Co runs his own fertilising, watering equipment in Thuong Tan Commune, the southern province of Binh Duong.—Photo nongnghiep.vn

Co, who dropped out of education after primary school, said fertilising and spraying pesticides on the trees was time-consuming, costly and very hard, but doing so properly was crucial to their growth and productivity.

He decided to come up with a way to make fertilising and watering simpler but still effective, as well as to reduce the cost to hire workers to do the job.

After several days of thinking, he told his idea to his cousin, a mechanic.

His cousin said he would help Co to create the equipment he wanted, Nông nghiệp Việt Nam (Vietnamese Agriculture) online newspaper reported.

Creating his own equipment

Co and his cousin started to research and decided to make the equipment based on the operation of the Venturi effect, a system for speeding the flow of fluid, by constricting it in a cone-shaped tube.

Their equipment consisted of a pump with a system of plastic pipes. The size of the pipe in each section was adjusted to fit the mountainous terrain of the garden.

When the water flows with different pressures, a vacuum will be generated. It will draw other substances from the bottom of the pipes following the direction of the flow.

The more difference in pressure, the stronger the vacuum was and vice versa, he said.

Co and his cousin used this to draw the fertiliser in the flow of water to bring it to the trees, he said.

It took Co and his cousin three months to create the equipment, he said.

But when the equipment was put into operation, there was a problem. It worked well with pesticides and water, but not when the fertiliser was in the pipes.

“So we need to treat the fertiliser into liquid before putting it into the pipe system," he added.

Co and his cousin then designed a device to generate convection in water, attaching it to the discharge port of the pump that was placed close to the bottom of the water tank.

When the pump operates, the device creates a convective flow to push the fertiliser from the bottom of the water tank to the top, speeding up the dissolution of the fertiliser into the water.

Thanks to this device, Co is able to avoid the danger of being in direct contact with the fertiliser repeatedly each day, he said.

Cost reduction, copyright registration

Co had to pay about VND50 million (US$2,160) each year to hire four workers to assist him in spraying pesticides, fertilising and watering for the trees before.

Now he can save the money on labour and only has to pay several million dong to make his own equipment.

Thanks to the equipment, Co harvested more the 100 tonnes of pomelo over the Tet (Lunar New Year) period (January 2020), about 20 per cent more than in the same period last year when he did not use the equipment.

He earned a profit of about VND1 billion ($43,190) at that time.

Co is a member of Dong Thuan Phat Agriculture and Service Co-operative.

All 24 members of the co-operative operate his equipment to cultivate their 100ha of fruit trees.

Trinh Minh Thanh, director of the co-operative, said the equipment Co made not only helped local growers cut costs but also protected their health due to limiting exposure with fertiliser and pesticides.

The co-operative has submitted to the provincial Science and Technology Department to issue a copyright certificate for Co, Thanh said.

Then, the co-operative would set up a workshop to produce the equipment at a reasonable price to sell across the country. VNS

Farmers in "occupation groups" improve incomes

A "farmer occupation group model" in the southern province of Ba Ria – Vung Tau has helped farmers improve income and develop sustainable agricultural production.

Coffee farms see high yields from new trees

Coffee farms in Kon Tum Province are producing higher yields from new coffee trees and older trees grafter with young shoots. 

Luc Ngan lychee farmers become prosperous with focus on quality

Luc Ngan District in the northern province of Bac Giang is often thought of as a land of miracles as many types of fruits grow well on its soil.