Instead of investing in large quantities of ornamental plants like in previous years, on the occasion of the Lunar New Year At Ty 2025, Mr. Nguyen Van Truyen (Can Tho City) has reduced the quantity of various bougainvillea flowers in his garden by about 30%. Mr. Truyen explained that recently, the ornamental plant market has been quite gloomy during the Tet holiday, and if there is any interest from customers, it is only focused on the mid-range price segment, so many gardeners are discouraged.
"Exactly for the past 3 years, ornamental plants, especially bougainvillea like the ones my family grows, are no longer as attractive as before. In the past, a bougainvillea tree could be sold for tens of millions of dong, but now this is very rare, customers mainly buy from 200,000 - 500,000 dong" - Mr. Truyen said.
The old farmer added that in 2024, the total income from selling Tet ornamental plants was only enough to rent a space, pay for transportation, and lose all wages, so this year the family only chose 1 stall (lot) to sell. Even so, the family hesitated for many days before making a decision.
"Most gardeners like me calculate very carefully, because the mentality of investing a lot but with low purchasing power is considered a waste of effort. This also shows that the current trend of playing bonsai seems to be very limited, in addition, people's economic life is difficult so they are cautious in spending" - Mr. Truyen said.
Similarly, for many years now, many billion-dollar apricot gardens in Phuoc Dinh yellow apricot craft village (Binh Hoa Phuoc commune, Long Ho district, Vinh Long province) have also faced difficulties because even though December has come, no traders have come to buy. Many gardeners have reminded each other to get rid of the mentality that customers will "buy yellow apricots for Tet", so they are no longer investing as much as before.
"In the past, around the beginning of the 11th lunar month, many traders went to see the goods. By the middle of the month, many people had placed deposits and shipped their goods, the atmosphere was very bustling. I'm afraid that the Tet ornamental plant market is still unknown" - said Mr. Le Van Ty, Director of Phuoc Dinh Yellow Apricot Craft Village Cooperative.
Also owning a yellow apricot garden worth billions, Mr. Bui Thanh Dam, a member of Phuoc Dinh yellow apricot village, predicts that the yellow apricot situation this year will not be much better.
"I think this year's apricot blossoms will not be as fruitful as previous years, so I'm keeping the original trees at home and not importing any more. Currently, I'm pruning this year's apricot blossoms, and will soon add fertilizer and pesticides," Mr. Dam shared.
One thing that is easy to see in the current digital transformation context is that many traders and plant owners have been taking advantage of social networks to promote Tet products. This has put traditional ornamental gardeners in a "difficult situation" when they are still struggling...
Mr. Truyen expressed: "I have not yet boldly penetrated social networks or e-commerce platforms, how... However, it cannot be said that I have given up the job. Now my family is focusing on small trees, with prices that are affordable for low-income people to buy. I still hope that when offering products, there will be a boom, the 2025 Tet ornamental tree market will be renewed to help gardeners win big."
