As the Year of the Dragon is just around the corner, the shopping atmosphere has been warmed up day by day. This year, the market sees a wide range of flowers and ornamental plants put up for sale to meet consumers’ taste and demand.
Kumquat bonsai is among many people’s favourite choices of ornamental plants for Tet. The photo is taken at a shop on Cu Chinh Lan street in Phuong Lam ward, Hoa Binh city.
Whenever a
Lunar New Year (Tet) comes and the spring arrives, families often buy flowers
and ornamental plants to decorate their homes. In Hoa Binh city, many flower
and plant shops have welcomed a large number of visitors and buyers on these
days. Most sellers have increased flowers and plants for sale by three - four
times compared to normal days to meet people’s demand.
Nguyen Phuong
Thuy, owner of the Giap Thuy garden on An Duong Vuong street of Thai Binh ward
(Hoa Binh city), said to meet the Tet flower demand, her shop has purchased
more flowers and ornamental plants for sale since the end of the 11thlunar month. Most of the flowers have bright and fast colours and are fresh for
a long time. Meanwhile, small ornamental plants that can be put on tables or
hung and suitable for small spaces like "do quyen” (Rhododendron), orchids, "trang nguyen” (Euphorbia
pulcherrima), "da yen
thao” (Petunia hybrida), and daisy are also available. The shop also offers the
plants believed to be good for house owners’ fortune like "kim ngan” (Pachira
Aquatica), "kim tien” (Zamioculcas
zamiifolia), "phu quy” (Aglaonema
hybrid), and "ngoc
ngan” (Osaka
White Aglaonema).
Most of the
flowers and plants hail from Van Giang district of Hung Yen province, she said,
adding that prices do not vary much, from over 100,000 VND (4 USD) to several
millions of VND each plant.
Tran Thi Ngoc,
owner of a shop in the vicinity of Hoa Binh Square in Quynh Lam ward (Hoa Binh
city), said that this year, she sells mainly "nhat chi mai” (Prunus
Mume Sieb & Zucc), which was
often displayed by rich families during Tet in the past. As this plant could be
shaped in many beautiful forms, many families have chosen it to decorate their
homes in recent years. Each plant is sold at about 700,000 VND – several
millions of VND.
Besides,
traditional plants like peach blossoms, kumquat trees, and yellow apricot
blossoms with diverse shapes and prices are also put up for sale in the
vicinity of Hoa Binh Square, markets, gardens, and shops across Hoa Binh city.
To meet
consumers’ demand, some gardens also rent out ornamental plants. Consumers can
also use growers’ plant caring service for one year and bring it home when Tet
comes.
Over recent years, the Farmers' Union of Mai Chau district has implemented numerous specific programmes and activities to support its members in developing products under the One Commune One (OCOP) programme. These efforts have contributed to enhancing local agricultural branding, increasing goods value, and improving incomes and living standards for residents.
Since 2022, the Hoa Binh Department of Education and Training has provided advice for the provincial People's Committee to issue Plan No. 219/KH-UBND on November 17, 2022, which outlines the implementation of a project titled "Enhancing the application of Information Technology (IT) and Digital Transformation in Education and Training for the 2022–2025 period, with a vision to 2030.” As of now, the local education sector has made significant progress in IT adoption and digital transformation.
Hoa Binh allocated over 30 trillion VND (nearly 1.18 billion USD) to develop infrastructure systems in ethnic minority and mountainous areas during 2019 - 2024. Priority was given to transport and irrigation infrastructure; markets; schools; medical stations; communal houses; and power grid, telecommunication, radio, and television systems.
The Hoa Binh provincial organising committee for anniversary activities on December 17 held a ceremony to unveil a ceramic mural on the local military-civilian ties and release a book on the Party and political work of the provincial armed forces during 1947 – 2024, in commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the Vietnam People’s Army (VPA) and 35th anniversary of the All-People Defence Festival.
In recent years, Hoa Binh has allocated significant resources to foster cooperative economy, helping ethnic minorities capitalise on their potential and advantages to escape poverty.
As a mountainous district still facing numerous challenges, Da Bac has made notable progress in advancing administrative reforms across various areas. The district has prioritised reorganising and streamlining its administrative apparatus, operating "one-stop-shop” units, and applying information technology (IT) in the handling of administrative procedures. Efforts have also been directed toward upgrading infrastructure and equipment to enhance service quality for residents and businesses.