Horti-Consult International in Vietnam

Every year, the advisors of Horti-Consult International undertake a study trip. This year, the destination was Vietnam.

Day 1

Today there's a drive to the city of Can Tho on the schedule. A visit to the city, which requires at least 3 hours of driving. It's Saturday and the numerous scooters obstruct mobility through the city. Most vehicles in the city are motorised, but the only electric cars are the Vinfast cars, a Vietnamese brand established in 1917.

During our journey, our guide Long provides additional information about Vietnam.

• 70% of the population are Buddhist and 10% Catholic.
• Until 1990, Russian influence dominated the country and it had a Communist government. English lessons in schools weren't possible then.
• In Vietnam, there is 10% unemployment.
• The average wage is 500 dollars per month; people earn 5 euros per hour.
• The interest rate on borrowed money is 6% in the first year and 10 to 15% in subsequent years.
• An average family spends 20 dollars per day on food.
• 1 dollar equals 26,000 Vietnamese Dong.
• 40-50% of drinking water comes from the river.

We drive on a motorway with large expanses of rice fields on both sides. Sometimes a grave is placed in the middle of the plot. This is to maintain land protection. The spirits of ancestors also protect the family that uses the land. Meanwhile, we drive over a large bridge that crosses one of the tributaries of the Mekong River. In Can Tho, we shall take a bicycle tour. This is outside the city in the countryside of Can Tho. Because the sky is very dark, we first have a bite to eat. Not a bad decision it turns out, as shortly afterwards the rain comes pouring down. When the weather is dry again, we cycle along very narrow roads through a marsh-like area.

Our cycling guide leads us to a family member; he shows us how noodles are made from rice using an old traditional method. We may also try this. The cycling route isn't visible on navigation, so it's important that we don't get lost. We cycle through villages where families run small farms in little houses. After the impressive tour through the countryside, we return to the city.

Day 2

Sunday morning begins with breakfast at our hotel. The breakfast is genuinely Vietnamese; a cheese sandwich is clearly not to be found here, to the disappointment of some of us. At 9.00 h, tour guide Long awaits us at the bus. Today there's a boat trip on the programme. This is only 10 minutes away from the hotel. We take our places in a wooden barge where everyone receives a life jacket. We sail onto the Nine Dragons River. This river is 4,000 km long, starts in Tibet, runs through five countries and flows into the South China Sea.

Once on the river, we see that we're not the only tourist boat. There are very many small boats, usually powered by a sort of lawnmower motor. This is the way to sell their wares. At certain spots they come together to sell vegetables and fruit, better known as the floating market. The river is far from clean. The water is a lovely brown with many floating household items. It was beautiful to see the city from the water. Halfway through the trip, we viewed the market products on a group of boats. Here we see rice, fish, vegetables but also supermarket products. People from the Mekong area come here to sell products, but also to take things back with them. The boat trip ends in a different part of the city; there's also a market here. Very narrow streets with stalls on both sides. Hundreds of mopeds drive through them, which also sell goods from the moped. The air from the two-stroke engines isn't really healthy, and then with all the products such as fish and meat that are sold here, not really a very healthy and hygienic situation. At the end of the market, our bus is ready. Driving to the next activity, we see much of the surroundings. Narrow streets, lots of water and streams, and little houses in between. Water, high temperatures and much rubbish - not really a healthy climate, but people live here nonetheless.

A little trip over the water brings us to a fish farm. In the river banks, enclosures have been made with mesh and nets where fish are farmed. Mainly catfish, pangasius and carp. On the way back to the hotel, we visit a textile company where silk thread is obtained from silkworm cocoons. They also make wool from bamboo. We've been able to resist the temptation to buy some clothing here.

