Nguyễn Thị Thỏa with her peach trees. Photo dantri.com.vn

GIA LAI - Peach blossoms are blooming in Nguyễn Thị Thỏa's garden in Pleiku City in the Central Highlands province of Gia Lai, attracting locals and tourists in the run up to Tết.

Thỏa's family have been in the horticulture trade since 1996 when they left Hải Dương for Gia Lai to open a business.

She and her husband planted many kinds of trees, including coffee, pepper, vegetables, and fruit trees, but they did not make enough of a profit.

They then decided to plant peach trees, a popular flower during the Tết holiday in the north.

"Three years ago, I asked a relative in Hải Dương Province to help me choose about 100 peach trees for trial planting. The trees grew well so I decided to invest money in this peach garden," Thỏa tells Dân Trí online newspaper.

In the first year of trial planting, the peach trees did not bloom because they did not choose the right soil or take care of the peach trees correctly to suit the weather in the highlands.

"I took pictures of each peach tree to ask for help from other peach growers. The trees gradually adapted to the weather and grew well," Thỏa says.

Taking care of peach trees is not too hard, but ensuring peach trees blossom at the correct time, right before Tết, is difficult because it depends on the climate, she says.

Climate conditions are a key factor in determining when peach trees blossom and whether they are beautiful or ugly.

The weather in Gia Lai Province is stable all year round and suitable for peach growing, while it's very cold in the north before and during Tết.

Thỏa's family now has more than 500 peach trees. Last year, she sold 50 trees, earning VNĐ70 million (nearly US$3,000).

In previous years, Thỏa did not want to sell peach trees because she only had a few left in her garden, although it cost about VNĐ1-2 million for a medium-sized peach tree.

This year, a big tree costs VNĐ3 million.

Locals and tourists are welcome to visit the peach blossom garden and take pictures, she says. VNS