Thai Phien Flower Village is bustling in the upcoming festival

I recently returned to Thai Phien Flower Village (Ward 12, Dalat city). Although the New year and the major cultural events are a month away, this place seems to be filled with “thrilling” atmosphere: Let’s observe the traditional flower village on the plateau at the threshold of the Festive season.

Preview of Thai Phien Flower Farmer

As I have just stepped on the campus of the Ward’s People Committee with an appointment, see Mr. Ho Ngoc Dinh, chairman of Farmers Ward 12 Farmers’ Association, standing at the door with a welcoming smile. It seems as if horticulture, besides bringing profits to earn one’s living, is also an elegant hobby that helps farmers to become gentle, kind- hearted and hospitable. He laughs heartily and says: “These days, domestic and foreign tourists, including reporters and journalists from the mass media, being aware of our village, have come to visit and learn experiences from our farmers… Receiving visitors is a regular job and an honor of the Communist Party, the government and the unions in ward 12”.

To share the “bustling and thrilling” atmosphere with the local people cultivating and actively participating in the preparation for the upcoming festive season that will take place in this beautiful city, the Chairman of the Farmers Association invites visitors to take a tour of the flower gardens. am really amazed at the flowers, which are carefully tended in greenhouses and net houses, which are stretching to the hillside, or in the green valleys, forming a modern industrial flower production zone. After prolonged rainy days under the influence of consecutive storms occurring in the central provinces, the farmers here work hard on their land, fixing damaged parts roofing greenhouses, net houses, preparing for the flower sowing and harvesting period at the end of the year.

Thai Phien Flower village Dalat

Thai Phien Flower village Dalat

Mr. Ho Ngoc Dinh also tells me that, to serve New year Holiday, and the celebration of 120 years Dalat Founding & Development and the 5th Dalat Flower Festival that take place by the end of 2013, the Farmers’ Association has mobilized households within ward 12 for the sowing of flower varieties of different types on 30 ha of land, of which, besides imported chrysanthemums(the main breeds of Thai Phen accounting for over 90% flowers produced in the whole ward) the local people are concerned about high-class flowers such as lilies, Lisianthus, Statice, carnations… And this is the most favorable period for farmers of Ward 12 to take good care of the flower harvest, not for profits, but for their loved city! Thai Phien Flower village has now become the famous brand name of Da Lat and increasingly been known by domestic and foreign tourists thanks to the numbers and types of high-class flowers that dominate the high-end market.

History of Thai Phien Flower village

However, many people may not know about the founding history of this Flower Village for more than half a century. Before 1945, Thai Phien was just a wild forest where King Bao Dai would go hunting. In 1954, about 40 Vietnamese households repatriated from Laos to Da Lat they noticed that the hilly terrain was relatively flat, with lush soil, and a lake (Lake of Sighs) ensuring provision of consistent water source for collecting people and setting up a village. In 1956, these households elected Mr. Le Phuong Mien as their representative to submit their petition on establishing a new village to the then governor of Lam Vien city-So Thai Phien village was officially set up!

In the early years of establishment, the people knew how to grow vegetables, flowers, fruit trees(persimmon) to promote agricultural production, in the following years, the people from the central region (Thua Thien Hue, Nam-Nga-Binh Phu) took turns to immigrate to this land and settle down for a living. Along with the increasing population, production scale was continually expanded. In particular, the high-class flowers Originating from France, Japan, Indonesia for Instance daisies over 40 species), Lisianthus, Lilies white Lilies, Statice, Carnation, rose… were grown more and more, thus starting to form Thai Phien Flower Village.

Records of Thai Phien Flower village

Since 1995 until now, farmers of Ward 12 have invested in growing high-class flowers in high- tech greenhouses and net houses. Currently, in the whole ward there are 1.209/1,584 households participating in agricultural production, of which 10% of households produce flowers with 3,600 workers 2,700 local workers and 900 workers immigrating from northern provinces. There are 430 ha of land for agricultural production in Ward 12, of which 320ha of land for agricultural production apply high technology greenhouses, net houses with automatic sprinkler systems. In addition to the flowers, and area for artichoke plants, which is a specialty crop of Da Lat is quite large(40ha), bringing in a substantial revenue for farmers. Particularly for the production of cut flowers, Thai Phien farmers get 450 million cut flowers year with average revenue of 550 million VND/ ha year. Thanks to the application of science and technology in production and priority given to cultivation of high value flowers, in recent years the income of farmers has increased very quickly Currently, over 60% of households in the ward have an average income of 200 million dong year, some specific households earn more than 1 billion dong per year.

By Thanh Duong Hong

 

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