Ancient tea forest of H'Mong village
One day in mid-August, in the cool weather, with thick clouds covering the villages, we were in Pa Co commune.
This land was formed after merging the communes of Hang Kia, Pa Co, Dong Tan and part of Cun Pheo, in Mai Chau district, the old Hoa Binh province.
The whole commune is located at an altitude of over 1,000 meters, in the Hang Kia - Pa Co nature reserve.
In particular, Hang Kia and Pa Co areas have an altitude of 1,200 - 1,300 meters, a cool climate all year round, famous for cloud hunting spots, and especially the rare ancient snow sweet forest.
Currently, the whole commune has about 1,400 hundred-year-old Shan snow tea trees, along with 115 hectares of tea produced by the people. Ancient trees are scattered, concentrated in Xa Linh hamlet with hundreds of large and small trees.
Taking us to visit precious tea trees, Mr. Song A Tinh in Pa Co 1 hamlet said: "No one knows how long the snow sweet soup here has been around. The ancients told us that there was a golden-gold-cast phoenix that only ate sweet soup growing on high mountains. When flying over Pa Co, the bird dropped seeds and sprouted into the tea forest now".
For the H'Mong people here, tea trees have been there for generations. Mr. Phang A Vang, Cha Day hamlet, currently owns ancient tea trees in his garden. The tree trunk is as big as an adult's wrist, traces of time are traced.
Mr. Vang takes care of and pruning the canopy to create a canopy for each harvest, a tree with a yield equivalent to dozens of newly planted tea trees.
"When I was young, the tea tree was there. Childhood is associated with picking buds and helping parents with handmade sweet soup. The sweet taste of tea has seeped into my blood, Mr. Gang exclaimed.
Now, in addition to taking care of ancient sweet soup roots, he also buys fresh sweet soup from the village and makes handmade sweet soup, creating a popular product for many people.
snow sweet soup in Pa Co grows naturally, is nurtured by nature, so it retains its own flavor, difficult to confuse with other regions. These hundred-year-old tea trees not only have cultural value but also open up a direction for tourism, associated with experiences under the old forest canopy covered in clouds all year round.
Turning precious tea forests into heritage trees
Along with the ancient tea trees, the Pa Co people have expanded their tea growing area for many years. In the locality, a factory processing 5 tons of fresh flowers per day has been built, marking the connection between businesses and people.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Tam, Director of Phuong Huyen Seed Production and Trading Company Limited, the unit that signed the tea purchase contract with the people, said: "The quality of Shan Tuyet tea depends largely on the height. The higher the mountainous area, the more delicious and flavorful the sweet soup is. Pa Co has ideal conditions to create the best snow Shan tea product".
In 2019, Ban Co snow sweet soup was certified with a 4-star OCOP at the provincial level and received the Gold Cup "For the development of the Vietnamese ethnic minority community". Since then, the tea brand here has been present in many major markets, opening up opportunities to enhance the value of local products.
According to Mr. Sung A Chenh, Secretary of the Party Committee of Pa Co commune, the government and people are completing the dossier to recognize the ancient Pan Tuyet tea tree as a heritage tree: " Pan Tuyet tea has a unique flavor that is not like any other tea. Being recognized as a heritage will be an important step to preserve the ancient tea forest, while turning this place into an attractive destination for tours.
In recent years, Pa Co has combined community tourism, cloud hunting with the experience of being associated with the ancient tea forest. Visitors not only enjoy a cup of Shan Tuyet tea, but can also walk under the canopy of a hundred-year-old tree, pick buds and tea with the local people.
In the clouds on the top of the mountain, the sweet and sweet taste of the cup of Shan Tuyet Bao tea seems to keep the soul of the mountains and forests, leaving a lasting impression on visitors.
