Nurturing passion with cacti

Cactus, a plant that lives in the dry desert, sharp, rough, through the care of growers, becomes an ornamental plant of economic value and is loved. Although recently planted, the passion and experience with this plant was nurtured by Mr. Cuong more than 10 years ago. Nguyen Chi Cuong’s cactus garden (Nhon An hamlet, Nhon My commune, Cho Moi district, An Giang province) is one of the addresses visited by cactus lovers inside and outside the province to choose beautiful flowers.
Referring to cacti, most people think of thorny and scary plants, but in Mr. Cuong’s garden, the world of cacti appears extremely rich and interesting, such as: Gymnocalycium, Coryphantha, Astrophytum , Mamillaria… There are only thorns that are finely covered and cover the trunk; there are types without spines, in each eye is a layer of soft hair like velvet; many kinds with all kinds of strange and beautiful shapes such as colorful cakes and candies; There are flowering varieties with attractive scents, many colors. It is a block of “assets” built by Mr. Cuong from collecting until he propagates himself. Cactus garden is divided into many gardens according to the function of display, sale or seed production.

Cactus breeding farm of Mr. Nguyen Chi Cuong Mr. Cuong said that since 2006, when he was in high school, he was fascinated with cactus, often collecting small trees to take care of. That hobby was unfinished from the time he attended college until he went to work. Many years later, seeing the image of cactus again, Mr. Cuong decided to return to his hobby, starting with growing succulents for 2 years to create capital. In the next two years, Mr. Cuong promoted growing cacti, both playing and doing business. Cactus is imported from many places, including abroad. In order for the tree to be pure with the weather here, he changed the entire soil and took care of it from the beginning. Thanks to that, customers who buy cacti of strange varieties can still rest assured to grow plants easily, water less, no longer worry about whether the plants are suitable for the weather or not. Cactus flowers are taken care of by Mr. Cuong There are many types of cacti, each line has many small types distinguished by spines, veins, colors, etc. Depending on the preferences of the customer, the gardener produces suitable varieties. And based on each type, the plant is propagated by seeds or by children growing from large trees, each line has different characteristics, so the care is also different, the grower must be knowledgeable to know how to mix the soil, how to water, prevent diseases and the use of drugs to treat diseases on plants. With the types of mass sale, Mr. Cuong focuses on growing plants that are easy to flower, compact, can display offices and desks. As for the mutant plants, which are rare in color and shape, collected or propagated, it takes time and effort to see results. This number of plants is 10 times more valuable than normal cactus, which is set aside by Mr. Cuong to sell exclusively to professional players. According to experienced people growing cactus, the weather in An Giang is suitable for the development of this plant, thanks to the airy climate, cool steam, and just enough heat, which is the condition for the plant to grow. faster than elsewhere. Therefore, in the province, there are many large cactus gardens, a place for growers and lovers to exchange and learn experiences. Mr. Cuong shared: “In the past, I mainly collected goods for breeding, looking for big, round and large trees. Later, I turned to the lines that “diligence” bloom, have beautiful flowers to create more beautiful product varieties to meet customer needs. Due to being busy with work, Mr. Cuong spends his evenings and weekends taking care of the cactus garden, pollinating the flowers himself, initially successfully creating many mutant plants with fancy designs and good viability. The number of cactus plants now reaches thousands of pots, some trees cost tens of thousands of dong, some trees cost up to millions of dong. At the beginning of May, Mr. Cuong participated in the contest “Cactus and succulent plants” contest in Ho Chi Minh City. Can Tho by the Ho Chi Minh City Bonsai Association. Organized by Can Tho. There are 3 prize winners, respectively: non-Gymnoca cactus (first prize), non-Gymnocalycium cactus (third prize) and basic Gymnocalycium (consolation prize). Most of the cacti planted by Mr. Cuong now mainly supply wholesale quantities to the granaries inside and outside the province, the most in Ho Chi Minh City. Sa Dec (Dong Thap province). In addition to customers who are wholesalers, customers of all ages also love to buy cactus to play. Not only attracted by the beauty, cactus players also think about the meaning of this plant, although thorny and living in arid places, it blooms beautifully, full of life, a symbol of strong will. Taking care of cactus is a wonderful pleasure, until the day the tree blooms, enjoy the joy of well-deserved labor.