erosion and elevate local livelihoods. The project is implemented from 2024 to 2027.

Prior to the project's implementation, the biggest barriers to local agricultural farming were extreme weather and depleted soil fertility. Erratic sunshine and rain also directly affected crop productivity. Most sloping land areas used for long-term maize and cassava cultivation suffered severe degradation, lacking organic matter and critically short of essential minerals.

Mr. Do Van Hung, Project Manager (from the International Center for Research in Agroforestry - ICRAF / World Agroforestry), stated: "We focus on developing agroforestry models, intercropping woody trees, fruit trees, and forestry trees with short-term crops. Contour farming brings dual benefits: helping farmers increase income on the same land area while effectively reducing erosion and improving sloping soil."

The project's greatest efficiency is contributing to transforming farmers' production mindsets. From being accustomed to farming methods that abused chemicals, residents gradually recognized the harmful impacts of crop protection chemicals on the ecosystem.

In the ecological peanut model, farmers absolutely do not use herbicides and restrict chemical fertilizers. In the pear-growing zone, farmers have proficiently applied Good Agricultural Practices (VietGAP) standards to deliver safe products to the market. The project not only contributes to environmental protection and climate change adaptation, but also step-by-step elevates sustainable value for native agricultural produce.

To date, the project has deployed 100 hectares of agroforestry models across more than 300 households with fruit trees such as yellow plum, Sen mandarin, crispy persimmon, black canarium, Ta Van plum, VH6 pear, and several crops like red peanut, soybean, green bean, black bean...

After more than a year of implementation, the agroforestry model helped reduce washed-away soil volume by 71% compared to control models. Grass strips planted along contour lines help retain nutrients in the soil and prevent erosion.

The ecological red peanut cultivation model deployed in Nam Lan and Coc Cai Villages (Bac Ha Commune) applies organic-oriented crop management practices, utilizing locally available materials to improve the soil, abstaining from herbicide use, and minimizing chemical fertilizers and crop protection chemicals to the lowest levels.

Mr. Vang Seo Sinh, a household participating in the project, shared: "The crop caretaking process relies entirely on farmyard manure; weeding is also carried out manually with hoes rather than chemical herbicides." Thanks to safe and environmentally friendly farming practices, after only about 3 months, Mr. Sinh's family peanut field yielded a harvest with uniform pod quality.

According to Mr. Sinh's calculations, while traditional maize is currently sold at precarious prices from 6,000-7,000 VND/kg, ecological peanuts bring many times higher economic value. Specifically, peanut kernels can be sold for around 60,000-80,000 VND/kg, and roasted peanuts command prices up to 90,000-100,000 VND/kg. Clearly perceiving superior benefits and stable market outlets, Mr. Sinh's family will continue expanding production scale, step-by-step turning peanuts into a sustainable economic development direction.

Pears above, peanuts below

For the VH6 pear value chain with a production area of over 3.4 hectares involving 9 participating farm households in the commercial harvest stage, based on existing local resources and land, the project coordinated with the Bac Ha Commune Farmers' Union to support establishing a Professional Farmers' Group for planting, caring for, and developing VH6 pear trees to strengthen inter-household linkages and create a legal foundation for VietGAP certification.

Beside that, the project organized training, guidance, and technical support activities for good agricultural practices, including nutrient management, safe input usage, pest management, harvesting, post-harvest preservation, and production logging for traceability.

Mr. Ly Seo Dung in Ban Pho 2 Village boldly converted inefficient production land to planting the VH6 pear variety. After 4 years of care, the pear orchard yielded economic returns far surpassing maize and cassava.

Mr. Dung shared: "Thanks to strictly following caretaking techniques, the pear orchard delivers superior yields with large, uniform fruits, just one or two fruits reach 1 kg, sold at high prices while ensuring health safety for ourselves and consumers."

Notably, his family also applies ecological agricultural farming methods to optimize land area. Right under the pear canopy, Mr. Dung intercrops legumes, which helps cover the soil surface, suppress weeds, and serve as a natural fertilizer layer to regenerate the soil, supplying extra nutrients to the fruit orchard.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Phuong Dong, Vice Chairwoman of the Lao Cai Provincial Farmers' Union, stated that after more than 2 years of project execution, agroforestry, organic-oriented red peanut production, and ecological agriculture models have initially brought clear efficiency as farmers cut chemical inputs and increased crop productivity by 20-25%. Simultaneously, they contribute to protecting public health and the ecological environment. Developing red peanut and VH6 pear value chains is also opening a new path to elevate native agricultural product value, reinforce production linkages, and expand consumer markets.