June 18, 2018 | 20:28 (GMT+7)
The world’s best ginseng farm on Ngoc Linh Mountain
PANO - Ngoc Linh Mountain (Quang Nam province) attracts visitors because of its wildlife. Furthermore, there exists one of the most valuable medicinal species in the world named Ngoc Linh ginseng.
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The Vietnamese Ginseng (Panax vietnamensis) is grown on the Ngoc Linh Mountain at an altitude of 2,500m and stretching over three provinces of Quang Ngai, Kon Tum and Quang Nam. Locals grow this ginseng in Tra Linh Commune, Nam Tra My District, Quang Nam Province. |
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The Ngoc Linh Mountain is over 10km from Tra My, so in order to reach the area, visitors have to climb.If visitors want to explore the mountain, they need local people to go along with them as ginseng growers will not allow strangers to go around the cultivation areas for fear that the precious roots will be stolen. |
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Then they have to follow a track through century-old forests to reach the top |
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There are four villages of the Xe Dang ethnic minority group in the area, who live in wooden houses |
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It takes three hours walking from Tra Linh commune to the ginseng seedling farm in Nam Tra My. Local people eat and live in the forest to protect the ginseng |
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The Ngoc Linh Mountain is a special-use forest with ancient trees |
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Temperatures in this area drop to under 10 degrees in winter and about 25 degrees in dry season which is suitable for many kinds of colored fungus to grow around the tree trunks |
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From the ginseng seedling farm, tourists continue climbing for three hours the place where locals plant the ginseng. The root is grown naturally without fertilizers or pesticides |
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The plant’s flower blooms in spring |
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Each flower will bear from 10 to 30 fruits from July to September and they will be harvested and their seeds will be used to cultivate more plants. The plant will then wither away and leave only the ginseng root underground. It will sprout again after winter, usually in January |
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A 5-year-old ginseng root is harvested and will be sold in local markets at the beginning of each month. A kilo of this ginseng can fetch between VND 60 and 80 million. The ginseng plant’s leaves, also have medicinal value and can cost from VND5.5 to 6.5 million per kilogram |
Source: Vnexpress
Translated by Minh Anh