In 2018, from the budget for implementing the production program of high-quality rice in the direction of VietGAP, applying 3 reductions and 3 increase and rice growing techniques according to SRI, Bac Lieu Agricultural Extension Center has implemented the model of smart rice cultivation on shrimp farming land. The model is implemented on 5-hectare scale in Phuoc Long district, in which 5 households participating. Accordingly, farmers are supported100% of seed rice, 30% of fertilizer and plant protection materialsby the State, 70% of the remaining fertilizer is supported by Binh Dien Fertilizer Joint Stock Company. In addition, farmers are instructed by technical staff of the Provincial Agricultural Extension Center to apply scientific and technical advances to production, from salt washing, soil preparation, sowing to caring and harvesting stages, to implement integrated pest management program IPM and to use medicines according to the principle of "4 correct". The evaluation of the results of the field implementation showed that farmers only sprayed 1 time of pesticide, balanced fertilizer, yield was nearly 7.5 tons per hectare (fresh rice), profit increased more than 1.2 million VND per hectare compared to the control field.
After raising a shrimp crop, farmers will either plant a rice crop or combine raising freshwater prawn and growing rice. Smart rice cultivation is actually a technical solution, from soil preparation, seed sowing, fertilizing, pest management, care, harvesting, … even so farmers still have high income due to the purpose of orientation to produce efficiently and reduce input costs. Previously, farmers often had a habit of thick sowing, which affected a lot to later stages such as caring, limiting disease and harvesting. Up to now, farmers know how to apply a variety of techniques to limit the amount of seed rice when sowing but still make it suitable for land, do not affect productivity and output (from 150-180 kilograms of seed rice to 80 kilograms per hectare). Mr. Le Viet Thang, a model participant in Long Hau village, Phuoc Long town shared that “Compared to the past, the smart rice cultivation model has helped to significantly reduce the cost of input from rice seed, medicine fertilizer and care ..., but the biggest benefit is the end-of-season rice crop which always achieves high productivity and sale price. According to the conclusion of many farmers, in the rice-shrimp farming system, after one shrimp crop, there is one rice crop, then the organic waste at the bottom of the pond after the shrimp harvest will make the rice fields become fertile, rice growers only apply a small amount of fertilizer to meet the growing demand of rice.
In addition, to avoid affecting shrimp, model implementers must apply integrated preventive measures, limit diseases, and use less plant pesticides. In contrast, shrimp farming after the rice crop makes the bottom of the pond mineralized, which reduces toxic substances in shrimp farming, limits the situation of shrimp farming area aging due to long-term saline soil, at the same time reduces pathogens in the field, stabilized the environment of shrimp fields so shrimp farming does not need to use a lot of drugs, chemicals, which lead to low production costs, increased profits. In fact, the production of rice-shrimp model in Bac Lieu over the years shows that growing rice on shrimp farming land does not happen "conflict" on the use of brackish and fresh water in the production process. In the dry season, the water outside the saline water is taken for tiger prawn culture. In the rainy season, the farmers take fresh water to grow rice, the efficiency is very significant, accordingly, many farmers in the transition area become rich.
TRAN HONG DUONG