Day 3 

We depart early for Ho Chi Minh airport for a short flight to Da Lat. Our tour guide and driver have driven through the entire night to pick us up at the airport again. Well, you have workhorses and luxury horses; there must be a difference. Tour guide Long and driver Kinn take us to Dantale, the waterfalls of Da Lat. On the way, we see surroundings that suit us directly. Clean, more greenery, fewer scooters and naturally glasshouses in the mountains and valleys. Da Lat isn't flat like our previous destination. After a short drive, we started with a half-hour walking tour that is mainly downhill. At the end, we come to a natural waterfall. After several photos, we climbed back up. This was a challenge for several advisors, especially as we're more accustomed to standing on a pipe rail trolley.

After driving through the mountains for an hour, we arrived at Cau Dat. On 50 hectares of land rented from the government, coffee beans and tea leaves are cultivated here. No one owns land here; it always remains with the government, you may only rent it. Subsequently, we paid a visit to 'Da Lat', a very hilly horticultural area. Mostly small sections of about 1,000 m² with differences in height. Very narrow paths and winding roads suitable for the many scooters. Yet our bus managed to manoeuvre through this; a driver with a carpenter's eye is quite handy then.

Cultivation on this heavy wet soil seems to be going well. Everything grows here, including the weeds. Shoulder to shoulder, they cultivate different types of lettuce, flowers, strawberries, tomatoes and peppers here. The glasshouse types are self-made glasshouses with plastic covering. Post spacing 2 x 6 m, gutter height approximately 3 metres. Posts and trusses are welded and the ridge is overhanging and open.

Da Lat is a large but also wealthy city. It's clear that money is being made from horticulture here. The French influences from the past can still be seen in the architectural styles. Visitors and tourists receive a wonderful welcome in Da Lat. Also in our hotel, Golden Sun, we lack nothing. The numerous staff are very hospitable.

Day 4 

Today we start with a wonderful breakfast. Our bus is ready to visit Rijk Zwaan. The road there is a challenge; some roads are barely passable. We receive a warm welcome at Rijk Zwaan from station manager Le Rhi Tuoi and trial assistant Doan Xuan Phuoc. This location in Da Lat opened a year ago. The company is 3.5 hectares in size and has a glasshouse of 1 hectare. This has two presentation glasshouses for new varieties and the rest is for research. In Vietnam, you can secure land for 50 years, but not purchase it. The costs for this are €230 per hectare as a one-off payment and €0.013 per m² per year.

The Rijk Zwaan location in Da Lat is important not only for Vietnamese growers but also for growers in surrounding Asian countries. The following day there's an open day where more than 200 growers are expected from different countries. Rijk Zwaan introduces new varieties but also supports growers with knowledge and development.

There's no heating in the glasshouses. Therefore, there's also no pipe rail system for transport. The plants - tomato, cucumber and pepper - grow on coconut bags. Each coconut bag is equipped with 2 drippers. Vietnam has a dry and wet season. The dry season is from November to May. The wet season comprises the other months of the year. In summer, the radiation sum reaches 2,600 joules with a maximum radiation of 1,100 watts. Pollination takes place by manual pollination and not by bumblebees. In some sections, such as lettuce, there's a shade cloth and misting system.

Le Rhi is a very good manager for RZ and knows many growers in the immediate vicinity. Through her contacts, it's possible to visit an additional company in the afternoon. After presenting the highly coveted Horti-Consult clogs, we continue our journey to the next company. This is Thuy Farm. This grower cultivates peppers and various leafy vegetables in different new polytunnels. The grower has a new unit from Ridder. The unit is 65% subsidised by the Dutch government. The pepper cultivation has been severely affected by tomato bronze spot virus. This was probably transmitted by thrips. Some varieties aren't affected by this because they have the right resistance. The grower says it's difficult to obtain resistant varieties. Besides the thrips virus, the pepper crop also suffers greatly from mildew. We can provide him with some good tips.

There's also a new glasshouse with lettuce on flowing water. The lettuce is sown in perforated plastic pots. Later, the plants are transferred to the growing channels. These channels are manually pulled apart as the plants grow and therefore increase in size. The growing period for lettuce, from seed to harvest, is 28 days. Like all glasshouses, the setup here is also very simple. A polytunnel 6 metres high, no heating, no pipe rail system, 1 or 2-sided ventilation, a screen cloth, ventilators sometimes with misting.

