The veteran and the Seven Leaf B'Lao brand

A veteran, after years of military service, returned to civilian life and became involved in the profession of growing ornamental plants. That is Mr. Nguyen Van Bay, the person who created the brand name Bay La B'Lao farm.

Veteran Nguyen Van Bay next to a South American pothos tree

Bay La Farm is located in Ward 1, Bao Loc City. With eight acres of specialized greenhouses used to grow famous ornamental foliage plants such as: South American pothos, grape pine, Australian fern, Bay La Farm has been supplying ornamental foliage to the market for 30 years - Mr. Nguyen Van Bay, owner of Bay La Farm, recounted. In his youth, he was a soldier, stationed at Cam Ranh military port, Khanh Hoa. After being discharged from the army, Mr. Nguyen Van Bay worked for an agricultural company in Bao Loc City. Knowing about the flower industry, Mr. Bay struggled to find a direction for his family's economy . How to grow plants that are accepted by the market, have long-term income and are less competitive? And, Bay La Farm was formed with the goal of growing ornamental foliage plants.

“In 1995, farmers in Bao Loc and Da Lat mainly grew flowers, and very few people grew ornamental leaves for flower arrangements, as auxiliary materials for the flower industry, as well as to serve the needs of consumers for ornamental leaves. Many flower shops had to import leaf arrangements from abroad. After learning, I was determined to grow plants for leaves to serve this niche market,” veteran Nguyen Van Bay recalled. Initially, Mr. Nguyen Van Bay specialized in growing South American pothos, a plant that produces very large, green leaves, suitable for indoor living conditions. When the South American pothos is young, it is used to cut leaves to arrange with flowers. When the tree grows, Mr. Bay sells the whole tree to consumers. Large South American pothos trees are favored by coffee shops and tourist areas because of their beautiful trunk and shape, and because they are easy to grow and care for.

Then gradually the market demand increased, the farm was expanded, Mr. Bay planted more Australian ferns, juniper trees, two types of trees specialized in cutting branches for leaves. Bay La farm almost only specializes in growing three main varieties of trees including South American pothos, Australian ferns and juniper trees. In addition, there are some small leafy trees grown by the farm to provide pots for nature lovers to bring a little green into the indoor space.

“Most of the ornamental plants grown for their foliage from foreign sources are greatly affected by the weather. Like the cypress tree, the leaves absorb water, and if it rains a lot, they will fall off. Therefore, most ornamental plants grown for foliage must be grown in greenhouses,” said Mr. Nguyen Van Bay. And, to optimize the production process, Bay La farm carries out the entire process from importing seeds, sowing, potting, and caring until the plants grow big enough to be harvested. Also because of the high quality of the seedlings produced, Bay La farm is a trusted brand for many gardeners who love ornamental plants to import seeds.

Veteran Nguyen Van Bay is very proud that in addition to his family's leaf farm, he has created a connection, providing seeds, technical support and product consumption for a system of 10 gardeners. These gardeners all take seeds from the farm, when harvesting, Bay La farm consumes all products for satellite gardeners. Mr. Nguyen Van Bay shared that when building satellite gardens, Bay La farm has enough leaves to supply to partners. According to him, the demand for ornamental leaves and auxiliary leaves for the flower industry is very abundant and Lam Dong land is suitable for growing ornamental leaves. Mr. Nguyen Van Bay assessed that although growing ornamental leaves does not have a high income compared to growing flowers, in return, growing ornamental leaves has a stable output, is not pressured by the season, can be harvested early or late according to market demand, reducing pressure on farmers.

Mr. Bay himself is very conscious in building the farm. He introduced a system to collect water from the greenhouse roof to the basement. He built a 200 cubic meter underground water tank, rainwater from the roof is collected into the basement and returned to water the plants in the garden. Rainwater contains many micronutrients that help plants grow well, and at the same time, collecting water on the roof reduces the pressure of water runoff and erosion.

Ms. Tong Thi To Nhu - President of the Farmers' Association of Ward 1, Bao Loc City, assessed that Mr. Nguyen Van Bay is an excellent veteran - farmer. He has just received the 40-year Party membership badge, is an exemplary party member, head of the veterans' association, and an excellent farmer of Ward 1. His enthusiasm in social work, building production links and product consumption for neighboring households has helped the Bay La brand of veteran Nguyen Van Bay become more and more sustainable, a shining example for the community to learn from.

Source: http://baolamdong.vn/kinh-te/202408/nguoi-cuu-chien-binh-va-thuong-hieu-bay-la-blao-c2e2c17/