Blog Growing into Pumpkin Custodians: Women farmers in North Vietnam discover the power of participatory variety selection

The participatory variety selection process, which included eight varieties of different shaped pumpkins grown in the regions (six farmer varieties from the communities and from the PRC, and two hybrids obtained from a commercial seed company), opened women farmers’ eyes about the importance of deliberately maintaining varietal diversity to benefit from the multiple uses of this versatile crop. As observed by Ms. Lo Thi Thanh (Leader of the Thai women's group in Mai Son): “We did not know some of the varieties that were included in the experiment, but we discovered their useful characteristics. Each variety has its advantages and disadvantages, but all of them are useful.”  

Farmers evaluated the growth of the pumpkins at the middle and end of the growing season based on a set of 14  indicators including flowering time, plant vigor, pest and disease incidence, fruit size, fruit shape, taste of leaves and taste of fruit. Considering all the scores given during the two evaluation times, they ranked the best-performing varieties, which in both sites included some local varieties and one or two of the hybrids.

Experimental benefits 

The experiment not only increased awareness, but also strengthened crop management knowledge and skills. The benefits of improved crop management practices - such as transplanting, proper fertilization, spacing and trimming plants - became more evident as farmers observed the impact across the different varieties and plots in the experiment. The process solidified the collective action of women, the collaboration with the researchers, and the social relationships of seed exchange and knowledge. During the participatory final evaluation discussions, all the women farmers expressed satisfaction with the dynamic experimental process.  

The discussions were divided into two sessions, one with the experimental groups (the six members that managed and directly evaluated the experiment), and one with a larger group of farmers from the commune and neighboring communes. At the latter, the technical results and insights gained from the experiment were presented by the farmers themselves with inputs from the technical staff, and small quantities of seeds of the experimental varieties were freely shared with non-participating farmers. Farmers explained which varieties performed best according to their own assessment. “We learned how to compare different varieties and we now want to repeat the experiment with other crops, such as common beans, Hmong mustard, local cucumber, pea, and rice,” remarked Ms. Tan Pa May, the leader of the Dao women group in Sa Pa township.