Ganoderma lucidum bonsai worth tens of millions attracts customers for Tet

On average, for every 20 cultivated products, only one pot meets the standards for sale, so the price of ornamental ganoderma is quite expensive, and the products produced cannot meet market demand.

Talking to VnExpress, Mr. Pham Thanh Loc, residing in Tan Thanh Dong commune (Cu Chi, Ho Chi Minh City) said that on the occasion of the upcoming Binh Than Lunar New Year, he is preparing to launch a line of elaborately crafted bonsai lingzhi mushroom products to the market, symbolizing longevity, luck, and fortune for the homeowner. This precious and expensive mushroom is meticulously tissue-cultured in the laboratory, through a special care secret, the deer horn lingzhi mushroom ears are hidden and branched in many beautiful bonsai shapes. The product has the lowest price of 3-5 million VND per pot, with a compact size for the table and 10 million VND to tens of millions of VND per medium or large pot.

Currently, orders have reached 10 large-sized Ganoderma bonsai pots, 300 tabletop pots and 100 medium-sized pots, mainly serving wholesale customers who are two real estate tycoons in Ho Chi Minh City and a bonsai wholesaler in Hanoi. "The total value of the order is about 1.5 billion VND, so we have to rush because we are worried that we won't be able to supply the goods as required," Mr. Loc shared.

Fresh Ganoderma is being cultivated before entering the bonsai shaping stage. Photo: Vu Le

After more than a decade of distributing wholesale plant varieties to gardeners and researching tissue culture of precious medicinal herbs, it was not until 2015 that Mr. Loc started creating bonsai lingzhi mushrooms. The artist explains about this special mushroom. Accordingly, since ancient times, lingzhi mushrooms have been revered as a panacea, reserved only for kings and queens with many other names such as immortality mushroom, immortal herb, ten thousand years, divine mushroom, magical grass, and wish-fulfilling mushroom. In "Shennong's Herbal", lingzhi is classified as one of the 9 types of elixirs, a super premium product even better than ginseng.

In the "Compendium of Materia Medica", Ganoderma is considered a precious medicine, with the effects of protecting the liver, detoxifying, strengthening the heart, strengthening the brain, eliminating phlegm, promoting urination, and benefiting the stomach. Recently, scientists have discovered that Ganoderma also has the effect of preventing and fighting cancer, anti-aging, increasing longevity, and many other valuable uses for health. Ganoderma helps purify the air in the room, creating a feeling of comfort, and dispelling stress and fatigue.

The main medicinal ingredients of Ganoderma lucidum are Germanium, ganoderic acid, ganodermic acid, oleic acid, ganodosteron, ganoderans, adenosine, beta-D-glucan... In particular, in Ganoderma lucidum, the germanium content is 5-8 times higher than in ginseng.

Dried bonsai ganoderma can be preserved for many years. Photo: Vu Le

Mr. Loc said that bonsai ganoderma is a trendy ornamental plant, originating from Japan and only recently introduced to Vietnam in recent years. It has a wood element and red color, bringing luck and longevity to its owner. Ganoderma products on the Vietnamese market are mainly ornamental ganoderma, the number of ganoderma mushrooms created in bonsai shape is very small and has not reached bonsai level. Therefore, bonsai ganoderma is truly rare. The limited number of bonsai ganoderma is not because few people are interested in growing it, but because it is very difficult to create ganoderma mushrooms.

To have a pot of Ganoderma bonsai, the artist must spend a long time cultivating and creating mushrooms in extremely special conditions, lasting more than half a year. The rate of creating a beautiful tree depends on the artist's skills. On average, it takes 20 pots to have an excellent Ganoderma bonsai pot, so the price is very expensive.

Currently, Mr. Loc's company can only supply 2 types: fresh and dried bonsai. Dried Ganoderma bonsai has been completely crafted by the artisan, put into a bonsai pot and protected so that it can be played with for a long time, from 4-5 years, this type is only for display.

Deer antler bonsai ganoderma is in the process of being created. Photo: Vu Le

Fresh Ganoderma is created by artisans on bonsai pots, has shape but is not fully developed, players need to take care of the tree carefully when buying it to grow. After 2-3 months, the mushroom is mature, it can be dried, protective measures can be taken to play for a long time or players can cut the fruiting body of the mushroom to drink to improve health. After cutting off the fruiting body of the mushroom, it needs to be carefully cared for to continue to produce other fruiting bodies, players can continue to play 2-3 times like that depending on the pot.

For fresh Ganoderma, the mushroom is not just a decorative plant but has become a “pet”. Players will experience taking care of it themselves, watering and misting the mushroom regularly 4-6 times a day. Avoid placing the Ganoderma mushroom in front of a fan, do not expose it to the sun. Enjoy the joy of watching your mushroom grow day by day and bring luck to the owner.

Most of the potted Ganoderma lucidum are decorated with stones such as: Quartz, Snow Mountain, Tiger, Cobalt, Cat's Ear, and Lava. Some pots are attached with feng shui materials such as quartz crystals, gold studs, etc. to meet the feng shui needs of many different mushroom lovers.

Currently, the bonsai ganoderma products created by Mr. Loc are not widely sold by the company on the market, most of the products being ordered are used as gifts. In particular, some special pots worth tens of millions of VND were ordered by players at the beginning of the year so that they could bring them home to display for Tet from the beginning of December with high quality.

Mr. Loc added that this Lunar New Year, he participated in displaying bonsai miniatures at Nguyen Hue flower street so that people could admire lingzhi mushrooms from a different, more unique perspective.

According to VNE