Prof. Vo Tong Xuan: Using 40% of the fertilizer, the production cost is reduced by 50%

 

Sharing of leading agricultural expert - Professor Vo Tong Xuan with Lao Dong about the efficiency of using only 40% of fertilizer.

He emphasized: Vietnamese farmers mostly waste a lot of fertilizer. There is a waste in that, they wait for the rice plants to grow and then fertilize, the background is only organic fertilizers, manure, but urea is only applied when the rice is sown or transplanted. Although the theory states: Fertilizer must be applied as a substrate by rice seeds when the first roots (germination) have begun to use fertilizer, then if the fertilizer is available, the rice plants will grow very well. But unfortunately, most farmers do not believe and do not follow.

Professor (GS), it is known that in 2016-2017, you have experimented with this daring way of fertilizing, completely contrary to the old habits of farmers in the Mekong Delta. What were the results of that test, could you please share?

- Prof. Vo Tong Xuan: 5 years ago, at that time, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Minh Hoan, who was the Secretary of Dong Thap Province, supported me to experiment at Tan Tien Cooperative. (Thap Muoi district, Dong Thap province), according to the method of fertilizing before sowing. As a result, the price of 1kg of rice has been reduced from 4,000 VND to only 2,000-2,500 VND. When the implementation started, farmers still did not listen, thinking that without rice, fertilizer would be lost and wasted money. I said that the production cost of 1kg of rice up to 4,000 VND is high because of wrong fertilization. Improper fertilization is not only costly, causing many pests and diseases, but also reduces the taste of rice grains.

Farmers must understand the principle, manure and soil "attract" each other like iron with a magnet, if fertilizing before sowing, then the shaft to knead the finely mixed manure with the soil and receive the manure deep down before sowing, the fertilizer Fertilizer cannot go away. I encouraged farmers to do it in a new way. Tan Tien Cooperative has implemented a new way on an area of ​​50ha of rice, resulting in the amount of fertilizer only 40% compared to before, rice has increased a lot, productivity has not decreased but production costs have decreased, only more than 1 USD. half.

In the process of implementation, the agricultural extension agency of Dong Thap Department of Agriculture and Rural Development has monitored and calculated the costs. As a result, previously, production cost 4,000-4,200 VND/kg of rice, but this way reduced to over 50. % of fertilizer, reduction of plant protection chemicals, reduction of labor, each kilogram of rice costs only from 2,200-2,400 VND.

The professor said that this approach also contributes to reducing the rate of pests and diseases, reducing the amount of pesticides used. Why is that, Professor?

- Prof. Vo Tong Xuan: This method of fertilizing causes fewer pests and diseases, because if the amount of fertilizer is applied at a moderate level, the rice leaves are not as "delicious" as when fertilizing a lot of fertilizer, so the pests are also "critic", so the rate reduced pests. This has double benefits: It costs less fertilizer (only 40%), and it costs less pesticides (due to less pests). After the success of the first case, we tested the second case, the results were equally positive.

Unfortunately, this form has been replicated in Dong Thap, but many other localities still use the old method, farmers just follow the experience left by their fathers "for sure". Sure to eat, but wastes manure, increases the cost of rice production, and also pollutes the environment. This is inefficient production.

Proper use of fertilizers helps to increase production efficiency. Illustration: Tan Long

Why does the old way of fertilizing the environment pollute the environment and change climate, professor?

- Prof. Vo Tong Xuan: There is a thin layer of oxidation on the ground and under the water. This layer of oxidation causes urea to evaporate when applied to the field, because at this time, rice plants have not yet reached up to get manure floating on the ground (because it is not finely ground into the ground). Oxidized urea turns into nitrogen oxide gas (NO2 or N2O), the scientific basis shows that this gas causes climate change 310 times more strongly than CO2. As we all know, carbon is the unit of climate change.

Thus, in order to save production costs, while protecting the environment and climate, right now, reducing nitrogen fertilizer is a very good opportunity for farmers to change the way they use fertilizers, so they have to apply fertilizer immediately. is a priming and only uses 2/5 to 3/5 of the amount of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium to fertilize, then thoroughly to mix the fine fertilizer into the soil, flatten the ground and then sow. The remaining amount of fertilizer will be applied in the next 2 batches: Phase 1 about 25 days after the rice is up, the last time when the rice harvests. The next 2 fertilization sessions have grown and healthy rice plants, so they are absorbed very quickly.

Thus, back to the story of cutting 50-70% of fertilizer for crops that crop engineer Le Thanh Tung - Deputy Director of the Department of Crop Production (MARD) - raised, do you think this idea reasonable?

- Exactly. Of course, at first hearing and not being analyzed as above, there will be many objections. But it should be noted that, as I said above, if fertilizing before sowing rice, it will reduce over 50% of the amount of fertilizer, both saving and not polluting the environment and not changing the climate. Queen. I emphasize once again that the reduction of fertilizer according to the above ratio is only effective when applying priming 1/3 and thoroughly in the soil before sowing. The remaining 2/3 of the fertilizer is done at 2 times as I said above.

- Thank you professor and best wishes to you!