We move on to our last company visit for today. The company Thien Sihn is a plant nursery where tomatoes and peppers are propagated. The layout of the glasshouses is the same as the ordinary standard production glasshouses. The glasshouses are equipped with an extra blackout cloth. Seeds are sown in trays that stand on open tables. The seed trays are filled with well-moistened very fine coconut fibre. After sowing, the trays aren't covered. However, the shade cloth is used to prevent direct radiation. All tomatoes and pepper plants are grafted above the cotyledons. The plants then have a height of 10 to 15 cm. An older hardy generation plant is used for the rootstock. The plants are delivered to the grower in the tray as the final plant. To make this possible, plants are kept generative with EC, water supply and by means of spraying. By the time we leave the company, it's starting to get dark. It's then 5.30 p.m. in Da Lat. A lovely time to return to the hotel.

Day 5 

Today, a visit to Da Lat Has farms Greens is on the schedule. Hasfarm is the largest horticultural company in Da Lat. Upon arrival at the company, we're received by Khanh Trang. We notice that at the companies we're usually received and guided by women. We ask why this is so. The reason given is that women are stronger than men.

Hasfarm has a company size of 500 hectares. Eight hectares of vegetables, especially snack vegetables. There are also several hectares with lettuce on water. All other hectares are used for flowers. The largest product here is chrysanthemums. They also do their own plant propagation on the company itself. In addition, they also propagate plants for other companies. We visit several glasshouses where snack tomatoes are cultivated. The problem with this cultivation is fruit set. Bumblebees may not be used for pollination. The flowers are pollinated by daily tapping on the stem or on the wires. Many crops suffer from downy mildew. This is due to a lack of resistant varieties.

The climate is controlled without any form of heat input. Chrysanthemums are an important product for Hasfarm. They cultivate both spray and disbud chrysanthemums. The flowers are destined for South Korea, China, America and Europe. Very special is the dyeing department. The white varieties are used to dye into another colour. We conclude the lovely viewing of the company and continue our journey.

Our driver Tinn likes to drive firmly, which we've certainly experienced in recent days. His driving skill comes close to that of Max Verstappen. However... Driving through a village, our driver is pulled over to the side of the road. He's been caught speeding, 5 km over the limit. A long conversation with 2 officers by the roadside follows. It looks as though we may not continue with the bus. After some time, the fine is bought off for 2 million Dong, which is 70 euros. Our driver is very shaken. For the rest of the route, he drives somewhat slower and more disciplined.

Tam Liu is the owner of 4 hectares of peppers. To our surprise, they're mostly quite new glasshouses. Tam Lui is 49 years old and has been cultivating peppers for 5 years and tomatoes for 10 years before that. Because that cultivation became less interesting, he switched. For his first glasshouse, he borrowed 200,000 euros and he was able to pay that back after a year. After that, he financed the company with his own money. The mortgage interest rate for agricultural companies is 0.6%. For private individuals for the purchase of a house, this is 10%. You can see from Tam Lui that he's a very satisfied, proud grower with always a broad smile on his face. Together with his wife and children, he runs a lovely company. At another location, he shows his operation where he propagates from seed to plantable plant. Here too, plants are grafted with very good results. In the evening, we conclude the day with a meal in town. We're then the only visitors in the restaurant. We're served to perfection by the whole family. Very friendly and with all apologies if a dish or drink cannot be offered. The food is top-notch, and with that we can conclude the day well.

