Meters of beautiful forest are 'selected' to be brought downstream to be sold as Tet poles

With the tree being up to 15 meters long, traders must use large trucks with a cargo bed long enough to transport it. Photo: Quang An

Along National Highway 7A, through Con Cuong and Tuong Duong districts, groups of people were seen loading long meter sticks onto the backs of large trucks. It was learned that these were the most beautiful meter sticks selected from the meter forest used to makeTet pole, traders are purchasing in large quantities to transport downstream for consumption.

Mr. Chang Van Tu in Na Tong village, Tam Thai commune (Tuong Duong) said that his family has more than 2 hectares of meters. Understanding the need of people to use meter trees as flagpoles on Tet holiday, his family chose old meter trees with moderately large trunks, straight and beautiful and not truncated to cut.tradersTrees from the lowlands were purchased at 40,000 VND/tree, so the family tried to select many trees to have more money for Tet. After 3 days of harvesting, the family cut down about 600 trees, earning nearly 24 million VND.

The tree trunk used to make the flagpole should not be too big and must be old, straight and beautiful. Photo: Xuan Hoang

"If we harvest these meters and sell them to traders for construction purposes, the price is only 15,000 VND/tree, but if we use them as Tet poles, the price is 40,000 VND/tree. However, because they are used as Tet poles, we have to choose meters according to the traders' requirements: straight and beautiful, with moderate trunks, and a length of over 13 meters," Mr. Tu shared.

Traders who go to the forest to buy bamboo poles for Tet come from lowland districts. They use large trucks with long beds to transport large quantities.

The pole used to make the Tet pole must have its top intact. Photo: Xuan Hoang

Mr. Khanh, a trader inVinh Citysaid, because the meter tree used to make the Tet pole must be long and straight, the top and leaves must be left intact, so the length is up to 14 - 15 m, so a car with a long trunk must be used to transport it. Each large truck can carry thousands of meter trees/trip. From December 23, people start to set up the Tet pole, so a week before, they have to order it for people to go to the forest to cut it down, in order to transport it downstream to sell on time.

"With a large number of poles on each trip, we have to arrange many sales locations in rural areas, not onlyNghe Anbut also to Ha Tinh. Because of the high cost, from hiring people to load the tree onto the truck, transportation fees... so the price to consumers is much higher than the price bought in the forest. Most rural families have Tet poles, so this item is hot on the market at the end of this year," said Mr. Khanh.

In Nghe An, the two localities of Tuong Duong and Con Cuong have the largest area of ​​meter trees in the province, with nearly 5 thousand hectares. In addition to being used as a Tet pole, meter trees are also used in the construction and handicraft sectors, creating a livelihood for people in the highlands.

Tet pole. Photo: Quang An

Every time Tet comes, the pole becomes a very beautiful image in the first days of the year of the Vietnamese people. According to the traditional concept of the Vietnamese people, the pole is usually erected on the 23rd of December, the day the Kitchen Gods return to heaven; on the 7th of January, the pole is taken down, called the day of lowering the pole. Families, especially those in rural areas, erect the pole in front of their house, above the pole hangs the national flag, today many families decorate the pole eye-catchingly with LED lights and some other decorative items./.