Get rich from ornamental plants

Trained in nursing, but passionate about bonsai, Ms. Tran Thi Thanh Thuy, Dai Dinh commune has spent 15 years diligently studying, expanding the scale of the growing area, building a bonsai growing model combined with tourism experiences to bring high economic efficiency. In the past 5 years, the revenue from selling bonsai each year has reached hundreds of millions of VND, especially creating jobs, stable regular income for 4-6 local workers.

Visiting and experiencing the bonsai nursery of Ms. Tran Thi Thanh Thuy near the Tay Thien Pagoda area and listening to the owner tell the story of starting a business in her home garden, we better understood the "devotion" of the girl who graduated from medical school with the dream of becoming a doctor but life led her to grow bonsai.

Ms. Tran Thi Thanh Thuy takes care of bonsai plants in a greenhouse

After graduating from high school, due to family circumstances, Ms. Thuy did not continue studying but worked as a garment worker at a military enterprise in the area for more than 4 years. In 2007, she got married and returned to her husband's hometown in Dai Dinh town (formerly Tam Dao), now Dai Dinh commune (Phu Tho). But the dream of studying medicine to become a doctor always urged her. Although she had young children and was busy with work, she was determined to pass the entrance exam to the nursing department of Vinh Phuc Medical College. After nearly 3 years of diligent study, graduating from school, she was accepted to work under a labor contract at a medical facility near her home. However, due to lack of staff, hard work, and low contract salary, she quit her job and returned home after a few years.

With a passion for agriculture , and with the help of her husband's brothers and sisters in the family who all work in ornamental plants, in 2009, Ms. Thuy discussed with her family to take advantage of the garden land to renovate and invest in planting ornamental plants, mainly rose apples, azaleas and yellow camellias, combined with tourism experiences when visitors come to visit the Tay Thien historical and scenic site. Growing ornamental plants is already difficult for those who have studied in the field, for a girl who graduated in medicine like Ms. Thuy, it is a big challenge. But with a spirit of learning, Thuy not only diligently learns techniques and experiences in taking care of plants from her brothers and sisters in the family but also self-study on the internet, books and newspapers, and participates in groups to learn new ways of doing things.

In her free time, she travels everywhere to buy and collect some flowers and ornamental plants with unique shapes to plant in her garden. To keep the plants healthy and thriving, she invested nearly 500 million VND to buy a water sprayer, invest in seedlings, plant nursery pots, and build a greenhouse. The land did not fail the people, in the first year, on the occasion of the New Year, tourists came to experience and order hundreds of ornamental plants, mainly azaleas and yellow camellias. She earned hundreds of millions of VND.

However, work does not always go as planned. The first two years of gardening were difficult, and her eldest child suffered from a serious illness. She had to give up the garden to take care of her child, and only returned to the job of growing ornamental plants after nearly two years. In 2017, Ms. Thuy received active support from her family to continue expanding the garden to more than 1,500 m2, growing nearly 1,000 ornamental plants of all kinds. To have the garden as she wanted, she did all the steps herself, from watering, pruning, adjusting the canopy... Thanks to that, the family's ornamental plant garden has always grown well. Up to now, the garden is more than 5,000 m2 with more than 3,000 ornamental plants of all kinds, regularly maintaining 4 workers with an average income of 5-6 million VND/month.

The azalea flowers in Ms. Thuy's garden sold during Tet are priced from several hundred thousand to more than 10 million VND/plant.

Ms. Tran Thi Thanh Thuy said: Rhododendron, camellia and yellow camellia - plants that are loved by many people, because of their many health benefits and high economic efficiency, have the characteristics of liking moisture and rich hilly soil. To be successful from the bonsai model, the initial investment cost is quite large to buy seedlings, high care techniques and diligence, meticulousness. In addition to a large area, it is necessary to build a greenhouse, an Israeli drip irrigation system. This method has many advantages, because it is suitable for all weather conditions, limiting water waste.

The drip irrigation system can be combined with an automatic fertilizer dispenser through a system of valves, pipes, and pumps, helping the fertilizer dissolve evenly in water and come into direct contact with the roots, optimizing the nutrient absorption efficiency of the plant, helping the leaves stay fresh for a long time, especially the flowers bloom evenly and have beautiful colors. During the growth of the plant, the grower needs to monitor regularly, prune the leaves, and help the plant concentrate nutrients to nourish the flowers. Currently, Ms. Thuy and 4 seasonal workers are taking advantage of favorable weather to take care of all kinds of ornamental plants so that the flowers bloom in time and are sold during the Lunar New Year of Binh Ngo 2026.

With the goal of developing green agriculture combined with experiential tourism when tourists come to visit Tay Thien Scenic Area, Ms. Thuy continues to invest and expand the area to plant some unique and strange plants; at the same time, promote the application of new farming techniques, proactively grasp the needs and fluctuations of the market to adjust production, bring economic efficiency, and create more jobs for some local workers.

The ornamental tree planting model of Ms. Tran Thi Thanh Thuy was chosen by the Commune Party Committee as a model for economic development. Ms. Thuy is a responsible person, always exemplary, leading in local activities and movements. At the same time, she is a shining example spreading the spirit of economic development emulation to all classes of people. Through this model, she contributes to the Party Committee and local government to gradually and successfully implement the set economic and social development targets.

Xuan Nguyen

Source: https://baophutho.vn/lam-giau-tu-cay-canh-240423.htm