Ancient tea trees get as expensive as gold

Bonsai has become very in vogue among the rich. In Lam Dong province and some other localities, the stumps of ancient tea trees have been used to create original flowerpots with bonsai style. The flowerpots have been displayed at the entrance doors to enterprises or agencies to show the powerful economic capability and the elegance of the owners.

As ancient tea trees have been hunted, they have become as expensive as gold. “The trees have become most expensive in Lam Dong than ever,” said Hoang Trong Nghia, the owner of the ancient tea tree shop in Di Linh town.

“I sold the 50-year-old ancient tea tree last year for 10 million dong last year. Now it can be valued at no less than 30 million dong,” he said.

The prices of ancient tea trees have been escalating every day. The owner of a shop in Bao Lam district feels regret over the sale of a tree last year for 80 million dong.

“If I had not sold the three last year to the man from the north, I could have sold it now for 130 million dong,” he said. The man, who luckily bought the tree, reportedly had to spend 20 million dong to rent a big truck to carry the tree to the north.

Ancient trees hunted

Ancient tea tree shops have been mushrooming to satisfy the increasingly high demand of the rich. A lot of such shops have been located along the Highway No. 27 from Da Lat to HCM City.

A forest ranger said the shops have been buying and selling the ancient trees in the open air, but local authorities do not know about their existence. However, even if they know the shops, they won’t be able to do anything, because the current laws do not have any provision which says they cannot do that.

“People would be punished if they are caught red handed when they were digging ancient trees,” he explained.

Nghia said that every shop has its own staff in charge of hunting for ancient tea trees. The men are ready to go everywhere they think they can find trees to buy. They have been hunting high and low in Lam Dong province, and they have also been going to Thai Nguyen, one of the biggest tea growing locality.

The shop owners here all are making hectic preparations for their business season to come in some days, when the fourth Lam Dong Tea Culture Week 2012 opens.

The first tea tree appeared in Lam Dong province about 80 years ago. French people began growing tea in the Lam Vien plateau in 1927. After that, tea trees were developed in Bao Loc and Di Linh.

Now in Da Lat City, there is a 40 hectare tea garden comprising of the 80-year-old tea trees in Cau Dat which has been put under stringent protection. It has become an attractive tourism site for the last many years.

However, the illegal tree digging has caused a headache to the local authorities. Not only Cau Dat, but Di Linh and Bao Loc tea growing areas have also become the targets of illegal diggers.

(Lao Dong)