Floriculture villages thrive along Hanoi–Hai Phong Expressway
The villages of Luong Cau and Du Vien in An Khanh Commune, Hai Phong, have become leading floriculture villages, supplying flowers and ornamental plants both within and beyond the city.
Shift to flowers and ornamental plants
Residents here once relied primarily on traditional rice and vegetable farming. However, the construction of the Hanoi–Hai Phong Expressway reshaped the local landscape, dividing farmland and leaving many low-lying fields vulnerable to flooding during the rainy season. As a result, cultivation became increasingly challening and farm incomes less stable.
Rather than giving up, local farmers adapted. Land once considered poorly suited for cultivation has been transformed into specialized flower and ornamental plant growing areas.
In Luong Cau, several households have converted low-yield rice paddies into ornamental conifer gardens, generating significantly higher returns. Growers in both Luong Cau and Du Vien say relying solely on externally sourced seedlings would limit profitability. Many now cultivate their own seedlings, both for their own production and for sale to the wider market.
The work requires considerable skill and patience, with careful pruning, shaping and maintenance needed to produce plants that meet consumer habits and market demand.
Seeking sustainable growth for floriculture
According to Vu Van Nam, head of Du Vien village, the shift from rice cultivation to floriculture has provided farmers with higher and more stable incomes. On average, each 300m2 of cultivation land generates more than 100 million dong in annual revenue, five to six times the return from rice cultivation.
Households with larger collections of mature ornamental trees and carefully shaped specimen plants can earn even more.
Buoyed by these strong returns, the area under floriculture continues to expand, with many farmers leasing abandoned rice fields to develop cultivation.
The two villages now have nearly 40 hectares dedicated to flower and ornamental plant cultivation.
Nguyen Van Binh, a resident of Du Vien, said local growers have accumulated extensive expertise and are gradually building a strong reputation for their products. However, the sector continues to face a number of challenges.
Growers are calling for faster completion of land-use conversion procedures to help stabilize production, strengthen branding efforts and improve market access for their products.
Hai Phong News