Peach blossoms, kumquats, apricot blossoms, orchids, and the struggle for survival during Tet...

Journey from North to South

For street vendors selling Tet flowers, the business season starts very early, even before many people have time to think about Tet. From around the 11th lunar month, they proactively set out, spreading out to flower villages inside and outside the province to find sources of "beautiful" and "popular" flowers to supply the Tet market.

Having been involved in the business for nearly 15 years, Ms. Mai Hien, residing in Truong Vinh ward, is accustomed to this rhythm. Every year, around the 11th lunar month, she packs her bags and travels to the peach blossom villages of Nhat Tan (Hanoi), the kumquat orchards of Van Giang (Hung Yen), and even down to Sa Dec (Dong Thap) to select and order chrysanthemums. These trips, one after another, require careful planning of time and costs... "The closer it gets to Tet, the more hectic the work becomes, so I usually leave at night to arrive at the flower villages early in the morning, inspect the goods, finalize the deposit, and then return to sell," Ms. Hien shared.

Before each trip, she always contacts the nurseries in advance, clearly defining the destination and arranging the itinerary to save time. But even though they've been regular customers for many years, going directly to the nurseries and personally selecting the flowers is still an indispensable step. "Customers are very picky about the flowers for Tet (Lunar New Year). The nurseries send pictures and do live streams, but I still have to go there in person to assess the shape of the plants, the flower buds, and their maturity. Going there in person is also a way to affirm credibility. I do live streams for customers to see, take real photos and post them on Facebook and Zalo so customers can finalize their orders beforehand. If the flowers remain unsold, it's a loss," Ms. Hien said.

Since the beginning of November in the lunar calendar, Ms. Hien's flower shops on Nguyen Van Cu and Nguyen Thi Minh Khai streets have imported hundreds of pots of chrysanthemums, mini kumquat trees, and cut peach blossoms to serve customers decorating for the Lunar New Year, as well as offices, workplaces, and cafes creating miniature landscapes. Behind this bustling scene lies the pressure of selecting the right goods, because even a slight deviation from market trends could result in the complete loss of capital invested in the Tet flower season.

Having only been in the business for two years, Mr. Hoang Quynh, residing in Vinh Phu ward, has already experienced the hardships of selling Tet flowers. Around the beginning of December in the lunar calendar, he begins his trips to border communes in Nghe An province to find and buy peach blossom branches. These trips are long, requiring him to endure the elements, staying in remote villages and forests to select the most suitable branches. "Peach blossom branches grow in the forest and in the fields. To get a beautiful branch, you have to look at the shape, the evenness of the branches, the moss on the trunk, and the age of the tree. Transportation is also very important; just one mistake and the buds will be crushed, the branches broken, and the price will drop immediately," Mr. Quynh shared.

In recent years, bellflower blossoms have become increasingly popular in Nghe An province due to their unique beauty, long-lasting flowers, and ability to bloom just in time for Tet (Lunar New Year). However, the majority of bellflower blossoms currently available are still harvested from the wild. To obtain large branches, traders have to travel to northern provinces, contact local people, directly survey the deep forests, place deposits, and set cutting dates. Chu Quynh, a bellflower blossom trader in Vinh Phu ward, said: “Beautiful bellflower blossoms usually grow on high mountains, in rugged terrain, and in thick fog. Finding them is very laborious. The price of each branch ranges from 2 to 7 million VND, and the risks are commensurate.”

Those trips conclude when the suppliers have been selected, the capital has been deposited, and the flower vendors return to the city with a finalized inventory, along with calculations of transportation costs, space rental, and weather risks. Once the supplier selection is complete, they move on to the next phase of the season: setting up stalls, securing locations, preparing the market, and waiting for the flowers to arrive in the city to officially enter the Tet (Lunar New Year) race.

Those days of eating on the streets and sleeping in the markets.

These days, in Vinh Phu and Vinh Hung wards, and along many major streets such as Ho Tung Mau, Le Mao, Truong Thi, and Le Nin, flower stalls for Tet (Lunar New Year) are beginning to be set up. The vendors are mainly focused on securing space, setting up tents, surveying the market, and preparing for the large shipment of goods that will arrive in the near future.

In the flower and ornamental plant villages of Vinh Phu and Vinh Hung, people have been busy bringing flowers to the city since early morning. Having been involved in flower cultivation for decades, Ms. Tran Thi Oanh from Trung Lien block, Vinh Hung ward, said that in recent years, she not only sells flowers directly from her garden but also transports them in pots, using old carts to markets such as Quan Lau, Hung Dung, Ben Thuy, Quang Trung... in Truong Vinh, Thanh Vinh, and Vinh Phu wards...

"Compared to selling at the garden, transporting them to sell fetches a better price, but it's very hard work. Transporting flowers requires extreme care; just a broken branch or a damaged bud means a loss of value," said Ms. Oanh, her hands still nimbly adjusting the flower pots on the cart.

For large flower growers, bringing their flowers to the city means the whole family has to live in makeshift shelters. Mr. Nguyen Huu Hien (65 years old), a flower grower in Kim Phuc neighborhood, said that every year during Tet (Lunar New Year), he rents space in the city center and sets up a tarp to sell flowers. The temporary stall only contains a small table, a gas stove, a rice cooker, a few plastic chairs, and an old double bed. “For about a month during Tet, the whole family takes turns staying here. During the day, we sell and care for the flowers; at night, we take turns guarding them. We have to endure the wind and mosquito bites. We depend on this Tet flower season all year,” Mr. Hien said, his voice slowing down.

Not only locals, but many gardeners from distant provinces have also arrived in Nghe An early to set up stalls, reserve spots, and explore the market. Along Le Nin Street, in the area around the Labor Culture House, tents selling peach blossoms, apricot blossoms, kumquats, and phalaenopsis orchids have begun to appear sporadically, even though not many flowers have been brought in yet.

Huynh Hung Duong, from Binh Dinh province, said this is the second year he has brought yellow apricot blossoms from Binh Dinh to Nghe An to sell during Tet. "Right now, I'm mainly setting up stalls, arranging accommodation, and preparing the ground. I'll start transporting the apricot blossoms in about two weeks," he said.

Recalling previous flowering seasons, Mr. Duong still remembers the days he spent living in a foreign land. “There were years when the weather was bitterly cold, with prolonged drizzle. We didn’t dare sleep at night because we had to watch over the flowers, spray water, and use lights to stimulate bud growth. Those potted apricot blossom trees were our entire fortune, so even though we were exhausted, we had to take turns staying awake to protect the flowers,” he recounted.

Flowers add vibrancy to the streets of Nghe An every spring. But behind those beautiful flowers are long journeys, sleepless nights, and the constant worry of making a living. Selling flowers for Tet (Lunar New Year) involves not only heavy lifting, irregular meals, and makeshift sleeping arrangements, but also many risks: unpredictable weather, fierce competition… all they hope for is a warm and prosperous Tet.

Thanh Phuc