Restoring the Ancient Medicinal Garden

Nestled within the Con Son - Kiet Bac National Special Historical Site, the Duoc Linh Ancient Garden (Duoc Son Medicinal Garden) holds immense historical, cultural, and medical value, and urgently needs to be restored and preserved.

According to some documents, Duoc Linh Ancient Garden was the first national medicinal herb garden in our country and remains unique to this day. Photo: THANH CHUNG

One of a kind

The Medicinal Herb Garden of Duoc Son is located on Nam Tao Mountain, south of Kiet Bac Temple. According to historical records, from the 13th century, the Tran Dynasty valued the use of medicinal plants to care for the health of the people and treat the wounds of soldiers. Hung Dao Vuong was always concerned with establishing a medicinal herb garden to proactively treat illnesses and injuries. Before the second resistance war against the Yuan-Mongol army (1285), Hung Dao Vuong, along with his wife, Princess Thien Thanh, and General Pham Ngu Lao, diligently cultivated many precious medicinal herbs on Nam Tao Mountain, within the Van Kiet estate. Therefore, this mountain is also known as Duoc Son (Medicinal Mountain).

During the Le Dynasty, the Duoc Son medicinal garden was preserved and expanded to over 10 hectares under the name Duoc Linh Ancient Garden. The garden is considered one of the eight ancient places of Chi Linh, possessing many valuable resources and also boasting beautiful and picturesque scenery. The medicinal plants of Duoc Son were passed down through generations by the local people. The art of medicine-making in Kiet Bac also originated here and has been preserved for many generations. In the Kiet Bac temple, in the shrine dedicated to the Mother Goddess, there is a horizontal plaque inscribed "Duoc Linh Udumbara," praising the virtuous Mother Goddess Nguyen Tu and her noble profession of medicine-making in Duoc Son, as beautiful as the Udumbara flower of Buddhism.

According to statistics from the Central Institute of Traditional Medicine in the 1970s, Duoc Son had about 600 species of cultivated and wild plants known as "traditional Vietnamese medicinal plants." By 2010, Duoc Son and some neighboring mountains still had about 300 medicinal plants. Unfortunately, over time, the medicinal plant garden has gradually declined. Currently, households that have leased forest land in the medicinal plant garden area are rehabilitating it and planting timber trees and fruit trees.

Despite its unique conditions and favorable natural environment, many medicinal plants on Duoc Son mountain still thrive. According to research, Duoc Son currently has about 100 species of plants containing high concentrations of medicinal properties, most notably *Cynanchum auriculatum*, *Passiflora incarnata*, *Polygonum multiflorum*, *Centella asiatica*, *Centella asiatica*, *Centella asiatica*, *Gelsemium elegans*, and *Craniospores*. These plants have high medicinal value and can treat many ailments related to digestion, injuries, rheumatism, spinal degeneration, typhoid fever, and cirrhosis. Local people and visitors alike still maintain the custom of requesting medicinal leaves from Duoc Son mountain for treatment.

Dr. Le Duy Manh, Deputy Head of the Con Son - Kiet Bac Relic Management Board, said: "Based on some research documents, the Duoc Linh Ancient Garden is the first national medicinal herb garden in our country and remains unique to this day."

The working group from the city's health sector, along with relevant departments, agencies, and units, surveyed the location of the ancient Dược Lĩnh garden on a map.

Restore and promote traditional values ​​as soon as possible.

As one of the eight ancient relics of the old Chi Linh region, the restoration of the ancient Duoc Linh Garden not only has preservation significance but also serves an educational purpose, helping people understand more about the role of the Van Kiet base in the resistance against the Mongol invaders, and about the historical and cultural values ​​of the Chi Linh region, a land of "spiritual significance and outstanding people".

To preserve this precious medicinal herb garden, in 2010, the Prime Minister issued Decision No. 920/QD-TTg "Approving the overall planning of the Con Son - Kiet Bac historical site associated with tourism development in Chi Linh town, Hai Duong province," with an investment of approximately 1,600 billion VND. Within this plan, the Duoc Son medicinal herb garden is located in a special protection zone, belonging to the group of restoration and rehabilitation projects with a total area of ​​20,000 ^m² . However, due to prioritizing the implementation of more necessary projects and items, the ancient Duoc Son garden has not yet been restored as desired.

Previously, the People's Committee of Hai Duong province issued a plan for developing traditional medicine services and products to serve tourists until 2030. In this plan, Hai Duong province urgently requested the restoration of the ancient Duoc Son medicinal garden, focusing on researching and restoring valuable medicinal plants characteristic of Hai Duong in general and the Duoc Son mountain region in particular.

In September 2025, the Department of Health and several other city departments and agencies organized a field survey at the ancient Duoc Linh Garden. Following the survey, the Director of the City Department of Health, Le Minh Quang, emphasized that the ancient Duoc Linh Garden is one of the eight ancient sites of the Chi Linh region. Therefore, its restoration is necessary and requires the consensus of relevant departments and agencies, especially the local people. Based on the feedback received after the survey, the health sector will compile a detailed plan to advise the City People's Committee on the restoration of the Duoc Son medicinal garden, located within the Con Son - Kiet Bac National Special Historical Site, ensuring the preservation and promotion of its historical, cultural, and traditional medical values.

NGOC THANH

Source: https://baohaiphong.vn/phuc-hoi-duoc-linh-co-vien-524120.html