A ceremony to receive the certificate by the Vietnam Association for Conservation of Nature and Environment (VACNE) was held in the province on September 20.

The trees stand as tall as 40m and 38m, respectively with trunks of 6m and 4.5m in diameter, lying in front of the communal house of Ha Lang village.

According to the local elderly, the trees were brought from the upper reaches of the Bo River and planted in 1765 in the village.

Earlier, the VACNE recognised a three century-old “thi” (diospyros decandra) tree in Thuy Xuan district, another 500-year-old one in Phong Dien district, and a banyan tree aged 200-300 years in Phu Loc district as heritage trees.

The VACNE launched Vietnam Heritage Trees in 2011, which requires wild trees to be at least 200 years old and connected with local historical and cultural characteristics to be recognised.

As of 2014, there had been nearly 600 trees across the country certified as national heritage trees.