Picking leaves to make money

The apricot and crape myrtle trees are deeply intertwined with the lives of people in Northwest Vietnam in general, and Phu Tho province in particular. However, unlike many other places that cultivate apricot and crape myrtle trees for their shoots and trunks, the people of Chan Mong have developed a new occupation – harvesting the leaves. This unexpected income from seemingly worthless leaves is helping many families here "make money," not only improving their livelihoods but also significantly increasing the economic value of this familiar traditional tree.

In Chan Mong commune, people are transforming their unproductive, low-yielding gardens into orchards for growing apricot blossoms and other plants for their leaves; this is one of the sustainable economic models in the area.

The bamboo-like plants, including the Mai and Dien varieties, require little care; they grow and develop well, yielding shoots, leaves, and mature plants, and are used in long-term cooperation agreements with businesses.

Unlike bamboo shoots which grow seasonally, the leaves of the Mai and Dien trees can be harvested almost year-round and sell for about 16,000 VND/kg of fresh leaves.

Leaves that are 8cm wide and 40cm or longer are called Grade A leaves and fetch a higher price.

After harvesting, the leaves are bundled into bunches and neatly arranged in baskets for the drying process.

The leaves are dried at temperatures ranging from 30-90 degrees Celsius for 18 hours.

After drying, the workers proceed to sort and classify the leaves.

This job is suitable for many age groups and can be done year-round.

Dried apricot and jasmine leaves have a distinctive natural aroma and are purchased by foreign businesses for use in wrapping cakes and making traditional handicrafts.

After sorting, the leaves are weighed and carefully bundled.

Quality check before packaging.

Each bale of dried leaves weighs 25kg and sells for approximately 70,000 VND/kg.

From seemingly unproductive leaves, jobs and stable incomes have been created for many local farmers and laborers.

Le Hoang

Source: https://baophutho.vn/hai-la-ra-tien-240532.htm