Day 6 

The morning begins with much rain. Today we have a final visit to a company in the Da Lat area. After that, we have a long drive of 4 hours to Mui Ne. This is a place on the coast where tourism is strongly emerging. The company we're visiting is called Langbiang Farm. The company has a size of 40 hectares and started 25 years ago. The main crop is lettuce on water with 4 hectares. They also cultivate snack tomatoes and pumpkins. Flower cultivation has been greatly reduced because the competition from surrounding countries became too great. The glasshouse layout for lettuce is comparable with other companies. The channels are on a roller bed so they can easily be distributed. The section with lettuce is equipped with sensors and cameras. They propagate the lettuce from seed to end product. After harvest, it takes 12 days for the product to reach its final destination. During harvesting, the root balls are packed in foil to increase shelf life. During the visit to the tomato section, we see a strongly vigorous crop. Tuta occurs in the crop, with damage in the growing point. This damage pattern is greatly underestimated, and we can give the advice to pay attention to this with the right products.

During our visit, the rain comes pouring down, so we decide to leave earlier because we still have a long journey ahead of us. From home, many messages arrive that hurricane Kalmaegi is coming from the Philippines to Vietnam, precisely to the place where we're going. During the long drive, we make another stop at the Liliang Waterfalls. This is also a camping resort. You can take beautiful walks here, but we take one of the little trains because the weather is very poor. In the restaurant on site, we're the only customers. Everything must first be dried to be able to take a seat. We already feel a little bit Vietnamese; we order shared dishes and the team slogan is now 'Everything together!'. After the meal, we continue our drive over a mountain pass that only goes higher into the hills. The mountain sides here consist mainly of red clay-like soil. Due to the heavy rain, parts of the road but also parts of the mountain side have been washed away, as well as trees and bushes. Road workers with excavators are working flat out to clear the road. Fortunately, after some time we can continue our way. We arrive in the dark at our hotel, which is right by the sea. Fortunately, there's little sign of hurricane Kalmaegi here.

Day 7 

Today there are no company visits on the programme, but we're going to do something sporty. We also want to prepare for the return journey. The Mui Ne area has very high sand plains, a sort of desert plain in miniature. We're picked up at the hotel by driver Ba(Ba). The Jeep comes from a time when there was no electronics in cars yet. But it drives, stinks of diesel and has maximum ventilation. We arrive at Nhutrung Bautrang. Here we went quad biking. After that, it was time to walk through the river. Fortunately, after the rain of recent days, the river had dropped back to a calm stream. In bare feet, we walked to the waterfall. This wasn't very easy because the stream has shallow and deep channels, collapsed banks and the bed is covered with large stones and rubbish. During our walk, we meet a deaf-mute boy who knows the little river well and helps us with the difficult parts. The heat and high humidity ensure that the walk through the water is also extra difficult.

The journey through the water is not only a physical effort but also has room for some ideas. With our Horti clogs through the river is the example of what Horti-Consult stands for: providing good advice despite all obstacles, and if necessary against the current. We end our activity and conclude with a drink. We continue the journey. On to Ho Chi Minh City to prepare for the return journey.

Day 8 Ho Chi Minh

One last day in Ho Chi Minh. We fly back at 23.55. So we still have a whole day that we use to delve into Vietnam's past. Therefore, we visit the Cu Chi Tunnels in the morning. In the 1940s and 1950s, the construction of these tunnels began throughout Vietnam. Vietnam was at war with France because France wanted to hold on to colonisation. In Cu Chi, an extensive network of underground tunnels was then dug. These tunnels played a crucial role during the Vietnam War with America. After viewing the Cu Chi tunnels, we visit the War Remnants Museum in the middle of the city. This museum has four floors and extensively shows the 20-year war. In this museum, it became clear that America, but also Vietnam, did gruesome things to win the war. Especially the deforestation by spraying Agent Orange (Dioxin) to see the enemy from the air has had major consequences for the inhabitants; many children were subsequently born with abnormalities. Eventually, Vietnam became a communist country with Russia as a great friend. Now, years later, the relationship with the USA is also good, but that has mainly to do with money.

We're extremely curious what this country will look like in 10 years' time. Our expectation is: hard growth and development. As regards horticulture: Larger companies with much technology because there are driven people in abundance. It can become a strong country if it can deal with the freedom it now has. We look back on a fantastic journey with lovely new insights.