These days, many peach blossom farmers in Nhat Tan Village get even busier than usual, ready to reap the benefits of hard work that has lasted years.
It is Tet season and people all over the country are preparing to celebrate the biggest, most important festival of the year. One of the most important things to buy for Tet in northern Vietnam is the peach blossom branch, which are carefully selected to have enough buds that will bloom at the right time.
Many households planting peach blossoms have to hire people to transport the peach trees and branches to the market. Nhat Tan Village has been famous for its peach blossom cultivation for a long time.
A worker sprays pesticides in a peach blossom garden. "Three weeks before the Lunar New Year comes, if several blossoms bloom in each tree, then the trees would bloom beautifully at the right time," said a local resident.
With Nhat Tan losing land to urbanization, the area for peach trees has decreased, but over the last 10 years, the Red River mud flats have been used to plant pink blossoms, white blossoms and other varieties.
Huu, a local farmer, is plucking some leaves off the tree so the flowers can bloom at the right time during the holiday. He said growers have to know the right way to take care of the plant to optimize its festival impact and ensure maximum sales.
A peach tree with a beautiful shape is being dug up. It will be transported the city and sold. The garden owner said that great care has to be taken to keep the tree's roots and surrounding soil intact so that the tree and flowers remain fresh and last long.
In one Nhat Tan peach garden, there is one 12-year-old that has white flowers.
"The process of planting and taking care of white peach blossoms is very difficult. They do not bloom at the right time every year. This year, the weather conditions are favorable so the tree has many flowers, and this white peach branch can sell for VND10 million ($431.11)," said Nguyen Thi Thu, the tree's owner.
A beautiful 2-year-old peach branch with a beautiful shape is sold at the garden for VND600,000 ($25.87).
Fifteen peach trees over 5 years old have just been sold by a garden owner for VND60 million ($2,587) to a trader who will take it to another province.
Peach branches with buds and blossoms are taken by street vendors to sell on many capital city streets.
This year, the first day of the Lunar New Year, the Year of the Pig, will fall on February 5 in the Gregorian calendar.