Celebrate Tet with "unique" and strange fruits

(Baonghean) - The price is not cheap, ranging from several hundred to several tens of millions of VND for a unique ornamental tree or fruit, but the market for unique and strange trees and fruits for the Lunar New Year is still very vibrant.

The closer to Lunar New Year, the more bustling the flower and ornamental plant market along Lenin Avenue (Vinh City). In addition to the familiar ornamental plants commonly sold along both sides of the road, the vendors here also import some unique and unusual fruit products, attracting the attention of many people. Among them, the Phu Gia grapefruit row at the stall of Ms. Le Thi Hai Ha (Kim Chi flower village, Vinh City) is very crowded with customers.

Customers choose to buy Phu Gia grapefruit on Lenin Avenue (Vinh city).

Phu Gia grapefruit is the name of a tree that is grafted from dozens to hundreds of grapefruits mixed with Buddha's hand on the base and trunk of a tree that is nearly ten years old, with an average height of 0.8 - 2m. The price of Phu Gia grapefruit depends on the shape and number of fruits on the tree, ranging from 2 million VND to 25 million VND/tree. Due to its beautiful appearance, large number of fruits and golden color that brings a feeling of abundance and fulfillment, this type of grapefruit is chosen by many people as a Tet gift, or bought to display in the house with the hope of a full and lucky new year.

Ms. Le Thi Hai Ha said that due to the high price, although the markets in other provinces and cities have been "crazy" about Phu Gia grapefruit since last year, this year she and some households in Kim Chi ornamental flower village have boldly invested heavily in this unique product. The source of goods is imported from many places: Van Giang, Hung Yen, Hanoi, Da Lat... The Tet market is very volatile, so diversifying the supply sources helps her have more proactive choices.

The special thing is that customers who buy trees will be advised on care services so that by the time of Tet, the Phu Gia grapefruit trees will produce very fragrant flowers, bringing a new flavor to Tet. Currently, Ms. Le Thi Hai Ha's Phu Gia grapefruit row has about 30 pots that do not have a new owner, but she affirms that based on the business situation like the past few days, the goods will definitely be sold out after about the 23rd day of the lunar calendar.

Not only Phu Gia grapefruit, but in recent days, on social networking sites, there has been a "trend" of playing with Nhu Y dragon fruit trees, hundred-fruit apples... Also using the same grafting technique as Phu Gia grapefruit, Nhu Y dragon fruit and hundred-fruit apples are skillfully grafted by gardeners from dozens to hundreds of fruits onto the shaped tree trunk. According to the advertisement, these unique trees are about 1m tall, with dense fruit from the base to the top of the tree, the bright red color of dragon fruit and apples brings a feeling of fullness and luck for the new year.

Nhu Y dragon fruit is also an ornamental fruit that "attracts" customers during Tet.

Contacting the phone numbers of the owners publicly on social networks, we learned that at present, they are only advertising and accepting pre-orders, and the goods will not be shipped from the gardens in Binh Thuan to Vinh City until after the 20th of the lunar calendar, because these grafted trees are very weak, have a short lifespan, and are easily damaged. The price ranges from 800,000 VND to more than 2 million VND/tree depending on the size, number of fruits, and the "pleasing" appearance.

If ornamental plants are usually the choice of gentlemen, fruit products are of more interest to housewives. Ms. Bui Thu Dung (Herman Gmainer Street, Vinh City) said: She has "chosen" the watermelon with embossed gold Phuc - Loc - Tho, lucky golden monkey, Than Tai melon and Luan Van red grapefruit to display on the altar during Tet.

Luan Van red grapefruit, also known as the royal grapefruit variety, originates from gardens in Tho Xuong (Thanh Hoa). The grapefruit has a very eye-catching bright red color. The Than Tai melon and Phuc - Loc - Tho watermelon are said to be Chinese fruits, each fruit has a lifespan of months in outdoor temperatures. Ignoring the unusual features of this unique fruit, many people still spend a lot of money to buy it for Tet because of the mentality of "loving strange things and preferring rare things".

God of Wealth melon - the item chosen to display on the altar.

“Only three days of Tet in the whole year” is a common saying of many people these days and that is also used to explain the trend of searching and buying unique and rare items to “play” Tet. However, before spending a large amount of money on buying goods, people also need to carefully consider the value, quality, and safety for their health and their family.

The reason is that grafted trees with hundreds of fruits such as dragon fruit, red apples or genetically modified fruits such as God of Wealth melon, printed watermelon, etc., before being sold to consumers, are mostly sprayed with stimulants and preservatives to maintain their firm shape as well as their beauty. When placing trees in a narrow, closed space or eating fruits grafted on trees, it will affect human health due to the amount of residual chemicals that have not been completely decomposed. Therefore, to be a smart consumer, you must harmonize between choosing unique and strange fruit trees to make Tet more joyful and fresh, but equally important is the safety of yourself and your family.

Phuoc Anh