Sustainable Development of Peri-urban Agriculture

in South-East Asia Project
(Kingdom of Cambodia, Lao PDR, Vietnam RS)

A perfect match

Eggplant rootstocks protect tomato vines from diseases and flooding damage

It’s hard to grow tomatoes in the hot-wet summer season. Severe diseases, harsh rains and flooded fields can easily destroy a crop. Nevertheless, many farmers still try to grow tomatoes in the summer since the market prices are very high.

In response, AVRDC has developed grafting technology that will protect tomato crops in the summer. The key is to match the attributes of tomato and eggplant together. We have identified eggplant varieties that tolerate soil diseases and flooding damage. By grafting a tomato vine onto an eggplant root, the vine will survive the hot-wet season and yield a profitable crop.

Farmers tested this technology in Dong Anh district of Vietnam during August 2004. Four tomato varieties (TN001, TN005, HS2292 and VL2500) were grafted onto eggplant variety EG203 at 16 sites.

The difference was amazing. Nearly every non-grafted tomato plant was infected with bacterial wilt disease - many of these plots produced no yields at all. In stark contrast, all grafted tomato plants survived. Yields ranged from 33.2 t/ha for TN005 to 28.2 t/ha for TN001.

Economic analyses in these sites showed that growing grafted tomato in the hot-wet season is more profitable than growing rice. In 2005 we are sharing this perfect match—tomato vines grown on eggplant roots—to more growers throughout the region.

Promoting safe vegetables in Vietnam

The SUSPER Project is busy promoting vegetable safety––we’re on television, in farmer’s fields, in the markets, and in government offices. Highlights include:

We were recently shown on Vietnam Television 2 (VTV2) to explain our net tunnel technology. This technology shields crops from pests and allows growers to produce pesticide-free vegetables.

We are disseminating information about points of sales for organic and safe vegetables in the journal of consumers’ association, plus local newspapers.

We are evaluating the safety of vegetables sold in three places: supermarkets, “safe vegetable” stalls, and ordinary market stalls. In this work, we are closely examining tomatoes and cabbages imported from China - consumers in Vietnam have expressed great concern over the safety of Chinese vegetables.

We are working with cooperatives in Dong Du and Van Tri on quality control and promotion programs. As part of this work, we are distributing production guidelines to help farmers in these cooperatives to grow safe vegetables. Also in Dong Du, we are helping farmers to label and market their crops as “safe vegetables". Our specialists are teaching them how to monitor the safety of their vegetables by using an affordable test to measure pesticide residues. We are also advising them on how to maintain quality through a system of warnings and sanctions to their growers in case an individual grower uses pesticides inappropriately.

Looking ahead, our experiences in the promotion of safe vegetables in Van Tri, Dong Du and Bao Ha will be analyzed with Markets and Agricultural Linkages for Cities in Asia (MALICA). This will lead to a national workshop in which we will share our findings with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) in Vietnam and assist them in forming guidelines for promoting safe vegetables. These guidelines will open new marketing opportunities for growers and provide safer vegetables for consumers.

Others 

• Early success leads to promotion of grafted tomato technology in northern Vietnam

• Farmers reap profits from tomato growing

• Excellent grafted tomato seedlings available at Hanoi Seeds Company

• The frog business is hopping

• Regional workshop on vegetable MICS (Market Information and Consultation System)

• Agriculture in Hanoi—A Model for Success

• SUSPER calls for safer poultry production practices

• Fishers net more profits using SUSPER nylon cages

• Fresher fish in Ho Chi Minh City

• Laotians want more local vegetables at market

• Technical Workshop and The 3rd Steering Committee meeting in Vientiane

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