Corn on the rock land

Introduction:

It is rare to see a locality in Vietnam that is endowed with so many heritages by nature like Ha Giang, possessing two heritages: Dong Van Karst Plateau UNESCO Global Geopark and the scenic Hoang Su Phi terraced fields.

But, there is another "heritage" in the heart of Ha Giang's stone and soil heritage, forever unchanging: The people. The spacious space here has no place for narrow-mindedness and envy. There is no time for selfishness or inferiority. It waters the souls, which are once thought to be arid but actually have moments to soften and bloom.

I.

We went to Khau Vai, the last commune of Meo Vac when the love market had ended, but its echoes still lingered along the road from the district center, anchored on the billboards and posters on the old trees that are silent by the side road. Scattered in the hidden corners of the mountain, young couples just waited for the sky to get dark then rushed out to find a place for a date.

In the love market this year, the rain came to Khau Vai, to the whole rocky plateau later than usual. It was already the end of March, but only a few slow rain appeared, not even enough to moisten the topsoil. “In Niem Son, Niem Tong - two communes about 10 km from Khau Vai, people have felt impatient and rushed to work the land and plant corn since February. The corn plants grew to about an inch and the rain stopped. The drought causes the plant to wilt, its leaves were burned dry, and then came its death. In 9 out of 12 villages of Khau Vai, the same batch of corn suffered the same fate: lack of water kills the plant. So, fields that have already planted corn have to stop and wait for the rain first," said Linh Thi Vi, Vice Chairwoman of Khau Vai commune.

In the mountains, especially in the harsh rocky plateau, all plans can be easily changed without notice, especially with corn, a crop that is heavily dependent on nature.

Hoang Hai Ly, Director of Ha Giang Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, spoke in lament: “In recent years, there has only been one unusually dry year like this. The rivers upstream become so dry that the riverbed is exposed in plain sight. And to make it worse, it is right when the corn is in bloom and pollinating. With such hot weather, the plants are drowned in the heat and withered before they could be pollinated. And even if pollination is possible, the corn will be stunted, not producing seeds, not having enough quality and yield”.

But in the three rocky villages of Khau Vai, including San Seo Ty, Sin Thau, and Chu Lu Tren, the main crop of corn that has been sown for more than a month is still green and has risen to nearly 2 handspans. Unable to understand how the corn in these three villages survives, unlike other villages, we asked Hoang Thi Dao, an officer of the Khau Vai Commune Fatherland Front. "The rocky area is warmer and cooler, so the soil is also less hot," she said.

II.

Lau Mi Va, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of Can Chu Phin commune, said that local authorities, officials, and the district had a policy to replace corn with another tree several times but all failed, only corn was able to survive in this land.

According to the plan of the Office of Agriculture, this year's corn crop Meo Vac aims to plant over 7,000 ha, including high-yielding corn varieties such as NK4300, NK7328, CP311, CP511 and local corn varieties. That's the plan, but it’s a whole different story when put into practice, like this year's corn crop.

For many generations, the Hmong people in Meo Vac have kept the habit of self-propagating native corn by selecting the most beautiful, uniform, and strongest corn to breed. Very few people grow hybrid corn because the seeds are susceptible to weevils and cannot be used as yeast. The same goes for the family of Sung Mi Chu, a health worker in San Seo Ty village.

“Corn is used to the soil and water in this rock land, and can tolerate drought. But most importantly, you plant another variety of corn but it is unable to grow, this means you will be hungry that year. So the old corn variety persistently stayed with the Hmong people," said Chu.

III.

In recent years, young people of San Seo Ty have invited each other to go to companies. The young go far, down to Hai Phong to work as shoe and garment workers. They leave behind the fields and the rocky mountains. It was the case for Chu's eldest son, Sung Mi Dua and his wife. After Tet, the couple packed up and left. Each month, the two send VND 7 million home, only keeping a small part for rent and living expenses. Chu kept the money for the kids, saving up to prepare for big things.

“I love the kids so much, but they really have to go. Up here, after planting corn, the fields need three more times of cultivating the soil, fertilizing. It will take five months to harvest. During that time, there would be no jobs. People just go to fetch some weeds for the pigs, raise cows and chickens, basically earning no income," Chu said.

Sung Mi Chu's family is one of the most dynamic groups in San Seo Ty, boldly doing business in this land. When there is something that requires him to spend big money, Chu can just sell an adult bull and a herd of piglets, making approximately VND 30 - 50 million. That money is used to buy rice or fertilizer for the corn field.

Chu also has two breeding cows for neighbors to adopt in the form of rotation. When the mother cow gives birth to two children, Chu will receive one, but the mother cow is still Chu's. If there are families who wish to borrow breeding cows to have calves, Chu will lend them again. That is the way to help each other have means of production and be self-sufficient enough to eradicate poverty.