Farmers turn specialty crops into tourism attractions

In recent years, many localities across Dong Nai City have been developing garden tourism. However, most farmers still rely on existing fruit orchards to welcome visitors, resulting in relatively limited added value.

Visitors pose for souvenir photos at a date palm garden in Tri An Ward.

In recent years, some farmers have taken a different approach, investing in unusual and specialty crops to create distinctive attractions for visitors. As a result, fruit grown in their gardens is no longer merely agricultural produce but has also become a tourism product, sold directly to visitors at higher prices and helping increase value for growers.

Unique specialty gardens

During the fruit-ripening season, the date palm garden owned by Nguyen Huu Dien near Tri An Lake in Tri An Ward welcomes hundreds of visitors on average each day to explore the garden and sample its fruit. As a rare specialty-garden model, the site charges VND80,000 per person for admission, while visitors are also willing to pay above-market prices to purchase fresh dates as gifts.

Dien's garden currently has 350 date palm trees, including specialty varieties such as Barhee, Dahan and Konaizi. The trees were planted 3.5 years ago. In the first year, the garden produced its first crop, but yields were still modest. This is the second year of harvesting, and yields have been relatively high. Depending on the variety, each tree produces about 3 kilograms of fruit, while mature trees can yield up to 10 kilograms.

Dien said tourism around Tri An Lake is developing rapidly and attracting large numbers of visitors. He therefore invested in date palms, a crop that remains relatively uncommon in the area, with the aim of developing a garden tourism model.

According to Dien, although date palms are an exotic crop, they grow and develop well in Dong Nai's sunny and windy climate. In particular, because the garden is located next to Tri An Lake, the growers use water from the Dong Nai River for irrigation. The clean natural water helps the trees grow well and produce quality fruit.

Tran Thi Diem Huyen, a worker caring for the date palm garden, said the trees are cultivated using organic-oriented methods. To control pests and diseases, the flowers are bagged once the trees begin flowering, followed by fruit bagging after fruit sets. Different types of bags are used at different stages, along with flower thinning, fruit thinning and harvesting. "At harvest time, only ripe fruit is picked rather than cutting down the entire fruit cluster. Every stage requires meticulous care," Huyen said.

According to Dien, combining specialty-crop cultivation for sale with tourism generates significantly greater value than conventional agricultural production. This is also why the garden owner has been willing to make a substantial investment in the model.

However, the biggest obstacle to replicating the model is the high initial investment. The seedlings must be imported from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) at high prices. In addition, because date palms are an exotic crop, pioneering farmers have had to research and learn cultivation and care techniques on their own, further increasing initial investment costs.

Supporting farmers in developing garden tourism

Localities with large fruit-growing areas are encouraging farmers to develop garden tourism model through various measures, including supporting growers in shifting toward organic production and creating safe agricultural products; organizing training courses on garden tourism and community tourism; promoting farms and their products through festivals and tourism and agricultural fairs; and developing One Commune, One Product (OCOP) products linked to garden tourism and community tourism.

Expanding the specialty garden model

In recent years, many localities across Dong Nai City have developed garden tourism. Some farmers have boldly invested in rare and hard-to-find specialty varieties, creating distinctive garden tourism products to attract visitors.

Tran Anh Tung, a farmer in Long Thanh Ward, said rural infrastructure, particularly roads, has been upgraded and expanded to provide better access to garden farms. Long Thanh is also located in the buffer zone of Long Thanh Airport, giving it favorable conditions for developing garden tourism.

According to Tung, many garden owners in the area are shifting from fruit production toward combining agriculture with tourism. His family has also invested in growing a diverse range of specialty fruits, including mangosteen, langsat and various durian varieties, to diversify its products and attract visitors to explore, sample and purchase fruit as gifts.

"We plan to invest in additional food and beverage services, accommodation and recreational activities to give visitors more experiences when they come to the garden," Tung said.

Visitors explore and purchase specialty produce at a garden growing imported grape varieties in Long Thanh Ward.

Similarly, Tran Quoc Phong, owner of Ut Tieu Fruit Garden in Binh Loc Ward, said that during this year's fruit-ripening season, the garden is organizing tours for visitors to explore and experience specialty fruit gardens. The garden is also operating a stall selling various fruits, including mangosteen, Thai mangoes, Musang King durians and avocados. Selling fruit at the garden allows growers to market fresh produce while meeting visitors' demand for tasting and purchasing local specialties as gifts.

Speaking about the effectiveness of the garden tourism model, Hoang Duc Liem, Chairman of the Farmers' Association of Binh Loc Ward, said the locality has a large area of agricultural land with soil conditions suitable for growing a wide range of specialty fruit trees. This gives Binh Loc an advantage in developing garden-based ecotourism.

In addition to traditional fruit gardens that mainly produce crops during the summer, some farmers have adopted high-tech farming methods, growing fruit trees in greenhouses while introducing specialty varieties that remain uncommon on the market. This approach allows garden owners to attract tourists year-round or create distinctive attractions through novelty, thereby increasing their model value.

From fruit orchards, farmers are gradually creating distinctive tourism products. When fruit is no longer simply something to sell but also becomes an experience, the stories behind each garden become part of the attraction. This approach could help promote sustainable agricultural tourism while creating greater value for local farm produce.

By Binh Nguyen - Translated by Mai Nga, Thu Ha