Nhat Tan - The beauty of 'peach palace'

There was a time when people wondered whether there would still be any peach gardens in Nhat Tan (Tay Ho district, Hanoi) when the "peach palace" gave up land for urban development. But the people who were born and raised in the beautiful peach blossoms refused to give up their ancestors' traditional profession.

The brilliant peach blossoms on Nhat Tan land as the Year of the Dragon is coming. (Photo: Chi Dung)

Sweat and effort poured into turning the Red River alluvial area into a new peach growing land. Nhat Tan people revived ancient peach varieties, creating unique shapes that cannot be found anywhere else. Since the day Nhat Tan almost lost its peach blossom profession, a new generation of artisans has been formed, with dynamic and creative thinking, contributing to bringing the Nhat Tan peach blossom brand to a new level. In the list of artisans competing in the 2024 Hanoi Traditional Peach Blossom Competition, there is a very young "contestant". That is Tran Duy Thuan, who has just turned 25. Although there are many talented artisans participating in the competition, Duy Thuan is still one of the honored faces to receive the award. The color of peach blossoms is ingrained in the flesh and blood of the Year of the Dragon. The road to Nhat Tan peach blossom seems to glow pink in the drizzling rain. Tran Duy Thuan (Tuan Viet peach garden, alley 264 Au Co street, Tay Ho district) and everyone else were "loading" peaches onto the car to transport them far away, while taking the opportunity to film... TikTok. Everyone was surprised when this young man won the consolation prize in the 2024 Traditional Peach Blossom Competition. Because the competition was attended by nearly 30 "old trees" from the peach blossom lands of Nhat Tan and Phu Thuong, with 54 works that gathered the quintessence of the land of a hundred years of craft. But even more surprising, this artisan in his twenties is also a top-notch TikToker. Duy Thuan has many clips about peach growing that have attracted millions of views. Duy Thuan shared: "Nhat Tan has a tradition of growing peach trees. But when asked about the price, many people ask why this peach tree is so expensive? In fact, many people still do not understand the true value of old peach trees and long-standing bonsai peach trees. That urges me to use media to spread the beauty and value of peach trees. For example, what steps must a peach tree take to take care of it, how many years do old peach trees and bonsai peach trees take to have a beautiful shape, not just a few years."

Delegates discuss the beauty of the works in the 2024 Hanoi Traditional Peach Blossom Competition held in Nhat Tan. (Photo: Thanh Do)

The story of artist - TikToker Duy Thuan is a story about the interweaving of modernity and tradition. Born and raised in the beautiful colors of peach blossoms. At the age of six or seven, he started cutting branches, stripping leaves, and watering trees to help his parents. His love for peach trees is ingrained in his blood. The peach tree Duy Thuan brought to the contest is a "father-to-son" peach tree, the same age as Thuan. Six years ago, Thuan was given this ancient peach tree by his father to break its shape and create a new shape. Thuan cut the old branches very deeply and "nourished" it for three years to stabilize the tree's shape. It was not until the fifth or sixth year that the peach tree fully displayed its colors. "Maybe because I was born and raised with peach trees, I don't find anything difficult. The difficulty is perseverance. Another difficulty is how to bring peach trees to the market, so that customers understand the culture of playing with peach trees. That's what I'm doing," Duy Thuan said. When moving to the city, to the ward, most residents also leave the fields. Nhat Tan people are different. The color of peach blossoms is ingrained in their blood and flesh, so they refuse to stop being farmers. They are determined to stick with the profession, carrying out a mass migration of peach blossoms from the old residence to the new land on the riverbank. In Nhat Tan, there is no shortage of "strange stories" about the relationship between people and peach blossoms. Perhaps that is why the people here are still "urban farmers". Young artisan Duy Thuan used to study law. Then he left to become a... farmer. Or the story of Ms. Nguyen Thi Thanh Thuy (Thuy Thuy peach garden), who was "married to peach blossoms" in her life. The job of growing peach blossoms is hard, in the sun, rain, and cold. And the peach blossoms, when exposed to the cold, are often more beautiful. Therefore, when talking about talented farmers at the level of artisans, it is usually men and boys. But Ms. Thuy is passionate about the color of peach blossoms. When Ms. Nguyen Thi Thanh Thuy was announced as the winner of the 2024 Traditional Peach Blossom Contest, many people were surprised. Not so for the peach growers. No one is a stranger to the days when she spent time in the drizzle and cold wind to take care of the peach trees. No one is a stranger to the nights when she slept with the peach trees. In this land, there are many peach billionaires. But everyone is the same, with rough hands and skin stained by the wind and rain. Because if you don't sleep with the peach trees, you won't be successful. And her peach tree is also a "treasure". That peach tree is also an ancient Nhat Tan peach tree, 40 years old, from afar it looks like a dragon rising up.

