Off-season longan farming delivers billion-VND gains

In Lai Vung commune, mention the “longan tycoon Lon,” and nearly every orchard household knows him - not only for his large-scale production, but also for his distinctive method of producing off-season fruit: proactively “withholding irrigation” to control flowering and fruiting at will.

A turning point

Before 2016, Tran Van Lon’s life revolved around rice and orange cultivation like many other farmers in An Lac hamlet.

He recalled that back then, growing rice was extremely labor-intensive, yet prices were unstable. After each crop, farmers worried about repaying debts for agricultural inputs from the previous season, with little profit left. Seeing that Xoan orange (a local orange variety) was profitable, he switched from rice to oranges. However, as he put it, “things don’t always go as planned” - disease struck the trees, production costs consumed his capital, and market access was limited. “At that time, growing oranges was no longer effective, so I decided to quit and look for a new direction,” Lon said.

During a visit to the former Chau Thanh district, he came across a longan farming model that proved highly effective. After learning more, he realized that the soil conditions in his hometown were quite similar. In 2016, he decided to cut down his orange trees, prepare raised beds, and switch to longan cultivation. However, traditional farming methods resulted in unstable yields and prices, often leading to the familiar situation of “bumper harvest, falling prices” during peak season.

From that experience, he began experimenting with off-season longan cultivation - a technique which, as he put it, “requires understanding the tree’s behavior even better than your own.”

According to Mr. Lon, the key to inducing off-season flowering lies in “water stress.” He first drains all the water from the orchard ditches, withholding irrigation completely until the soil cracks and the trees enter a state of severe water deficit. When the trees are stressed by the lack of water, they shift from vegetative growth (leaf production) to the reproductive stage.

Once the soil reaches the required level of dryness, he reintroduces water. At that point, the trees seem to “revive,” producing new shoots simultaneously. When the shoots transition to a light green, mature stage (just hardened leaves), he then applies flowering-induction treatments. “Every step must be precisely timed - just a slight mistake and the trees will produce only leaves, meaning a total loss,” Mr. Lon shared.

Typically, he times the treatment for around the eighth lunar month so that harvesting falls in March or April of the following year. This is when the main-season longan is not yet available, the market is in short supply, and prices remain high, ranging from VND 24,000 - 30,000 per kilogram, compared to around VND 15,000 per kilogram for the main crop.

“To grow off-season longan, the prerequisite is a fully enclosed dike system to control irrigation. Without it, water levels rise and fall with the tides, making it impossible to create the level of water stress needed,” Mr. Lon emphasized.

Starting with just a few plots of land, thanks to off-season longan cultivation, Mr. Lon gradually accumulated more and now owns up to 13 hectares. With an average yield of 20 tons per hectare, his family earns profits worth billions of dong each year.

Success tied to community sharing

Despite his wealth, Mr. Lon retains the generosity typical of people in the Mekong Delta. He willingly shares his techniques with fellow farmers in the commune’s longan cooperative group, while advising them not to chase low-efficiency crop varieties to avoid losses. More notably, using profits from longan farming, he purchased a vehicle to transport local residents to medical appointments free of charge. “Anyone in need can call me. I’ll drive them, free of charge,” he said with a hearty laugh.

According to Vo Thi My Duyen, Chairwoman of the Lai Vung Commune Farmers’ Association, Mr. Lon’s model not only delivers strong economic results but also helps transform local production mindsets. Farmers have gradually shifted from small-scale production to greater linkage and organization, enabling them to be more proactive in market access and reduce the risk of price pressure.

The locality will continue to replicate this model while supporting farmers in digital transformation, including bringing longan products onto e-commerce platforms to enhance their value.

"Beyond his economic success, Mr. Tran Van Lon is deeply 'passionate about philanthropy' and has received numerous certificates of merit at various levels, including a Prime Minister's Certificate of Merit in 2022. In 2024, he was honored with the title of Outstanding Vietnamese Farmer. To the local community, he is not only a billionaire farmer but also a role model of compassion, always known for sharing with the community," said Ms. Duyen.

* $1 = VND 26,331 - Source: Vietcombank.