VietNamNet Bridge – A tamarind tree of over 100 years old, weighing more than 2 tons in the shape of a dragon, owned by gardener Nguyen Kim Tan in Thu Duc district is one of the most special tamarind trees in Saigon and Vietnam.

Gardener Nguyen Kim Tan, 43, in Hiep Binh Phuoc Ward, Thu Duc District, HCM City said he bought this tree over 10 years ago, from a farmer in the central region. To be able to buy this ancient tree, Tan had to travel several times from Saigon to the central region to persuade the tree owner.

When Tan bought the tree, the tamarind was in its original, natural shape. The current 4m high, dragon-shaped tree is the result of Tan’s decade of hard work.

"The tree is now one of my most valuable ornamental trees. Some people offered VND1 billion ($50,000) to buy it but I did not agree,” Tan said.

Tan is a gardener with more than 20 years of experience. Previously he specialized in planting apricot trees but then he shifted to ornamental trees and bonsais.

"In recent years, because of economic difficulties, the trade of ornamental trees has declined but the value of ornamental trees has not decreased because the older the trees are, the more expensive they are,” Tan said.

Tan and his family are very busy preparing ornamental trees for the upcoming Lunar New Year, which will come in three weeks. Besides the ancient tamarind tree, Tan has hundreds of ornamental plants worth tens of millions VND to hundreds of million VND.

The ancient tamarind tree in pictures:

Photo: Dan Viet

Le Ha