Delegates discuss the beauty of the works in the 2024 Hanoi Traditional Peach Blossom Competition held in Nhat Tan. (Photo: Thanh Do)

"Making a peach tree bonsai is very hard. But my grandfather and father planted peach trees, so I was passionate about it. And when I'm passionate about it, I try to overcome it," Ms. Thuy laughed when talking about her "different" story. When I understood that story, I understood why many people in Nhat Tan rent out peach trees, ancient peach trees, and don't like to buy them outright or sell them. Partly because it takes a lot of time to take care of a "standard Nhat Tan" tree, and partly because people have been attached to it for years. Raising the brand of Bai Song Hong is now filled with immense colors. But in the story of Nhat Tan people, there is always a journey to overcome difficulties more than 20 years ago. The Nhat Tan peach brand once faced the fear of fading away when the Ciputra urban area occupied 28 hectares of peach trees - a place that people called "dao dong" (in the field inside the dike to distinguish it from peach trees outside the beach). Mr. Le Ham, the person who revived the famous seven-inch peach variety, recalled: "At that time, many people were worried that Hanoi would lose the Nhat Tan peach brand because we gave up our land to urban areas. But we determined that as long as there were people, there would be a profession. At that time, the city arranged for us to renovate the land along the Red River. Even though we knew it would be hard, we were determined to stick with it and preserve the peach growing profession." Those who were attached to Nhat Tan land still call this a feat of renovating. The alluvial land at that time was corn fields, colored fields mixed with wasteland. Peach trees are very picky, preferring high land that needs to drain quickly. People had to fill the soil to raise the garden level, then dig the soil up into ridges. In many places, the soil had to be filled 5 to 7 meters high to ensure a good growing environment for the trees. Not only that, in the new soil environment, peach trees could not adapt immediately. They had to research and adjust fertilization methods. Those who have lived in Hanoi for a long time still remember that there was a time when Nhat Tan peach trees lost their color and the petals quickly faded. But then, about three or four years after "resettlement" on the alluvial land, the peach blossoms have returned to their former glory. The peach blossom growing area in Nhat Tan has now reached 78 hectares, nearly three times larger than at the old peach palace. At the time of land acquisition, Nhat Tan had about 770 peach-growing households, but now the number is approximately 800. That is a surprise that no one could have imagined 20 years ago. There was a time when people had to worry about the ancient peach trees when wild peach trees were massively moved in. Now, the story has taken a different turn. Chairman of the Nhat Tan Peach Village Association Tran Tuan Viet explained: "All old peach trees are considered ancient peach trees. But the old peach varieties are the ones that have black buds when they bud. We call them "black-eyed" or "brown-eyed" peaches. The later peach varieties have bright buds, called "white-eyed". The "brown-eyed" peaches have large flowers, dark red peach blossoms, but they do not last long. If there is a winter wind or humid weather before Tet, peach growers will lose their Tet holiday. That's why people say that growing peach trees "gambles" with the weather. Although the "white-eyed" peaches have smaller flowers, they are strong and can survive the changes in the weather with successive blooms. If well cared for, the color of the peach blossoms is no different from the old Nhat Tan peaches. Therefore, we combine planting both types. There are many connoisseurs in the market now, who only like to choose "brown-eyed" peaches. Therefore, the ancient Nhat Tan peaches have never revived as strongly as they do now."

Young artist Tran Duy Thuan takes care of peach trees in preparation for Tet. (Photo: Giang Nam)

In the large gardens in Nhat Tan, there is always a separate space for ancient peach trees. For Ms. Nguyen Thi Thanh Thuy's family, out of 700 peach trees, there are up to 200 ancient peach trees. The same goes for Mr. Tran Tuan Viet's family, ancient peach trees account for a significant number of 600 peach trees. Mr. Viet affirmed that as society develops, the hobby of playing with peach trees becomes more and more "sophisticated", artisans must try harder to create new, more beautiful works than before. The support of science and technology makes this process easier. Nhat Tan was recognized as a traditional craft village of Hanoi in 2015. At the end of 2023, the Hanoi People's Committee recognized Nhat Tan Tourist Area, with its main strength being peach trees. In previous years, Nhat Tan still organized the Traditional Peach Blossom Festival within the ward. Welcoming the Spring of Giap Thin this year, the festival was upgraded to the city level, held at Nhat Tan peach palace. The Nhat Tan peach brand is spreading further and further. Tay Ho District is promoting the development of cultural industry. Peach trees are no longer simply a decorative product as before, but have become a factor in building cultural industrial products through the Project "Developing Nhat Tan peach blossom craft village, Tu Lien kumquat trees associated with tourism services" that Tay Ho District is implementing. Standing Deputy Secretary of Tay Ho District Party Committee Nguyen Anh Tuan affirmed: "Tay Ho District will invest in developing infrastructure to facilitate tourism activities in Nhat Tan peach village. We encourage gardeners to design landscapes worthy of visitors; at the same time, introduce the beauty of peach varieties, the process of planting and caring for peaches... to tourists. Nhat Tan peach palace will connect with famous landscapes, large flower growing spaces such as: Flower Valley, Red River Stone Beach, relics, craft villages in Tay Ho District to become an attractive tour, thereby enhancing the value of peach trees".

Giang Nam - Nhandan.vn

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