Flower villages in Nghe An are bustling with activity in preparation for Tet.
(Baonghean.vn) - This period is considered the crucial time for flower growers to intensify the care of their cultivated flowers and import flowers from other places to sell during Tet (Lunar New Year). This year, the winter has been unusual, so flower and ornamental plant growers and businesses are both anxiously awaiting the weather and monitoring market developments.
Businesspeople are eagerly awaiting the market.
These days, visiting flower and ornamental plant villages like Kim Chi, Kim Phuc (Nghi An), Trung Lien (Nghi Lien) or along streets specializing in flowers and ornamental plants such as Le Nin Boulevard, Xo Viet Nghe Tinh… one can already see a bustling and urgent atmosphere.
Flower and ornamental plant growers have imported Tet flowers from all over to meet people's needs. Trucks carrying yellow apricot blossoms from Binh Dinh, petunias, peonies, marigolds, hydrangeas from Da Lat, chrysanthemums from Dong Thap, kumquat trees from Hung Yen, peach blossoms from Nhat Tan, etc., have arrived at Vinh port and are unloading their goods.
Ms. Vo Thi Thuy Hang, owner of a flower and ornamental plant nursery in Nghi An commune (Vinh City), said: “Since the end of November 2023, I have visited famous flower-growing regions nationwide to survey prices and select quality flower nurseries to place deposits in advance. By January 2024, I will import the goods for sale. This year, the imported goods are very diverse, with a full range of flower types and prices to serve different customer segments. For the past three months, sales have increased sharply due to the high demand for landscaping, beautification, and completion of construction projects.”
For many years now, as the area for flower gardens has shrunk, people in the flower and ornamental plant villages on the outskirts of Vinh have switched to trading in flowers and ornamental plants, mainly importing flowers from other places, cultivating, caring for, pruning, and shaping them to supply the market.
Mr. Hoang Oai, the owner of a flower and ornamental plant agency in Nghi An commune, said: “Our nursery mainly imports goods from other places to supply second-level dealers and retailers at markets. This year, the economy is difficult, and we are worried about weak purchasing power, so we are selling while also monitoring market developments. We also don't import goods in bulk but divide them into several different batches.”
Mai Hien, the owner of a flower and plant shop in Vinh City, only sells flowers and ornamental plants seasonally during holidays and Tet (Lunar New Year), starting from December. She travels to flower villages in Hanoi, Nam Dinh, and Hung Yen to select flowers that suit consumer tastes to import and sell during Tet.
“Currently, the demand for fresh flowers is high. However, it won't be concentrated during the Lunar New Year; people tend to enjoy flowers from the Gregorian New Year to the Lunar New Year. Therefore, we need to understand consumer preferences to supply them. Before Tet, the focus is mainly on affordable, budget-friendly flowers like mini peach blossoms, mini kumquats, mini potted chrysanthemums… during the Lunar New Year, the focus shifts to branch peach blossoms, cassia peach blossoms, orchids on driftwood, tulips, double lilies… This year, prices have remained relatively stable, not increasing compared to last year. However, due to the difficult economic situation, people will also be more frugal in their shopping. Before importing goods, we survey customer demand and base our orders on the number of pre-orders to ensure we stock the appropriate amount,” Ms. Hien said.
Grower"waiting”weather
To serve the Lunar New Year market this year, Mr. Pham Trung Kien in Mau 1 hamlet, Kim Lien commune (Nam Dan district) planted 1,000 pots of various types of lilies and 15,000 chrysanthemum plants. This year, the weather has been quite unpredictable, making flower care difficult, especially ensuring the flowers bloom precisely during Tet.
“The alternating periods of warm sunshine and cold rain are unpredictable, making flower care quite challenging. Therefore, while we focus our efforts on fertilizing, weeding, mounding soil, pinching off tips, pruning branches, and bagging buds, we also have to closely monitor weather forecasts to make appropriate adjustments. If it gets cold, we use lights to stimulate bud growth; if the sun is too strong, we have to use shade nets to delay blooming. Although there's still a month until Lunar New Year, traders have already come to the garden to inspect the flowers and place deposits,” Mr. Kien said.
Although in recent years the market for flowers and ornamental plants during Tet has seen many new and unique products, not to mention many imported flowers, peach blossom growers in Nghe An are not worried about sales. This is because, compared to other flowers, peach blossoms remain a characteristic flower that almost every family displays during Tet.
In particular, the peach blossoms from Nghe An have a unique beauty and superior durability compared to peach blossoms grown in other regions. "We're not worried about sales or price competition, but our biggest concern is the unusual weather this year. If the warm weather persists until Tet, the peach blossoms will likely bloom earlier than expected," said Nguyen Van Phu, a peach blossom grower in Kim Thanh (Yen Thanh).
Sharing the same concern about premature blooming, lily growers in Nghi Long commune (Nghi Loc district) are currently both tending to their flowers and monitoring the weather to adjust their care accordingly. "The more unpredictable the weather, the more difficult the flower care becomes. At this time, we have to constantly monitor the weather to adjust everything from watering and fertilizing to controlling the temperature in the greenhouse so that the flowers bloom right on Tet," said Mr. Tran Quoc Tuan, a lily grower in Kim Nghia hamlet, Nghi Long commune (Nghi Loc district).
