About 26,000 hectares of various crops are expected to be sown by farmers in the province of Las Tunas during the current spring campaign, in which the difficulties that have characterized the activity for several years continue.

Las Tunas, Cuba.- According to Luis Oro Torres, head of the Department of Miscellaneous Crops in the delegation of the Ministry of Agriculture (MINAG in Spanish), the main problem lies in the limited entry of fuel to the territory, an essential element for the plowing of the largest extensions.

He also pointed out that in the eight municipalities, most of the areas are planted in dry land, at the expense of the water that falls from the sky, as there is little coverage of areas under irrigation systems. Crops are also wetted by waterlogging, a highly water-consuming practice.

In this sense, he argued that the province only covers 528 hectares with 29 Fregat machines. However, he said that 12 of them are inactive for different reasons, ranging from the lack of spare parts to the lack of electrical cables that have been stolen.

In addition, Oro Torres said that they received the chemical fertilizers required for the potato plantations and a minimum amount for 35 hectares of beans. The rest of the crops are nourished with organic matter, and pests and diseases are prevented by biological means.

Of the area planned for the current period, 21,711 hectares correspond to MINAG production units and 4,400 to the Azcuba sugar group entities. All of them will be dedicated to various crops, root and fresh vegetables, grains, and fruits.

The specialist added that the cold planting campaign concluded at the end of last February, when the farmers planted 22,311.8 hectares out of the 20,709.9 planned. All items were completed, except plantain.